We docked sometime in the night at Edfu where we visited the Temple of Horus at Edfu. The banks continue to be covered with palm/date trees and farm fields with small communities all along. Islands dot the middle of the Nile.
At the Temple of Horus at Edfu a merchant descended upon me and was waiting for me at the gate following our tour. He was insistant that Kristal buy a purse. He followed her to the bus even continuing the negotiation via our guide relaying the negotiations until she finally bought the purse.
The temple of Horus at Edfu is the most complete and best preserved of all the temples of Egypt. The twin towers of the great entrance pylon of the temple were planned as perfect mirror images of each other, both in their construction and in the scenes carved on them.
The priests had "electricity" consisting of animal feces and wires.
There are examples of Grecian-Roman columns topped with floral capitals.
There are statues of Horus as a falcon. Osiris was the Ruler of the dead and the son of Nut and Geb. His wife was was his sister Isis, the mother goddess. Their son was Horus-the falcon-headed god. Relief's show the mythological battle between Horus and Seth the hippopotamus. The ancient nilometer measured the level of the Nile and helped predict the floods and the coming harvest.
Kom Ombo
Kom means mountain in the region of Ombo. The city was the focal point of the gold route into Egypt. Kom Ombo has irrigated sugar cane and cornfields.
The temple of Kom Ombo was dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek and Horoeris, meaning Horus the Elder.
They had knowledge of anatomy, did surgery and depicted child birth and breastfeeding. They had instructions on how to clean surgical instruments. There is a very deep well thought to have been used for healing purposes. It seems to be a mind over matter approach. They believed that the well could cure them and so they thought they were cured.
Most of the gods and kings depicted had eyes or parts of the face missing. These were probably originally gold, silver or gems that have been taken over the ages.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
April 8th- Sheila's Version- Ensa Lock
Going through the lock we had to slow down giving the merchants an opportunity to tie onto our boat and sell their wares by throwing up their towels, galabiyyas and scarves. One threw something to me even though I had turned my back and when I tossed it to the guard on the deck below he cursed me in English, even though the guard threw it back to him. Some people did make purchases, the process was to agree on a price and then a bag was tossed up and the money placed in the bag and tossed back down. Those in the cabins could conduct business from their window. Even though we had by this time had a lot of pushy salespeople by this time, this was the most surprising.
April 8th- Sheila's Version- Spring Break Day 7- Nile Cruise
Balloon Ride:
Today we started with an early morning hot air balloon flight. The cruise had packed us a boxed breakfast. As we arrived at the launch site, children came begging for food. The drivers discourage giving the children food because it just encourages them to do it again and they run so close to the van that it is of course dangerous. We could see many of famous Egyptian landmarks while gracefully gliding across the sky and watching the sun rise and flowing farm land along the Nile River. In this part of the country, most of the population is very poor. Due to this and the fact that it is so hot most buildings do not have roofs. Therefore, as we sailed by we could actually see into peoples houses.
Valley of the Kings:
After our balloon flight we visited, on foot, the Valley of the Kings and saw the tombs of Ramses IV, Ramses the IX and Seti II. The whole west bank is honeycombed with tombs, not just of the ancient Egyptian Kings, but of their families and the noblemen who served them. There are thousands of numbered tombs of which 63 are of known royalty. The entrances were wide and slopping and the walls and ceilings were covered with hieroglyphics. Prayers, spells and hymns were carved into the tomb walls from the Book of the Dead to guide the person through the afterlife and provide for their future needs. The tomb of Seti II was unfinished with just the pictures being drawn in with red paint with the black paint corrections. Ramses IX had evidence of a large bat population which had destroyed the paintings on a section of the tomb. The tomb of King Tut is so remarkable because it was found intact. It was undisturbed because they had built on top of it. They believed that a dead person's soul traveled into an underworld called Duat. Here it had to pass through many trials and ordeals before it could reach the next world, the kingdom of the West. Burial took place on the west bank of the Nile because the sun sets in the West. There it would lead a life very like the one it had known in Egypt, but free from trouble. They believed the person had three souls the Ka, the Ba and the Akh. Even the poor who were simply buried in the sand would be rewarded with a happy eternal life if they had led a virtuous life.
