Johnny Ward, founder and editor at onestep4ward.com, left home after graduating in 2006 and has been on the road ever since. Backpacking, volunteering, studying and working through more than 50 countries around the globe. He uses his website as a platform to show people that travelling is easy and to inform people about lifestyle design. “You don’t have to BE rich to LIVE rich,” he says.
Ethiopia is Africa’s hidden backpacking gem. It’s cheap, the climate is perfect, the people are so friendly and there are endless things to see and do. I spent just shy of a month there and could have spent a lot longer.
Lalibela, in the north of the country, is one of the most amazing sights I’ve ever seen. Rock-hewn churches sculpted into the ground – this place should be one of the wonders of the world yet almost no-one has heard of it. After you see it, you too will feel compelled to spread the word about it – jaw-droppingly beautiful.
Africa also gets a hard time when people talk about the cuisine, but Ethiopia is a exception there. The food is amazing, arguably the best on the continent. Make sure you sample the tibbs when you get here – spicy beef fried in butter, perhaps the nicest thing I’ve ever eaten!
Travel Tip: Do not miss Harar, Africa’s oldest Islamic city. At night hyenas run wild through the city. Thanks to generations of this, they are almost semi-domesticated so if you find the right guy, he’ll let you feed the hyenas directly. It’s a scary experience, but one that will leave Ethiopia in your heart for a long, long time.
How to get there: Ethiopian Airlines (www.flyethiopian.com) flies direct to Addis Ababa from London Heathrow. Other airlines offering flights to Ethiopia are Lufthansa (via Frankfurt), Emirates (via Dubai), KLM (via Amsterdam), and Delta (via Amsterdam).
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