History at Our Finger Tips : Aswan

Warning: Historical facts ahead … read with interest

“Aswan is one of the most beautiful cities in Egypt and since Pharanoic times it has always been considered the southernmost tip of Egypt proper and where the first cataract and the land of the Nubians begins.

Aswan was the capital of the first Nome of Upper Egypt and is famous for being a spice market and market for all the special products coming from the south such as incense. “

Fun Fact:  “The name Aswan comes from the old name Syene which means market in the ancient language. “

We visited the High Dam, the Temple of Philae and concluded with a scenic stroll around Elephantine Island... oddly enough Elephantine Island possessed a few slight similarities with some of the villages I had previously visited in Nigeria (I’ll try to better explain in a separate blog post)

Citation: Dr. Randa Baligh, Egyptologist & my Egyptology professor.

History at Our Finger Tips: Luxor

Warning: prepare to be enlightened… informative material ahead

“Luxor is one of the most important archaeological sites in the world, and is even said to contain two thirds of the world antiquities. It became a residence or capital city of Egypt during the New Kingdom. The name Luxor comes form the Arabic word qasr meaning palace.

Luxor has two distinct areas with antiquities. The East Bank which has a number of sites such as the Karnak Temples, Luxor Temple, The Luxor Museum, the Mummification Museum and Chicago House which is not an archaeological site but a research facility.

The West Bank is traditionally the side of the dead. The West bank of Luxor has the mortuary temples of the New Kingdom pharaohs, the Valley of the Kings where the kings of the New Kingdom were buried and the Valley of the Queens. “

Fun Fact “Even in modern day Egypt when they say someone went westwards it means he died”

The group and I visited the Karnak Temple, Luxor Temple, and the West Bank & Necropolis of Thebes (Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple & Colossi of Memnon ) … it was all surreal!!!

Citation: Dr. Randa Baligh, Egyptologist & my Egyptology professor.

NILE CRUISE

Several weeks ago, the group and I embarked on yet another much needed, and eagerly awaited, lavish getaway. We crammed our essentials into duffle bags and travels-ons and set off, in the early morning shadows, to the Cairo International Airport. We anxiously boarded EgyptAir Flight 702 , promptly at 5:50am, and abandoned the stale air of Cairo for the unpolluted scenic views of Luxor. At 7am we landed in Luxor and our 4 days and 3 nights upon our opulent Nile Cruise began.

I can not sufficiently document the pleasures of lying lazily against reclining beach chairs, stationed alongside the pool, upon a cruise ship that is being gently rocked by the subtle waves of the Nile; so I have left that responsibility to the pictures attached below. lol

But, I can provide you with our itinerary of the sites we managed to see during the boats periodic stops near various ancient landmarks.

4 Day Itinerary:
Day 1:
Visit Karnak Temple
Visit Luxor Temple
overnight onboard in Luxor
Day 2 :
Visit West Bak & Necropolis of Thebes (Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsut Temple & Colossi of Memnon)
Sail to Esna across the Lock
Arabic class ... ( yes, class was in session on the boat. I wasn't particularly happy about this lol)

Day 3:
Murder Mystery game, played on the boat
Visit the temple shared by the two gods Sobek and Haroeris
Sail to Aswan overnight
Day 4:
Visit the High Dam and the temple of Philae
Visit Elephantine Island
Depart Aswan with Egypt Air to Cairo

I credit this experience for fostering my newfound love of the waters. <3

Islamic Cairo

A few weeks ago the group ventured out to Islamic Cairo and strolled along MUI'Z STREET.

Mui'z street: Was once the central street in Cairo, and is one of Cairo's most historical streets. The street holds "Cairo's largest open-air museum of Islamic and medieval monuments."

We visited only a couple historical sites as we admired the ancient architectural beauty that lied along the narrow brick roads of the street.

The Bab el-Futuh: "The Bab el-Futuh, or Gate of Conquest consists of a huge vaulted opening carved from a massive block of stone and flanked by two rounded towers. It marks the northern boundary of the old Fatimid City. In past times, the great caravan of pilgrims returned each year from Mecca, entering this gate and making their way to the Citadel."

El-Hakim Mosque: "El-Hakim Mosque is the second largest Fatimid mosque in Cairo. The mosque was started in 990 and was completed in 1013. Over its lifetime, the building has served as a prison for captive Crusaders, Napoleon's warehouse, Salah al-Din's stable and a boys' school under Nasser."http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/muizstreet.htm

Cairo University

Cairo University is located in Giza, Egypt, a mere 10 minute brisk walk from our Dokki apartment. Established in 1908, Cairo University is a public institution with an approximate 200,000 students. The University decor consists of Old English, with its simplistically styled halls and high ceilings adorned with chandeliers, coupled with a sort of tropical flare, due to its various exotic plants.

fun fact: Cairo University is the biggest and the oldest campus in the Middle East and North Africahttp://www.aiesec-eg.org/cu/

The various faculties that exist at Cairo University include: Faculty of Engineering , Faculty of Computer and Informatics Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Faculty of Pharmacy, Faculty of Agriculture, Faculty of Science, Faculty of Economics and Political , Faculty of Mass Communications, Faculty of Archaeology, Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Commerce, Faculty of Law, Faculty of Dar El-Ulum , Faculty of Archaeology, Faculty of Oral and Dental Medicine, Faculty of Physiotherapy , The Faculty of Regional and Urban Planning, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Nursing, and the Faculty of Kindergarten.http://www.cu.edu.eg/english/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cairo_University

Happily Robbed ?

