Egypt has one of the longest histories of any country, tracing its heritage
along the Nile Delta back to 6000-4000 BCE. The Nile has been the
lifeline of civilization in Egypt since the Stone Age, with most of the
population and all of the cities of Egypt developing along those parts of the
Nile valley lying north of Aswan. The river's annual cycle of inundation
watered the land and replenished the fertile topsoil, resulting in an
agricultural abundance that allowed them to concentrate on developing the
knowledge and culture that formed unique and sophisticated ancient Egyptian
civilization. The world's fascination with Egypt centers on
the civilization of ancient Egypt flourished from around 3000 BCE to 30 BCE,
ruled by approximately 30 dynasties. Egypt's long and rich cultural
heritage is an integral part of its national identity, which reflects its unique
transcontinental location being simultaneously Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and
North African.
Getting there ...
The ancient worlds of Egypt and Jordan
have been on my wish list for a long time. I planned this Egypt trip with
Egypt Tailor Made for a
private tour with a 3-night Nile cruise and various customization in our
itinerary. We had a Lufthansa flight (on a
Boeing 747-8 airplane) from San
Francisco to Frankfurt at 2:40PM on 3/2, and then to Cairo at 4:45PM on 3/3.
With 6+ hours layover in Frankfurt, we decided to get out of the airport to take
a train to visit the Frankfurt old town and had a
German lunch at the town
square. When we arrived in Cairo after 10PM on 3/3, we were escorted by a
representative from the tour company who helped us go through customs and
handled all paperwork. When we got out of the airport, we immediately
experienced the chaotic traffic in Egypt (especially in Cairo) even it was
already close to midnight! We finally got to our hotel
Egypt
Pyramids Inn in Giza at about midnight, but we did not get the room we paid
for. Instead of the deluxe room with balcony and pyramid view, we were
given a small room without any
view. They blamed it was a mistake from
Booking.com side, but we were just too
tired to argue with them....
Day 3 (3/4) ...
- Sunrise at Giza
Although our small room was far from satisfied, the
view from the rooftop was indeed fantastic. As one of the closest
hotels to the Giza pyramids, I did have a good time to enjoy the sunrise
views of pyramids.
- Bent Pyramid & Red Pyramid, Dahshur
Our guide, Bassam from
Egypt Tailor Made, came to
pick us up at 7:30AM to visit Dahshur, a remote desert pyramid field (~35 km
from Giza) of great importance in the history of pyramid building. The
two Old Kingdom pyramids (Bent Pyramid & Red Pyramid) were constructed by
the founding pharaoh of the 4th-Dynasty Sneferu (~ 2600BC), father of Khufu,
the builder of the Great Pyramid in Giza.
The Bent Pyramid was the 2nd
pyramid built by Sneferu. It rises from the desert at a
54-degree inclination, but the top section (above 47 meters [154 ft]) is
built at the shallower angle of 43 degrees, lending the pyramid a visibly
"bent" appearance. Archaeologists now believe that the Bent Pyramid
represents a transitional form between step-sided and smooth-sided pyramids.
It has been suggested that due to the steepness of the original angle of
inclination the structure may have begun to show signs of instability during
construction, forcing the builders to adopt a shallower angle to avert the
structure's collapse.
We continued to the Red Pyramid (a short 1-min drive from
the Bent Pyramid), the first true pyramid also built by Sneferu. The
Red Pyramid is 105 meters (344 ft) high, and 220 meters (720 ft) wide (making it
the third largest Egyptian pyramid, after those of Khufu and Khafre at Giza),
and it is called Red Pyramid because of its ancient red graffiti. It was
built at the same shallow 43-degree angle as the upper section of the Bent
Pyramid, which gives it a noticeably squat appearance compared to other Egyptian
pyramids of comparable scale (compared to Khufu's Great Pyramid at 51 degrees
and Khafre's 53 degrees). We went into the Red Pyramid via an
entrance high on the north side. A passage, 3 feet (0.91 m) in height and 4 feet
(1.2 m) wide, slopes down at 27° for 200 feet (61 m) to a short horizontal
passage leading into a series of 3 chambers. Since we were early in the
morning and Dahshur had much less tourists than Giza, we had the whole pyramid
to ourselves and we were the only souls in the Red Pyramid chambers for the
entire 30 minutes when we were down there (it may feel a little bit scary....).
