Dispatch # 34
Cairo, Giza, Luxor, Aswan and Abu Simbel, Egypt
April 2005
“Ancient Wonders, Felucca Rides on the Mighty Nile and Bumblebees”
Our journey to Egypt began and ended on rather inauspicious notes. The late night flight from Barcelona to Cairo began with us encountering a group of agitated Egyptian men arguing with machine gun toting Spanish police in our jet way. Apparently, the men were being denied access to Spain and as a result, they were being placed back onto our flight for transport to Cairo. Not the sort of excitement that we wanted to experience as we were making our first visit to the region. On the return, we had an even stranger experience. When our overnight flight from Cairo to Barcelona landed the flight attendant ran up the aisle and began shouting “Exit the plane immediately!” We were unceremoniously unloaded; make that driven from the plane into buses waiting on the tarmac. The buses then drove us to a remote location in a far corner of the airport where we remained for over two hours. The buses were crammed full of passengers, so we were standing the entire time. No explanation was given for this unusual reception. After some time, we were unloaded from the bus, our carry-ons were collected and we, along with our hand luggage, were passed through a make-shift x-ray machine that had been set up on the tarmac after which we were reloaded onto the buses which were now surrounded by uniform police officers. Obviously we knew something was up, but we were perplexed by the lack of contact with anyone of authority. Finally, some of the Spanish passengers had had enough and they stormed off the bus to confront some of the police officers that were standing guard around the plane. After some heated exchanges, the passengers returned to the buses to report that there had been a report of a bomb on our plane, a report that the authorities had received while we were flying over the Mediterranean Sea. Although this was certainly disconcerting news, it seemed to calm the situation. That little piece of information, if it had been conveyed a couple hours earlier, would have gone a long way to fortify our patience. Although the thought did cross my mind that the reason that they had moved us as far away from the terminal as possible was because they were afraid that the bomb was still in the possession of a bomber who was somewhere on one of our buses.
Given the events of the past few years, we would have thought that the procedures for handling the situation would have been second nature to the local guard, but it appeared that no one of authority knew what to do next, and if they did, they were not sharing it with any of the passengers. Finally, after almost three hours, we were driven to the terminal and released. As you might imagine, the news of a bomb threat made for lively conversation within our wide-eyed family. After a few questions from the children about “bombs” we tried to lighten the situation by relating the scene from “Meet the Parents” when Gaylord Focker was informed that he could not say the word “bomb” on a plane or at the airport. The girls decided that our code word for “bomb” would be “bumblebee,” which elicited a great deal of laughter and excitement from the kids. Thereafter, they took every opportunity to mix “bumblebee” into the conversation, typically pausing just before saying the code word in order to slowly look around them to make sure they were not being overheard.
When we arrived in Cairo, we got our first hint that people traveling outside of a tour group in Egypt are an unusual phenomenon. Everything in Egypt is so organized around tour groups that services for individual tourists were nearly non-existent. Our experience was that when we arrived at an airport, the tour groups were met immediately, herded into groups, and while their luggage was sorted, they were escorted to awaiting buses and then whisked off from the terminal, typically with some sort of Tourism Police escort. So, by the time we collected our luggage at baggage claim, the airport was nearly deserted. Finding an information booth was a veritable impossibility and finding a cab was nearly as difficult. For that reason, we got in the practice of making arrangements with our hotels to have a van and driver meet us at the airport.
While we were in route to Cairo, a suicide bomber detonated himself in the famous Khan Al-Khalili marketplace, a destination very popular with tourists, killing him and several foreign visitors as well as killing and injuring over twenty Egyptians. Coincidentally, we had made plans to visit that very same souk the following day. As you might expect, these close calls with potential disaster (the airplane bomb threat and the marketplace bombing) gave both Biz and I pause to ponder how fortunate we have been throughout our trip. As a result of these unfortunate events, security was extremely tight throughout our stay in Egypt. We passed through metal detectors as we entered our hotel and there were armed guards posted everywhere. The heavily armed soldiers put on an impressive display of force wherever we traveled throughout our stay in Egypt. They were not only found en mass at the airports and the tourist points of interest, but also outside and inside the hotels as well as being stationed along the roads and at every intersection we passed. I found myself wondering if all of these assault weapon toting soldiers had really been issued ammunition or whether they were Egyptian Barney Fife’s, given a machine gun, but no bullets. In any event, in the beginning, the sight of all these armed guards was a bit disconcerting, but like any other ubiquitous sight, we grew used to it after a while their presence tended to blend into the landscape.
During our initial four nights in Egypt, we stayed in Giza at the venerable Mena House. The hotel, which was originally built as a hunting lodge and vacation palace in the 18th century for King Khedive Ismail, has a long and rich history. The palace wing of the hotel was decorated with intricate and ornate arabesque and Islamic designs and furnishings.
Our resident hotel critic, Carmen, gave her official seal of approval to the Mena House. She is a well traveled five year old and as such can quickly assess the relative merits of a hotel and its rooms, using time-worn and proven criteria such as the pool facilities, the variety of snacks found within the in-room mini-bar and the condition of its bathroom. Her main criteria, however, for any decent hotel room is that it have a “foot-soaker“ (a.k.a. a bidet).
The Mena House was set in the middle of acres of flowering gardens and palm trees. More importantly, the hotel was situated immediately adjacent to the Great Pyramids of Giza. The Pyramid of Cheops (the largest of the three) was situated directly outside our window and it was amazing to be able to look up and see this historic wonder at all times of the day and night. We arrived just after midnight and I found myself sitting in the chair that first night, long after Biz and the kids were asleep, staring in astonishment at the shadowy outline of the pyramids which were illuminated by the light a of full moon. This trip has afforded numerous opportunities for quiet reflection, often on beaches during sunsets in places like Hawaii, Phuket and Cape Town, or surrounded by majestic natural beauty in places like the Volcano National Park in Hawaii, the South Island of New Zealand, and in the rainforests and the outback of Australia, and tranquil moments resting in the sun on the dive boat off the coast of Australia reliving the amazing sights from diving the Great Barrier Reef, or on a late evening nursing a hot cup of tea on the floor of a ryokan reflecting on the wonders of Kyoto, sitting in total silence at dusk in a game vehicle in South Africa staring at a group of lions roaring their territorial calls as they prepare for the night’s hunt, standing in the afternoon mist of Victoria Falls, or staring into the early evening’s honey light at man made marvels like Angkor Wat in Cambodia and the Alhambra in Granada. But, this moment of reflection, late at night outside of Cairo, was a particularly poignant one for me.
The next morning we had an unexpected wake up call. Muslims worship in mosques, but pray anywhere and they are required to pray five times daily, facing in the direction of Mecca, the holy city. In every hotel room that we stayed in there was a sign pointing in the direction of Mecca. Generally, the times of prayer are pre-dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, dusk and late evening. In Giza the calls to prayer were broadcast over public loud speakers located in mosques throughout the city. The first call to prayer, which came at 4:30 AM on our first morning in Cairo, startled me and I sprung from bed to try to figure out what the noise was all about. Although the noise did not seem to interrupt the sleep of anyone else in the family, the early morning sounds of broadcast prayers intermixed with crowing roosters and braying donkeys produced another one of those special moments where I contemplated all that we have done and all that we have seen during our glorious adventure.
The early rise did afford me several opportunities to gaze at the Pyramids at sunrise. Each morning I found myself transfixed on the sunlit specter of the Great Pyramids, unable for a long time to take my eyes off of them. We have all known of their existence; read about them, seen pictures and documentaries on them, but to view them for the first time in person was an awesome experience. After exploring the hotel, and grabbing some lunch, we headed off for an afternoon camel ride around the perimeter of the Pyramids. The camel ride was great fun, taking us across the rock strewn sandy desert towards the base of the Pyramids. Hills of sand stretched seemingly to infinity in three directions, the hazy, smog covered skyline of Cairo stretched out in the other. It was quite a windy day and we were pelted by a constant blast of sand as wind generated sand funnels rose from the desert floor between the Pyramids and us. At the time, it appeared that we were the only people out in the sun scorched, vast desert. After the conclusion of our camel trek, we rode to the Sphinx to attend an evening sound and light show. In addition to providing a thundering narration of the history of the Pyramids, the entertaining and educational presentation involved a series of colored spotlights and laser lights that illuminated the Pyramids and the Sphinx.
