This month’s featured UNESCO World Heritage Site is one of the newest additions to the list. Ethiopia’s Konso Cultural Landscape was just designated as a World Heritage Site this year. The Konso Cultural Landscape is the ancestral homeland of the Konso people, a group of farmers and herders living in South Central Ethiopia.

According to UNESCO, the site “constitutes a spectacular example of a living cultural tradition stretching back 21 generations (more than 400 years) adapted to its dry hostile environment. The landscape demonstrates the shared values, social cohesion and engineering knowledge of its communities.”

In addition to showcasing the Konso people’s traditional lifestyle, the Cultural Landscape also contains funeral monuments called wagas. These wooden statues are carved in the likeness of the deceased as well as his family and the person or animal he died fighting. UNESCO says that this funeral tradition is “on the verge of disappearing,” so see them while you can.

To visit Ethiopia, you will need a visa. US citizens flying in to Bole International Airport may apply for an Ethiopian visa on arrival, but be aware that this may complicate your entry into the country. In fact, the Department of State says that tourists arriving without visas may be “significantly delayed.”

If the prospect of being “significantly delayed” in a foreign country after a long flight makes you want to tear your hair out, stop and take a breath. There is another way: you can apply for your Ethiopian visa in advance before you leave the country.

Also, please note that if you’re entering Ethiopia by land, you have to apply for a visa ahead of time.

To get an Ethiopian visa, you need the following documents:

• 1 completed Ethiopian visa application form
• 1 passport-sized photo of yourself
• A copy of your round-trip itinerary
• Your US passport

RushMyTravelVisa makes getting an Ethiopian visa before your trip easy and quick. We know you have more important things to do, like packing, so we walk you through the application process to reduce the chance of errors. Then, we deliver your paperwork to the appropriate Ethiopian Embassy or Consulate for the fastest possible service.

Apply for your Ethiopian visa today!

Tags: Ethiopia, Ethiopia visa, Ethiopian visa, UNESCO World Heritage Sites

This entry was posted on Sunday, July 17th, 2011 at 11:24 pm and is filed under World Heritage Site of the Week. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.