- Step Pyramid & Saqqara
Saqqara is one of the richest archaeological
site in Egypt. It contains ancient burial grounds of Egyptian royalty,
serving as the necropolis for the ancient Egyptian capital, Memphis. Saqqara
contains numerous pyramids, including the Pyramid of Djoser, sometimes
referred to as the Step Pyramid, and a number of mastaba tombs.
The Step Pyramid of Djoser is the first pyramid to be
built, a prototype for all other pyramids. The 6-tier, 4-sided structure is the
earliest colossal stone building in Egypt. It was built in the 27th century BC
during the Third Dynasty for the burial of Pharaoh Djoser by Djoser's vizier
Imhotep who was responsible for the design and construction of the complex. The
pyramid is the central feature of a vast mortuary complex in an enormous
courtyard surrounded by ceremonial structures and decoration. Under the
Step Pyramid is a labyrinth of tunneled
chambers and galleries that total nearly 6 km in length and connect to a
central shaft 7 m^2 and 28 m deep.
- Giza
We went back to Giza at about noon and started from the most
famous Khufu's Great Pyramid. Built c. 2600 BC, over a period of about
27 years, the pyramid is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World, and the only wonder that has remained largely intact. Initially
standing at 146.6 meters (481 feet), the Great Pyramid was the world's
tallest human-made structure for more than 3,800 years. Over time, most of
the smooth white limestone casing was removed, which lowered the pyramid's
height to the current 138.5 meters (454.4 ft); what is seen today is the
underlying core structure. The precision of the Great Pyramid is
amazing -- the greatest difference in length between the four 230-meter
(756-ft) sides is only 4cm (2 inches). It is estimated to contain over
2 million blocks of stone weighing on average around 2.5 tones, with some
stones at the base weighing as much as 15 tones. You have to
really get close to the pyramid to fully understand the gigantic scale of
these stones and structures.
When we entered the Giza checkpoint, my camera bag was
held by a guard who said "you have too many lenses". We had to bribed the
guard with some tips to let me get my camera bag back :-(
We had a lunch
reservation at 2PM at the
9 Pyramids Lounge
inside the Giza Pyramids Plateau. It has an
unobstructed view of all 9 pyramids in
Giza. After the late lunch, we took a leisure pace with combination
of walk and drive (since we did not want to have a camel ride here...) to view
pyramids from the west side (better in the afternoon).
- Giza Sunset & Night
After a short break in our small room, we
went up to the roof for the sunset and dinner (a microwaved pasta?).
We also got a free Pyramids Sound and Light Show from the rooftop.
Day 4 (3/5) ...
- Giza
We asked our guide Bassam to come early to take us to Giza again
this morning. It's only a 2-minute walk from our hotel to the Giza
entrance, and we were there at 7:15AM before they "officially" opened.
When we walked to the Great Sphinx, we were even earlier than most of the
workers there. The Great Sphinx of Giza is a limestone statue of a
reclining sphinx, a mythical creature with the head of a human and the body
of a lion. The Sphinx is the oldest known monumental sculpture in
Egypt and one of the most recognizable statues in the world. The
archaeological evidence suggests that it was created by ancient Egyptians of
the Old Kingdom during the reign of Khafre (c. 2558–2532 BC), and the face
of the Sphinx appears to represent the pharaoh Khafre.
We then took a walk to Khufu's Pyramid and also Khafre's
Pyramid. It's an amazing feeling to be able to stand beside these huge
pyramids without any single tourist around :-)
- Faiyum Desert
After spending about an hour in Giza (when the 1st tour bus arrived), we
were ready to head to our next destination, Faiyum Desert. After about
2 hours of driving, we were in the middle of sand dunes!
- Wadi al-Hitan (Valley of the Whales)
Wadi al-Hitan, or Valley of the
Whales, is named after the ancient whale skeletons that were found on the
surface of the desert. These spectacular, 40-million-year-old remains are
reminders that the entire area was once covered by a giant inland sea.