After a couple of fun camel rides around the Pyramids, Frankie could not get enough indoor camel rides on the back of his papa. He would grab his red fez hat and a play sword, tie a bathroom robe around my neck and climb up the back of my legs. Once he was in place he would shout “Go camel” and we would be off, snaking around the furniture in the hotel room. It is one of those precious moments that I hope not to forget, although the serious rug burns on my knees should assist in jogging my memory for the time being.
Traveling through the streets of Giza we felt like we had been transported back through time, remnants of a very old lifestyle were evident around each turn. As we were riding in the van through the streets of Giza, we also couldn’t help but be surprised by how poor the area appeared. Here, at the base camp of world’s oldest tourist attraction, the buildings were dilapidated, the infrastructure exhausted, the streets dusty and strewn with potholes, trash and litter danced across the roads before blowing into the nearby desert. The alleyways were connected by a Spirograph of overhead lines draped with drying laundry. We passed more donkeys than cars, grown men riding small, bony donkeys and hundreds of donkey carts piled high with all sorts of materials crossed through the streets. Shop front after shop front had groups of men, sitting in the shade of tin awnings, escaping the afternoon sunshine, sipping tea and smoking from communal sheesha pipes. The air carried faint odors of wood smoke and the distinctly unpleasant odors of uncollected garbage simmering in the heat of the sun. Although these sights, sounds and smells added to the ambiance of the experience, they were surprising surroundings for Egypt’s premier tourist area and the last standing wonder of the ancient world.
Although the streets and cafes were full of men, we saw few Egyptian women out in public. The Egyptian women we did see were, for the most part, very modestly dressed and often covered from head to foot. Since socially acceptable behavior prevents any Egyptian woman from striking up a conversation with a stranger, our conversations were limited to men. Although Egyptian men appear to maintain a high level of respect for their own women, they do not, as a general rule, extend that deference to western women. Dressing conservatively, with arms and legs covered, is expected as sign of cultural respect when walking the streets in Egypt. Despite Elizabeth’s best efforts, the men, in general, showed little respect for this draped mother of four as she passed them on the streets, leering at her nonetheless. The sexual repression of the Egyptian male combined with an endless temptation to consider western women loose is exacerbated by the daily newspapers. Every day, the papers would include at least one picture of a scantily clad western actress or singer on the front page along side the breaking national and international news.
Smiles from women apparently can cause a lot of confusion, so Biz, who is naturally gregarious and friendly, had to not only down play her attire but, to a certain extent, her enthusiasm, about being in Egypt so as to avoid any confusion with Egyptian men that she met on the street.
Our next day took us to the Pyramids (or the “peppermints” as Carmen called them) and the Sphinx. Even to a modern day observer, used to the towering buildings of contemporary cityscapes, the Pyramids conjured up feelings of awe. Especially when we imagined how it must have felt beholding them over four thousand years ago. As we stood there, a fine haze of sand and grit enveloped us under a blazing sun. The heat was so intense that we quickly realized that we needed to start our sightseeing tours very early in the morning.
We had hired a private driver and guide, Nasser, to assist us during our time in Giza. There were a limited amount of tickets sold each day permitting entrance to the “King’s Chamber” located in the center of the Great Pyramid of Khufu (or Cheops), so we had to be on time for our 8 AM reservation. After climbing up and over several of the massive blocks at the base of the Great Pyramid, we entered the tunnel and then ascended from the base to the heart of the Great Pyramid along a narrow, steep passageway. The passage was dark, hot and airless, and was so narrow that it was nearly impossible for two persons to pass simultaneously so we had to time our ascent and descent in coordination with the tourists trying to pass in the other direction. This was certainly no place for a claustrophobic. The walkway was set at a 45-degree angle, with handrails and raised slated steps set into a boardwalk in order to maintain footing.
After passing up the long, steep 4’ X 4’ passageway, we reached a second passageway which was equally as narrow, but it opened up into thirty foot high ceilings called the “Great Gallery.” We finally reached the “King’s Chamber” which contained a massive, lidless sarcophagus. It was a unique sensation to be inside this tomb, knowing we were deep in the heart of the Great Pyramid, surrounded by countless tons of sandstone and granite block, reflecting on the fact that it has stood for over 4000 years. We lingered in the dimly lit tomb at the center of this ancient architectural wonder for a while and let our imaginations run. After slowly climbing down the passageway we rejoined our guide outside and continued our tour with close up views of the Pyramid of Khafre (or Kephren), Khufu’s son, the original limestone encased summit of which was still in tact and then finished our tour with visits to the third and smallest of the Pyramids of Giza, that of Khufu’s grandson, Menkaure; as well as to the Queen’s Pyramids (three more small pyramids located nearby and built for members of the royal family); and ultimately, the illustrious Great Sphinx.
The Pyramid of Khafre was built to be fifty feet shorter than his father’s. It actually now appears larger than its neighbor by virtue of the fact that it has retained its limestone casing at the summit. All of the pyramids once were covered with a brilliant white limestone casing. Most of the deterioration of the casing was in fact man made with other Egyptian rulers and, thereafter, foreign conquerors, stripping the limestone casings from the pyramids to construct their own tombs, temples and monuments. The Pyramid of Menkaure, the last of the three main pyramids to be constructed on the plateau of Giza was much smaller than the pyramids of his father and grandfather, its base being about a quarter of the size of the other pyramids.
One of the many interesting things we saw was the “ancient graffiti.” Being the oldest tourist attraction in the world, I guess we should have expected it, but we found it fascinating to see ancient Greek and Roman “graffiti” carvings on the face of some of the monuments realizing that Egyptians predated these “ancient” civilizations by thousands of years. There is also something strange about seeing things like “J.L. 1818” carved into a random block when you are standing in the middle of a temple and coming to the realization that J.L. had been standing in your spot two hundred years ago when he was overcome by the desire to memorialize his visit. It was equally as interesting to spot the Christian graffiti depicting saints and beliefs and we spent a fair amount of time picking out these add-ons to the original Egyptian art and paintings that covered the walls.
Before we finished at the Sphinx, we drove around to the far side of the Pyramid of Menkaure and took another camel ride around the base of the Pyramids. Near the end, the boss hijacked Carmen and me while he administered a good old fashioned Egyptian shakedown. While everyone else continued up the final dune toward our ending point, the grizzled, bearded, robed, Bedouin camel boss appeared out of nowhere and grabbed the reins of our camel. He wanted to get paid. I assured him that I intended to pay, but that I would rather complete our transaction back at the base. He clearly wanted to conclude our business immediately, presumably out of the sight and earshot of our guide. As the boss and I argued over the subject of the proper place to make payment, I kept one eye on the rest of our family slowly disappearing over the dune. Noting the elevated level of concern in little Carmen’s voice as negotiations stalemated, I quickly engaged in an abbreviated bargaining session under duress. After handing over far more Egyptian Pounds than I should have, the boss released his hold on our trusty humped mount so that we could complete the last leg of our journey. When we arrived, the guide instinctively knew what had happened and unilaterally engaged in a heated “conversation” with one of the men. Not surprisingly, he returned to the van with over half of the money I had forked over. We finished our big day of exploring the Giza plateau at the feet of the Great Sphinx, still crouched as a sentinel to the approach of the Pyramid of Kephren after 4000 years. Once again, to finally be face to face with this famous and familiar image was a great treat. After a long, sand blown and hot morning as junior Egyptologists, we were ready for a cool plunge in the Mena House pool.
The next day we traveled to the ancient ruins of Memphis, once the capital of the Old Kingdom of Egypt (circa 2575 BC to 2150 BC). We visited the main Necropolis of Memphis, called Saqqara (or Sakkara), home of many of the early prototype pyramids, like the Step Pyramid, and many of the earliest royal tombs. After being transported from the closest road across the desert floor on the backs of donkeys, we explored the vast funeral complex of Djoser. Saqqara is an important archeological site; it was once a city of the dead that stretched for over four square miles. Ancient Egyptians associated the East and the sunrise with life and conversely, the West and sunset with death. As a result, cities were constructed on the eastern side of the Nile while all tombs and funerary complexes were constructed on the west side of the Nile. We visited portions of the funerary sites including tombs and temples that until their rediscovery in the 19th century had been buried under the sand for centuries. The Step Pyramid of Djoser was the prototype for the Great Pyramids of Giza. It was the first successfully constructed pyramid design. It was designed by the high priest, Imhotep, in the 27th century BC and marked an important leap forward in the history of architecture.
