06:30 Wake up call. Shower. I order a Turkish coffee from room service. Might as well start the day on 12 volts.
Breakfast is a buffet of middle-eastern dishes, sausages, omelettes, potatoes, American pancakes, Egyptian bread and coffee that's refilled by friendly waiting staff. The Egyptian cheeses are, at this stage, difficult to distinguish and I end up with three different types of very salty cheese on my plate.
08:30 Gouda and Talat pick us up and drive us to the Egyptian museum.
Gouda found mom a step to help her in an out of the bus. After yesterday's problems getting us into the bus, Gouda has appropriated his 2yr old's pink play table to use as a step in and out the the bus. In addition, he has a wheelchair to ease the strain on her knees. The wheelchair is also our ticket through the fast-track entry.
I can now state as fact that Cairo by day is a lot less romantic than Cairo by night. The traffic is hectic. Many more cars, donkeys for good measure and several low life-expectancy jaywalkers. It's better not to watch.
We are supposed to be able to see the pyramids of Giza from here, but it is quite misty. I say 'mist', because that is what Goda calls it, but it does have a suspicious yellowy colour, it reminds me of paraffin and makes my eyes water. Go figure.
At the museum are the expected hordes of tourists and almost as many police, mostly armed with AK-47's and 9mm SMG's. Clearly, today is not a good day to steal a sarcophagus.
The building itself is a beautiful terracotta of French design. Granite statues stand outside amongst fountains, lawn and palm trees. Even a piece of the Sphinx' beard.
Inside it is swarming with Spaniards, Russians, Japanese, Chinese and Germans. Each group with their own guide trying to be heard.
The first artefact we look at is most important in all of Egyptology, possibly world history. It is a heart shaped plaque, of polished black stone, describing the ascent of the very first pharao, Narmer, to the throne. It is 5200 years old and virtually untouched by time. The craftsmanship is excellent.
We move on to the statues and art of the Old Kingdom. (We did not realise it at the time, but our tour was designed to start with the very oldest facets of Egyptian history and gradually move in chronological order to the modern day.) The Old Kingdom refers to the period from 3200BC to 2400BC when most of Egypt was first united under one ruler.
The Egyptian museum has 132 000 items on display, from toothpicks to megalithic statues. Each one has a story, and Goda knows them all. I could spend weeks here. OK, I realise not everyone is a museum-nut, but humour me here. Goda has a degree in Egyptology. He could probably read the newspaper in hieroglyphics, but for now I am fascinated to hear what a king of 5000 years ago wanted the world to know about him. He translates the hieroglypic inscriptions and explains how the names of the pharaos are identified and read, e.g Khe-fe-ren, Sne-fe-ru. He tells us about the ancient gods, Isis, Osiris, Amun, Re, Hathor and more. He explains the the social order, including the king, beaurocrats, priests and commoners.
Several carvings show midgets. Apparently midgets were highly regarded in ancient Egypt and the gifted ones could rise to high positions within the royal household, for the simple reason that with their short legs they are unlikely to run very far with the king's gold!
We see a beautiful painted limestone statue of a seated scribe, name unknown, from 2475 BC. His eyes are made of ivory and inlaid with crystal. Looking at him, you get the impression of intelligence and concentration. He certainly made enough of an impression in the pharaoh to have him commission a statue.
Gouda explains that only the very best and brightest became scribes. They had to write down, verbatim, what was said between the king and others. This put the scribe in a position of power and thus he needed the absolute trust of the king. There are examples later in history of the scribes also being the generals of the army.
We stop for a while at the imposing bust of Amenemhat III, one of the Nubian Pharaohs, before moving on to to the bust of queen Hatsepsut, the only female pharao. Gouda tells us her story: Her father was Pharaoh Tutmosis I and her mother was royal, but she was their only child. Her father also had a son by a non-royal woman. He therefore did not have enough royal blood to assume the throne. She had, but she was female. Simple! Marry each other! Just to be sure, their children married each other as well. It does keep the Christmas list short.
