EGYPT
Egypt, land of dreams...
First to Cairo.
Flying into Cairo we saw a vaster expanse of buildings than any other city we had been to. For many minutes as we approached the airport, as far as the eye could see, there were white buildings stretching to the horizon. Amazing. After landing, we were greeted by our program director, Maged. An Egyptologist with extensive knowledge and professional bearing at all times, he is the most erudite guide we have had. He gave us more information than we could possibly take in but his unending knowledge would continue to feed us long after we arrived home. A Coptic Christian in a predominantly Muslim country we were eager to learn from him about his experience of being a minority in a fairly repressive country.
We arrived during the beginning of the month-long Muslim observation of Ramadan. Although we had been in other Muslim countries during Ramadan we were interested in soaking up as much knowledge as we could. Tom had committed to teach a course in World Religions when we returned home and he wanted to add to his fund of knowledge.
Our first stop was the Cairo Egyptian Museum and the King Tutankhamun artifacts. (We were reminded that it is not "King Tut"!) Here it was exciting to view in person the things we had seen in so many pictures and had read about in National Geographic and other publications. This museum is the logical first stop for anyone visiting Egypt. It was founded in 1835 in order to stop the looting of ancient tombs and temples and to preserve priceless artifacts and archeological finds. (It continued to amaze us as we traveled throughout the area that 70 percent of the artifacts in Egypt are still undiscovered and buried underground.) Although King Tutankhamun was a minor king who ruled a very short time and his tomb was small and insignificant compared to many others, it is the only one that has been found intact. It was a wonderful experience to see the treasures that accompanied the king in his final resting place. We couldn't take photographs inside the museum but were able to buy postcards with images of the exhibitions. (Above is the funeral mask of the king the is familiar to so many people.)
In addition to the galleries on the first floor with the treasures of the "boy king", there are more than 50 rooms and galleries in the museum that house all sorts of treasures from the Old Kingdom to the Hellenistic-Roman era. A truly magnificent collection. The only thing that kept us from thoroughly enjoying the exhibits was the oppressive heat. It was a very hot day with temperatures well above 100 and the museum was not air-conditioned. It was oppressive and many in our party were feeling physically strained by the heat. When we stepped back outside, we found that it was cooler outside than inside the building. In retrospect we wish that we could have had more time to explore the exhibits but with less discomfort. We had planned the trip in a cooler time of the year because the heat is very intense in summer but now in the fall it was still around 108 degree Fahrenheit on many of the days we would be traveling.
That evening a group of us went to a home hosted dinner. As with all Grand Circle "home meals" the hosts were paid to give us a taste of Egyptian hospitality. Our hosts were husband and wife interior designers who obviously have a very successful business. Their apartment, which was two normal sized apartments combined, had been custom designed by the two of them and had all the modern conveniences. They were in the process of building a new home in the country which would include a complex of apartments for each of their sons. They are the parents of three teenage sons. All were open in sharing what people wanted to know about their lives and culture. Our hostess wanted to talk about US politics and was very well informed and quite outspoken. She seemed to have some frustration that Westerners often have so little understanding of the role of Muslim women. She said that sometimes people ask her if her husband can see her without the head scarf and she replies, "He can see all of me." She explained that the scarf is a sign of modesty and it is her personal choice to wear it. She also explained that women can hold any kind of job that they choose, including doctor, lawyer, business owner, teacher, etc. However people in our group had a difficult time taking that in and asked other questions that indicated they hadn't heard her. The couple appears to be equal partners in their marriage and in their business. Our host excused himself on two occasions to go to the mosque to pray since it was the night before the first day of Ramadan. We learned that the first prayer was just a few minutes and the second would be longer (about half and hour.) Even though there were three other adult males in the household, only the father went to the mosque. As we would be reminded many times during our trip, "In Islam there is no compulsion." The time with them passed very quickly and we wished that we would have had the opportunity to discuss various topics with them with just the four of us.
On our way back to the hotel we realized that we were getting a police escort to guide us back safely. There was a police car in front and a police car behind our bus as we navigated the crowded streets. Also we realized that we had an armed guard on all of our bus, and discovered later that we would have one on all of our buses throughout Egypt . They were plainclothesmen and ours was a 20 year old in the army doing national service.
Pyramids and Sphinx
The pyramids of Giza are about seven miles from Cairo and the only surviving site of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World. We were fortunate enough to be able to view them from our hotel. As we arrived by bus we were greeted by police on camels protecting the area.