It was an established belief by the ancient Egyptians that when any King died he became a god, but Imhotep was a rare example of the deification of a man of lower rank. He was the chief adviser to King Djoser early in the Third Dynasty (circa 2686 BC). He designed and built the funerary complex at Sakkara; specifically, he is credited with being the architect of the Step Pyramid, built for Djoser. Even though Imhotep is primarily remembered for his architectural service to the king, he also achieved fame as a magician and a physician. It has been established that the ibis was associated with Imhotep and at Sakkara; the mummified bodies of over a half a million ibises have been discovered in underground labyrinths. It is thought that over the centuries, the sick made pilgrimages to Sakkara and the tomb of Imhotep and left ibises as offerings in hope that he would cure their ills. In the centuries following his death, this man of common blood (non-royal) came to be worshipped as the God of medicine and healing.
We explored the underground tombs of Teti and Ti. From the outside, the pyramid of Teti looked like a pile of rubble, but deep inside was a burial chamber containing an enormous sarcophagus, walls and ceilings decorated with vivid hieroglyphic text, ancient funerary script and elaborate wall paintings which have retained their colors even after four millennia. Another fascinating tomb was the “Mastaba” of Ti. Before Imhotep’s innovative breakthrough, royal tombs had been located just below the surface, covered by low, slightly raised mud-brick “Mastabas.” Even thought this Mastaba was nearly 5,000 years old, the detailed wall paintings depicting life in the Old Kingdom of Egypt were still amazingly preserved. An eerie addition here was the foot wide slat cut in the wall of the dimly lit tomb which, thanks to some up lighting on the other side of the thick wall, revealed the life size statute of Ti staring back at us from the anteroom, called a “serdah” which was the room where the descendant’s spirit was believed to reside after death.
The end of the children’s attention spans was signaled by Carmen when she remarked, “I think that I have seen enough royal dead guys.” So we reemerged into the sunlight and then returned via donkey train to our van where we traveled to the Memphis open-air Museum. The ravages of foreign conquerors, time and Mother Nature have left precious little evidence of the once thriving Old Kingdom capital of Memphis. Much of what has been found has been placed in the museum. The highlight of the museum was viewing the eight story high colossal statute of Ramses II.
Tipping in Egypt is expected everywhere, by everyone, even if they are in uniform or clearly employed at monuments. Police asked us for tips when we entered and exited the temples and monuments. The security personnel at the airport requested tips as we passed through the checkpoints. And, seemingly everyone along the streets we passed wanted something as a token of our esteem for their history and culture. As you might expect, once when we gave to one person, several others would suddenly surround asking for “baksheesh.” The word “baksheesh” we understand technically means a gift to the poor, but the Egyptians we met used the word relentlessly to demand a tip. One of the more interesting examples of this phenomenon were the “monument watchers,” dirty, bedraggled Bedouin men who would unexpectedly pop out of the shadows at a temple or monument (in most cases, surprising us and giving us a considerable start) and put their hand out for a tip. They were not providing any discernable service, nor was it clear that they are even authorized to be lurking in the shadows of the monuments, but if we tried to pass them by, they would cling on to us, repeating the words “baksheesh my friend, baksheesh” until we relented and passed them something. We would categorize ourselves as frequent and generous tippers, but after awhile, the constant requests grew tiresome and annoying.
Our final day in Cairo was spent at the Egyptian Museum which was a surprisingly disorganized, run-down cavernous facility crammed full of Pharisaic antiquities. Without the assistance of a guide we would have been completely overwhelmed by the vast inventory of the museum. Our guide, Nasser stewarded us to each of the main attractions. The museum was an enormous storehouse of ancient treasures and curiosities, but the main highlight, by far, was the Tutankhamun galleries and the Royal Mummy Room. The King Tut galleries were huge and amazing. The world famous golden death mask was breathtaking, as were the golden life sized statutes of the “boy king.” The magnificent funerary mask, which was fitted directly on the face and shoulders of the mummy in the innermost coffin, was an impressive example of the ancient Egyptian’s art of goldsmith and carving. The three enormous, ornate and beautiful coffins, one of solid gold, each fitting within the other was also incredible to see in person. The innermost coffin was a masterpiece of craftsmanship, made of solid gold. Beyond this was an amazing collection of thousands of items from golden finger casings to alabaster canopic jars to gilded thrones, full sized chariots and a solar boat, which was expected to transport the dead king/god through the underworld.
The internal organs of the pharaoh were laid in four coffins that were miniature reproductions of the inner coffin. Each coffin accommodated one of the internal organs of the pharaoh considered sacred by the Egyptians, the lungs, liver, stomach and intestines that were removed from the body during the mummification. Interestingly, the brain was not considered important and was extracted through the nose cavity and discarded. We also found the 413 piece collection of individual carved (all in the king’s likeness) “shabtis” intriguing. They were six inch tall carved figures that were effigies of the king, placed in the tomb to carry out any tasks the deceased monarch might be required to do in the afterlife (one figure for each day of the year, plus some foremen to supervise).
The Royal Mummy Room held a macabre and fascinating collection of mummies. Entering the dimly lit room, in total silence, we came face to face with the preserved remains of some of the legendary kings of Egypt like Ramses II and Tuthmosis I. The remainder of the cluttered museum was a blur with the exception of the Amarna Room, which celebrated the unique and short-lived history, art and sculpture of the reign of Akhenaten, “the Heretic King” and his queen, Nefertiti, and the haunting stature of Ka-Aper.
Naser explained to us that the worship of Amon and Ra, as well as the worship of the hundreds of other provisional gods and goddesses that had developed over the centuries was briefly interrupted by an intriguing theological event when King Amenhotep IV, also known as Akhenaten, gave Egypt a brief period of monotheism. Akhenaten declared that there was only one true god, Aten (which was represented through the Sun). In order to begin this new theology, Akhenaten moved the capital to Tell el-Amarna, between Memphis and Luxor, and proclaimed the true faith, the worship of Aten. Akhenaten rejected these personalized gods in favor of a less human deity and discouraged the adoration of the god in human form and substituted the worship of the sun and its rays, or the “sun disc” . The worship of Aten was short-lived as was Akhenaten and considerable amount of intrigue surrounds his rather quick demise. The priests who had a considerable vested interest in the return to the worship of Amon played prominently in these conspiracy theories. After his death, Amon was quickly reinstated as the national god. During the reign of his successor, the boy king, Tutankhamun (originally known as Tutankhaten), considerable efforts were made to deface and destroy the monuments erected by Amenhotep IV during his brief reign as the “heretic king.”
We completed our tour of the museum with visits to many of the exhibits displaying the ancient hieroglyphic texts and symbols. Egyptian hieroglyphics dating back as far as 3200 BC are the world’s oldest known writing system. The beautifully carved sacred symbols and pictorial script were carved onto every available surface on their monuments and tombs. Often, the hieroglyphs were placed inside an oval enclosure known as a “cartouche.” In an illiterate society as it existed in ancient Egypt, the scribes who carved the hieroglyphs were treated as an elite class. In fact, in one instance, a scribe went on to become king notwithstanding his lack of a royal bloodline.
Until 1822, the ability to read and understand hieroglyphs had been lost. It was a relatively small black granite tablet, discovered in 1799 in Rosetta by Napoleon’s army, which held the key to translation. It contained a text in three scripts, hieroglyphic, demotic and Greek. The race to decipher the symbols came down to two main contestants, Thomas Young, a British physician and Jean-Francois Champollion, a French linguist. Although both men made substantial contributions to the understanding of Egyptian hieroglyphs, it is Champollion who is credited with discovering that the extensive list of hieroglyphs could be separated into types and that each type could be separated into different functions and thereby discovering the underlying basis of the ancient Egyptian writing system.
