The lost Ark of the Covenant

On Tuesday, November 14, 1989, I flew back to Addis Ababa, arriving on the morning of Wednesday, November 15. Despite the constant fighting in almost all parts of northern Ethiopia, I knew in my heart the purpose of my visit. I think, if Archbishop Solomon's analysis is correct, then isn't the sacred object regarded as the Ark of the Covenant now in the same "secret place" where it was hidden in the 16th century at the Monastery on the Island of Daga Staveno? Besides, that's not the only place to hide it. I also remember clearly that when I was on a long-distance telephone call with Dr. Belle Godet, he told me an earlier legend about how the Ark of the Covenant survived Queen Gudit's uprising in the 10th century. Historians in Ethiopia explain that the Ark of the Covenant was sent to an island in Lake Tana. So the purpose of my trip to Ethiopia was to explore Lake Tana, in the war-torn north but still under government control, and Lake Ziwai,aluminum tile trim, a safer location two hours' drive south from Addis Ababa. In my first few days in the capital of Ethiopia, I felt a strong sense of urgency. Less than a week after I read Archbishop Solomon's written reply, I left England. The reason for my urgency is simple: Lake Ziwai is safe (at least for now), but there is absolutely no guarantee that the government will be able to control Lake Tana for much longer. I knew that the rebels had surrounded the fortress city of Gondar, about 30 miles north of the vast Lake Tana. At the same time, the Bahir Dar wharf on the south bank of Lake Tana is also being attacked by sporadic guerrillas. To get to the island of Daga Stavuno,aluminum tile edge trim, the Bahir Dar pier is the only way, so I have to seize the opportunity. There would be no difficulty in getting a domestic pass through the normal bureaucratic channels. My old friend Richard Pankhurst took a few days off from the Ethiopian Institute to help me. So, in his company, I went to see the highest-ranking government official I knew-Shmelis Mazanga, senior member of the ruling Ethiopian Workers' Party's politburo and ideological chief. Schmelis, a tall man in his 40s who spoke fluent English, was a committed Marxist and the most knowledgeable and educated member of the Politburo, and he had great power in the government. I also know that he has a real passion for his country's ancient history. So I hoped to persuade him to use his influence to support me on the expedition-and it turned out that he did not disappoint me. I gave him a brief account of my plans, and he agreed that I should go to Lake Tana and Lake Ziwai, metal trim manufacturers ,tile profile factory, but only on the condition that my stay at Lake Tana should be as short as possible. He asked me, "Do you have a specific schedule?" I took out my diary and decided to leave for Lake Tana on Monday the 20th: "I want to go to the Bahir Dar dock first, rent a motorboat from the military to the island of Dagas Tefonno, and then go to.." Return to Addis Ababa on Wednesday, 22. That's enough time. With your permission, I'm going to drive to Lake Ziwei on Thursday, the 23rd. Shmelis turned to Richard and asked, "Professor Pankhurst, are you coming with me?" "Oh, if you can." Of course I'd love to go. "Of course there is no problem." So Schmelis called the National Security Headquarters in Addis Ababa and spoke quickly to the person in charge in Amharic. He hung up the phone and told us that we would get the pass that afternoon. He said, "When you return from Lake Tana and Lake Ziwai, come and see me next Friday.". You can make an appointment with my secretary. We left the Workers' Party headquarters building happily. On my way out the door, I said to Richard, "I didn't expect it to be so easy." Chapter 9 Holy Lake The morning flight from Addis Ababa to Bahir Dar, a town on the southern shore of Lake Tana, took about an hour and a half. Despite reports of fighting in the area, there was nothing unusual about the plane when it landed. The plane made a slow low circle over the Blue Nile River and then landed on the bumpy gravel runway. Richard Pankhurst and I got into a taxi and drove along a road lined with jacaranda and flame trees a few kilometres into town. The "Tana Hotel" on the banks of Lake Tana had 100 empty rooms, so we rented two and went to the Military Control Commission pier, where we wanted to rent a motorboat. We had a long discussion with the officials concerned, and they finally agreed that we should rent a motorboat, but not until the next morning, Tuesday, January 21. In addition, we have to pay a high rent of $50 per hour. I had no choice but to complain and accept the extortionate price and ask them to have the launch ready at five o'clock the next morning. We had to kill the afternoon, so we drove out of the town of Bahir Dar to the nearby village of Tisysat. We drove through dark brown countryside dotted with farmland until we came to a large stone bridge over a steep river valley. The crumbling stone bridge, built by the Portuguese in the early 19th century, looked precarious, but Richard reassured me that it was still serviceable. We crossed the bridge and climbed up a hill. Two militiamen sprang up from the bushes at the top of the hill. They searched us, checked our passports (mine was looked at carefully, as usual), and then waved us through. It took us 15 minutes to walk along a narrow path with dense tropical shrubs and yellow daisies on both sides. We began to feel a vibration under our feet accompanied by a low roar. As we walked past, we felt the air becoming more and more humid. Moments later,stainless steel tile edge trim, we saw what we had come to see-a spectacular basalt cliff, below which was the thundering, roaring Blue Nile. The river spirals beneath the cliffs and then heads for Abyssinia on its epic journey. jecatrims.com