Tomb paintings show hunting scenes, feasts, parties, games and dancing: all activities the wealthy Egyptians hoped to continue in the afterlife. The upper class were the priests, nobles, important soldiers and officials. Below them were the scribes, soldiers, craftsmen, laborers, slaves and peasants. The children of peasants remained peasants. Craftsmen pasted on their craft to their children while the sons of nobles inherited their positions. Scribes kept careful records of crops and animals. Many servants worked in the vineyards or looked after herds of cattle, goats and antelope. The indoor servants cooked, brewed beer, laundered, wove linen and served at the table.
Feasts were very popular with huge amounts of wine and beer, for Egyptians enjoyed drinking. Adults enjoyed board and dice games. When not studying, boys wrestled or played tug-of-war. Girls practiced dancing.
Both men and women wore eye makeup called kohl of crushed cobalt or iron ore and copper mixed with oil. The kohl has an antiseptic component and helped prevent eye infections so the Egyptians had a low incidence of blindness. Lips and cheeks were painted with red clay (ocher) mixed with water. Both men and women wore makeup and jewelry. Perfumes made from oils scented with cinnamon and myrrh were widely available. Wealthier people also wore headdresses and wigs.
Temple of Hatsheput:
At the Temple of Hatsheput or Deir al-Bahri the arms of the earth cradle the temple. An avenue of sphinxes once led up to the shining limestone temple beneath the cliffs at Deir al-Bahri. It used to have a courtyard of gardens watered by donkeys carrying jars of water up to it. Hatsheput built the temple to honor Amon-Re, the sun god. Queen Hatsheput, widow of Thutmose II and stepmother of Thutmose III, like the male pharaoh's, claimed divine birth. Re, the king of gods, decided to create a female queen of Egypt. Up until that time only Isis had ruled while Osiris was away. He was told of the beautiful new bride of Pharaoh Thutmose, her name was Ahmes. Re decided she would be the mother of the new queen. So Re took the form of an ibis and went to King Thutmose and Queen Ahmes and while they slept he held to her nostrils his divine symbol of life. When Hatsheput was born Re and Hathor, the goddess of love and her seven daughters, the Hathors, who weave the web of life went to Queen Ahmes and King Thutmose. Re blessed the baby Hatsheput and gave her the kiss of power as his daughter. The Hathors wove the web of life before the eyes of Queen Ahmes so she could see what Queen Hatsheput's life would be as Pharaoh of Egypt wearing the double crown bringing the north and the south together. Her statues show her wearing the double crown and even the ceremonial royal beard. The temple depicts a trading expedition sending necklaces, daggers, hatchets, linen, papyrus and gold from Nubia for horses, cattle, silver, bronze, wood, ivory, trees and animal skins. After Hatsheput's death, her step-son removed her name and image from buildings and monuments. He sent military expeditions to Asia and demanded tribute. With this treasure, he built the temple of Karnak to honor Amon-Re.
Jim bought a hat at the Valley of the Kings because he had gotten a bad sunburn and needed protection. We later figured out that it was the antibiotic that he was taking that made him so sensitive to the sun. At the Temple of Hatsheput I bought a hat while leaving and he followed me all the way to the exit before we agreed on a price.
Colossi of Memnon:
We stopped briefly at the Colossi of Memnon which we had also seen from the air that morning.
The Ship:
We leave Luxor where the cruise has been docked and start our journey on the Nile. While docked several ships are docked alongside and you just walk through until you get to your ship. It was an opportunity to see other ships. The Odyssey was not the grandest ship but it was the cleanest.
Today we started with an early morning hot air balloon flight. The cruise had packed us a boxed breakfast. As we arrived at the launch site, children came begging for food. The drivers discourage giving the children food because it just encourages them to do it again and they run so close to the van that it is of course dangerous. We could see many of famous Egyptian landmarks while gracefully gliding across the sky and watching the sun rise and flowing farm land along the Nile River. In this part of the country, most of the population is very poor. Due to this and the fact that it is so hot most buildings do not have roofs. Therefore, as we sailed by we could actually see into peoples houses.
