Visiting Egypt~ everything was unexpected

I have read about Egypt, studied her ancient mysteries, journeyed into etheric space in her temples and tombs, delighted in the juxtaposition of temple and stars, marveled and wondered and dreamt and despaired of going there.

And suddenly, a trip materialized. One that was organized by my sister, so that we had our own tour as there were 15  of us family and friends; a tour where we Indian food was planned for us vegetarians, and without us doing much except sending money, answering emails and organizing visas, we had a wonderful 7-day holiday in that fabled land.

At Edfu temple

What surprises me, is that after all that I had lived with, about Egypt, there was still so much that was unexpected. When I visited Paris a few years ago, it was  like seeing postcards come to life; a sense of unreality till I passed by a bakery, when it all came alive. But Egypt was alive from the start.

I had expected to see more tourists than Egyptians but was pleasantly surprised as we had an Egyptologist guiding us; and naturally, the many who work around the tourist industry.

Schoolgirls walking arm in arm down the Cornich on Aswan, necks and heads covered, but faces uncovered. I was amazed at the freedom and safety they apparently felt, even late evening.

McDonald's on the bank of the River Nile at Aswan, with a curious mix of heiroglyphics, Arabic head-dresses, trendy music, English and Arabic script. These aren't  my pictures, but I feel these are the same people we saw!

   

Seeing the smile on our  teenagers'  faces when the guide was having them act as Isis, and Osiris and the others at Edfu. Shocking teenagers with a legendary story is a good strategy to get their attention!

Seeing one of them getting photographed with "History Rocks!" after she'd mused at the beginning of the trip: "Why do we study history?"The graffiti at temple and tomb walls, some  of it by the other cultures that over-ran the land, or by jealous successors.

The temple of Hatshepsut, the female pharoah who ruled as the male Hatshepsu. This is the site of the massacre of American tourists a few years ago; and there were snipers guarding the high hills bordering the temple.
Filming YOU! At  Hatshepsut temple 

It's a little disappointing that we saw no statues of her here. "We're hurting at the loss of many of our artefacts," said the guide, "they're in every museum of the world."  I had to agree. I feel I've seen more of King Tut's treasures in the traveling exhibition when it visited Fort Lauderdale's tiny museum, than in the Cairo museum. Of course, those huge boxes in which his mummy was buried, are unusual to that museum. [photography not allowed].

That's another thing: photography isn't allowed inside temples, tombs and the museum. I guess they'd rather we buy books and videos. It's annoying to see people still sneaking in pictures.

At the Sphinx

The narrow pathway into the pyramid of Khafra. I blessed the exercise schedule that allowed me to climb up and down steep slopes, half bent, on the path of early tomb visitors [or raiders?] Nothing to raid now!




What's surprising is that much more is being dug up. We saw a newly discovered tomb being excavated. Who knows what treasures will be dug up?

We'll have to visit Egypt again, and before I do, I know I'll do so in memory, photos, discussions, traveler's tales, and...meditation.

And till then, I will blog about that other unexpected gift of Egypt. The River Nile.