Egypt – A mystic land of Pharaohs, Pyramids & The Nile

Pyramids of Giza

Longing to see the place - Gurinder and I decided to visit it on our wedding anniversary.

Egypt, the very name brings memories of my Geography book telling me that Nile is the longest river in the world, the Pyramids being one of the seven wonders of the world and that rugged dark man with pronounced features. But I sure was surprised to see fairer people more like with Turkish features welcoming us. The warmth of the people and the place engulfed us the minute we hit the airport. As a tourist, you want to embrace and take in as much as you can and so I tried when we drove to the hotel. The roads, the rush and the energetic traffic so reminded me of Delhi. And then at the first site of the pyramids the pictures of the Royalty, the Pharaohs and Cleopatra came rushing to me. I needed to be in control of my wings of thoughts, as we had very little time to check-in and change and then rush to see the pyramids before they shut for the day. From the window of our room we could see the Pyramids and they seemed to look as if they were made with clay bricks.

Horse Buggy ride at Pyramids

The Pyramids - As the car approached closer the magnanimity of the highly mathematical and technologically sound architecture started to hit me. The conical architecture which looked as if made of a mix of sand and gravel was actually made of boulders, taller than an average person, each weighing more than an African elephant. For quite some time, all we did was stand there and admire the great pyramid of Cheops. And then we decided to enter it.

The narrow channel seemed so adventurous, and then walking up the stairs made the kid in me smile and finally we hit the chamber where lies the sarcophagus (which once had a mummy) without a lid. Our day was made entering the claustrophobic tube of history.

And then we came down to human reality when we were surrounded by men offering us the horse and camel rides, trying to coax us. Seeing the sad condition of the horses and knowing that these people know the best angles for clicking memorable photographs, we agreed. And we were right- the carriage man took us all around explaining the various pyramids. He shot one of the best pictures on the trip which covered us with all the three pyramids in the same frame. At the end of the trip he asked for “Baksheesh” for his horse. This is very common in Egypt, even if your program says- “all tips covered” be ready to shell out more as they will bluntly ask for it. Our guide Ameer was very knowledgeable and spoke very good English. 

View of Pyramids of Giza from Hotel Room

The Sphynx - The massive structure of a creature with a lion body and a human face (of King Khafre) is arguably one of the finest examples of art. I noticed that the nose seemed missing or crooked and I was explained that it was chopped off by a jealous Sufi Muslim ruler - Mohammad- Sa’im al - Da who did not like his people worshipping the idol. The ruler was lynched by people later. The guide explained that the structure has been eroded as a result of extensive and abundant rainfall. This surprise me as I looked around and the land around looked absolutely arid and dry to me. Another reason for us to take a closer look at it was when we were told that historians believe it has an extraterrestrial connect.

Cairo Museum

Cairo Museum - This is where the total history of Egypt lies. From the ornaments that the royals and the normal people wore to the utensils that they used, all have been preserved as found from all over Egypt. Papyrus with writings in many languages and coins from Egyptian, Greek, Roman and Islamic eras can be found here. The Royal chairs and beds with all the lovely inscriptions and detailed work are a site for the eyes. Remains of the two Pharos Tutankhamun and Psusennes found from The Valley of Kings have literally saturated the museum with artefacts. But what stands out are the mummies lying in the glass enclosures. You can’t stop but wonder the progress that science had made 4000 years ago. The number and the sizes of boxes these mummies were put in order to preserve, the beautiful work on each box, the very process of mummifying all is so intriguing. The person who was to be mummified lay with all his favorite foods, ornaments and in some cases even pets which he would want him to accompany in his next life. The iconic gold mask of Tutankhamun was also treat for the eye.

Mosque of Sultan Hassan

Khan el- Khalili and Mosque-Madrassa of Sultan Hassan

Not diehard shoppers but we like to explore all the local flavors of food and drinks, so we went to Khan el- Khalili. The street looked like a picture from the medieval times with sparking gold, silver and copper ware, aromatic spices, handmade carpets and plenty of shops that sold fresh fruit, vegetables and bread. The oldest cafe of Cairo made in 1797 called El-Fishawi stills does remarkable business. We went in briefly but decided to drink the famous Zanjabil from a sidewalk vendor. The spicy ginger drink made me ask for more as I wanted to detox completely before my dinner. We then walked to the Mosque of Sultan Hassan who took the throne at a tender age of 13 and was killed before the completion of the mosque.

On the second day we had booked a full day tour of Alexandria, located on the Mediterranean sea, which is 220 Kms and 2:30 hours journey from Cairo.

