Just how ancient? Year 0 AD, the birth of Christ, is
centuries closer to present day 2010 than it is to when
all of the pyramids I visited were built. Egypt screams
civilization's longevity - and its decline. I can't
recall a trip where I learned so much, so fast. Egypt
is decidedly a third world country and a rewarding visit
requires not only determination, but planning. On the advice
of seasoned travelers, I used a guide (Karen of
Heart of Egypt - highly recommended) and a
driver for all of my excursions. Karen's role was not
only to provide translation and knowledge, but also to
run interference against relentless badgering for
"baksheesh" (tips) in tourist areas. All that said,
Egypt felt surprisingly safe and the locals I met
outside of tourist spots were warm and friendly.
Saturday, December 4th -
Islamic Cairo & the Egyptian Museum
I arrived from my business meetings in Amsterdam late on Friday,
December 3rd. I found Cairo's airport to be quick and efficient.
Karen met me at Arrivals and just 30 minutes after I landed we were
heading through Cairo's always chaotic, horrendous traffic to the
Cairo Marriott, located on the Nile island of Zamalek downtown.
After a good night's sleep, Karen and our driver picked me up for
the trip through old Cairo to
Ibn Tulun Mosque. There I learned
about the 5 pillars of Islam and Egypt's moderate stance. Ibn Tulun
is beautiful (first two pictures below) as well as peaceful, since
it's off the tour bus track.
Hot air ballooning at dawn over Luxor's west bank
Ibn Tulun Mosque light beams
Ibn Tulun Mosque
corridor
Sultan Hassan
Mosque prayer corner
Al Azhar Mosque courtyard & minarets
From Ibn Tulun, we drove to the site of the
Al Rifai and
Sultan Hassan Mosques
(third picture above) near
Cairo's massive Citadel. We finished Islamic Cairo at
Al Azhar Mosque (fourth picture above), which is an active
Islamic university. After a leisurely lunch at
Felfela downtown, we proceeded to the
Egyptian Museum. All the horror stories told about
the Egyptian Museum turned out to be true. It is one of
the worst museums I've ever experienced, albeit with one
of the best collections - a national embarrassment. Very
little is marked in any way and poor layout and lighting
just amplifies its issues. For example, a true
archeological treasure - the beard of the Sphinx -
lies unmarked on the floor in a corner gathering dust
with a forklift parked in front of it. Don't consider
entering this museum without a knowledgeable guide.
Karen was my guide and she decoded the museum for me
well, making the visit worthwhile. The photo policy was
horrible too - no cameras or photos of any kind are
allowed. There's a lot of whining in Egypt about the
ancient treasures that have been spirited away to other
country's museums. In my opinion, if they were destined
for the Egyptian Museum instead, they're probably better
off in that other country. I finished my first full day
in Egypt with a very long evening walk along the the
east bank of the Nile, from my hotel on Zamalek island
to the Hard Rock Cafe on the southern Nile island of
Roda, where I enjoyed a leisurely dinner.
Sunday, December 5th -
Pyramids of Saqqara, Dashur & Giza
A dense haze at daybreak didn't bode well for my pyramid day ahead.
Karen set our agenda historically from oldest to newest - Saqqara, then Dashur,
and finally Giza. Driving south at 8AM from Cairo to Saqqara, the
haze was thick enough to hide the pyramids of Giza - no small feat.
At Saqqara, I started with the Imhotep museum and then explored the
grounds of the nearly 5000 year-old
Step pyramid (first picture below), moving on to climb through
Teti's
tomb (second picture below) - my first pyramid interior. Karen
advised me that the trick to pyramid interiors is to climb down
backwards, which made the long descent much easier. I know it's a
cliché, but experiencing pyramids up close and live really does add
another dimension to seeing them in pictures. Their sheer size
coupled with their age is astounding.
Saqqara's step
pyramid - 2667BC
Saqqara entering
Teti's tomb - 2345BC
Dashur Bent & Black pyramids
- 2613BC
Tomb steps
Driving south from Saqqara to Dashur, the
haze mostly lifted for my walk all around the outside of the
Bent pyramid (third picture above). The
Red (or North)
pyramid is on the same site. I visited the interior of the Red
Pyramid, which requires a 100ft climb on the outside (first
picture below - you can see the slight red coloring of the
stone) and then a long descent inside (fourth picture above -
view from the bottom of the tomb looking up toward the
outside entrance). From Dashur, we drove north toward Giza, stopping
for a great lunch around Saqqara. Giza is perched right on top of
Cairo now, with apartments, cheap hotels and fast food
restaurants literally across the street from where I took the shots you see
below. Entering Giza, the "guides", fake policemen and other touts were very aggressive and obnoxious, as I had been
forewarned about by other travelers. Karen ran interference
beautifully with them to make the visit enjoyable. Despite
its crowds and other challenges, the Giza site still impressed.