The three pyramids date back more than 4500 years. Khufu (Cheops), about 480 feet high is the tallest (the Washington Monument is about 550 feet high). The group makes a magnificent sight and we could only wonder what they must have looked like when they were still covered in polished limestone. The somewhat smaller (440 feet) pyramid of Chephren) still has some of its limestone. It is possible to enter the pyramids but Maged said there was nothing to see inside, concurring with all of our guidebooks.
We were content to just wander around and gaze at them. Wandering around is not as easy as it sounds, as there were hawkers selling their wares and men pulling camels trying to convince us that a trip to Egypt wouldn't be complete without a ride on one., and the area was rocky and rough. Footing was difficult. We would like to have had more time just to walk around one of the structures to get a better sense of its size, but our time was restricted and it wasn't possible. We did see several people chased off of the pyramids because it is prohibited to climb them. There were many tourist police in the area and they seemed to have some limited success in reducing the hassling of tourists.
One sight not to be missed is the museum containing a solar boat that was to carry the pharaoh to the next world. Twelve hundred pieces were unearthed and the cedar boat has been beautifully restored.
Our long anticipated visit to the Sphinx of Giza was a short drive from the pyramids. It was exciting getting our first view from the bus and many of us took pictures before we even reached the parking lot. The first impression was a minor letdown as the 60 feet tall Sphinx appeared smaller than we expected. However, we soon got over any such feelings when we stood in front of it and saw it against the backdrop of the pyramids of Giza.
The monument underwent a massive restoration that was completed in 1998. Still, it is in a sad state. Its facial features were destroyed by 14th century Muslims and later the Turks and then the French used it for artillery practice. You would have thought they would have used a more challenging target. The beard the Turks shot off is now in the British Museum. Today, the limestone figure is being eaten away from the inside. Experts are not entirely sure why but the erosion is most likely caused by pollution and ground water.
Saqqara
The Step Pyramid Zoser at Saqqara (Sakkara) is the oldest stone monument in the world. It was built for the 3rd dynasty pharaoh Zoser who lived around 2700 BC. Its construction made possible the later building of the giant pyramids. Before Saqqara, rulers were buried in under ground tombs topped with mud-bricks. The step pyramid of Zoser was built in six tiers and, looking carefully, it was possible to see how the builders learned to refine their construction techniques as they went along. Saqqara is a huge area with much more of a desert feel than Giza that was used as a cemetery for over 3500 years.
Alexandria...
We were awakened at 4:30 AM by the sound of chanting and the call to breakfast. At 5:00 the loudspeaker of a nearby minaret announced the beginning of the fast. We were awake now.
Many in the group were taking the optional tour to Alexandria. We were staying back to explore on our own. Prior to the trip we had studied all of the materials regarding optional tours. Although the trip itself was very reasonable, the expense of the optional tours would add significantly to the cost. Sometimes in our travels we had fallen for the hype and excitement in the presentations and signed up for everything, only later regretting it. This time we wanted to make certain that we paced ourselves, giving us some time to explore on our own and regenerate. Too much "groupness" -- the herding instinct -- etc. can really get to us. So as we studied Alexandria, we realized that everything we would have liked to see there no longer exists. We opted out. Others who went told us that it is a very beautiful, clean city and a lovely port on the Mediterranean, but with a 3 hour train ride to and longer bus trip back it would have been a full day of traveling. We were glad we decided to spend the day exploring our environs on foot.
Our hotel was on an island that housed many embassies and hotels. It was heavily protected. We started out along the Nile, good map of the area in hand. We soon discovered how right Maged was. He had told us that his mother is afraid to cross the street in Cairo. He said she either gets a taxi to take her to the other side or holds his hand and closes her eyes as he takes her across! He also said that it is impossible to walk on the sidewalks. A real understatement. What sidewalks there are are very high to step up onto and then after a few steps there is a break so that you have to step back down. Cars or other vehicles park so that you must cross the street or walk into the street to get around them. One interesting phenomenon is that when people park their cars in the street, often double or triple parked, they must leave them out of gear. That way, in case they are blocking the way for someone else, they can be pushed out of the way. We saw that taking place on more than one occasion. It was especially interesting to watch men hurrying to prayers and quickly parking in some empty space anywhere they could find, so as not to be late.
The walk was worth it. We checked out many of the embassies as we located them on our map and matched them to the correct building. We checked out shops and stores and just generally got a feel for the area. We had found a news stand right outside the hotel where we could get a newspaper and our Diet Coke and bottled water at the fraction of the cost in the hotel. In the days ahead we looked forward to the friendly interchanges between the proprietor and ourselves.