Her husband died young, after nominating his son (by a another woman) as successor. In the meantime, Hatsepsut acted as regent and went so far as to exile the young heir to the throne. Her reign was mostly peaceful and beneficial to the country. The young heir eventually defeated her in battle and assumed the throne as Tutmosis III. He tried very hard to destroy every trace of her reign, but was (thankfully) not completely successful.
We see several depictions of prisoners of war. Some are clearly African, some are Asiatic and some look like Babylonians. This is and indication of the extent of the Egyptian empire at this time.
After three hours of this I can hardly feel my feet any more, my eyes are glazing and I have developed a neck-strain. Gouda is sounding a bit hoarse and I think his jaw is going to seize up any moment.
We are led, unwillingly, out of the museum and into our bus. Set off for lunch. Tables under a veranda around a central lawn. Very Egyptian. Even the locals eat here. On our table we receive a small charcoal barbecue with pieces of chicken and kofta. The buffet holds a large variety of salads, dips and vegetables. I have a potato, tomato and eggplant stew, baba ganoush, tahini, falafel, Egyptian bread and anything that comes off the barbecue. Bloody marvellous. We have fallen in love with Egyptian bread.
A guy is standing around with a camel that looks as if it has just escaped from the circus, but we are not really in the mood for camel-riding at the moment. So we watch others attempting it.
After lunch we drive to the Memphis open air museum. Yes. We asked for it. This takes us out of Cairo. We drive along irrigation canals used to irrigate crops of alfalfa, cabbage, cauliflower and carrots. Women and children working the fields everywhere. In between, what seems like thousands of buildings, from mud-brick penns to multi-story mansions. These are farmhouses, welders, chemists, joiners, mechanics, grocers and general dealers. All trying to make a living.
Memphis is the name given by the Greeks under Alexander the Great to the first capital city of Egypt. 4200 years ago, it was the greatest city on earth. Today, it is mostly covered by sand, Nile-mud and modern housing.
The open air museum holds pieces that have been found in the area. Amongst others, a colossal statue of Ramses II, 10m in all its glory, and a sphinx carved from a single block of alabaster.
From Memphis we drive to Saqqara. This is the ancient burial complex of the kings of the Old Kingdom. Through date palm groves and alfalfa fields, over a bridge and all of a sudden we are in the desert: The yellow of the Sahara in front and the green of the Nile valley behind.
First stop: The Museum of Imhotep. Imhotep was a genius, in the same way that Da Vinci and Newton were geniuses. He was the architect of the first pyramid and its temples. He was also the Pharaoh's scribe, chief engineer, high priest, chief magician and chief physician, . To this day, he is recognised as the founder of medicine. He is one of very few mortals ever associated with a Pharaoh on a monument.
Imhotep designed the first pyramid for Pharaoh Zoser. Not only that, he devised a practical way of actually building it and managing the workforce.
This man, who may well be the most important person in the history of civilisation on Earth, has one, and only one, statue dedicated to him. It is 16cm high and it resides in this museum. We are here to see it.
The museum itself is very modern, well laid out, wheelchair friendly and very informative. I wish they were all like this.
From the museum we drive to site of the pyramid of Zoser. On your right is the sand of the ages, on your left is the valley of the Nile. From the road, we could see the step pyramid, but now we are actually going there. Our first pyramid! There is evidence of archaeological work everywhere: pieces of walls uncovered, dark passages leading underground and restricted areas everywhere.
The Saqqara complex contains 11 large pyramids and several smaller ones. Many are badly ruined and are little more than heaps of stone and sand. Zoser's pyramid, the biggest in the complex, is also the best preserved. This pyramid was built 4700 years ago, the oldest stone building on Earth. To get inside the pyramid enclosure, we need to walk through the 'entrance hall', consisting of 40 limestone columns, designed by Imhotep, and considered one of the oldest uses of stone columns. Exiting the hall, we come into a large enclosure with the pyramid on the far side. Almost all of the high quality facing stone on the outside of the pyramid have been 're-used' in other projects over the centuries. Today only the inner building stones remain.