Based upon our experience, when traveling in Egypt, it would do you well to inquire in advance as to the credentials of your guide. Although we were generally satisfied with our guides, it became quite clear to us that achieving the status and license of an Egyptologist guide in Egypt was not necessarily the result of rigorous academic study on the subject. In Luxor, for example, there were over 8,000 licensed guides, which meant that one out of every twenty people in town considered themselves experts on ancient Egypt. As with all of our destinations, we took a considerable amount of time to read up on Egypt, ancient Egyptians, their myths and history. The problem I had with our guides was their definitiveness on every subject. We are talking about 5000 years of history, the understanding of which is based upon legends, myths and stories relayed through individuals and interpreted, sometimes loosely, from carved pictorial symbols. So, you would expect that some of the information provided would come with an occasional “this is what we believe happened, or as best we can determine, this was the case…” Not with these guys. On a number of occasions, the history or information they were providing was in direct conflict with the things we had read in our books, but they were undeterred and in the face of our questioning, they remained adamant that their information was correct.
The cab ride back through Cairo was nothing short of frightening. Traffic in Egypt was incredible. I thought Bangkok was nuts, but Egypt takes the crown for the most illogical, frenzied and dangerous rides of the trip. There were no lanes, no apparent rules, just a leap of faith and steeled nerves. Honking was so ubiquitous that after a while it didn’t even raise one’s attention. Drivers navigated through the traffic by accelerating at break neck speed and then swerving in and out of the narrow openings that periodically opened and closed between the speeding cars. When they came to a stretch of roadway where there was less traffic, they drove down the middle of the road. Aggressive, crazed car drivers intermixed with rumbling buses, belching black smoke and typically so full that several of the passengers clung precariously to the railings on the open side door and rear of the buses. In an obvious effort to calm his white knuckled passengers, one of our cab drivers boasted to us that he was a driving instructor in Cairo, which caused me to laugh so hard in mid-sip that my Pepsi came out through my nose. I mean, how is that for an oxymoron!
In addition to this Dante’s Inferno of vehicular traffic, there was plenty of non-vehicular obstacles sharing the frenzied roadways including, riders on bicycles, camels, and donkeys, lots of donkeys. It was crazy! And to add to the drama of a night ride, Egyptians don’t use their lights at night. Not sure why, but they don’t, all the cars were roaring along, zipping back and forth, approaching each other on narrow two lane roads without any headlights. Quite honestly, we experienced many amazing things in Egypt, but perhaps the most amazing is that we made it through two weeks without being involved in a serious car accident.
After we returned safely to the Mena House from Cairo, we checked out and spent the rest of the day at the pool (our flight to Luxor was not until 10PM), occasionally stealing moments from our poolside chairs to stare at the Great Pyramids once more. We all enjoyed the poolside treat of fresh pita cooked in a traditional wood oven, Frankie helping himself a dozen or so times. Late that evening we loaded our caravan into a cab and headed for the airport and our flight to Luxor.
After several late night delays on Egypt Air, soon to become our least favorite airline because of their total lack of service, we arrived well after midnight in Luxor and got transport to our hotel, the Sofitel Karnak, soon to become one of our favorite hotels because of their exemplary service. Even though it was very late, actually early in the morning, the staff of the hotel was awaiting our arrival, some of staff members had long since had their work shift expire, but they had stayed at the insistence of the manager who prided himself on personal service. They had made up snack trays of meats and cheeses for us, a treat which was greatly appreciated by our band of exhausted travelers.
The morning light revealed beautifully landscaped, palm tree lined grounds running along the mighty Nile. The area around Luxor was a vast desolate desert plateau interrupted by fertile Nile Valley that bordered the great tributary. Beyond our narrow strip of green space the Great Western Desert could be seen stretching to the horizon, beyond which lay hundreds of miles of “movement sand” known only to the Bedouins. The Nile is the gift of life to this country, an emerald ribbon of life snaking through the torrid desert and the Nile’s life giving force has been recognized and deified by the Egyptians for thousands of years.
Luxor was a city built on the ancient ruins of Thebes, once the capital of ancient Egypt. It is now a city of around 200,000 people, most of which are employed in some fashion through the tourism trade. It is an epicenter for ancient Egyptology, home to the Luxor Temple, the intricate and magnificent Karnak Temple, the necropolis of ancient Thebes, and across the river, the Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens and the Temple of Hatshepsut.
A few hours after our arrival in Luxor, we pulled ourselves out of bed and, with the aid of our new guide, Aladdin, hit the ground running with a big day in the Valley of the Kings. It was much hotter in Luxor than it had been in Cairo, with temperatures hovering around 100 degrees in the morning. We traveled by hired van from Luxor on the eastern (or living) side of the Nile, across the mighty river to the western (or dead) side of the Nile and proceeded up into the remote and desolate sand and limestone hills that had once been the main necropolis of the Kings and Pharaohs of the New Kingdom (circa 1550 BC).
Beginning with the reign of Tuthmosis I, the Pharaohs of the New Kingdom had abandoned the pyramids for tombs carved deep into the mountain sides across from ancient Thebes in hopes that the secluded location and the deep underground vaults would protect them from the future grave robbers. Despite their attempts, all but a few were located and pillaged over the centuries.
The most famous burial chamber to remain hidden was that of King Tut, remaining undiscovered until British archeologist, Howard Carter came upon it in 1922. At the time of our visit, The Valley of the Kings had sixty-two known tombs, each located deep under the limestone cliffs, accessible only by dark and narrow caves and passageways. Only a few tombs are open at any one time, the authorities periodically change which tombs may be accessed by the public in order to limit the distress caused to these ancient sites by natural elements as well as the damage generated by the exhalations of thousands of modern visitors.
During our visit, we were able to explore the tombs of Ramses IV, V and VI. Despite having been looted of their contents centuries, if not millennia, ago, the burial chambers themselves remain surprisingly intact, with dramatic corridors, adorned with finely carved bas-reliefs, gilded paintings with hieroglyphic text and detailed symbolic accounts of the Kings’ lives and their expected journeys through the underworld. The tomb of Ramses VI had incredible detail, including a spectacular vaulted ceiling over the sarcophagus, with an elaborate mural showing astronomical and celestial scenes and most striking, the double image of the goddess Nut swallowing and regenerating the sun.
The tomb of Ramses IV had vivid descriptions and colorful scenes from the Book of the Dead, above another awe-inspiring ceiling mural of the Goddess Nut stretching across the heavens. The King’s pink granite sarcophagus was covered with ancient text and carvings. It was amazing that these paintings and hieroglyphics, originally painted with a mixture of crushed gems and minerals mixed with egg whites have remained so vivid after nearly 4000 years.
Maddie loves mythology and after gobbling up several texts on ancient Egyptian mythology, she became our resident expert impressing us with her knowledge by recognizing and explaining various painted and carved scenes and cartouches. At one point during our tour we noticed that there were a pair of elderly American couples that moved in closer to our family each time Maddie would begin to speak. After a few lessons from our diminutive Egyptologist, one of the women turned to me and asked, “Her wealth of knowledge is incredible, how long has she been studying this subject?” I smiled and told her that Maddie was parroting what she had read in the past week. Astonished, the women replied, “Thank goodness she was here otherwise I am afraid we would not have had any idea what we were looking at. She has far more information than our tour guide.” It was a nice compliment to Maddie, but I had to wonder why someone would travel halfway around the world and not take the time to do at least a little light reading on the subject of their tour. I suppose most do, and the ones that don’t just assume that their tour guide will provide them with all the information that they will need, but I can assure you that even with a guide, we were amazed at how much information we had read about that they neglected to mention.
After a full day exploring tombs, we drove to the monumental temple complex of Hatshepsut (or as the kids would say “Hot Chicken Soup”) which was set in stunning fashion at the base of sheer limestone cliffs. The story of “Hot Chicken Soup” is an intriguing one as well. SHE was a pharaoh, her true gender hidden from her people, as was her true ancestry, so as to legitimize her claim to the throne. When her pharaoh husband died, the next male heir to the throne was her infant stepson. So, she assumed the throne amidst deception and palace intrigue. Later, a very angry stepson, and the true heir to the throne went to great lengths to erase all vestiges and images of Hatshepsut’s reign, but some did survive.
