Ethiopian Diaspora, Foreign Tourists Join Spectacular Epiphany Festival in Gondar

Addis Ababa, January 19/2022/ENA/  A huge number of Ethiopian Diaspora and foreign tourists have joined the special Timket (Epiphany) festival celebration in the historic city of Gondar in Ethiopia’s Amhara region today.

The participation of the Diaspora, foreign tourists and hundreds of thousands of Ethiopian Orthodox Church followers as well as people from other religions in the huge gathering of magnificent Timket celebration made the festival special.

The celebration of epiphany with the Diaspora and tourists from different countries disproved groundless western propaganda that Ethiopia is insecure to go but to evacuate.

The Ethiopian Diaspora and tourists have celebrated the special epiphany celebration in Gondar and the faithful celebrated it with religious rituals, cultural dressing, traditional songs, dances, and prayer.

The spread of COVID-19 coupled with baseless security threats have been diminishing the routine influx of foreign tourists to Gondar until this special Timket gathering disproved the flawed narrative.

Amhara region President, Yilkal Kefale on the occasion thanked the Diaspora for their struggle against western pressure on Ethiopia and the impact they created through the No More movement.

The fact that this epiphany is celebrated in Gondar peacefully and in a unique atmosphere sends clear message to the international community to understand the real situation on the ground and prioritize cooperation with Ethiopia, he added.

The president observed that celebrating epiphany in Gondar has a special joy and feeling.

"If Gondar makes good use of its culture and heritage, it can play an important role in the tourism sector," Yilkal said.

The president has also said that the baptismal font should be named after Emperor Fassilides' baptismal font as before without any further permission, he added.

The out-door celebration of the Timket in Gondar city with huge public gathering has astonished foreign tourists such as Canadian Historian, Novelist and investigative journalist, Jeff Pearce, who exposed the infamous virtual discussion of senior western diplomats.

He is impressed by the special Timket celebration.

“Timket is special in Gonder. The celebration is amazing and difficult to explain the feeling. I am not a Christian. However, I love everything here,” Pearce said. 

He is known for his relentless support to Ethiopia in terms of defending the undue western pressure by providing information about the reality in the country and the government’s stance.  

Pearce is now in Gondar, one of the places where Timket is celebrated in Ethiopia with huge gatherings including tourists of various countries across the globe.

Gondar is known for the walled Fasil Ghebbi fortress and palace compound, once the seat of Ethiopian emperors, dominating it is the immense 17th-century castle of Emperor Fasilides.

King Fasil settled in Gondar and established it as a permanent capital in 1636 and lately before his decline in the late 18^th century the royal court developed from a camp into a fortified compound called Fasil Ghebbi.

The UNESCO inscribed Fasil Ghebbi that includes castles of Emperor Fasiledas and Iyasu as well as the palace of Mentuab among other magnificent historical attractions for foreign tourists and domestic visitors.