The second picture below shows three pyramids of
Giza lined up in a row - Khafre's, Menkaure's & one of
Menkaure queen's. The third picture below offers a
perspective on how big each of the thousands of blocks really
are that make up the pyramids. The large picture, top of page
left, shows the windy, hazy view from a plateau spot
overlooking the pyramids. The fourth picture below and the
panorama below it were taken from the site exit as sunset
approached. I finished the day with dinner at an informal, but
very good pizza restaurant across from my hotel on Zamalek
called
Maison Thomas.
Monday,
December 6th - Luxor's East Bank: Karnak & Luxor Temples
I met my driver and guide outside of Arrivals at Luxor's airport after my
~400 mile morning flight from Cairo. I was struck immediately by the
success of Luxor 's strategy to be an "open air museum".
Landscaping, open spaces and inviting archeological sites were a
stark contrast to Cairo's urban decay. After checking in and
grabbing lunch at the
Luxor Hilton, we were off to Karnak.
Karnak
is Egypt's most important pharaonic site, as well as possibly the
largest temple ever built, covering 247 acres. It was the seat of
power during 1300 of Egypt's glory years starting in 1500BC, about a
thousand years after the pyramids. The
Avenue of Sphinxes (first picture below), which is 3Km in
length, leads into the site and in ancient times connected Karnak to
Luxor Temple. Karnak grew through its 1300 years, so the deeper I
walked into the site, the older its history became. Karnak's 134
massive columns (second picture below) are not only impressive by
their size and how well they are preserved, but also by the
remarkable amount of original coloring on them and their attached
ceilings. After a stop downtown to visit an authentic Egyptian
coffeehouse, Oumkulsuum, we headed to
Luxor Temple to tour the site and then catch its lighting at
dusk (third picture below). From Luxor Temple, we headed back to
Karnak for the 90 minute, 6pm English Sound and Light show, which
was way too Hollywood, but still a good opportunity to tour the site
after dark (fourth picture below). After dinner at the hotel, I met
Captain Amr of Hod Hod Soliman to finalize my transportation details
for the Tuesday morning hot air balloon ride over the west bank.
Karnak Sphinx road
Karnak columns
Luxor Temple at
night
Karnak facade at
night
Tuesday, December 7th -
Luxor's West Bank: Hot air ballooning, Colossi of Memnon,
Madinat Habu, Ramesseum, Hatshepsut temple & Valley of
the Kings
December 7th is
Islamic New Year's day this year, but there was little effect in
tourist areas. I met the Hod Hod Soliman driver at 4:45AM who took
me to a Felucca river boat
for the ride across the
Nile to the west bank, where I boarded the hot air balloon before
dawn. The 90 minute hot air balloon ride over the Valley of the
Kings, Queens and Nobles was very peaceful (large picture top of
page right and 13 minute HD video embedded at the bottom of this
page). Landing near the Colossi of Memnon (first picture below) I
met my driver and guide. Our first stops, which were off the tour
bus track and therefore deserted, were at
Madinat Habu (second picture below - notice all the colors
remaining on the columns and ceiling after thousands of years) and
Ramesseum (third picture below - hangin out with my tall
friends).
We then drove to the
Temple of Hatshepsut, which was packed with tourists (panorama
picture below). Hatshepsut was a colorful character in Egyptian
history and perhaps at 1500BC, the earliest woman's' rights
activist, taking the role of Pharaoh when that was essentially
impossible for women. From the Temple of Hatshepsut, we drove to the
Valley of the Kings (fourth picture below), which for no good
reason allowed no cameras of any type into the complex. The Valley
of the Kings is a huge site with 63 tombs, ranging from simple pits
to complexes of 120 chambers. I climbed through 3 of the larger and
more interesting ones -
Seti II
(KV14),
Ramesses
II (KV7) and
Ramesses
III (KV11). A note of advice on tombs, both in Luxor and in the
pyramids up north - even in the mild weather I had December (~70°F
highs), the interiors of tombs were hot and stuffy and definitely
not for anyone with claustrophobia. The climbs in and out were not
at all difficult, despite stories in travel books to the contrary.
I finished my last day
in Egypt relaxing at the hotel pool and at its Nile-side restaurant. All in all
Egypt was a challenging, yet very worthwhile trip.
Colossi of Memnon
Madinat Habu
columns
Ramesseum statues
Valley of the Kings
Temple of Hatshepsut panorama
Press play above to
hop aboard with me for 13 minutes of a peaceful hot air
balloon ride at daybreak over Luxor's west bank
