Egypt: Memphis, Sakkara, Giza, Abu Simbel, Aswan
I realized that, for the length of my last post on Egypt, I covered only our arrival and not even one of the sights. OK, then, it's time to go for improved efficiency.
Our first day we drove south and then did a series of stops on our way back north. We started the day at Memphis, a key city during one kingdom or another. Sorry, but one of the problems with my procrastination is that critical details like which era something was from (and one would think that "early", "middle", or "late" kingdom ought to be easy enough to figure out) have simply evaporated from my cranium. So you'll just have to endure the vagueness. (Note, I am also too lazy to look this up again on Wikipedia. Some of us have Christmas gifts to wrap and cards to write.)
Memphis has been extensively excavated in the past few years, and we saw a beautifully preserved, enormous statue (possibly of Ramses II? It's the best guess, given the number of statues he made, or converted). There was also a particularly nice Sphinx.
We then continued north to Sakkara, the site of some of the earliest pyramids, specifically, the Stepped Pyramid. The first pyramid ever built, it is very distinctive because it was built as a series of smaller squares, making it into about five steps (I think). We also saw the inside of our first tomb there (in a different pyramid). Tombs in Egypt are not quite as exciting as one might hope. They have invariably been completely emptied of their original treasures, so usually the novelty is in traversing a passage going deep into the bowels of a pyramid. Generally, they are poorly lit, extremely steep, low, and narrow, hot and claustrophobic, and somewhat stale smelling. With some effort, however, one can recall the magic and the mystery of the first explorers to find these ancient places. The highlight of our visit was my pidgin attempts to communicate with a French tourist, which won me the flattering comment, "Are you French, too?"
Leaving Sakkara, Mom and I both marveled at the abruptness of the greenery supported by the Nile and the sudden return to sandy desert.
We continued on to see the three pyramids of Giza. The Great Pyramid is only open to tourists twice a day, so we passed some time waiting for our tickets. We met a troupe of schoolgirls, who were extremely enthusiastic to be photographed. I am still Western enough that being touched all over by small hands makes me a bit uncomfortable. We made our escape, but I couldn't help feeling slightly rude about it.
Interestingly, many of the pyramids have accompanying small pyramids, built for the wives or children of the Pharaoh. We got quite a few nice views. The most interesting aspect was the changing perspective of distance. Close up, you can see that the limestone casing that made the sides perfectly smooth has almost entirely disappeared. The blocks beneath are massive, giving all of the pyramids a distinctively stepped look. However, with even the slightest amount of distance, the imperfections recede, leaving the illusion of perfect pyramids.
We walked around to see the Sphinx. She is in such poor shape that I found her somewhat less impressive than the one we had seen in Sakkara. Also, her head and body are almost comically out of proportion. Nonetheless, it was interesting to see. Nearby, I also managed to pick up a souvenir for Julien (and not get totally ripped off, based on the price I saw for identical items in the airport later). I also got a free bonus stuffed camel after making the hawker feel guilty for snapping a picture of me on his cell phone. I definitely got a lot of attention wandering about, but it's hard for me to say whether it was disproportionate to other tourists my age. That day I was wearing long sleeves and long pants, so I would have been on the extremely modest side for a foreign tourist.
To Mom's horror, we were to get up at 2 am the next day in order to catch our flight to Abu Simbel. We made it to bed by 7 p.m., which has got to be a personal record. Surprisingly, I was plenty tired enough to nod off instantly. Of course the comfortable bed and the life-size pillows for cuddling helped immeasurably.
Throughout the trip I tried to follow along in our two guidebooks, so that I would have a better appreciation for what we were seeing. So, after doing the requisite reading, I proceeded straight back to sleep on our airplane ride.
Apparently the tour of Abu Simbel is run completely by Egypt air. We followed along docilely from the plane to our bus, and from our bus to the sight. Following our previous guide's recommendation, we tried to find a local guide, but failed. It was our only time without a guide the whole trip! The original location had been flooded by the construction of the Aswan Dam, and had been relocated to its current position as an emergency effort by an international team of archaeologists. Their work was flawless. From the outside, the facades didn't entirely fit in with their surroundings, but the insides and been preserved beautifully.
