Lalibela

Being Saturday it was market day, so that was our first stop. It turned out to be the most fascinating we have visited, with people coming from all the surrounding villages

This is the local honey section

Fat tailed sheep

Pulses

Onions

Next stop was the north western group of churches. Built in the 11th and 12th centuries when Lailibela, the king of the same name, moved the capital to here. There are 7 churches in the cluster. First stop was Bet Medhane Alem (House of the Saviour of the World), the largest monolithic church in the world. This church is hewn out of solid rock, cut down from the original ground level rock.

Next the Bet Maryam, Bet Danagel and Bet Meskel complex. This is Bet Maryam dedicated to the  Virgin and decorated to a high standard

Here a priest was happy to display a processional cross

plus it had its own bell tower

We walked on through the maze of tunnels, courtyards and slots

Emerging to be greeted by a group of novice priests being tutored

and some souvenir stalls

It was then time for lunch at the quirky Bet Abeba restaurant

After lunch it was off the the Southeastern group of churches. Firstly Bet Gabriel and Rufael

Next Bet Merkorios, which may have started as a palace, due to is unusual configuration

This cross was claimed to date from the time of King Lalibela

Bet Amanuel, claimed to be Lalibelas most finely carved church

Then Bet Abba Libanos, hewn into the rock face 

And then, the "piece de resistance" Bet Giyorgis, the Church of St George, perhaps the most famous of the rock hewn churches of Ethiopia. It is a 15 m high three tiered plinth in the shape of a Greek cross, a shape that required no internal pillars.

And as an aside, outside, numerous bumblebees 

Lastly, Bet Golgotha and Bet Mikael (the former men only) contains statues of the 12 apostles, and a painting of King Lalibela himself

And we couldn't resist a return to Bet Abeba for dinner