With the afternoon sun literally baking Frankie and Carmen, Biz volunteered to stay behind with them under some shelter while Maddie, Bella and I explored the dramatic Thebian temple complex. It was an impressive monument, rising from the sand in a series of terraces seemingly carved out of the limestone cliffs surrounding it. We saw dramatic colonnades and the remains of great halls and the remnants of enormous statutes, wonderful bas-reliefs, carvings and colorful, intricate wall paintings. Many of these statutes and depictions showed Hatshepsut represented as a man with a full beard, while others had been designed to document her claim to the throne, including the “birth colonnade” which contained scenes of Hatshepsut’s “divine birth” (she claimed to have been born out of an immaculate conception by her (oops, “his”) mother who had been impregnated by the sun god, Amun).
After a scorching, but satisfying day, we returned to our hotel. It was a very nice facility, less than a year old, with a wonderful pool and beautifully landscaped gardens and grounds leading to the majestic Nile. One of our main activities alongside the pool was our daily spirited game of foosball. It was a great setting for the kids, especially after our hot morning explorations. The hotel had impressive buffets at breakfast and dinner and the kids all did a great job of trying some new types of Egyptian food. Each evening I would retire to the grassy banks of the Nile to enjoy a few quiet moments sitting alone in the evening’s honeyed light staring at the Nile, across the green belt of irrigation to the tan, seemingly endless desert beyond.
Our second day in Luxor we took a tour of the Karnak and Luxor Temple complexes. Our first stop was at the Luxor Temple. Our first glimpses of the temple revealed a wide avenue lined on each side with Sphinxes, which lead to the main temple. At one time, this grand avenue stretched over two miles from the Luxor Temple to the Karnak Temple. Two enormous pylons formed the entrance, guarded by two huge and magnificent seated colossi of Ramses II, which was flanked on one side by an eight-story tall granite obelisk. The pylons were decorated with carvings of scenes celebrating Ramses II military victories over the Hittites. Beyond, we passed through rows of pillars carved into giant papyrus bud columns decorated with ancient scenes and finally emerged into a series of grand plazas which contained the ruins of temples that had been constructed and enlarged over the span of hundreds of years by a series of successive Pharaohs, most notably Tuthmosis III and Ramses II.
We saw so much and our ability to absorb all of the sights and mentally catalog all of the history and information provided was overwhelming at times. It was only upon later reflection, when we were able to consult our books and pictures and put them together with our written and mental notes that it began to make more sense. One thing that we did take from the tours was an appreciation for the colossal structures and opulent temples that were constructed by an advanced civilization, thousands of years before anything even remotely similar in scale was developed on the face of the earth.
If Luxor Temple wasn’t overwhelming enough, our same day visit to the ruins of the Karnak Temple complex was. The ruins represented a small portion of a once immense complex, but what remains is simply stunning. Primarily constructed between 2000 BC and 1100 BC, this magnificent complex was dedicated to Amon-Ra (the Sun King and King of Gods). It was a sprawling temple city with multiple massive pylons, temples, courtyards, halls, and colossi. Nothing was small in scale; everything was enormous, intricately designed and as awe inspiring now as it must have been thousands of years ago.
At one time the Karnak Temple was a collection of freestanding, magnificent temples. Within the once majestic courtyards of one of the remaining temple were statutes of Sekhmet, the lion headed goddess of war, Amenhotep III had placed hundreds of these statutes in the temple at Karnak that he had constructed in honor of Mut (a god who was worshipped at Thebes (Luxor), as the consort of Amon and part of the Theban Triad which included Amon, King of the Gods, Mut and Khonsu (the Moon God and son of Amon and Mut)).
The towering walls of the temple were covered with stunning bas-reliefs, like the bas-relief of Amon giving life to Horus the falcon. Like Ra, his peer from the north, Amon was identified in the south as the sun god, creator of the universe and source of all life; He was believed to be a protector of the kings and guarantor of success against enemies. A god of such power was honored magnificently in the Temples of Karnak and Luxor. Series of vibrant etchings and paintings depicted the rituals performed in Amun’s honor each year including those performed during the Festival of Opet (Obet). At the height of the flooding of Nile, the statute of Amon was taken from its residence in Karnak and carried along the magnificent avenue to the Temple of Luxor. The festival included elaborate processions along the sphinx lined avenue, feasts, and sacrifices.
Bas-reliefs of gods holding the key of life, the “Ankh”, were the most prolific symbol we saw in our viewing of Egyptian art and carving. The symbol of life, shown in many drawings and carvings being held by a god in front of the king’s nostrils so the breath of eternal life would enter his body. It was also shown being held by the kings and gods. This same symbol, like many others that we saw in Egypt, has been adopted by modern religions and used in their worship. We have enjoyed discovering the origin of words, art and symbols that have survived from the time of these ancient rulers through modern day.
The great seat of Amon’s worship was the Temple of Karnak. At the time, and perhaps to this day, the largest religious shrine in the world, it was constructed over a 1,300-year period, added to and modified by every ambitious king up to the Greco-Roman period. One pharaoh would decorate a temple, another would add a courtyard or grand hall, and others added colossi and obelisks. Amon’s primary consort was Mut, also known as mother, considered the great earth mother who conceived all things and brought them into existence. She was depicted usually as a woman wearing the dual crowns of Upper and Lower Egypt, holding the “Ankh” or key of life. Elaborate bas-reliefs of Mut adorned the walls of the Temple of Karnak depicting her clearly as a protective goddess.
Some of the other visual highlights of the Karnak Temple were the Great Hypostyle Hall, once a cavernous hall supported by 134 eighty foot columns, each uniquely carved to represent palm trees, most of which still remain; the imposing Colossus of Ramses II with his daughters at his feet; and the majestic avenue of ram headed sphinxes with miniature pharaohs protected between their paws that once connected with the avenue lined with human headed sphinxes coming from Luxor Temple. We could only imagine how breathtaking these temples and grand sphinx-lined avenues must have appeared as the grand “Obet Festival” processional passed along them to the awe and wonder of its ancient spectators.
Later that evening, Biz and the big girls visited the Mummification Museum and the Luxor Museum where they saw more wonderful treasures from the ancient world and received an education into the rituals and processes of mummification. They were fascinated by the sophisticated techniques the Egyptians developed for mummifying, many of which today would be difficult to replicate. There were large displays of the various animals that the Egyptians had mummified. After the museums, we retired with our guides, Aladdin and Tajah to a street side café to experience some real Egyptian down time with tea and sheesha pipes.
Our next day was spent lounging by the pool in the hot sun. Taking a shower or jumping into a cool pool in Egypt is a cathartic experience. The sun is so hot and there is finely blown sand and dust in the air at all times. The evening included a sunset Felucca ride down the Nile capped off with a Sound and Light Show at the Karnak Temple. No trip to Egypt would be complete without a sail in a Felucca; these simple sailing vessels have been plying the waters of the Nile for millennia.
During our evening sailing trip we stopped at Elephant Island but it was a disappointment, as our exploration of the island quickly turned into a captive beg fest as the locals hounded us in their relentless pursuit of handouts. The kids did enjoy the sweet taste of the locally grown bananas, but they quickly became uncomfortable as we tried to march through a gauntlet of aggressive panhandlers. Back home we give money to almost every person down on their luck, but in Egypt, where it is ubiquitous and relentless, you find yourself withdrawing, exhausted by the non-stop and often aggressive tactics.
The Sound and Light Show at the Karnak Temple was well done. We enjoyed it more than the one at the Pyramids because this presentation was more interactive. As we walked through the Temple, the light and sound show gradually progressed illuminating various portions of the vast complex as the narrator told the stories and history of the Temple and its royal architects.
That evening I sat along the quiet banks of the Nile, enjoying the reflection of the moon on the gentle, majestic waters when the wonderful moment was shattered by the start of “American music night” at the hotel’s cabaret. There was something distinctly wrong about sitting along the banks of the Nile listening to an Egyptian torch singer belting out Bob Denver tunes. The magical spell broken, I retired for the night.
Our “last day” (at least at the time we thought it was to be our last day) in Luxor, was spent relaxing, swimming and playing marathon sessions of foosball. A long story, short, Egypt Air had changed our flight time, moving up the departure time two hours without notice, leaving us stranded in Luxor for 12 hours. Egypt Air is a government controlled monopoly and when you are the only game in town, you don’t have to worry a lot about customer service. We had gotten up early, arrived at the Luxor airport by 7:30 AM for our 9:00AM flight, only to learn that the airline had changed the departure time to accommodate a tour group and the plane had just departed a half an hour earlier. This was most definitely a most unfortunate event since the next flight to Aswan didn’t depart until 7:00 PM.