This is a step pyramid. Imhotep's plan was a follows: Build a big square base, 12m high, and then a smaller square on top of it, also 12m high. Build third and smaller square on top of that. Then expand the bottom square, followed by the second and third squares. Now build another 12m square on top the the third square, and repeat the process of enlarging and then building another storey. In this way, the base of the pyramid expands while the pyramid is built higher, but the structure retains its basic shape all the time. This allowed him to build as high as the materials allowed, without jeopardising the design.
This is a vast complex with much to explore, but we have limited time.We decide to have a quick climb up the wall to see the views over the area. Here we meet some very insistent touts as well are Ramses the donkey and his mate Ramses II. Gouda watches from a distance and laughingly informs my mom that we are in trouble. We manage to get off rather lightly, it only cost us $1
The sun is setting and we have museum feet, but on the way back to the hotel we stop at a carpet-making academy. They show us how the knots are made and how the knots build up into a complete carpet. Some work with silk thread. All work is done by hand by children and it takes about 3 months, by very skilled fingers, to produce one square meter of silk carpet. They would have liked us to buy some, but I did not even ask the price.
It is early evening on our way to the hotel, which is situated in the Giza suburb of Cairo. Goda shows us where to look and we see the tops of the three great pyramids of Giza set against the purple and orange of the western horizon and the silhouettes of palm trees and half-finished apartment complexes.
18:20 Completely shattered. I assume the position in the outdoor restaurant where I relax with a cool breeze, a cold Sakkara beer and a shisha pipe. We have a LOT to discuss, and much to write down in the dairy. What a day. Dinner is Egyptian bread, baba ganoush, fatoush and humus. And Sakkara.
10:00 Lights out
More pics:
Breakfast is a buffet of middle-eastern dishes, sausages, omelettes, potatoes, American pancakes, Egyptian bread and coffee that's refilled by friendly waiting staff. The Egyptian cheeses are, at this stage, difficult to distinguish and I end up with three different types of very salty cheese on my plate.
08:30 Gouda and Talat pick us up and drive us to the Egyptian museum.
Gouda found mom a step to help her in an out of the bus. After yesterday's problems getting us into the bus, Gouda has appropriated his 2yr old's pink play table to use as a step in and out the the bus. In addition, he has a wheelchair to ease the strain on her knees. The wheelchair is also our ticket through the fast-track entry.
I can now state as fact that Cairo by day is a lot less romantic than Cairo by night. The traffic is hectic. Many more cars, donkeys for good measure and several low life-expectancy jaywalkers. It's better not to watch.
We are supposed to be able to see the pyramids of Giza from here, but it is quite misty. I say 'mist', because that is what Goda calls it, but it does have a suspicious yellowy colour, it reminds me of paraffin and makes my eyes water. Go figure.
At the museum are the expected hordes of tourists and almost as many police, mostly armed with AK-47's and 9mm SMG's. Clearly, today is not a good day to steal a sarcophagus.
The building itself is a beautiful terracotta of French design. Granite statues stand outside amongst fountains, lawn and palm trees. Even a piece of the Sphinx' beard.
Inside it is swarming with Spaniards, Russians, Japanese, Chinese and Germans. Each group with their own guide trying to be heard.
The first artefact we look at is most important in all of Egyptology, possibly world history. It is a heart shaped plaque, of polished black stone, describing the ascent of the very first pharao, Narmer, to the throne. It is 5200 years old and virtually untouched by time. The craftsmanship is excellent.
We move on to the statues and art of the Old Kingdom. (We did not realise it at the time, but our tour was designed to start with the very oldest facets of Egyptian history and gradually move in chronological order to the modern day.) The Old Kingdom refers to the period from 3200BC to 2400BC when most of Egypt was first united under one ruler.
