Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Gheralta Lodge

Gheralta lodge is a peaceful Italian owned lodge that attracts expats and tourists from all over the world. The accommodations are excellent and the location provides spectacular views. It’s necessary to book a room in advance because it frequently fills up. I was especially impressed with our room and it’s bathroom. The plumbing was modern, toilet was new. We even had a bathtub to bathe the children. Our stone little lodge looked out on the valley and gorgeous rock formations.
The accommodations were individual round stone brick lodges placed far apart on the grounds of the lodge. There are trails to walk on, trees to climb, small hills to hike, and livestock to watch. The girls played in a sandbox and were delighted when the sheep flocks would come close by to graze. We climbed and hiked to a few beautiful look-out points. Even discovered a few spectacular trees to climb. I was amazed at the quiet peacefulness the lodge provided. The landscape is so very different than the tropics we are accustomed to. It was a completely different kind of beauty. The mornings were cool enough to bundle up, as were the evenings after dinner when the sun went down (I was excited to put Ash in a coat that Addie wore in Virginia when she was born). During the middle of the day the sun beat down hot enough to make me want to nap in the shady areas on the veranda lounge chairs. When the sun went down and we got the girls to sleep Justin and I were treated to a whole other world of beauty. The black night sky in Gheralta lit up with more stars than I have ever seen. The sky was dotted with bright shining stars as if the girls had thrown a handful of glitter in the air. Some of the constellations were easy to spot. Orion’s belt was directly above our heads. It was simply breath taking. Justin spotted three shooting stars over the two nights. My husband was 10 years old again wishing he had his telescope with him. The next time we go we will be bringing our sleeping bags to lay on our backs to stargaze. The stars were definitely icing on the cake at this place.

1 comment:

hannah said...

Love it! I've not been to this part of Ethiopia (where is it in relation to Addis?) but my favorite vacation ever was in Ethiopia. The photos are gorgeous!