In December of 2005 The Fables of the Nile expedition set off by foot to follow a historical river journey: the Blue Nile from Ethiopia to Sudan and on to Egypt. I joined the walk for the first leg of the journey: from Lake Tana to Debre Markos, in the scenic Amharic highlands of Ethiopia, in order to document the livelihoods of the people living by the river, a largely unexplored region of the world. Stereotypical ideas of Ethiopia as a famine-ravaged country full of dreaded shifta (bandits) rapidly gave way to images of breathtaking scenery and unmatchable hospitality.

The walk started at Lake Tana, the hydrological source of the Blue Nile, or as the locals call it the Abbai. The lake is surrounded by 15 th century Orthodox monasteries displaying vivid religious images. We carried on to the cascading spectacle of the Blue Nile Falls, or Tis Isat, meaning "Smoke of Fire". As the landscape turned the lush meadows into a mile-high basalt gorge, we separated from the river and met the mountain life; a myriad of paths marked the way for peasants going to the closest village market and women rushing their slender silhouettes to fetch water.

All along the way there are scattered villages of cone-shaped huts, where life seems to have remained unchanged for millennia. One thing has changed dramatically, over a cup of coffee village elders share their childhood memories of rich vegetation, and then mourn the deforestation and desertification of their ancestral land.

The path takes us all the way down to Broken Bridge and then all the way up to Choke Mountain, where at 4,000 m. one hears nothing but the songs of the peasants working away on their plantations, and a peaceful breeze.

It is my hope that these photographs may help enrich the visual imagery the general public has of Ethiopia, and reflect its rich cultural heritage, its tradition of hospitality and generosity, as well as its rapidly eroding lush landscape.

This exhibition is dedicated to Ethiopia for its beauty and hospitality, to its people who generously cared for us along the way, and above all to those Ethiopian refugees who were forced to flee their homes; they should be embraced wherever they go, they should be prized for their resilience, they, like the waters of the Nile, should be most welcomed.

Mireia Cano

The Total Profits of the pictures sold will go to an emergency fund for Ethiopian refugees in Cairo.

Special thanks to The American University in Cairo, Magdy Adawi of Fuji Professional Services, Dr. Barbara Harrell-Bond and AMERA for their assistance to refugees in Cairo, and most special thanks to the members of Fables of the Nile : Mikel Prieto, Bard Ingrebricson and Jacob Rothing.