Blue Nile by Virginia Morell

 

When one hears the word Nile, the mental image is that of the large, broad river flowing through Egypt.  But there is another Nile, the Blue Nile, that starts in the mountains of Ethiopia and flows through remote lands until it joins up with its sister Nile.  It is full of dangers, rapids and waterfalls, crocodiles and other wildlife and militants who are still fighting for freedom.  The Blue Nile is so remote that it was not fully mapped until the 1920's. 

In 1999, National Geographic magazine sponsored a trip which would be the first to travel by boat from the start of the Blue Nile to its ending.  Virginia Morell jumped at the chance to be on the trip and write an article about it for the magazine.  She had spent time in Ethiopia many years before and welcomed the chance to visit the country again.

Armed with supplies and an entire packet of authorizations from local and state governments, the expedition took off on three rafts.  The guide was a whitewater expert who had been on some of the rapids and falls, especially one gorge that had taken the life of one of his expedition.  He was cautious and leary of the natives although the writers and photographers wanted nothing more than to meet and learn about the native inhabitants in these remote regions.  That created some internal tension for the trip.

Many of those who lived along the river had not seen boats before.  They did not travel the river but were mostly farmers.  They would walk hours to sow their crops along the river with its richer land.  In 1999, most were still uneducated about the world around them and most had never seen a white person.  There was fear at first but the native people were generous and interested in those traveling through their lands.

Virginia Morell spent her career writing about remote lands for different publications.  This is an older book but still full of interesting observations about Ethiopia at the turn of the century and about the people who live there.  Readers, most of whom will never travel in this area, will have an outlook on the area's geography and culture.  This book is recommended for nonfiction readers.