Valley of the Kings:
After our balloon flight we visited, on foot, the Valley of the Kings and saw the tombs of Ramses IV, Ramses the IX and Seti II. The whole west bank is honeycombed with tombs, not just of the ancient Egyptian Kings, but of their families and the noblemen who served them. There are thousands of numbered tombs of which 63 are of known royalty. The entrances were wide and slopping and the walls and ceilings were covered with hieroglyphics. Prayers, spells and hymns were carved into the tomb walls from the Book of the Dead to guide the person through the afterlife and provide for their future needs. The tomb of Seti II was unfinished with just the pictures being drawn in with red paint with the black paint corrections. Ramses IX had evidence of a large bat population which had destroyed the paintings on a section of the tomb. The tomb of King Tut is so remarkable because it was found intact. It was undisturbed because they had built on top of it. They believed that a dead person's soul traveled into an underworld called Duat. Here it had to pass through many trials and ordeals before it could reach the next world, the kingdom of the West. Burial took place on the west bank of the Nile because the sun sets in the West. There it would lead a life very like the one it had known in Egypt, but free from trouble. They believed the person had three souls the Ka, the Ba and the Akh. Even the poor who were simply buried in the sand would be rewarded with a happy eternal life if they had led a virtuous life.
Tomb paintings show hunting scenes, feasts, parties, games and dancing: all activities the wealthy Egyptians hoped to continue in the afterlife. The upper class were the priests, nobles, important soldiers and officials. Below them were the scribes, soldiers, craftsmen, laborers, slaves and peasants. The children of peasants remained peasants. Craftsmen pasted on their craft to their children while the sons of nobles inherited their positions. Scribes kept careful records of crops and animals. Many servants worked in the vineyards or looked after herds of cattle, goats and antelope. The indoor servants cooked, brewed beer, laundered, wove linen and served at the table.
Feasts were very popular with huge amounts of wine and beer, for Egyptians enjoyed drinking. Adults enjoyed board and dice games. When not studying, boys wrestled or played tug-of-war. Girls practiced dancing.
Both men and women wore eye makeup called kohl of crushed cobalt or iron ore and copper mixed with oil. The kohl has an antiseptic component and helped prevent eye infections so the Egyptians had a low incidence of blindness. Lips and cheeks were painted with red clay (ocher) mixed with water. Both men and women wore makeup and jewelry. Perfumes made from oils scented with cinnamon and myrrh were widely available. Wealthier people also wore headdresses and wigs.
Temple of Hatsheput:
At the Temple of Hatsheput or Deir al-Bahri the arms of the earth cradle the temple. An avenue of sphinxes once led up to the shining limestone temple beneath the cliffs at Deir al-Bahri. It used to have a courtyard of gardens watered by donkeys carrying jars of water up to it. Hatsheput built the temple to honor Amon-Re, the sun god. Queen Hatsheput, widow of Thutmose II and stepmother of Thutmose III, like the male pharaoh's, claimed divine birth. Re, the king of gods, decided to create a female queen of Egypt. Up until that time only Isis had ruled while Osiris was away. He was told of the beautiful new bride of Pharaoh Thutmose, her name was Ahmes. Re decided she would be the mother of the new queen. So Re took the form of an ibis and went to King Thutmose and Queen Ahmes and while they slept he held to her nostrils his divine symbol of life. When Hatsheput was born Re and Hathor, the goddess of love and her seven daughters, the Hathors, who weave the web of life went to Queen Ahmes and King Thutmose. Re blessed the baby Hatsheput and gave her the kiss of power as his daughter. The Hathors wove the web of life before the eyes of Queen Ahmes so she could see what Queen Hatsheput's life would be as Pharaoh of Egypt wearing the double crown bringing the north and the south together. Her statues show her wearing the double crown and even the ceremonial royal beard. The temple depicts a trading expedition sending necklaces, daggers, hatchets, linen, papyrus and gold from Nubia for horses, cattle, silver, bronze, wood, ivory, trees and animal skins. After Hatsheput's death, her step-son removed her name and image from buildings and monuments. He sent military expeditions to Asia and demanded tribute. With this treasure, he built the temple of Karnak to honor Amon-Re.
Jim bought a hat at the Valley of the Kings because he had gotten a bad sunburn and needed protection. We later figured out that it was the antibiotic that he was taking that made him so sensitive to the sun. At the Temple of Hatsheput I bought a hat while leaving and he followed me all the way to the exit before we agreed on a price.
Colossi of Memnon:
We stopped briefly at the Colossi of Memnon which we had also seen from the air that morning.