When I asked to speak with a manager and was shown to a chair and offered some tea. After sitting for about a half an hour watching the same guys walk in and out of the office, I stood and approached the desk, which by now was surrounded by a dozen men, sipping tea and smoking while they laughed and joked with each other. When I approached, one of the men stepped forward and offered to take me to the boss. Apparently, nothing was going to happen until I let them know I was tired of waiting. When I entered the boss’s office, I walked into the middle of a room with eight men sitting on old beat up couches, and you guessed it, sipping tea and smoking from a sheesha pipe. As I was explaining the situation to the boss, periodically he would interrupt me with what I would describe as an Egyptian Three Stooges routine. In mid sentence he (Moe) would raise his hand so as to beg my pardon and then give some instructions to one of his couch bound lackeys (Larry), who in turn would turn to another in the room with instructions, who would then turn to another (Curly) who apparently having no one else to boss around, would then get up off the couch and disappear out the doorway. When Curly returned he would start a conversation that would work its way up the room’s bureaucratic ladder until Larry would once again interrupt my conversation to deliver his message to Moe. After a couple more interruptions and a clear indication that Moe could care less about our predicament, we left the terminal and headed downtown to find the Egypt Air office for so that we could be re-ticketed for the 7PM flight (they couldn’t issue tickets at the airport). A few more hot teas and a lot of deliberations later, we were re-ticketed, but we had nowhere to go for the next seven hours and we weren’t comfortable leaving our luggage at the ticket office, so we did the only thing that we could think of, we caught a cab back to the Sofitel Karnak. Not only did they let us hang out for the day, they offered us our room for the day free of charge so that we could relax and store our luggage. Thanks to the Sofitel Karnak, they made a potentially dismal day into an enjoyable one.
Our last stops in Egypt were in the ancient City of Aswan and the Temple complex at Abu Simbel. Aswan was quiet city perched on the banks of the Nile and at the edge of the desert. The culture and people of this part of southern Egypt represented a mixture of north and south, culture and the physical characteristics from both Egypt to the north mixed together with the culture of native Nubians which had much darker skin and possessed facial features reflecting a more African genealogy. Aswan was traditionally where Egypt ended and Nubia (modern day Sudan) began and served as the traditional doorway to southern Africa. It was unique to see the topography in Aswan. Whereas in the Cairo, Giza and Luxor, the Nile was surrounded by a band of green farmlands, in Aswan, the tawny sands of the desert reached to the very banks of the great river. The wide and majestic river we had seen to the north had now narrowed and quickened as it passed through cataracts dotted with small islands and bounded by ancient ruins literally overrun by the sands of time.
We stayed at the Old Cataract Hotel, a century old stately Moorish style hotel, with wonderful views of the Nile and nearby Elephantine Island. The terrace provided superb evening views of the sun setting over the Nile and the vast desert beyond. The hotel itself had an impressive list of past dignitary guests such as Sir Winston Churchill and German Field Marshal Rommel. However, one of the most famous temporary residents of the Old Cataract was the English mystery writer, Agatha Christie, who penned her novel “Death on the Nile” while staying at the hotel.
After a week of guides in Giza and Luxor and having our hotels arrange transportation for us, we decided to strike out on our own in Aswan. Some of this decision could be based on the fact that Maddie seemed to know more about Egyptology than our guides, but more importantly, we had become quite comfortable in Egypt and didn’t feel the need to have a local resident run interference for us any longer. So, we jumped in a cab and road through the dusty streets of Aswan to the wharf where we commandeered a boat ride on a rickety old long fishing boat to the Island of Philae to see the magnificent temple dedicated to the goddess Isis. Philae is the largest of three islands at the south end of the group of rocks that make up the First Cataract. Surrounded by the waters of the Nile, in the midst of a fascinating landscape of granite rocks, the sacred island contained the stunning Temple of Philae whose enormous pillars could be seen from our approach.
The resurrection of the Temple of Philae was one of several success stories that arose from the cooperation of an international team, and one of several examples of the international community’s Herculean (sorry, civilization confusion) efforts to save some of Egypt’s ancient treasures. The sacred island was above water until the middle of the twentieth century when construction of the Aswan dam left it submerged under the waters of an artificial lake for most of the year, only reappearing when the locks were opened once a year to release the pressure of the Nile floodwaters. Between, 1972 and 1980, it was dismantled, block-by-block and rebuilt on a position of higher ground, saving the splendid temple for the enjoyment of future generations. A long courtyard flanked by towering colonnades lead to us to the graceful and stunning Temple of Isis, the main building in the Philae complex, which was covered with massive carvings of scenes of Egyptian pharaohs destroying their enemies as Isis and Horus watch from above. In addition to this beautiful temple complex, we explored the Gate of Hadrian, dedicated to the famous Roman leader. The massive stone gate was inscribed with the date August 394 AD and contained the last known hieroglyphics ever produced by the Egyptians.
The Temple of Isis was dedicated to the Goddess Isis, a very important God in Egyptian mythology and religion. According to legend, Isis was the consort of Osiris who was born a god, but took the form of a man and became the first king of Egypt. He civilized the people, passed down laws and taught them the ways of agriculture, art, music, sculpture and astronomy. Beloved by the people of Egypt and married to the beautiful Isis, Osiris was hated by his brother, Seth, who consumed with jealousy, plotted and killed his brother, cutting him into numerous pieces and casting them into the Nile. Isis miraculously retrieved all of the pieces and put them back together and thereby reviving her piecemeal husband. Apparently, the handiwork was a bit unsightly, and as such, Osiris was wrapped in mummy cloth for all eternity. Not surprisingly, he then became the God of the Dead. Isis’ miracle and her power to recreate her husband were celebrated as the embodying the cycle of nature, its annual rejuvenation and the Gods’ powers to create immortality. Her beauty and powers were worshipped in the halls of the Temple of Philae. As an aside for anyone who is wondering how Seth got away with this terrible deed, Isis and Osiris had a son, Horus, who went on to avenge his father and kill the evil Seth in one of the great battles of the Gods in Egyptian mythology. Horus, typically depicted with a falcon’s head is one of the most scared images in their ancient religion.
During our stay in Aswan we could not resist taking another Felucca ride. We spent a late evening gliding softly over the blue waters of the Nile in another of these ancient sailing boats. We watched a glorious sunset edged in saffron pass behind the high dunes in the distant desert and then sailed in near total darkness and silence around Elephantine Island before returning to the docks of the Old Cataract.
The final leg of our Egyptian journey was supposed to be a 7:00AM flight from Aswan to the temples of Abu Simbel and, following four or five hours of sight seeing in Abu Simbel, a direct flight to Cairo. Once again, Egypt Air threw us a big curve. Instead of the itinerary that we had bargained for some six months prior, Egypt Air without notice unilaterally made a change to our schedule. Instead of having five hours to explore Abu Simbel, we had two (not counting the time it takes to disembark and the time prior to departure that we were expected to arrive back at the terminal) and instead of flying directly to Cairo, they now had us flying back through Aswan with a four hour layover in Aswan before an evening flight to Cairo. Needless to say, we were not impressed, but we quickly learned that when an airline is a government-controlled monopoly, there really are not many options. Nor, may I add, do the employees of the airline tend to give a damn.
Before completing this side trip, we had to wonder if flying to the remote location for a few hours and then reboarding a plane and flying out would be worth the trouble, but it was and we are glad that we stuck with our plans. Located on the banks of Lake Nasser, and adjacent to the Sudanese border, the spectacular and imposing temple complex of Abu Simbel was one of most impressive we saw while in Egypt. It too was rescued from the rising waters of Lake Nasser, created with the construction of the High Dam in the 1970’s. An international group of nations coordinated to methodically dismantle and reconstruct Abu Simbel on high ground. The story of this feat was an amazing one in itself.