It was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2005 for its hundreds
of fossils of some of the earliest forms of whale, the archaeoceti (a now
extinct sub-order of whales). The site reveals evidence for the explanation
of one of the greatest mysteries of the evolution of whales: the emergence
of the whale as an ocean-going mammal from a previous life as a land-based
animal. There is an interesting
PBS documentary film,
When Whales Could Walk, about this unique place.
- Faiyum Desert
After a traditional lunch (and a strong Turkish coffee)
at the Wadi al-Hitan, we spent some more time to drive around the Faiyum Desert
and explored some side canyons and sand dunes, and enjoyed a nice sunset at
a hilltop.
- Camp
We moved to our camp (we chose to stay in a bungalow) after
sunset. It turned out we were the only guests in the entire camp
(there were about 15 traditional tents + bungalows) to enjoy the dinner and
camp fire. Even we stayed in the bungalow with beds, we still used a
tent from our driver in our bungalow to avoid mosquitoes.
Day 5 (3/6) ...
- Wadi al-Rayan Protected Area and Tunis Village
Wadi al-Rayan,
declared a Protected Area in 1989, covers approximately 1800 square
kilometers (700 square miles) and is an important nesting ground for both
resident and migratory birds. Nestled into the thick reeds between the Upper
and the Lower Lake, it is home of Egypt’s only natural waterfalls.
Tunis is a small
village located in the oasis of Faiyum. It is a typical small,
beautiful and peaceful Egyptian town, but has been gradually turned into a
reputable center of a modern pottery and an open air museum of both eco and
traditional rural buildings.
- Cairo Museum
We were
back to Cairo and dropped off at our hotel (InterContinental) in Cairo at
about 1PM. After a short break, we walked from the hotel to Cairo
Museum (a relative easy 10-min walk without crossing any major roads).
The Egyptian Museum in Cairo (EMC) is the oldest archaeological museum in
the Middle East, housing over 170,000 artifacts. It has the largest
collection of Pharaonic antiquities in the world. On the ground
floor is an extensive collection of large-scale works in stone including
statues, reliefs and architectural elements. These are arranged
chronologically from the pre-dynastic to the Greco-Roman period. The
first floor is dedicated to smaller works, including papyri, coins,
textiles, and an enormous collection of wooden sarcophagi. On the
first floor are also artifacts from the final two dynasties of Egypt as well
as many artifacts from the Valley of the Kings, in particular the material
from the intact tombs of Tutankhamun (photo was not allowed in this special
exhibition room). We spent almost 3 hours wandering around the
museum until its closing time at 5PM.
- We walked across the Nile to a restaurant (Studio Misr) recommended by
our guide. When we walked back to our hotel after dinner, we had
some difficulty to cross the main road (El Tahrir) since there was no
traffic light in Cairo. We were only about 20 meters from our hotel
across the road, but just did not know (or was not brave enough) to go
across the road. We checked the Google Map, and it gave us a
walking route (similar route going back through the Cairo Museum) with
1.2km.
Day 6 (3/7) ...
- Abu Simbel
We had an early flight at 7:30AM to Aswan to start our
journey to the Upper Egypt. Our guide Emile and the driver met us at
the Aswan airport at ~ 9:30AM, and began the 3-hour drive to Abu Simbel.
Abu Simbel is a historic site comprising two massive rock-cut temples which
were originally carved out of the mountainside in the 13th century BC,
during the 19th Dynasty reign of the Pharaoh Ramesses II (c. 1279 - c. 1213
BCE). The Great Temple stands 98 feet (30 meters) high and 115 feet
(35 meters) long with four seated colossi flanking the entrance, depicting
Ramesses II on his throne. The Small Temple, built about 100 m (330
ft) northeast of the Great Temple of Ramesses II, stands nearby at a height
of 40 feet (12 meters) and 92 feet (28 meters) long. This temple is also
adorned by colossi across the front facade, three on either side of the
doorway, depicting Ramesses and his queen Nefertari.