We marveled and pinched ourselves that we were walking along the Nile River.
As we walked we heard voices calling out to us. Looking up we saw this group of students who wanted to interact with us and were excitedly engaging in conversation. When one of their teachers appeared on a balcony they quieted and soon returned inside the building, but not before lobbing a few firecrackers onto the street below.
What a contrast when we passed an international school just a short distance down the street. Here the children of many nations were playing on the playground on the street level where we were walking and they were oblivious to our presence.
Some of the more interesting sights were the preparations for the breaking of the fast. Here was a brightly decorated booth that was set up to offer food to people who would be headed home from work as the time to break the fast occurred.
The preparations for the celebration of the breaking of the fast and the first meal to break the fast (iftar) intrigued us throughout our stay during Ramadan. Some mornings we were awakened as early as 4:30 AM with a muezzin's call, emanating from loudspeakers from the minarets, that it was time to eat before the fast would begin and then a second announcement would be made later that it was time to begin the fast. Sometimes cannon shots marked the end of the fast. The first food taken to break the fast is a bit of water and a couple of dates. Then elaborate meals were eaten by family and friends with all sorts of special dishes that are prepared in advance for the meals. We bought a boxed assortment of pastries in the bakery at our hotel and found the baklava so out of this world that we ate too much and paid for it later. We were told that those pastries are only made during Ramadan. Our guides were all observant and our program director also fasted out of respect for the others. Several times during our trip we would see one of the guides handing another a couple of dates when our question and answer sessions got too long and it was past the time when those observant Muslims could put food into their empty stomachs. Even in this hot, humid heat they had gone all day even without water. Also during the month of Ramadan there is no smoking, sex or unnecessary work during the daylight hours and schools conduct half-day sessions. Tom had been anticipating attending a Rotary Club meeting at our Cairo hotel. He was disappointed to learn that the meeting had been cancelled so that the club's members could observe iftar with their families.
Spiritual Cairo
Our tour of "spiritual" Cairo began at a spectacular fortress that overlooked the city. The Citadel was begun in 1176 by the great Muslim leader, Saladin, to protect Cairo from the Crusaders. Ensuing rulers enlarged this area (using stones from the pyramids and synagogues) and made it the center of their power for over 700 years.
The fortress is dominated by a large mosque(1830-1848) that contains the tomb of Mohammed Ali, considered by some to be the founder of modern Egypt.
The mosque of the Mamluk ruler Sultan Hassan, built in 1318 is smaller but considered more beautiful.
Sultan Hassan Mosque
Following our visit to the Citadel, we traveled into Coptic Cairo. The Coptic Church is one of the oldest churches of Christianity. Some believe the Holy Family fled to Cairo and lived here for four years. St. Mark is believed to have brought the Gospel to Egypt in 40 A.D. Coptics were part of the Orthodox church until a doctrinal dispute caused a split. Coptics believed that Jesus is wholly divine, while the Orthodox believed he is divine and human.
Before leaving home we had read that Coptic Christians kept a low profile in Egypt. When we talked to Maged he assured us he had no experience with prejudice from his Muslim countrymen and we certainly saw nothing but respect among him and the the three Muslim program directors who were with us throughout the stay in Egypt. However, we later read that there are indeed problems for Coptics in Egypt.
Old Cairo is a very crowded enclave. Narrow streets with buildings pressed against one another made it difficult to get a sense of the size and space of the structures we saw. Our bus was too large to enter the area and had to drop us off a short distance away. Being taken from place to place with little time to absorb the environment also made it difficult to get a sense of the community. The Church of St. George marks the site where the Holy Family stopped while in Egypt and nearby is a synagogue on the site of where Moses was supposedly found.
Khan El Khalli Bazaar has been open for business since the 14th century. A wonderful place to get the feel of a Middle East market. It is an endless warren of shops, with everyone offering the best price on whatever it is you want to buy. If you like to bargain (we don't) it could be a source of endless fun. We chose to wander around with no purchases in mind. Against Marie's better judgment we walked deeper into the bazaar. Taking a few of Tom's ill-considered turns we got lost. (He was sure we could see the landmark minaret from any point in the market). Fortunately, a young man took us under his wing and led us out. When he first offered is help we were skeptical. To our surprise (and relief) he didn't want to sell us anything, he only wanted to be kind to some confused tourists.
Next we flew to Luxor to begin our cruise on the Nile....
