You don’t hear much in the news about Eritrea. The only approved Eritrean news sources come from government owned networks.
That’s why we were delighted to hear from Becks, who spent 6 months in Eritrea, working as a teacher trainer for the NGO Voluntary Service Overseas. She sent us these fantastic photos of life in Eritrea. Most of the photos are from Adferkai, a small village in the Western lowlands of Eritrea.
An elementary school in Adferkai teaches children in the morning and gives literacy and numeracy classes to local women in the afternoons.
Around 50% of Eritreans are Christian, and the other half are Muslim. Adferkai is a Muslim village.
The city of Keren lies in the Western highlands of Eritrea and holds all night Orthodox Christian celebrations for Epiphany in January.
The staple food of Eritrea is a kind of bread / pancake called injera. It is cooked over an open fire on a hot plate called mogogo – underneath the domed cover on this photo. The fireplace is built by hand out of clay.
In Asmara, the capital of Eritrea, most people live in apartment buildings. You can also see Italian architecture from the period of Italian colonisation. Rural housing is more likely to be made of clay, earth or wood.
Becks found that community spirit is very important in Eritrea:
“During my stay I was overwhelmed by the generosity and hospitality of the Eritrean people: These are some of the poorest people in the world but they will share anything they have and make you feel at home, whenever and where ever you turn up. My Eritrean friends taught me the real meaning of community”
Read more about Becks’ experience and find more information on Eritrea on her blog. For more photos visit her Flickr stream here.
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Wow.. I remember doing a school report project on Eritrea back when it was the newest country to gain independence. I would love to go there and see how far it’s come, if at all. But I promised myself I’d explore my own backyard before I looked farther a field
Beautiful photos and a most informative post. I really enjoyed this!
Clint – thanks for commenting. You’re right – it’s always interesting to visit new places but you can’t ignore what’s on the doorstep. Where is home?
Carrie – thanks so much! I’m pleased you enjoyed it.