With the passage of time, the temples fell into disuse
and the Great Temple eventually became mostly covered by a sand dune. The
temple was forgotten by Europeans until March 1813, when the Swiss researcher
Johann Ludwig Burckhardt found the small temple and top frieze of the main
temple. In the mid-20th century, when the reservoir that was created by
the construction of the nearby Aswan High Dam threatened to submerge Abu Simbel.
Between 1963 and 1968 a workforce and an international team of engineers and
scientists dug away the top of the cliff and completely disassembled both
temples, reconstructing them on a new location 65 meters higher and 200 meters
back from the river. Great care was taken to orient both temples in
exactly the same direction as before and a man-made mountain was erected to give
the impression of the temples cut into the rock cliff. It's really a
great story and effort to save such an archaeological treasure in human history.
- Abu Simbel at Night
We went back to Abu Simbel Temples before 6PM for
the Sound and Light Show at night. The show provides a journey back in
time to the pharaohs’ era, with the enchanting music and vibrant lights
accompany you on this journey.
Day 7 (3/8) ...
- Abu Simbel
We went back to Abu Simbel at 6AM (there were already a
couple of tour buses...). It's time to catch the sunrise over Lake
Nasser, and the lighting on the temples were just perfect.
- Aswan
We started our drive back to Aswan at about 7:30AM. We
stopped by the Aswan High Dam, the tallest earthen dam in the world when it
was completed in 1970. The dam provides Egypt with the water and
electricity and secures the country from the destructive annual inundation
of the Nile River.
The unfinished obelisk in Aswan is the largest known
ancient obelisk. If finished it would have measured around 41.75
meters (137.0 ft) and would have weighed nearly 1,090 tones, nearly one-third
larger than any ancient Egyptian obelisk ever erected. Its creation
was ordered by Hatshepsut (the female Pharaoh in Egypt, 1508–1458 BC). The
obelisk's creators began to carve it directly out of bedrock, but cracks
appeared in the granite and the project was abandoned. The unfinished
obelisk offers unusual insights into ancient Egyptian stone-working techniques,
with marks from workers' tools still clearly visible.
We checked in our
Nile Cruise ship at about
1PM and had a lunch onboard. Although we were on board, we would stay in
Aswan overnight today and the cruise would not start until tomorrow afternoon.
- Philae Temple
After a break, we took a boat ride to another rescued
temple, Philae Temple, in Aswan. The Philae temple complex (originally
on the Philae Island) was dismantled and moved to nearby Agilkia Island as
part of the UNESCO Nubia Campaign project, protecting this and other
complexes before the 1970 completion of the Aswan High Dam. The
magnificent Temple of Isis, the main building in the Philae temple complex,
was built in the late Ptolemaic and early Roman periods. The temple
combines ancient Egyptian and Graeco-Roman architecture.
- Felucca
A felucca is a traditional wooden sailing boat used in
Mediterranean. In Egypt, despite the availability of motorboats
and ferries, feluccas are still in active use as a means of transport in
Nile-adjacent cities like Aswan or Luxor. They are especially popular among
tourists who can enjoy a quieter and calmer mood than motorboats have to
offer. It's really an enjoyable experience to sail in Nile with this
traditional way to view sunset.
- Aswan Street at Night
Our guide took us to walk around the Aswan
bazaar (market streets). It was very busy since the Ramadan (Islamic
holy month) was coming in the next few days. We visited a local spice
store and bought quite a few different types (and colors) of peppers.
Day 8 (3/9) ...
- Nubian Village
The Nubians are one of the oldest and most enduring
civilizations in the world, with their origins dating back to the Neolithic
period, over 8,000 years ago. The Nubian people were known for their great
trading skills and mastery of the Nile River, which made them an essential
part of the ancient Egyptian empire. The construction of the Aswan
High Dam in 1960s resulted in the flooding of many Nubian villages,
including the original location of Aswan Nubian Village. To preserve the
Nubian culture and traditions, the Egyptian government decided to resettle
the Nubian people in a new location, which is now known as Aswan Nubian
Village.
We took a boat ride from Aswan to the village. The boat ride is
an excellent opportunity to enjoy the scenic views of the Nile River and the
surrounding desert landscapes. Then we took a camel ride along the riverbed
to the village center where we visited a colorful Nubian house.