The Egyptian museum has 132 000 items on display, from toothpicks to megalithic statues. Each one has a story, and Goda knows them all. I could spend weeks here. OK, I realise not everyone is a museum-nut, but humour me here. Goda has a degree in Egyptology. He could probably read the newspaper in hieroglyphics, but for now I am fascinated to hear what a king of 5000 years ago wanted the world to know about him. He translates the hieroglypic inscriptions and explains how the names of the pharaos are identified and read, e.g Khe-fe-ren, Sne-fe-ru. He tells us about the ancient gods, Isis, Osiris, Amun, Re, Hathor and more. He explains the the social order, including the king, beaurocrats, priests and commoners.
Several carvings show midgets. Apparently midgets were highly regarded in ancient Egypt and the gifted ones could rise to high positions within the royal household, for the simple reason that with their short legs they are unlikely to run very far with the king's gold!
We see a beautiful painted limestone statue of a seated scribe, name unknown, from 2475 BC. His eyes are made of ivory and inlaid with crystal. Looking at him, you get the impression of intelligence and concentration. He certainly made enough of an impression in the pharaoh to have him commission a statue.
Gouda explains that only the very best and brightest became scribes. They had to write down, verbatim, what was said between the king and others. This put the scribe in a position of power and thus he needed the absolute trust of the king. There are examples later in history of the scribes also being the generals of the army.
We stop for a while at the imposing bust of Amenemhat III, one of the Nubian Pharaohs, before moving on to to the bust of queen Hatsepsut, the only female pharao. Gouda tells us her story: Her father was Pharaoh Tutmosis I and her mother was royal, but she was their only child. Her father also had a son by a non-royal woman. He therefore did not have enough royal blood to assume the throne. She had, but she was female. Simple! Marry each other! Just to be sure, their children married each other as well. It does keep the Christmas list short.
Her husband died young, after nominating his son (by a another woman) as successor. In the meantime, Hatsepsut acted as regent and went so far as to exile the young heir to the throne. Her reign was mostly peaceful and beneficial to the country. The young heir eventually defeated her in battle and assumed the throne as Tutmosis III. He tried very hard to destroy every trace of her reign, but was (thankfully) not completely successful.
We see several depictions of prisoners of war. Some are clearly African, some are Asiatic and some look like Babylonians. This is and indication of the extent of the Egyptian empire at this time.
After three hours of this I can hardly feel my feet any more, my eyes are glazing and I have developed a neck-strain. Gouda is sounding a bit hoarse and I think his jaw is going to seize up any moment.
We are led, unwillingly, out of the museum and into our bus. Set off for lunch. Tables under a veranda around a central lawn. Very Egyptian. Even the locals eat here. On our table we receive a small charcoal barbecue with pieces of chicken and kofta. The buffet holds a large variety of salads, dips and vegetables. I have a potato, tomato and eggplant stew, baba ganoush, tahini, falafel, Egyptian bread and anything that comes off the barbecue. Bloody marvellous. We have fallen in love with Egyptian bread.
A guy is standing around with a camel that looks as if it has just escaped from the circus, but we are not really in the mood for camel-riding at the moment. So we watch others attempting it.
After lunch we drive to the Memphis open air museum. Yes. We asked for it. This takes us out of Cairo. We drive along irrigation canals used to irrigate crops of alfalfa, cabbage, cauliflower and carrots. Women and children working the fields everywhere. In between, what seems like thousands of buildings, from mud-brick penns to multi-story mansions. These are farmhouses, welders, chemists, joiners, mechanics, grocers and general dealers. All trying to make a living.
Memphis is the name given by the Greeks under Alexander the Great to the first capital city of Egypt. 4200 years ago, it was the greatest city on earth. Today, it is mostly covered by sand, Nile-mud and modern housing.
Memphis today
The open air museum holds pieces that have been found in the area. Amongst others, a colossal statue of Ramses II, 10m in all its glory, and a sphinx carved from a single block of alabaster.
This statue of Ramses II was found right here.
Me and the Alabaster Sphinx
Ramses II
From Memphis we drive to Saqqara. This is the ancient burial complex of the kings of the Old Kingdom. Through date palm groves and alfalfa fields, over a bridge and all of a sudden we are in the desert: The yellow of the Sahara in front and the green of the Nile valley behind.
