THE GRAND EGYPTIAN FINALE ON THE GIZA PLATEAU AND AT THE “GEM” PART III

“The Past is never dead.  It’s not even past.”  

William Faulkner

CAROL WRITES: Faulkner nailed it precisely in the above opening quote.  I am convinced that the Egyptian sites and experiences we have been exposed to over the past two weeks will influence and shape our future thoughts on the world, for the past is indeed woven into the present.  

The Great Pyramid of Giza (Khufu) is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.  It is the only one of the seven wonders that still stands today, and it is the largest pyramid on the Giza Plateau.  Khufu, along with pyramids for Khafre and Menkaure, comprises the famous three that form the most iconic view.

What I never realized was that these three pyramids are said to represent the three stars in the belt of the constellation Orion, a star grouping I have long considered to be winter’s loveliest constellation. 

We were surprised and very pleased to note that a significant portion of the pyramid venue has remained totally barren desert.  No tacky tourist shops, restaurants or building structures of any kind mar the view in a couple of directions for long, long distances.  

It was easy to get quality photos without dozens of other tourists crowding the shot!  

A vendor caught us at a weak moment and talked us into some glamor camel shots, which I really didn’t mind paying for.

Close-up photos of the largest pyramid weren’t easy to frame.

I was amazed that tourists were still permitted to climb on the building blocks of the large pyramids.  Touching was freely allowed. 

The crowds at the nearby Sphinx weren’t as easy to manage for solitary photos.  You had to snap your picture quickly!

Then there were the simple artistic shots that captured the mood perfectly…

Our last excursion with our tour group was reserved for the brand new Grand Egyptian Museum, known simply as the GEM.

I think we had a lucky break in the first few days after its opening when the GEM experienced immense crowding that could not be sustained.  Construction had taken over two decades to complete.  Obviously, the world was impatient to grasp the very long history of Egypt and see its grand repository of artifacts.  

Fortunately, only two weeks after opening, an on-line reservation system was initiated which would limit the daily number of visitors the museum could handle comfortably.  Even tour groups had to reserve their slot for visiting.  

Most of the treasures of King Tut’s tomb have been moved to the GEM.  In fact, 2 of the 12 galleries were entirely devoted to this collection.    

We arrived early to beat the crowds and headed immediately to the King Tut exhibits.  The golden throne of King Tut was exquisite with excellent preservation, vibrant colors, and a kingly design.

A little over a hundred years ago, British archeologist Howard Carter discovered King Tut’s body entombed at the Valley of the Kings within several layers of priceless sarcophagi

and large funerary boxes, nested together much like so-called Russian dolls.

 

A scarab necklace and numerous more elaborate necklaces accompanied King Tut’s body in his tomb.

Tut’s golden sandals were exquisite.

Represented as statues, King Tut had plenty of personal royal help to journey with him and serve his every need in the afterlife.  

A large part of the appeal of the GEM was due to its absolutely brilliant architectural design that had been submitted by an Irish team of designers.  Irish designers… I wouldn’t have seen that one coming…

The decision to relocate a massive 30-ft tall statue of Ramses II to the museum and place it to greet visitors as they entered was masterful. 

Another majestic design feature at the GEM was the Grand Staircase, which was lined with royal artifacts of pharaohs, the Egyptian pantheon of gods, sarcophagi, and various hieroglyphic panels.  Four gentle flights of long stairs facilitated lingering for a closer look at the treasures of this royal vertical sculpture gallery, like this granite carving of the pharaoh Amenhotep III seated next to the falcon-headed sun god.

  

As our tour of the GEM concluded, we got a terrific final view of the exterior of the museum, which also carried through with the triangular pyramid theme. 

 

Our feeling was that everything about the GEM was a true gem.

My only hope is that future savvy leaders of Egypt will emerge who can solve its many serious problems—unhealthy pollution, scarcity of water, exploding population, shortage of natural resources, need for political acceptance on the world stage, and problematic religious and social issues it shares with all of the Middle East.  We were thankful no political unrest had broken out at the time of our visit, since tourism is a lynchpin of Egypt’s economy.  As a result, levels of security are redundant and over the top at all the tourist venues.  In spite of all that, we firmly believe no time is ever perfect and sometimes you just have to go for the adventure.  We were sure glad we did!

“If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion, and avoid the people, you might better stay home.”   James Michener

Carol Galus

Photo-Blogger 

THE ANCIENT WONDERS ALONG THE NILE, PART II

"In Egypt, the past is very palpable; it's hard to ignore it." Naguib Mahfouz.

CAROL WRITES:  The crown jewels of Egypt’s ancient history are the legendary temples along the Nile River

After embarking in Aswan, we would navigate the Nile River on the small ship Nefertiti, which would serve as our home for the next week. 

Our accommodations were quaint but quite adequate.  Considering our voyage, I enjoyed the old-fashioned ambience.

The next day started with a very early wake-up, followed by a 3-1/2 drive through the Sahara Desert 

to Abu Simbel.  We passed distinctive Nubian homes,

and fields of wheat 

that had been genetically modified to withstand the extreme desert heat.  The current Egyptian El-Sisi dictatorship is committed to creating an immense city in the Sahara Desert within the next 5 years.  El-Sisi realizes Cairo can no longer tolerate the addition of 1 million new residents born every year in Cairo.  From what we could see from our bus windows, this project appeared well underway with worker villages and infrastructure complete over many miles.