Cut out of the solid rock cliff in the 13th century BC, the Great Temple of Abu Simbel was a breathtaking sight. The view of the four enormous seated colossi of Ramses II guarding the entrance to the temple was awe-inspiring. Inside the temple were two rows of 30’ tall standing statutes of Ramses II which were flanked by elaborately painted ceilings and walls (the colors of which were still vibrant after over 3,000 years) which depicted, among other things, the military conquests of Ramses II during his reign, walls full of engraved hieroglyphics. Beyond the main hall were a series of stone passageways and decorated inner sanctums. One of the many interesting parts of the temple was a relatively small sanctuary at the rear of the temple, which held the statutes of Ramses II and a triad of gods seated next to him. Apparently, the temple was constructed with such amazing precision that twice a year (and only twice a year), the direction and angle of the sunlight penetrates through the main entrance, passing through the heart of the temple and then through the smaller doorway leading to the sanctuary and illuminates the statutes of the seated dignitaries. Once clad in gold, this inner sanctum must have been amazing to behold.
Nearby the temple was another imposing structure, constructed by Ramses II to honor his wife, Nefertari. Colossal statutes of Nefertari and Ramses II alternated along the spectacular façade of the temple. Nowhere else in the treasures of ancient Egypt is there a temple or monument of such size dedicated to the consort of a pharaoh.
More Things Learned in Route
By around 3100 BC highly stratified states existed in the two separate kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt. Historians suggest that Egypt’s Pharaonic period began around this time when King Menes succeeded in unifying the two kingdoms into one. It is generally believed that he placed the capital of the newly unified kingdom in Memphis, about 25 miles south of modern day Cairo and began a successive reign of monarchs that lasted for nearly a millennium, through the end of a period that is commonly referred to as the Old Kingdom (circa 2575 BC to 2150 BC).
From around 2150 BC to 2040 BC, there appears to have been a period of anarchy. The central power of the king eroded being replaced by separate and independent warring monarchs and warlords. This era, known as the First Intermediate Period lasted until centralized rule was restored around 2040 BC by the Pharaoh Mentuhotep I, who consolidated his power around a new capital at Thebes, now modern day Luxor. This began the period known as the Middle Kingdom, which lasted from 2040 BC to around 1785 BC. The central authority of the Pharaohs once again was interrupted during what is referred to as the Second Intermediate Period (circa 1785 BC to 1550 BC) when substantial portions of Egypt were conquered by a foreign nation. Although it seems unclear who these foreign invaders were, many historians believe they were Asiatic in origin and perhaps passed from modern day Turkey.
With the dispatch of the foreign occupation by a conglomeration of native Egyptian forces, around 1550 BC, the New Kingdom began and lasted for another five hundred years during which time a unified and aggressive Egypt dominated the region, expanding its military influence and provincial powers beyond its traditional borders. The pharaohs of the New Kingdom abandoned the building of Pyramids and built massive and elaborate burial tombs carved into the sandstone cliffs of the west bank of the Nile outside of ancient Thebes. They constructed massive and magnificent Temples around Thebes and enjoyed a most splendid rule. Egypt became an imperial power and under the rule of Tuthmosis I (1504-1492 BC) extended her borders far into Nubia in the South and to the Euphrates River in the North. Later, under the direction of one of the most prolific temple builders and (baby makers), Ramses II (1300-1233 BC), the power of Egypt was extended over much of the modern day Middle East and large portions of northern Africa. Apparently Ramses II had over a hundred children. So when he wasn’t off fighting wars and building an empire, he was home building a prodigious bloodline.
During the Third Intermediate Period (circa 1070-712 BC) Egypt’s power once again waned and it retreated to its traditional geographic boundaries. Finally, Egypt began what is called its Late Kingdom (circa 712-332 BC), a period of unification and consolidated rule begun by a Nubian king, King Shebaka. Twice during the Late Kingdom, Egypt was conquered and ruled by Persian kingdoms from modern day Iran.
Finally, Egypt came under the rule of the great Macedonian warrior king, Alexander the Great around 332 BC and began a period of foreign domination that would last for almost two millennia until its independence from Great Britain in 1952. The period 332 BC to 395 AD is known as the Greco-Roman period, which began when Alexander the Great and his armies marched into Egypt. Alexander established a new capital at the mouth of the Nile delta and called the new city Alexandria. For the succeeding 900 years, Alexandria was a great center of trade, culture and learning in the region.
Alexander the Great died at a young age and only ruled over Egypt for nine years. He was succeeded by his bother, Philip for a period of time, but after the death of Philip, the powerful military general, Ptolemy assumed power and he and his progeny established a dynasty that lasted for three hundred years until the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC. During this last dynastic period, Egypt underwent one of its last grand architectural and artistic developments when magnificent temples such as Philae outside of Aswan were constructed, bearing both ancient Egyptian and Greek influences.
As the Roman Empire edged towards it zenith, legions under the command of Augustus defeated Cleopatra’s military forces and Rome began its nearly four centuries of domination over Egypt and its people. Even though Rome ruled with a tight grip, it was tolerant of Egypt’s ancient religions until Emperor Constantine declared Christianity to be the official religion of the Roman Empire in 333 AD and established Alexandria as a principal center of Christian learning.
It was frighteningly difficult to try to keep track of all of the gods as we explored the various temples and historical sites. One reason for this was that there was never a uniform religion. This was due in large part to the fact that the dominance of the gods depended on the beliefs of the reigning king. Their area of dominance depended on where the king wanted his capital. Likewise, the myths changed with the location of the gods, as did their names. Names in ancient Egypt were very mystic and powerful. It was thought that if you inscribed your enemies' name on something, then broke it, that enemy would either be afflicted, or possibly die. If you knew a name you had power. In the same respect, using a name could be beneficial. Each god had five names, and each was associated with an element, such as air, with celestial bodies, or was a descriptive statement about the god, such as strong, virile or majestic.
The creator of all things was either Re, Amon, Ptah, Khnum or Aten, depending on which version of the myth was currently in use. Hathor, Bat, and Horus represented the heavens. Osiris was an earth god as was Ptah. The annual flooding of the Nile was Hapi. Seth caused storms, evil and confusion. His counterpart was Ma'at, who represented balance, justice and truth. The moon was Thoth and Khonsu. Re or Ra, the sun god, took on many forms, and transcended most of the borders that contained the other gods. The actual shape of the sun, the disk (or, Aten), was briefly deified into another god, Aten.
Ra was the sun god; the king of gods and northern Egyptian art usually depicted him with a solar disk, a circle drawn over his head. Frequently Ra was depicted with the body of a man and the head of a falcon, which was similar to the depiction of the god Horus. The difference being that Horus wore a crown on his head and Ra had the sun disk over his head encircled by a cobra (representative of fierce and destructive force). As time passed, and the religions and its priests changed, Ra and his attributes were assimilated into other gods, such as Atum and Amon. Ultimately, Amon was even combined with Ra to create the King of the Gods, Amon-Ra.
During our tour of the Valley of the Kings, we visited one of the tombs, that of Seti I, which included impressive and colorful carvings depicting the story of the destruction of humankind under the orders of sun god. During the Middle Kingdom, when Amon and his Thebian priests dominated Egyptian religion, Ra was assimilated with this god from the south to become Amon-Ra, whose worship in Thebes (now Luxor) led to the building of the great Temple of Karnak, one of the most imposing religious structures ever constructed by human beings. The Temple of Ramses II that we saw in Abu Simbel was dedicated to Ra-Herakhty, which is an assimilation of the god Ra and the god Horus (as god of the morning sun).
The priest of ancient Egypt used numerous devices to encourage belief in the gods and maintain a steady flow of offerings. One practice was the oracle, through which the god spoke words of wisdom to supplicating humans who came for advice. At one of the temples we learned that there was an underground tunnel used by the priest to “transmit” the word of the gods from their inner sanctuary to the chamber where the supplicant heard the voices of the gods speak to him. In another instance, priests were able to rig a statute in the temple of Khons (son of Amun and Mut) to enable them to make the statute’s head nod slightly when they wanted to answer the king’s request for guidance and questions in the affirmative.