First stop: The Museum of Imhotep. Imhotep was a genius, in the same way that Da Vinci and Newton were geniuses. He was the architect of the first pyramid and its temples. He was also the Pharaoh's scribe, chief engineer, high priest, chief magician and chief physician, . To this day, he is recognised as the founder of medicine. He is one of very few mortals ever associated with a Pharaoh on a monument.
Imhotep designed the first pyramid for Pharaoh Zoser. Not only that, he devised a practical way of actually building it and managing the workforce.
This man, who may well be the most important person in the history of civilisation on Earth, has one, and only one, statue dedicated to him. It is 16cm high and it resides in this museum. We are here to see it.
The museum itself is very modern, well laid out, wheelchair friendly and very informative. I wish they were all like this.
From the museum we drive to site of the pyramid of Zoser. On your right is the sand of the ages, on your left is the valley of the Nile. From the road, we could see the step pyramid, but now we are actually going there. Our first pyramid! There is evidence of archaeological work everywhere: pieces of walls uncovered, dark passages leading underground and restricted areas everywhere.
The Saqqara complex contains 11 large pyramids and several smaller ones. Many are badly ruined and are little more than heaps of stone and sand. Zoser's pyramid, the biggest in the complex, is also the best preserved. This pyramid was built 4700 years ago, the oldest stone building on Earth. To get inside the pyramid enclosure, we need to walk through the 'entrance hall', consisting of 40 limestone columns, designed by Imhotep, and considered one of the oldest uses of stone columns. Exiting the hall, we come into a large enclosure with the pyramid on the far side. Almost all of the high quality facing stone on the outside of the pyramid have been 're-used' in other projects over the centuries. Today only the inner building stones remain.
Zoser's pyramid a Saqqara
This is a step pyramid. Imhotep's plan was a follows: Build a big square base, 12m high, and then a smaller square on top of it, also 12m high. Build third and smaller square on top of that. Then expand the bottom square, followed by the second and third squares. Now build another 12m square on top the the third square, and repeat the process of enlarging and then building another storey. In this way, the base of the pyramid expands while the pyramid is built higher, but the structure retains its basic shape all the time. This allowed him to build as high as the materials allowed, without jeopardising the design.
This is a vast complex with much to explore, but we have limited time.We decide to have a quick climb up the wall to see the views over the area. Here we meet some very insistent touts as well are Ramses the donkey and his mate Ramses II. Gouda watches from a distance and laughingly informs my mom that we are in trouble. We manage to get off rather lightly, it only cost us $1
Eli getting some attention.
The stuff of legend. More interestingly, look at the excavations in the background.
This one I call 'Last light with Ramses the donkey'
The sun is setting and we have museum feet, but on the way back to the hotel we stop at a carpet-making academy. They show us how the knots are made and how the knots build up into a complete carpet. Some work with silk thread. All work is done by hand by children and it takes about 3 months, by very skilled fingers, to produce one square meter of silk carpet. They would have liked us to buy some, but I did not even ask the price.
It is early evening on our way to the hotel, which is situated in the Giza suburb of Cairo. Goda shows us where to look and we see the tops of the three great pyramids of Giza set against the purple and orange of the western horizon and the silhouettes of palm trees and half-finished apartment complexes.
18:20 Completely shattered. I assume the position in the outdoor restaurant where I relax with a cool breeze, a cold Sakkara beer and a shisha pipe. We have a LOT to discuss, and much to write down in the dairy. What a day. Dinner is Egyptian bread, baba ganoush, fatoush and humus. And Sakkara.
10:00 Lights out
More pics:
 |
| Egypt - Cairo, Memphis, Saqqara |
Ma Louise sê:
ReplyDeleteHerman en Eli lyk op die een foto nes Josef en Maria saam met hulle Egiptiese donkie.
As 'n Star Trek-fanatikus, was dit vir my baie interessant om herhaaldelik herinner te word aan die Egiptiese gode wat in dié TV-reeks gebruik is: Hathor, Anubis, Abydos, die kobra wat die inspirasie was vir die slangkop-wapens.