Deniz Bensason

Deniz Bensason, Photographer
Dallol Crater, Ethiopia

I visited North Africa a number of times; first Morocco and then Ethiopia, twice. I was absolutely overwhelmed by Ethiopia. It was not only the impressive wildlife and the extraordinary stunning landscapes – I found another important element to Ethiopia too – the spiritual dimension that is so prevalent in Ethiopia.

The Ethiopian connection to Christianity started very early, when Philip the Evangelist converted an Ethiopian court official in the 1st Century AD (Acts 8:26-38). Islam in Ethiopia also started early when Muslim refugees, fleeing from the Bnei Quraysh of Mecca, arrived in Ethiopia, shortly before the Hijira (about 9 BH [613 CE]) and were granted asylum by the Christian ruler of the Kingdom of Aksum.

The Beta Israel (Ethiopian Jews) oral history takes as their origin the account of Menelik's return to Ethiopia. Menelik I according to this account was the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba (see: 1 Kings 10:1–13 and 2 Chronicles 9:1–12).

And now connect all this to “Lucy” the Australopithecus, a hominin and forerunner of homo-sapiens – whose skeleton was found in the wilds of Northern Ethiopia.

There is some mysticism, folklore and tradition in the very air you breathe in Ethiopia. The people are very friendly and quite beautiful and smiling seems to be part of their nature. This I think is the reason why people visit Ethiopia again and again.