It was our first exposure to the outstanding level of preservation of the local artwork. In complete contrast to anything I would have imagined, the original colors remained remarkably brilliant. We later learned that the ancient Egyptians had used a special sealant we still know nothing about to bind the pigments to the stone. Many of the painted reliefs were quite grand and beautiful. There were detailed scenes of wars, with foreigners, chariots, and gods and goddesses. As usual, it was swarming with tourists, but it was still an awe-inspiring sight.
From Abu Simbel we returned north by air, this time stopping at Aswan. This was when our troubles began. We had left our itinerary on the airplane, and it seemed that a lot of our tour was being changed from what we had remembered. It was an enormously stressful annoyance to have to argue over every meal, and I was very upset on Mom's behalf that she should have to deal with it.
We proceeded directly to our hotel, the Isis, on an island in the middle of the Nile. Much of our transport in Aswan was by motorboat along the river. Of all the places we visited, I think Aswan certainly merited additional time. After our previous accommodations, the Isis left much to desire. However, I was content to ignore it as much as possible. I think it was worse for Mom, who, paying for it after all, was more inclined to want to feel like she was getting her money's worth.
In the afternoon we met our guide and did a speed-tour of the Botanical Gardens and the Aswan Dam. The dam certainly inspires mixed feelings. Admittedly it has saved the Egyptian economy, but the impact on the environment and especially much of the ancient relics has been dramatic. Similarly, it has made Egypt extremely vulnerable. If the dam were bombed, 90% of the population would be wiped out by the following flood.
We concluded with a visit to Philae Temple. Like Abu Simbel, it had been artificially relocated to accommodate the creation of Lake Nasser by the dam. Unlike the rest of our experiences, our late arrival (almost at sunset) meant that we had the place much to ourselves. The colors were not as fine as at Abu Simbel, but the complex was larger and we had quite a bit of area to explore at our relative leisure. Tragically, many of the figures had been effaced by Christians. You could tell which areas had been covered by mud by the gods who still retained their faces.
In the evening we took a dinner that was supposed to represent traditional cuisine of the local Nubians. The Nubians were apparently a migrant population from further south in Africa. There was a surprising awareness all over the country of the difference in skin tones between Nubians and other Egyptians. It was also strange to have a Coptic guide, wearing cross tattoos instead of a head scarf.
Our first day we drove south and then did a series of stops on our way back north. We started the day at Memphis, a key city during one kingdom or another. Sorry, but one of the problems with my procrastination is that critical details like which era something was from (and one would think that "early", "middle", or "late" kingdom ought to be easy enough to figure out) have simply evaporated from my cranium. So you'll just have to endure the vagueness. (Note, I am also too lazy to look this up again on Wikipedia. Some of us have Christmas gifts to wrap and cards to write.)
Memphis has been extensively excavated in the past few years, and we saw a beautifully preserved, enormous statue (possibly of Ramses II? It's the best guess, given the number of statues he made, or converted). There was also a particularly nice Sphinx.
We then continued north to Sakkara, the site of some of the earliest pyramids, specifically, the Stepped Pyramid. The first pyramid ever built, it is very distinctive because it was built as a series of smaller squares, making it into about five steps (I think). We also saw the inside of our first tomb there (in a different pyramid). Tombs in Egypt are not quite as exciting as one might hope. They have invariably been completely emptied of their original treasures, so usually the novelty is in traversing a passage going deep into the bowels of a pyramid. Generally, they are poorly lit, extremely steep, low, and narrow, hot and claustrophobic, and somewhat stale smelling. With some effort, however, one can recall the magic and the mystery of the first explorers to find these ancient places. The highlight of our visit was my pidgin attempts to communicate with a French tourist, which won me the flattering comment, "Are you French, too?"
Leaving Sakkara, Mom and I both marveled at the abruptness of the greenery supported by the Nile and the sudden return to sandy desert.
We continued on to see the three pyramids of Giza. The Great Pyramid is only open to tourists twice a day, so we passed some time waiting for our tickets. We met a troupe of schoolgirls, who were extremely enthusiastic to be photographed. I am still Western enough that being touched all over by small hands makes me a bit uncomfortable. We made our escape, but I couldn't help feeling slightly rude about it.