Alexandria

Alexandria - is the major economic center of life. It was founded by The Great Alexander. One can visit The Alexandra Lighthouse here which was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The lighthouse of Alexandria was the first lighthouse of the world made to guise the trade ships running between Europe and Asia. 

The legendary library of Alexandria is another place not to be missed. This city of intellectuals was much ahead of its time, It had documents and study material collected from various parts of the world. The library was a place of study, lecture and research. Unfortunately, a lot of study material was destroyed as a result of violence and politics. It was a huge loss to history and literature. But whatever remains today and whatever was reconstructed attracts a lot of tourist from across the world.

Aswan High Dam

Cairo to Aswan

The next day we took an early morning flight to Aswan where our guide Ameer met us. From the aiport we went straight to the Aswan High Dam which was built to hold the valuable flooding water of the Nile to be used during drought and also to produce electricity. The deep blue water of Nile just mesmerizes you. Next we visited the famous Temple of Isis at Philae. It is located on an island we had to take a small boat to reach it. The mammisi or the birth house in the central court interested us. And the fact that this temple was once used as a Christian church was also an eye opener. The guide introduced us to various Gods during the tour and also put across the fact that this temple was originally located at Philae Island but had to be moved to Agilika Island as Lake Nasser (Aswan High Dam) stared to flood which was of grave concern. They say the light and sound show here is very interesting, but we had to miss it as our cruise had to sail.

Temple of Philae

Then we drove to the boarding point where MS Farah our Nile cruise boast was anchored. After check-in we had lunch on board.

The Nile Cruise

Our Boat - MS Farah

To visit the numerous Egyptian ruins and also see the life around the River Nile we had decide to take the Nile cruise from Aswan to Luxor. There were lots of options of boats to choose from and we chose one of the best - MS Farah Nile Cruise. Starting from the reception, rooms, food choices everything was beyond appreciation. We got a room with a massive window which would open into the river. This gave us a lovely sight to see the passing by villages, people fishing and lot of water birds. We visited a lot of places and monuments whilst in the cruise. 

Our Bedroom on board MS Farah

After our lunch on Day 1 of our cruise and with nothing to do after lunch, we decided to take a boat trip to the Nubian Village from the docked cruise. Thinking that it will be a regular visit to a village was a mistake, Nubians are one of the oldest civilizations of history still speaking their ancestral language which has no official alphabet. The whole village is colored green, blue and yellow depicting the earth, sky and the sun. The figure of a dark man in a white robe totally engrossed in prayer while many tourists walked past him left me speechless. All was going well till we entered a house where we were told we will see something spectacular. The “spectacular” left a deep impact on our minds and maybe our souls too. The Nubians even today have crocodiles as pets to keep the unwanted away. The sight of the five baby crocodiles in a small trough and a massive one tightly enclosed in a cage made us extremely sad. Though we understand it is one way to attract tourist, earn a living and keep their tradition alive but still I wish it could change one day. Later we returned to MS Farah and sailed for our next destination. 

On Day 2 of our cruise, early in the morning we docked near Kom Ombo Temple. Before breakfast we visited the temple. 

Kom Ombo Temple

Kom Ombo Temple - An extremely unique temple. It had two set of identical rooms, courts, halls dedicated to the crocodile God- Sobek and the falcon God- Haroeris. There was a separate room where we saw crocodile mummies preserved.

View of Hamlets around Nile

Rest of the day was spent cruising. We passed many small villages and hamlets. You can observe people doing their daily chores. One thing that really struck us is how people of Egypt have kept The Nile so clean. It shows their commitment towards protecting their only source of water. In the afternoon we docked in Edfu.

Temple of Edfu

Temple of Edfu - On our arrival horse carriages were ready to pick us up and take us to this magnificent temple. The massive statues of Horus in the gateway is the center of attraction. The temple has one of the best serving pylons which depict battle scenes of the past. There is a huge courtyard where it is said that people used to make offerings to Gods. There is also a bolometer here which is a pillar that was used to measure the height of the river Nile.

After the sunset in the evening we reached the water lock at Esna thought which the boats cross and it was a very interesting experience. Most Nile crises are 14 meters in width and the width of the lock is only 15 meters. So with a gap of half a meter on either side, it is very interesting to see the highly skilled captains maneuver their boats through the lock. As the river is at 2 different levels here, our boat was brought to the lock and then the water is syphoned off from the lock and the boat was brought down to the level of water on the other side and that allowed us to pass the lock and continue our journey to Luxor. While we were at the lock, many vendors sailed along the cruise to sell towels and shawls. They would throw their merchandise up to the ship - if one liked it - they threw money back or else the product back. One of towels landed in the river instead of the vendors boat, but they seemed to have no problem - they were still their cheery self.

