by Lisa Davis-Burnett
WEEKender and ACHA (African Caribbean Heritage Alliance) are teaming up to offer a series of in-depth looks at the continent of Africa. St. Maarten is a fabric woven from threads of many colours and textures. Both strong and soft, the pattern is uniquely our own. Each person, each cultural group, brings their influences and contributes to the weave. But where does your thread come from? For many St. Maarteners, their threads are tied to Africa.
Last week we had an overview of Ethiopia, the Land of Origins. Our own Roland Joe ‘Ras Bushman’ and his wife Raisa sojourned to that country last month. It was a spiritual journey of discovery for them and we are happy to share some of their memories with you.
RAS BUSHMAN had long desired to travel to Africa, since about 1980 he had a hope to reach it one day. “Mostly in the Caribbean, we say if you reach Jamaica it’s good,” he laughed as we sat at Ital Shack on Bush Road. “I had invitations to come to South Africa and Kenya before, but I told them, ‘if I go to Africa, it has to be Ethiopia.’”
So last year, he and his wife began to think about a trip to this unique country, and to pray a lot about it, too. At one of the Saturday “Redemption Night” meetings, Ras and Raisa were told about a sister in New York who knows a lot about traveling to Ethiopia. He contacted her and she was able to link them to a good tour guide, “a real serious man,” named Abbie who worked with the Ethiopian World Federation. Ras and Abbie chatted online and organized what should be done.
They worked with Zaida at Travel Planners to organize an affordable way to get to Ethiopia. They decided to go via New York City and Dubai and then onto Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. Zaida helped them to pre-order vegan food for the flights. They flew on Emirates Airline for the last two legs, which they said was comfortable although the flight was very long, 13 hours!
“When we arrived, we had a very rough landing and I said to myself, ‘Hey, you reach!’” Then they went through immigration and came out into the African air, and there was Abbie. “He was waiting for us, and the first thing he said was, ‘Welcome home!’” Abbie took them to get settled and drop their bags, then it was off to museums and the university and a stop for some injera flat bread with stew, which is eaten with the hands. “That for me was a real blessing to be in Africa, sitting and eating with my hands,” said Ras.
Addis Ababa
The capital city of Ethiopia impressed the couple. “It’s totally modern, like New York City,” said Ras. “But the people are very calm and quiet, they are a very holy people,” added Raisa. When they walked down the street, the Ethiopian people would often call out to them, “Jamaica! Jamaica!” when they saw Ras’ dreadlocks; so he would stop and greet them, and take the time to tell them about St. Maarten. “I made sure they know,” he smiled.
They were given a special invitation to visit the Ghana embassy, an opportunity they didn’t expect, but greatly enjoyed. “I appreciated seeing and meeting people from Ghana,” said Bushman, “I learned about their lives and their country and told them about ours.”
Shashamane
In 1948, Haile Selassie set aside a considerable grant of land to accommodate any Caribbean of African descent who wanted to “come home.” The “repatriation” is still available for free and thousands of Rastafarians and other settlers have come to build their lives there. The area, or woreda, is around the village of Shashamane (also spelled Shashemane) located in a beautiful valley, a six-hour drive south from Addis Ababa.
There Ras and Raisa were given a tour of the village by Abbie. They met Papa Salam, a 95-year-old man who repatriated from Jamaica many decades ago. The two travellers described being in Shashamane as a very meaningful experience for their spirits, “For us to be there – knowing that Haile Selassie left that land for us – was like a revival.”
Aksum
The couple headed back to Addis, to prepare for a flight on Air Ethiopia to the city of Aksum (also spelled Axum). They timed their visit to Axum to coincide with the New Year celebrations. I know what you’re thinking: If they did this trip last month, how could they be there for the New Year? Well, as mentioned last week, Ethiopia operates on a different calendar than the rest of the world. In fact, they are about seven years and three months behind us, and so while we are calling this the year 2016, they are enjoying the year 2009 – and their new year is marked on our September 11. They shared special foods, drank a lot of coffee and burned incense.