  

The short 1/2-mile walk to Abu Simbel heightened anticipation at finally getting to see this wonder of the ancient world.  In the 13th century BC, the pharaoh Ramses II built two massive rock tombs, one for himself and the other for his queen Nefertari.  The grand facade of the tombs featured colossal statues of the pharaoh and his family. 

Inside were elements of solar alignment.  In the 1960s this entire structure was saved by a consortium of world engineers who dismantled it block by block and moved it 600 feet inland and 200 feet higher, thus saving it from the rising waters of Lake Nasser as it filled over 6 years after the Aswan Dam began holding back the waters of the Nile.  Today the waters of Lake Nasser lap the shore well back from the relocated tombs.

Inside the tombs, almost every wall space was decorated with heroic carvings of pharaohs and gods. 

It was a hot day in the Sahara Desert at Abu Simbel.  Before getting on the bus for the long ride back to the ship, a cool drink seemed to be in order.

With our longest excursion behind us, the next day’s journey to Philae Temple simply involved a short boat ride over to an island.  

Like Abu Simbel, Philae Temple was also relocated to protect it from flooding during construction of the Aswan Dam.

Back on the Nefertiti, we commenced an afternoon sail to visit the Temple of Kom Ombo.  All the rooms on the Nefertiti had balconies.  We quickly understood how special that feature would be for enhancing our sails. 

The shore of the Nile was dotted with lush green farms and well-maintained villages.  Compared to the chaos of Cairo, rural life along the Nile exuded breathtaking peacefulness.  The river banks were teeming with birdlife, farm animals, and playful children.  

Our late afternoon destination was the Temple of Kom Ombo.

Our visit concluded just after sunset, which made for a lovely lighting effect on this temple set on a hill overlooking a bend in the river.  

Our ship arrived early the next morning for a visit to the Temple of Edfu. 

 

This temple is dedicated to the god Horus, and a splendid statue of Horus stood guard at the entry.

Then it was back on the Nile and waiting for our turn at navigating through the Esna Locks—yes, there are a few locks on the Nile River.

Our destination was Luxor for a much anticipated visit to the Valley of the Kings, a massive burial ground littered with 63 known tombs of some of the most powerful and celebrated pharaohs and queens in Egyptian history.  Think King Tutankhamen!

The obvious main attraction was the tomb of King Tutankhamen which was discovered by Howard Carter in 1922.  The house where Carter lived for almost 20 years while he explored the Valley of the Kings was still standing… at a distance from the road.  

  

The highlights at the Valley of the Kings far exceed this simple blog post.  For me, I was most impressed with the Tomb of King Tut.  Navigating into the burial chamber down a long stretch of stairs

certainly set a dramatic scene for the glass case where the mummy of King Tutankhamen rested…for now. 

 

When a visitor used the flashlight on a phone to light up the skull,  I was there at just the right moment! 

The burial chambers of most of the tombs were down long, narrow, sturdy boardwalks. 

 

Some tombs were notable for retaining vivid original colors and deeply chiseled carvings done by the original builders, which then stayed hidden for thousands of years.

For me, the second biggest highlight at the Valley of the Kings was the one-of-a-kind Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, which was carved at the base of a 330-ft limestone cliff.  Hatshepsut was one of only a handful of female pharaohs.  She had one heck of a job smashing that glass ceiling in a man’s world 17 centuries ago…  

From Luxor, our ship took a brief jog over to Qena where we visited the Temple of Dendera, which was a marvelous mixture of both Greek and Roman elements. 

   

One of the most interesting features here was the bas-relief carving of Queen Cleopatra VII— the famous Cleopatra of “Mark Antony and Cleopatra” fame portrayed by Elizabeth Taylor in the 1963 movie.  She is pictured with her son.  This is one of the few surviving images (if not the only one) of Cleopatra VII in existence. 

We couldn’t resist the perfect setup for a “horsing around” pic.

The planning of our tour itinerary was most thoughtful for maximizing our temple visits.  Despite the fact that footpaths were somewhat more treacherous in the dark, the dramatic lighting of temple sculpture after dark at Luxor Temple made this nighttime visit quite lovely and worth the extra vigilance.  

Imposing statues of pharaohs between stunning massive columns was breathtaking.  

Every tour group that visits Luxor Temple must know Luxor is best appreciated lit up in the dark because crowds were quite dense, but we managed.  

After a week on the Nefertiti, we disembarked in Luxor and headed to the airport for a 1-1/2-hour flight back to Cairo, again by private jet.  On the way to the airport, we made a brief stop at Karnak Temple, the world’s largest ancient religious site.  The Great Hypostyle Hall was the centerpiece.  It was difficult to obtain amateur photography that illustrated the forest of all 135 massive columns.  We took it in sections…

Back in Cairo we checked into the exact same room that we had stayed in previously at the Semiramis Intercontinental Hotel.  This mind-boggling, wonderful tour of Cairo and the Nile River was approaching its conclusion.  OAT was crafty and wise and left visits to the Pyramids at Giza and the newly opened Grand Egyptian Museum for the last two days.  What a finale for Part III of our tour!

”It’s better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times.”  Asian proverb

 Carol Galus

Photo-Blogger