Cairo Feb 10--14

The sun came out on the Great Pyramid---beautiful!!

It's a cloudy day in front of the Great Pyramid

It's a cacophony of color that we see as we watch passengers file onto the Royal Jordanian jet. Women with head scarves of every color and shade, darling children in little outfits of pastels and prints, and the airline staff in bright red uniforms with jaunty navy hats. Men mostly wear Bedouin scarves of red or black and white with black clothes, as do some women, but that only gives the colorful attire some contrast. It's like looking at a continuous, swirling ribbon dancing by us. In a few minutes we are airborne, watching the lights of New York, then Boston, and other North American cities, finally seeing Halifax drift off in the distance behind us as we fly the northward arc that would take us over the North Atlantic then down over England, France, the Mediterranean, the tip of Italy, the Peloponnese and Greek Islands, and finally into Amman, Jordan. While we wait at the airport for our next flight into Cairo, we see happy Jordanians celebrating. One, a young man returning from college, his degree in his hand and still dressed in his graduation robes, is being carried on the shoulders of some family members while the others carry his father who joins hands with him and dances in the air. Another group spins around a recently married couple who are either leaving for or returning from a honeymoon; we can't quite tell. Everyone is yelling, whistling and clapping. It's quite a joyous sight. At last we are called to our departure lounge and soon we are off, flying over small villages and then over dark land below us. We know it's the desert and probably the Sinai Peninsula. But we are tired and happy to land, find our taxi and get to our hotel. I wonder in which direction the Pyramids are.

~Cairo~

We are awake very, very early because I have set the clock incorrectly. It's only 3:30 and already the traffic outside is audible. Again at 5:30 we awake to ever-increasing sounds of traffic and yelling voices. The crowd at the corner is waiting for buses, yelling at each other and selling newspapers or something else. Above it all is the honking of every bus, truck and car. Evidently, they honk at every circumstance: “get out of the way, watch out, hello, I like your shirt.” At least it seems so. Eventually we get up to get ready for the day. It is already getting light and there, right in the center of our window is the Great Pyramid! “Wow,” I say out loud.

Along with our guide Aladdin (really) we take his car with our friends Bruce and Louise whom we met in Chile when we were there in 2008. Our favorite sight is the Mohammed Ali (first emperor or a united Egypt) Cemetery. It is most fascinating to see not only beautifully carved tombs and mausoleums but homes (such as they are) in among the relatives'graves which the owners care for. We also drive through a most interesting market and visit the Mena House Hotel which was built by the British in the 1800's and used both in WWI and WWII. A drive by the Pyramids and a stop at a restaurant for tea completes our day.

muhammed ali cemetery in cairo

gloria and new friend at alexandria fortress

Our tour officially begins at a different hotel in the middle of Cairo the next day. We meet our guides Lorna and Ahmed. Today we go to the Pyramids and get to see them up close and personal. They are huge and amazing, but the action is happening at the base where tourists meet camels and their drivers, horses and their riders, vendors and their souvenirs, and people who want you to take their picture so they can ask for some money from you. It's really an interesting and amusing chaos. There are actually seven pyramids which are all smaller than the Great Pyramid plus the Sphinx and all within a few blocks of town. It's true that many years ago they were in the outlying desert, but today the city has grown up around them. So, one can walk up the path from town. They are incredible structures, and we are lucky that more people aren't there but we feel sad that more people aren't there because the Egyptians are hurting because the revolution is keeping them away. Understandably, visitors are nervous about coming to Egypt, but we find only friendliness and welcoming people here. More on that later.



Selling protest flags




 

water bottles at the market

two egyptians in memphis



 Saqqara, a spot on the edge of the Sahara (which actually means desert in Arabic) houses several famous structures, among them the Step Pyramid (2650BC) which is the world's oldest stone monument that has so far been discovered and the entry hall of Pharaoh Zoser which is thought to have possibly been built by Jacob called Imhotep at that time. Both are amazing buildings, but our favorite is mastaba of Vizier Mereruka which contains the only painted reliefs of everyday life in ancient Egypt. It is magnificent in its detail given to fishing, river animals including crocodile, hippopotamus, fish, birds, cattle, pigs and other domesticated animals, farming, religious rituals, beermaking, breadmaking, and many other types of activities that people would do in their villages along the Nile. We also have a chance to go into a pyramid, built by Teti in 2345BC. The entry is low and steep but not as long as some we'll encounter so we decide to give it a try. We pay with knee and neck pain and resolve not to pay money to do ourselves in at a big one.

Our next destination is Alexandria in the north of the country. It is a more refined town than Cairo and has a heavy European influence: a lot of Spanish, Italian and Greek buildings. We explore Roman ruins and underground catacombs, and swing by Pompey's column, but our favorite is the Alexandria Library. It's new and built very near the famous library of early Egypt with 11 floors, an amazing art gallery, one million plus books, places for 3000 readers, and a dynamite view of the Mediterranean. We could have stayed all day, but it's way past time for lunch and our three hour ride back to Cairo. Besides, we must get back to our hotel, pack and get ready for an early flight to Aswan tomorrow.