- Nile Cruise
After lunch, we officially started the Nile cruise.
The landscape along the Nile was changing frequently (from lush green swamp
to barren sand dunes), but it was always calm and tranquil (but there was
always some garbage somewhere...).
- Kom Ombo Temple
We arrived at Kom Ombo at about 4:30PM, and it's a
short walk from the ship to the temple. Kom Ombo Temple is an
unusual double temple that there were courts, halls, sanctuaries and rooms
duplicated for two sets of gods. The southern half of the temple was
dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek, and the northern part of the temple
was dedicated to the falcon god Horus. The temple is atypical because
everything is perfectly symmetrical along the main axis. It was
constructed during the Ptolemaic dynasty, 180–47 BC. Some additions to it
were later made during the Roman period.
Day 9 (3/10) ...
- Edfu
We headed out to Edfu Temple at 5:30AM and the guide had warned
us that there will be a lot of people from Nile cruises staying overnight at
Edfu and most of the cruises will leave at 7:30AM so everyone was trying to
visit the temple from 6-7AM (like us). It was indeed very
chaotic at the entrance before
open at 6AM. There were no lines and people (including us) just
squeezed to move forward as much as possible.
Edfu stands beside the Nile
almost exactly halfway between Aswan and Luxor. It was an important
sacred site because, according to ancient myth, this was where the
falcon-god Horus fought a fierce battle with his uncle Seth, who had
murdered Horus's father Osiris. The Temple of Horus at Edfu, which was
buried under sand and silt for nearly 2000 years, is the largest and
best-preserved Ptolemaic temple in Egypt. Edfu was
one of several temples built during the Ptolemaic Kingdom, including the
Dendera Temple complex, Esna, the Temple of Kom Ombo, and Philae.
Construction of the temple began under Ptolemy III Euergetes in 237 BC and
took 25 years to complete the main temple, and the construction continued
into the reign of Cleopatra VII.
- Nile Cruise
We were back to the ship before 7:30AM, and started to
cruise again at about 8AM when we had our breakfast. It's a full-day
cruise from Edfu to Luxor, with nice scenery all around.
- Nile Cruise, Esna
We were at Esna at about noon. There were
many cruise ships waiting here to pass through the Esna Lock. The Esna
Lock was built with an elevation difference of 8 meters, 17 meters wide, 221
meters long, and 14.6 meters deep. While we were waiting for passing
through the lock (it's ~ 2 hours), there were many small boats around every
cruise ship to sell merchandise and souvenirs. It's interesting to see
them throw stuff to the upper deck of the cruise ship with amazing
precision.
- Luxor Temple
We arrived at Luxor at ~5:30PM, and went to the Luxor
Temple before sunset. Dominating the east bank of the Nile in the
center of Luxor (ancient Thebes), Luxor Temple is an elegant example of
Pharaonic temple architecture. Unlike the other temples in Thebes,
Luxor Temple is not dedicated to a cult god or a deified version of the
pharaoh in death. Instead, Luxor temple is dedicated to the rejuvenation of
kingship; it may have been where many of the pharaohs of Egypt were crowned.
The temple was largely completed by the 18th-Dynasty pharaoh Amenhotep III
(reigned 1388–1351 BCE), and added to during the reign of Ramesses II in the
19th Dynasty. Two enormous seated colossi of Ramesses and a huge 25-m
(82-ft) pink granite obelisk flank the gateway to the temple. The
obelisk was originally one of a pair; the other was removed in the early
19th century and re-erected in the Place de la Concorde in Paris, a gift
from the Egyptian ruler Mohammed Ali to the people of France.
Day 10 (3/11) ...
- Karnak Temple
We had another early start today to one of the most
fascinating temples in Egypt, Karnak Temple. When we got there before
7AM, there was no other tourist around.