In Aksum, they visited many important sites including the Church of our Lady Mary of Zion, which is said to contain the actual Arc of the Covenant which held the actual Ten Commandments given to Moses. On New Year’s Day, a replica of the arc is brought out of the church and carried around in a sacred parade. Ras and Raisa rose early to join the population of Aksum in this spiritual procession. The true arc remains inside its protective vault, guarded by a priest from the tribe of the Levites, just as was prescribed in the Old Testament of the Bible. The faithful of Ethiopia maintain that the Arc of the Covenant was brought to their land by Menelik, son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. They spent four days in Aksum, learning about the history, visiting churches and making friends.
Lalibela
The next high point in their journey was Lalibela. This was Raisa’s favourite part of the entire vacation. Here they had the amazing experience to explore the site of 11 churches connected through a network of tunnels, but the jaw-dropping fact is that these churches were each carved out of solid rock. These churches are listed on the UNESCO Word Heritage List as “Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela.”
The town is named for a prince who was exiled for a time and lived in Jerusalem. He returned to Ethiopia in the 11th century and retook his throne and built the interconnected church network within 24 years. Some historians have proposed that Lalibela managed to bring knights from the crusades with him from Jerusalem. They, seeking the Ark of the Covenant and other sacred relics, might have advised in the construction of the churches. Some engravings and other artwork in the churches support this theory.
Ras and Raisa were mesmerized by these unusual monoliths that literally stand in the mountain. “It was full of surprises,” recalled Raisa. The couple spent the full day wandering and wondering, taking photographs of each other and soaking in the ethereal beauty. Monks and pilgrims take refuge here, sending their prayers to heaven as has been done for centuries. The people of Lalibela are connected to this mystery in a way it is hard for us to imagine, they are intimately related to the land, the history and their religion.
Back to Addis
After returning to the capital, the travellers also attended the Holy Trinity Cathedral which was established by Haile Selassie. “He made it to have women and men worship together, he brought in a lot of equality,” said Ras. “There were no seats, you got to stand in there, but they have special sticks that you can lean on.”
They experienced a sacred ceremony to commemorate the finding of the true cross on Meskerem 17 of the Ethiopian Calendar corresponding to September 27 in the Julian calendar. The patriarch of the Church started a large bonfire in Maskal Square, an open area in Addis Ababa, while other groups come with their own smaller bonfires. The vibrant and moving ceremony involves chanting and praying around the bonfires. The bonfire commemorates how Queen Helena, while in Jerusalem, came to know where the true cross was located by way of a dream in which she lit a fire and followed the smoke. Upon waking, she did as she had dreamed and they followed the smoke of a bonfire, and thus discovered the true cross.
Reflections
After such an amazing journey, Ras and Raisa are happy to be back on the island, but they feel changed by their experiences. They hope to return next year and learn more of the hundred tribes of Ethiopia. “As a Rastafarian, I feel blessed. When I go for myself, I was there and I felt if for myself,” shared Ras. “But with Facebook, many people came along on our trip with us and they themselves were able to experience Africa in a new way.”
So now they hope to establish a permanent relationship between St. Maarten and Ethiopia. Ras announced, “I want to bring Ethiopia to St. Maarten and St. Maarten to Ethiopia.” To travel there is expensive, but he recommends working with Zaida at Travel Planners, and to use Air Ethiopia for flights within the country as it is much cheaper than the larger airlines. Ras hopes anyone traveling there will take advantage of his connections with Abbie and the other tour guides who will not overcharge clients, but will deliver a quality experience, full of deep life-changing meaning. Ras is happy to share the contacts he made with anyone interested in traveling to Ethiopia.
Next week, we finalize our series on Ethiopia and look from there to the next African country of interest: Nigeria. Feedback is welcome: email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
