Leg 107, Las Khorey, Republic of Samaliland to Aba Segud, Ethiopia
DAY12_7.PLN (4.5 KB)
12-07 Las Khorey HCLA 4:11 AM
12-07 Erigavo HCMU 5:05 AM
12-07 Berbera HCMI 5:47 AM
12-07 Egal HCMH 6:28 AM
12-07 Wilwal International HAJJ 7:03 AM
12-07 Jijiga HAJI 7:09 AM
12-07 Dire Dawa Intl HADR 7:45 AM
12-07 Harar Meda HAHM 8:59 AM
12-07 Bole Intl HAAB 9:16 AM
12-07 Lideta Army HAAL 9:22 AM
12-07 Aba Segud HAJM 10:28 AM
Flight time 6:17 10 stops
First up Las Khorey by day
Heading up into the mountains towards Erigavo
It’s a long climb, that ridge is no joke
The edge of the world does exist
Given enough time this whole plateau will be gone as well
Erigavo also spelled as Ceerigaabo or Erigabo
Onwards to Berbera
Back towards the coast, down the ridge
Gulf of Aden in sight
Berbera, the former capital of British Somaliland protectorate
Now flying towards the new capital of Somaliland
Hergeisa, the capital of Somaliland since 1941
Freedom square War memorial to commemorate Somaliland’s breakaway attempt in the 1980s
About 80% of the city was destroyed in 1988 by aerial bombardment during the civil war. I remember my mother having her hands full with a lot of refugees from Somalia late 80s, early 90s. (She worked for vluchtelingenwerk in the Netherlands). Since my mother wasn’t comfortable driving and I had just got my license I ended up driving some back and forth. One women was not used to cars and we had to keep pulling over as the motion made her sick.
War has terrible effects on people. One morning on the way to school, one of the people my mother was helping tried to commit suicide by train. He survived, I can still hear his screams as they tried to back the train off his legs (which he lost)
Flying on, Dugu, Ethiopia
Jijiga not much further
On the way to Dire Dawa
After a quick stop at Dire Dawa, further towards Addis Ababa
Fantale, stratovolcano crowned by a 350 meter deep crater
Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia
African Union Commission conference center at the bottom
The lions of Judah, n the left, Lion of Judah monument from 1954, a cultural symbol of Afrocentrism
On the right, the original monument from 1930. The statue resided in Rome from 1935 to the 1960s, transported there when Italy occupied Addis Ababa at the end of the second Italo-Ethiopian war. It was nearly removed again by the Derg regime after the 1974 revolution. It was allowed to stay as a memory of Ethiopian antifascist resistance and a symbol of Ethiopia.
Tiglacin monument, a memorial to Ethiopian and Cuban soldiers involved in the Ogaden War
The Ogaden War, or the Ethio-Somali war was a dispute between Ethiopia and Somalia which began with the invasion of Ogaden by Somalia. Cuban troops sent by Fidel Castro delivered a major defeat to Somalia. The war left Somalia with a disorganized and demoralized army and an angry population. All of these conditions led to a revolt in the army which eventually spiraled into a civil war. The one I touched on in Hergeisa.
National Museum on the left, contained the famous fossilized bones of the early hominid Lucy.
Red Terror Martyr’s Museum on the right, established in 2010 as a memorial to those who died during the Red Terror 1977 & 1978 under the Derg government. It’s not a pleasant visit, the things people can do to another human being.
Oof that’s a lot to digest on the way out
Cumbi, losing light
Didesa river, well basin now. It’s still empty on Google maps and Bing, showing a construction site
No clue where the lake polygon comes from, maybe a prediction?
A bit of digging shows it as the Arjo Didessa Dam, commissioned U/C, last known info a study about the effects of the dam and an article about the problems with funding stalling the progress. FS2020 is ahead of the curve.
Last stop today Abajifar Airport in Jimma, the coffee production center of Ethiopia