The Karnak Temple Complex
comprises a vast mix of temples, pylons, chapels, and other buildings near
Luxor, Egypt. Construction at the complex began during the reign of Senusret
I (reigned 1971–1926 BCE) in the Middle Kingdom (c. 2000–1700 BCE) and
continued into the Ptolemaic Kingdom (305–30 BCE), although most of the
extant buildings date from the New Kingdom. Approximately thirty
pharaohs contributed to the buildings, enabling it to reach a size,
complexity, and diversity not seen elsewhere. The highlight of Karnak,
the Great Hypostyle Hall in the Precinct of Amun-Re, has an area of 50,000
sq ft (5,000 m2) with 134 massive columns arranged in 16 rows. One hundred
and twenty-two of these columns are 10 meters (33 ft) tall, and the other 12
are 21 meters (69 ft) tall with a diameter of over 3 meters (9.8 ft).
The temple lay buried under sand for more than 1000 years before excavation
work began in the mid 19th century.
- Medinet Habu
Second only to Karnak in size and detail, the
magnificent precinct of Medinet Habu is one of the less-visited sights in
Thebes. The Temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu was an important
New Kingdom period temple structure. Aside from its size and
architectural and artistic importance, the mortuary temple is probably best
known as the source of inscribed reliefs depicting the advent and defeat of
the Sea Peoples during the reign of Ramesses III. The temple precinct
measures approximately 210 m (690 ft) by 300 m (1,000 ft) and contains more
than 7,000 m2 (75,347 sq ft) of decorated wall reliefs.
- Deir al-Medina
The craftsman, servants and laborers who worked on the
royal tombs lived in the village of Deir al-Medina (aka Workmen's Village)
to the south of the Valley of the Queens. They were buried in the
nearby necropolis, in tombs that were intricately decorated. We went
in 3 of the tombs, and tips were expected at each tomb (even we did not ask
for any service).
- Hatshepsut Temple
The mortuary temple of Hatshepsut is considered to
be a masterpiece of ancient architecture. Its three massive terraces rise
above the desert floor and into the cliffs of Deir el-Bahari.
Hatshepsut (c. 1507–1458 BC, reigned c. 1479 – 1458 BC) was the
daughter of Thutmose I and Great Royal Wife of Pharaoh Thutmose II in the
18th Dynasty of Egypt. Upon the death of her husband and half-brother
Thutmose II, she had initially ruled as regent to her stepson, Thutmose III,
who inherited the throne at the age of two. Several years into her
regency, Hatshepsut assumed the position of pharaoh and became queen
regnant, making her a co-ruler alongside Thutmose III. In order to establish
herself in the Egyptian patriarchy, she took on traditionally male roles and
was depicted as a male pharaoh, with physically masculine traits and
traditionally male garb. Although queens Sobekneferu (in the
12th Dynasty) and possibly Nitocris (in the 6th Dynasty) may have previously
assumed the role of pharaoh, Hatshepsut was the only female ruler to do so
in a time of prosperity. Two decades after Hatshepsut's death, during
Thutmose III's forty-second regnal year, he decided that all evidence of her
reign as king of Egypt should be erased. His reasons for proscribing her
reign remain unclear. This assault against her reign was, however,
short-lived. Two years after it started, when Amenhotep II ascended to the
throne, the proscription was abandoned and much of the erasure left
half-finished.
- Valley of the Kings
The remote , barren Valley of the Kings was the
necropolis of the New Kingdom pharaohs. The Theban Hills are dominated
by the peak of al-Qurn, known
to the Ancient Egyptians as ta dehent, or "The Peak". It has a
pyramid-shaped appearance, and it is probable that this echoed the pyramids
of the Old Kingdom. The Valley was used for primary burials from
approximately 1539 BC to 1075 BC. It contains at least 63 tombs, beginning
with Thutmose I (or possibly earlier, during the reign of Amenhotep I) and
ending with Ramesses X or XI.
It's been a long morning that we finally had a late lunch
at ~ 2PM. After lunch, we went back to Luxor to have a coffee break and
prepared to fly back to Cairo
in the late afternoon.
Day 11 (3/12) ...
- Cairo Marriott Hotel
The Gezirah Palace was commissioned by Khedive
Ismail and designed by Carl von Diebitsch to host French Emperor Napoleon
III and his wife Empress Eugénie during the celebration of the opening of
the Suez Canal in 1869. The palace was nationalized by Gamal
Abdel Nasser in 1952 and eventually converted back to a hotel, reopening in
1962 as the Omar Khayyam Hotel. In the late 1970s, the two large towers were
added and the entire hotel was completely rebuilt. President Hosni Mubarak
presided over the grand reopening in 1982 as the Cairo Marriott Hotel.