I equate living in Cairo withbeing assigned a platoon at battle.
(Please bear with the dramatics, my obsession with metaphors and my spontaneoususe of bizarre similes lol.)

 In Cairo you defend your own, while you simultaneously guard against and or attack "the foreign". As you may have already assumed, I am indeed among "the foreign". Under this title I have been blindly assigned, by Egyptian society, to the bottom of the ranks; a ranking where refugees stand alert yet vulnerably unarmed and outnumbered. 

Side bar: There are 3 to 5 million resettled Sudanese refuges in Egypt, and despite Sudan's historical relations with Egypt, (Sudan was formally the kingdom of Nubia and under Egyptian rule) the Sudanese refugees still exist as a detached portion of Egyptian society.

The bold shade of black pigment that elegantly drapes itself along the bodies of the Sudanese, simultaneously calls to attention the visual difference between them and the Egyptians. This consequently assists in publicly alienating the Sudanese from the rest of society. The static relationship between Egyptians and the Sudanese refugees is a battle to be discussed in a future post, but as for now it is sufficient to simply be mindful that the relationship between the two is uneasy and hostile.

By default, due to my dark complexion, I too experience the stigma of wearing black skin in Cairo and I am frequently referred to as Sudanese. Being mistaken as Sudanese would therefore imply that I am also mistaken as a refugee and therefore I too fall victim to the hard feelings Egyptians harbor against Sudanese refugees.   

I say all of this to share a brief story:

            During my commute to the Nuba Mountains headquarters, to teach English to my class of Sudanese refugees (see Blog post Volunteering at Nuba Mountains International  http://palmoil-water.blogspot.com/2012/02/volunteering-at-nuba-mountains.html ) ,I ,along with a fellow volunteer, stopped to quench our thirst at a nearby outdoor café.With my back turned away from the road, knapsack partially opened and wallet exposed, I was robbed. An Egyptian man slyly uplifted my wallet from the small unsecured compartment I had tucked my wallet away in and set off in a vicious sprint down the narrow road behind me.

Unaware of the activities occurring at my back I stood nonchalant and at ease until the piercing scream of an Egyptian man, from his storefront behind me, hollered “Haramie.” (In Arabic Harami translates to thief or burglar; a word I at the time was unaware of its meaning.) Confused and alarmed I turned around to witness throngs of Egyptian men sprinting down the road. It was only until the culprit was carried by his neck and tattered trousers, towards my direction, did I then realize the tragedy that had unfolded. My wallet was soon returned to me as a large group of men scolded the culprit and removed the remaining contents he possessed from his pockets, so as to ensure he had not stored any other items elsewhere.

I will abruptly conclude this story to say that in a sort of twisted way I am glad  that I was forced to endure such an emotional experience. (although my current sentiments may have been a bit different if my wallet was not returned to me).

Let me explain: 

Prior to this incident I have endured a number of emotional episodes here in Egypt, all of which did not end as well, which have pushed me to formulate an ugly opinion of Egyptians. For weeks I have viewed Egyptians as overly race conscious moral hypocrites (a similar attitude I hold towards a large number of Americans). Now after surviving this incident (pardon the dramatics) and having been saved by an unknown group of Egyptian men, my perception of Egyptians have improved.

My mission in Egypt is not to unveil how racist and insensitive Egyptians are, because I do not believe this holds true for the country as a whole. I embarked on this journey to embrace a foreign culture and simultaneously be accepted as well (see blog post PALMOIL & WATER http://palmoil-water.blogspot.com/2012/02/palmoil-water.html). Therefore I am content with the fairy tale ending of an overwhelming experience.

Although this incident occurred a couple of weeks ago, I am still burdened by a few questions:

Were these Egyptian men anxious to return my wallet because I appeared to be a foreigner? 

Or was it because I stood beside a Caucasian woman who was obviously a foreigner? 

Or does race not hold weight in matters of moral integrity?

Questions I may never find answers to… and probably best I never find out. 

Camping out in the Desert

A few weeks ago, I, a black girl traditionally confined to a small town suburban bubble, embarked on the unthinkable...I packed my travel on and went camping.Gasp...lol

This was unlike any camping experience one could ever imagine; our initial camp ground, The White Desert.

Unfortunately when we had reached camp grounds we were told a sand storm was looming near by and so we moved settlement to a small village called Al Hyaz. =(

Despite the disappointing last minute alteration of plans I had a marvelous time.

Here was our 3 day itinerary along with complementary photos.

Drive to Bahariya Oasis - an isolated oasis a few hours drive from Cairo
arrive in Bawiti and check in at Sandrose Bahariya hotel (oh yes we were definitely "roughing it" lol)
roam around the Museum of the Golden Mummies
arrive at the Temple of Ain al-Muuftella
make our way to the Tomb of Noble Bannity
visit two-chamber temples
group swim in a cold spring
climb the Black Mountain and frolic along inactive volcanoes 0_o
visit Bebel el Dist (Magic Mountain)
four wheel drive excursion up a 15 meter Sand Dune in the Black Desert
picnic at the Al Hyaz , a small village
stop through Crystal Mountain finally arrive at the White Desert
set up camp at Al Hyaz

Hours prior to sunrise I scurried up on top of the hood of our jeep and patiently awaited sun rise.
Scattered stars scampered across the night sky, as shooting stars cascaded over our camp site... those moments were pure bliss.