Today after dinner local musicians played the Egyptian music. All the tourists staying in MS Farah joined and danced. Later we put Egyptian music and Indian Music and danced till late night before retiring to our rooms. Sometime during the night, we docked at Luxor.

On Day 3 of our cruise, after breakfast the vehicle was ready to pick us up and drive us to the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut.

Memorial Temple of Hatshepsut

Temple of Hatshepsut - lies between cliffs and is a sight at sunset. This magnificent temple was built for a brave queen, Hatshepsut who ruled like a king. The temple has a huge court leading to steps which connect the terraces. There are a lot of pillars and chambers. Even today one can see paintings of various animals, birds and Gods on the walls. They say the entrance once had lions lined up on both sides.

Valley of Kings

Valley of Kings - From Hatshepsut we drove to the Valley of Kings on the West bank of river Nile. As we approached the Valley of the Kings we could see lots of tourist buses and vans. The valley is divided into two where the east valley is mainly for the royals, and most visited by tourists. The west valley is not very popular as only one tomb is open for public. Our entry ticket allowed is to visit any three tombs. Out the three visited- Ramesses III tomb was the most decorated. The walls of the hall told various stories in form of figurines of the Gods, the local people, text decorations and loads of pictures of food. The other two tombs were also good but maybe less decorative. One has to pay extra and visit the tomb of Tutankhamun and Ramesses VI but as we had seen all the priceless discoveries of the tomb in the Grand Egyptian museum, we decided otherwise.  The discovery of the Tutankhamun’s tomb was a great breakthrough in the archeology of Egypt. With 5000 objects mainly in gold - it is the richest tomb discovered. The mask of Tutankhamun is the most widely known artefact of Egypt. The visit to the valley of the Kings was a great experience.

The we returned to the boat for lunch. After relaxing for some time, we visited the Luxor & Karnak Temple located on the East Bank of river Nile.

Luxor Temple - It was interesting to hear that the Temple of Luxor lay under the streets and houses of Luxor for many years. Ultimately the mosque of Abu- al- Hajjaj was built over it but when archeologists suspected it to be an archeological site perhaps with another monument under it, the mosque was carefully preserved and the temple finally uncovered. The Temple of Konark has been a place of worship for many years in continuation and still continues to be. In the christian era a part of it was covered to a church. Like other temples of Egypt- this temple also houses a Hypostyle hall, birth room, a chapel and also a sanctuary. Temple of Luxor is the oldest temple of Egypt.

Today evening on board the Nile cruise we enjoyed Belly dance performance after the dinner.

On day 4 of our cruise we checked out after breakfast. The vehicle was waiting for us and we drove to Hurghada. 

Hurgadha Marina

Hurghada - Along the Red Sea coast lies the beach town of Hurghada, and ideal place to relax for a few days. It is one of the most visited places of Egypt. A complete destination for divers and snorkelers - it also boasts of a lot of restaurants, bars, night clubs and Egyptian coffee shops. There are many hotels that offer an all inclusive package. Hurghada has a long stretch of sandy beach which is lined with all categories of hotels and resorts to suit everyone’s budget. 

We had booked a 4 hour Quad Bike Safari and it was a is a pure thrill. We were picked up from the hotel in a tourist Van. We were a group of 25 and everyone had their own bike. There is an option for pillion rider also. After a 10 minute training on how to handle the quad bikes, we sit out into the desert. It is a quite a long ride from to the bedouin village. On the way we stopped for a few photo stops. At the village you can enjoy their local tea and know more about them. After a half hour break we set out again via a different route back to where we started from. People who are not comfortable on quads can do this Safari by Jeeps also.

Quad Biking in Hurghada

Besides quad biking, a day trip by boat to Giftun Islands is very popular. Especially for people who not very comfortable with scuba diving, Giftun island provides excellent opportunity for snorkeling. A visit to Hurghada Marina is a must, it is a modern addition in the central district and offers lots of restaurants and cafes for dining with views of yachts moored all along the marina. There are submarine rides available for people who would like to experience the coral life up close. Hurghada also has many scuba diving centers and that offer diving courses with certification. If you have never dived before you can try introductory dive for experience, which of course is absolutely safe.