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Most of eastern Ethiopia is a stark landscape of dust-stained acacia scrub and forgettable towns. But scattered around this cloak of the commonplace are gems of genuine adventure. Undoubtedly, the east’s pièce de résistance is the walled city of Harar. There’s still a patina of myth about this ancient town, handed down from the days when its markets served as the Horn’s commercial hub and attracted powerful merchants and Islamic scholars. The colonial-rural melange that is the modern city of Dire Dawa delights in its own odd way, while nature lovers can get their kicks at Babille Elephant Sanctuary and Awash National Park, where the volcanic landscape takes top billing over the wildlife. The truly intrepid can follow the seemingly endless ribbon of asphalt north to the desolate southern Danakil Desert, territory that remains virtually unexplored since colonial adventurer Wilfred Thesiger first regaled tales of the Afar.
These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Eastern Ethiopia.
Area
Harar’s old walled town (known as Jugal) is a fascinating place that begs exploration. The thick, 5m-high walls running 3.5km around town were erected in the 16th century in defensive response to the migrations northward of the Oromo, and little development occurred outside them until the early 20th century. There are six gates: five 16th-century originals and the car-friendly Harar Gate, also known as Duke’s Gate after Ras Makonnen, the first duke of Harar, who added it in 1889.
Lake
The little-explored territory and salt lakes scattered around Asaita are something of a holy grail for serious adventurers. This area remains one of the Horn's most inhospitable corners, appearing much the same as when explorer Wilfred Thesiger laid eyes upon it in the 1930s. Here the Awash River disappears into a chain of lakes, including Lakes Gumare and Afambo, which can be fairly easily visited from Asaita. The scenery is as stark, desolate and surreally beautiful as it is foreboding.
Wildlife
Located north of Fallana Gate, this is one of Harar's two hyena feeding stations. A highlight of any visit to Harar, this impressive spectacle begins around 6.30pm. There are generally two to four hyenas that make an appearance after the 'hyena man' calls them. If none turn up, you'll be taken to a nearby hyena den where hyenas can be seen with their pups.
Wildlife Encounter
One of Harar's two infamous hyena feeding sites, it is located about 1.5km east of Erer Gate (near the garbage dump). This site is usually more productive than the other one because of its isolation and location near the garbage dump (although there's no guarantee).
Market
If you’re travelling east of Harar on a Monday or Thursday, don’t miss the super-atmospheric livestock market in the village of Babille – it's one of Ethiopia’s biggest, attracting buyers of camels, cows, donkeys and goats from as far as Djibouti and Somaliland. The market runs from about 10am to 2pm, but because sales go fast it’s best to visit early. Buses from Harar (Birr12, 45 minutes) are frequent.
National Park
Easily accessible from Addis Ababa, 756-sq-km Awash National Park is one of Ethiopia’s most visited parks. However, if you’re here for the thrill of staring slack-jawed at lions crunching through bones, you’ll be seriously disappointed. It’s much more low key than that, and ongoing incursions by Kereyu pastoralists have done little to help wildlife numbers. Nevertheless, it’s a must for birders and the volcanic landscape of blister cones and fissures is interesting and beautiful.
Wildlife Reserve
Despite considerable tree cutting, livestock grazing and land encroachment, Babille is better protected than many of Ethiopia’s national parks, and the population of elephants (which some authorities identify as a unique subspecies, Loxodonta africana orleansi) has risen to around 400. Also resident, though unlikely to be seen, are lions (notable for their black manes), leopards, Menelik’s bushbucks, Soemmerring’s gazelles and greater and lesser kudus. The bird list is at least 227 species strong.
Museum
Near the middle of the walled city, and often mistakenly called Rimbaud’s House, is this museum dedicated to French poet Arthur Rimbaud with a series of illustrated wall panels about his life. It’s in an attractive Indian merchant house built on the site of an earlier house where it’s said Rimbaud lived. There’s an excellent photographic exhibition of turn-of-the-20th-century Harar – with several of the photos taken by Rimbaud – that show some similarities to the city of today but also significant differences.
Village
With its superb architecture and dramatic setting, the clifftop village of Koremi, 19km southeast of Harar above the Erer Valley, is a definite must-see. It's the largest of several villages of the Argoba, a deeply traditional people whose ancestors arrived in these parts in the 12th century. Unlike most of the Adare homes of Harar, the old stone houses here are unpainted and unplastered.