No journey along Ethiopia’s fabled historic route would be complete without a visit to the medieval walled city of Harar, which stands amid green mountains on the east wall of the Great Rift Valley. Harar’s heritage is almost entirely Muslim and Oriental. Harar has probably always had a great deal more in common with the Horn’s coastal culture than with the life of the highland – and it retains to this day a certain redolence of the Orient. The most dominant features, apart from its strong encircling wall, is its rich and exciting market place – probably the most colorful in Ethiopia. With its 90 mosques and shrines, harar is considered to be the fourth-most sacred centre of the Islamic word. Its Islamic character is best expressed in the Grand Mosquee (AL Jami), which dominates the town.Rightly renowned for its intricately worked filigree jewellary of silver, gold and amber, Harar’s Megala Gudo market is also a centre for beautiful baskets of woven grass, decorative wall-mats and bright shawls, as well as all the fruits, vegetables, spices and granins of the province. Harar’s five gates – the only means to enter or leave the city center – have been strongly guarded over the years. The fully restored Rimbaud house is well worth a visit.

Sof Umar Cave, one of the world’s biggest, Africa’s largest cave, and marvelous underground world is located 120 kms from Goba town. It is formed by Web River, which rises from Bale Mountain. The beauty of the cave comes from the untouched and savage aspects of the huge main passages, shape of the sections of the galleries, the white color of the lime stones, the great number of entrances, and bewitching noise of the river. The 42 internal entrances and its total passages distance of 16 km, its 1.7 kms tourist line, which crosses the river seven times and takes about an hour walking. Sof Umar cave is a reputed historical Islamic heritage attributed to Sheikh Safiyyullah Umar (Sof Omar).