Interestingly, many of the pyramids have accompanying small pyramids, built for the wives or children of the Pharaoh. We got quite a few nice views. The most interesting aspect was the changing perspective of distance. Close up, you can see that the limestone casing that made the sides perfectly smooth has almost entirely disappeared. The blocks beneath are massive, giving all of the pyramids a distinctively stepped look. However, with even the slightest amount of distance, the imperfections recede, leaving the illusion of perfect pyramids.
We walked around to see the Sphinx. She is in such poor shape that I found her somewhat less impressive than the one we had seen in Sakkara. Also, her head and body are almost comically out of proportion. Nonetheless, it was interesting to see. Nearby, I also managed to pick up a souvenir for Julien (and not get totally ripped off, based on the price I saw for identical items in the airport later). I also got a free bonus stuffed camel after making the hawker feel guilty for snapping a picture of me on his cell phone. I definitely got a lot of attention wandering about, but it's hard for me to say whether it was disproportionate to other tourists my age. That day I was wearing long sleeves and long pants, so I would have been on the extremely modest side for a foreign tourist.
To Mom's horror, we were to get up at 2 am the next day in order to catch our flight to Abu Simbel. We made it to bed by 7 p.m., which has got to be a personal record. Surprisingly, I was plenty tired enough to nod off instantly. Of course the comfortable bed and the life-size pillows for cuddling helped immeasurably.
Throughout the trip I tried to follow along in our two guidebooks, so that I would have a better appreciation for what we were seeing. So, after doing the requisite reading, I proceeded straight back to sleep on our airplane ride.
Apparently the tour of Abu Simbel is run completely by Egypt air. We followed along docilely from the plane to our bus, and from our bus to the sight. Following our previous guide's recommendation, we tried to find a local guide, but failed. It was our only time without a guide the whole trip! The original location had been flooded by the construction of the Aswan Dam, and had been relocated to its current position as an emergency effort by an international team of archaeologists. Their work was flawless. From the outside, the facades didn't entirely fit in with their surroundings, but the insides and been preserved beautifully.
It was our first exposure to the outstanding level of preservation of the local artwork. In complete contrast to anything I would have imagined, the original colors remained remarkably brilliant. We later learned that the ancient Egyptians had used a special sealant we still know nothing about to bind the pigments to the stone. Many of the painted reliefs were quite grand and beautiful. There were detailed scenes of wars, with foreigners, chariots, and gods and goddesses. As usual, it was swarming with tourists, but it was still an awe-inspiring sight.
From Abu Simbel we returned north by air, this time stopping at Aswan. This was when our troubles began. We had left our itinerary on the airplane, and it seemed that a lot of our tour was being changed from what we had remembered. It was an enormously stressful annoyance to have to argue over every meal, and I was very upset on Mom's behalf that she should have to deal with it.
We proceeded directly to our hotel, the Isis, on an island in the middle of the Nile. Much of our transport in Aswan was by motorboat along the river. Of all the places we visited, I think Aswan certainly merited additional time. After our previous accommodations, the Isis left much to desire. However, I was content to ignore it as much as possible. I think it was worse for Mom, who, paying for it after all, was more inclined to want to feel like she was getting her money's worth.
In the afternoon we met our guide and did a speed-tour of the Botanical Gardens and the Aswan Dam. The dam certainly inspires mixed feelings. Admittedly it has saved the Egyptian economy, but the impact on the environment and especially much of the ancient relics has been dramatic. Similarly, it has made Egypt extremely vulnerable. If the dam were bombed, 90% of the population would be wiped out by the following flood.
We concluded with a visit to Philae Temple. Like Abu Simbel, it had been artificially relocated to accommodate the creation of Lake Nasser by the dam. Unlike the rest of our experiences, our late arrival (almost at sunset) meant that we had the place much to ourselves. The colors were not as fine as at Abu Simbel, but the complex was larger and we had quite a bit of area to explore at our relative leisure. Tragically, many of the figures had been effaced by Christians. You could tell which areas had been covered by mud by the gods who still retained their faces.
In the evening we took a dinner that was supposed to represent traditional cuisine of the local Nubians. The Nubians were apparently a migrant population from further south in Africa. There was a surprising awareness all over the country of the difference in skin tones between Nubians and other Egyptians. It was also strange to have a Coptic guide, wearing cross tattoos instead of a head scarf.