- Muhammad Ali Mosque
We started our Cairo city tour at 9AM. The
traffic in Cairo was as bad as it could be :-)
We first visited Muhammad
Ali Mosque in the Citadel of Cairo. It was commissioned by Muhammad
Ali Pasha between 1830 and 1848. Situated on the summit of the
citadel, this Ottoman mosque, the largest to be built in the first half of
the 19th century, is the most visible mosque in Cairo. This was the
first mosque we have ever visited. Its splendid interior and two
levels of domes were indeed very impressive.
- Islamic Cairo
We took a walk in the 1000 years old "el Moez" street
which is considered as an open air museum for Islamic buildings which are
decorated with different patterns and paints, then walked to Khan el Khalili
Bazaar which is one of Cairo's main attractions. The district of Khan el
Khalil was originally a mausoleum called "el Zaafran" for the burial of
Fatimid Caliphs, after that it became a district for the Turkish community
during the Ottoman period, and now it becomes a bazaar where you will find
many souvenirs shops, coffeehouses "Café" serving Arabic coffee and offering
Hookah "Shisha", and restaurants throughout the area.
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped by a bakery to
get some traditional Egyptian sweets
for our afternoon coffee time.
Day 12 (3/13) ...
We started early today at 7:30AM for a day tour to
Alexandria. When we were on the highway just outside Cairo, the whole
highway was closed due to the foggy condition. The highway became a
big parking lot and people were
walking around to kill time. The highway was closed for nearly 2 hours so
our tour schedule was delayed as well. It was almost noon when we finally
got to Alexandria to pick up our local guide, Javi. Since it's during
Ramadan. we decided to fast and skip lunch like most Muslims here (but we did
drink some water in the car...).
The impression we had from driving around the streets in
Alexandria was really a big gap. I have thought Alexandria, as the "Bride
of the Mediterranean" and a popular tourist destination, should be a nice city
in Mediterranean. But what we saw was a city with so many poorly
constructed and maintained buildings and does not look like a modern city at
all.
- Catacombs of Kom El Shoqafa
Alexandria's catacombs, known as Kom El
Shoqafa, consist of a multi-level labyrinth, reached via a large spiral
staircase and featuring dozens of chambers adorned with sculpted pillars,
statues, and other syncretic Romano-Egyptian religious symbols, burial
niches, and sarcophagi, as well as a large Roman-style banquet room. The
catacombs were long forgotten until they were discovered by accident in
1900.
- Roman Theater
The small Roman theater in Kom El Deka archeological
site was constructed in the 4th century and ran until the early 7th century.
Today, Kom el-Dikka is the largest and most complete above ground
archeological site in Alexandria. It provides large amounts of archeological
evidence of urban life in Roman Egypt.
-
Royal Jewelry Museum
The Royal Jewelry Museum is located in the
former palace of Princess Fatma Al-Zahra. The museum houses major
jewelry pieces and art acquisitions of the dynasty of Muhammad Ali and his
descendants, who ruled Egypt for nearly 150 years from 1805 until the 1952
movement.
It's a long way (3 hours) to drive back to Cairo.
When we finally arrived in Cairo hotel just before sunset, we were all relieved
since our driver Mostafa had been fasting for
Ramadan for a long day...
Day 13 (3/14) ...
We had an early morning flight to
Jordan at 6:25AM. The same driver Mostafa (hopefully he had a good
meal and rest) came to pick us up at 2:45AM to go to the airport.
Although
Egypt was quite chaotic in many ways (e.g., traffic, market negotiation, lines
for attractions, tipping etiquette, etc.), it was still an amazing country full
of ancient wonders and natural beauty. It's impossible to get a complete
grasp of 5000+ years of Egyptian civilization and history from such a short
trip, but we got a sense of the richness of the Egyptian treasures and also the
mysterious magic of the ancient pharaohs.
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