Egypt is 95% Muslim. A Muslim is a follower of Islam. It is not synonymous with Arab. Allah is the Arabic word for God. The Koran is the holy book of Islam and is believed to be the literal word of God as revealed to the Prophet Mohammed through the Archangel Gabriel. Whenever the name of the Prophet Mohammed is invoked, it is usually followed by the phrase; “peace be unto him” The Prophet Mohammed’s “hadith” of preaching are a supplement to the Koran and are considered to be a guide to correct conduct and behavior for Muslims. The Hadith includes reported sayings, deeds and approvals of the Prophet Mohammed. His code is called the Sunna, which literally translated means the “beaten path.” Friday is the Holy Day, so the weekend is Friday and Saturday.
We found that in Egypt, as with all of our travels, it was very important to have a basic understanding of Islam. However, we also found in Egypt that many of the people that we met had little or no understanding of our religion, but arguably no worse than our general lack of understanding and appreciation for the Islamic religion back home. For example, on one occasion we were asked where we going after we left Egypt. The person asking the question was clearly educated and middle class by Egyptian standards. “We are off to Rome, to meet the new Pope” we replied. There was a long period of silence before he asked, “Pope, what is Pope?”
When Egyptians pray, which is five times a day, they do it from wherever they are standing at the time. They lay down a mat and place their forehead for extended periods of time on the floor. It is a mark of piousness to have a dark spot or raised callous in the middle of one’s forehead and we saw many men with this mark of piety. Muslims do not partition life between religion and work or government. This may be difficult to understand for westerners familiar with the separation of church and state. For Muslims, religion, work and government are intermixed.
Logic and traditional geographic designations would suggest that Upper Egypt is to the North and Lower Egypt to the South. However, these designations are reversed, having been so for thousands of years. The Nile River is one of the few if not the only river that flows northwards instead of to the south. Egyptians recognized the Nile as the giver of life and the life source, and so, since their world revolved around the flow of this river, they designated the southern kingdom as Upper Egypt.
Other Random Memories of Our Stay in Egypt
Many times when we were greeted in Egypt, the first question they would ask was if we were British. When we told them we were American, they would typically react with some surprise that was quickly followed by a very warm and hearty welcome. We don’t meet enough Americans they would tell us; too few of you visit our country they would add. I have no idea whether this is accurate or not, but they certainly seemed surprised to meet a family of Americans.
The next question was almost always, “what tour group are you with?” When we explained that we were not visiting Egypt with a tour group, the reaction was uniformly one of shock. They would go on to suggest that very few tourist they meet are traveling outside of tour groups and that they had not met a family with such young children traveling in such a manner. Early on in the stay, such comments gave us cause to reflect and question our decision to not use a tour group, but it buoyed our adventurous spirit as well.
Carmen continues to be too cute and sassy for her own good. Here are a couple of examples. In response to Bella’s invitation to play a game, Carmen did her little slow shake of the head and shoulders and said “go light on me sistuh!” After Bella had suggested that she didn’t want to grow up, Carmen piped up with a slow, exaggerated sigh and then offered in a somewhat patronizing tone “well, it’s gonna happen girl, so you might as well face it.” Keep in mind that she hasn’t been able to watch much English speaking television since Australia, but she seems to have an amazing ability to retain lines from movies and television. I am convinced that we are watching first hand a made for television sitcom that could be called “That’s so Carmen.”
One word that we learned quickly was “la” which in the Egyptian language apparently means definitively “no.” Another helpful hint that we were taught by our guides was the use of the hand extended outward, palm down, as a signal that an Egyptian vendor or panhandler’s conversation has grown tiresome. I am not sure what it means, but I watched our guides use it as a very effective form of non-verbal communication.
Frankie loves to play with his sisters although his interest in their company is not always reciprocated. But, he likes the action. We had two rooms at the Mena House and he was over playing with the girls when we heard a lot of screaming from the little man. When we investigated it was clear that the girls were not playing the game the way he wanted, so Elizabeth asked him if he wanted to join us in the other room to play. Meanwhile the girls were busy playing their boisterous game. He looked around for a few moments and then said, “No, thank you, I want to stay here, ITS LOUD!“
Bargaining is a national past time in Egypt. Although bargaining can be fun, it can also be quite tiring for a westerner. We rather enjoyed the contest on most occasions. Bargaining is an art form and takes a considerable amount of time and patience, which was easily conjured when we were bargaining for a souvenir or a camel ride, but Egyptians bargain for everything, no matter how mundane. As an example, I went to the hotel sundry shop to find some aspirin for a splitting headache. I just wanted some quick medication at a fair, marked-up hotel price. Unfortunately, I had to spend about five minutes going back and forth with the shop owner before we could reach a price that didn’t seem too exorbitant.
The instant chaos we generated when we walked onto the sidewalk outside an airport or monument was impressive. We would almost immediately be surrounded by a group of Egyptian men, talking to us excitedly, some already grabbing our bags and beginning to cart them off somewhere, the men seemingly arguing with each other, shouting at each other in Arabic. It was always very confusing. Once we finally settled on a cab driver or a baggage carrier, we had to circle back and deal with all of the men who had been offering their services, regardless of whether or not we had employed them. Then as we walked through the crowd with our hired assistants, we would be surrounded by the jilted that demanded tips nonetheless. Once it became clear we were going to stick to our plan, they would hound us to the cab with pleas for bakeesh. As you might expect, the children stood in wide-eyed wonder at the curbside cacophony.
We will remember all of the armed guards at the tombs and temples, many hidden into darkened alcoves and nooks, often stepping out into the sunshine from the darkness of their shaded area to offer guidance, but more importantly to demand a tip. Taxis, they would act like they didn’t speak English as they were loading your bags onto the top of their diminutive decades old fiats, saying only “no problem my friend” and mumbling in Arabic then when you get to your destination, they would begin the bargaining war. What? No, no, and so on. It was funny how they could completely understand me when we arrived and I repeated my original offer for the transport.
Smoking is also a national past time in Egypt. Spain and its lax standards on smoking was a good primer for Egypt. Here everyone seems to smoke, everywhere and all the time. Restaurants and hotels, shops and stores are filled with smoke. The most popular method is the water pipe. The communal pipes are in almost every small street side café, men congregated around a “sheesha” pipe, taking a long hit in one hand and holding their coffee or teacup in the other.
One of the many cultural aspects of Egypt is activity and noise, especially noise. It took some time to get used to the constant level of noise when we walking in the streets. The shouts of vendors and street corners full of men, combined with the racket from passing traffic, buses roaring, motorbikes wailing, horns honking, camels and donkeys braying to present quite a formidable din which was periodically broken by the punctuating calls from loudspeakers that echoed from the minarets of the mosques signaling prayer time. Although we found no seclusion from the clamor, it added greatly to the cultural experience we enjoyed in Egypt.
It will be interesting to see what happens in Egyptian politics in the near future. Internal and external reform pressure has lead to the promise of fair and open elections in Egypt in September. Hosni Mubarak, whose hold on the presidency has endured, unchallenged, for 24 years, has recently changed the constitution to allow opponents to run against him in September with Parliamentary elections to follow in November. This would be Egyptians first taste of multiparty democracy since Nasser’s coup in 1952 ushered in decades of quasi-military rule. The risk that radical Islamist groups will gain political power is a real one and the impact on the Middle East, Egypt’s relations with Israel and western nations could be dramatic and there will be no guarantee that a new party, if there is one, will respect the rules of democracy. But it seemed clear that many Egyptians are eager for change. They live in a semi-tolerant state whose relative calm they value, but they feel that they are unnecessarily impoverished and are not taking a large enough role in the politics of the region, especially as it relates to the support of foreign Islamic nations. It will be interesting to watch Egypt’s progress this fall and beyond.
Due to societal customs, we found it very difficult to engage in any meaningful conversations with women while in Egypt. As a result, our education regarding Egyptian culture and customs were drawn from a strictly male-oriented perspective. It was such a fascinating culture, it would have been very helpful to have had an opportunity to explore these matters from a female perspective as well.
Even though Egypt was not one of the easiest places to travel for a family of four, we are still very glad that we included it as a part of our trip. The ancient wonders and the fascinating history of Egypt made the heat and hassle worth the effort. We could not view monuments like the Pyramids, the Karnak Temple, the Valley of the Kings, the Philae Temple and the Temples of Abu Simbel without a great deal of humility and appreciation for ancient Egypt’s considerable contribution to the development of architecture, art and human civilization.
NEXT DISPATCH. ROME, ITALY
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