The Ship:
We leave Luxor where the cruise has been docked and start our journey on the Nile. While docked several ships are docked alongside and you just walk through until you get to your ship. It was an opportunity to see other ships. The Odyssey was not the grandest ship but it was the cleanest.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
April 7th- Sheila's Version -Spring Break Day 6- Nile Cruise
Today we took an early morning flight to Luxor. We bored the Nile cruise ship and then visited the Temples of Karnak and the Luxor Temple.
We are on the Odyssey, one of the President line of ships. There are 131 on board and it carries a maximum of 150 with 70 cabins. All of the cabins are the same. The bathrooms are larger than on the large cruise ships we have been on but the room are about the same size. The lowest level are all cabins. The second level are cabins and the main desk. Our cabins are on the second level. The third level is the dining hall and gift shop. The fourth level is the bar-lounge area, a small pool and covered and uncovered lounge area. There is a ping pong table and they do have scrabble and backgammon games. English is the primary language spoken on board. About half of the people on our tour are British and the remainder represent a wide spectrum. The food is good and plentiful. You pay extra for all beverages including water which is all bottled. Breakfast and lunch are buffet but dinner is served and takes about one and a half hours. Afternoon tea is served with cakes and tea.
The Nile river is the longest river in the world 4,132 miles and creates a sliver of fertile land. Egypt depends on it for food, transportation and power. Before the dam was built the farming year was divided into three seasons by the behavior of the Nile. The time of flooding was called the Inundation. It was caused by melting snow and rainwater from the mountains in Ethiopia. The flooding lasted from June until September. The peasants worked on the King's building projects, using the floodwaters to float huge stones on rafts. From October to February the water receded leaving rich silt on the fields to sow their crops. From March to May they harvested their crops including the wild papyrus reed that was used to make paper, boats, baskets and ropes. Today with the dam providing year round water availability cotton is Egypt's most valuable cash crop. Dates grown mainly in the desert oases are perhaps the best known. Corn, oranges, potatoes, rice, sugarcane and tomatoes are also grown.
Temple of Amon at Karnak:
Our guide's name is Abdalla and he is very knowledgeable. It took me awhile to get used to his accent but after that as long as I was paying close attention, I could understand what he was saying. Abdalla's native tongue is Arabic. To me Arabic is a very harsh sounding language. It sounds angry or upset even when they are having a pleasant conversation.
Generations of pharaohs added to the temple at Karnak until it was the largest temple ever built. The vast (247 acres) complex was built over a 1,300 year period. The three main temples of Mut, Montu and Amun are enclosed by enormous brick walls.
Ramses II, the most ambitious builder of all the pharaohs completed the great Hypostyle Hall. The hall having been started by his father Seti I. Hypostyle is the Greek word meaning "to rest on pillars". The halls roof was supported by 134 columns, each showing scenes of the pharaoh worshiping Amon. The outer walls of the Hypostle Hall are covered with scenes of battle.
One of the obelisks was erected by Tuthmois I, who was the father of Hatshepsut. This obelisk stands 70 feet tall and weighs about 143 tons. The obelisk of Hatshepsut is 97 feet high and weighs approximately 320 tons. The single piece of pink granite for the obelisk was quarried at Aswan. Besides the Lateran obelisk in Rome, this is the tallest standing obelisk. The one in Rome is 101 feet high. The inscription on the obelisk says "O ye people who see this monument in years to come and speak of that which I have made, beware lest you say, 'I know not why it was done'. I did it because I wished to make a gift for my father Amun, and to gild them with electrum."
The temples were the god's home on earth and only a few priests were allowed into the temple. Ordinary people worshiped the gods at home.
After our tour Seth negotiated a half hour horse and buggy ride around the city which turned into an hour tour which the driver expected to be paid for. He took us through an actual bizarre that was barely wide enough for the carriage. Clothing was strung between the buildings overhead creating a very colorful sight. Merchants had a wide variety of items from live chickens to Disney merchandise. Baskets of spices including saffron and hibiscus abounded. Running alongside our carriage were children begging for food. The driver used his whip to discourage them but they would soon be back.
The hibiscus is used to make a tea which is a very common drink in Egypt. Add a cup of the hibiscus to a liter of water and let sit overnight. Strain off the leaves and dilute and add sugar to taste.
Don't forget to leave your comments.
We are on the Odyssey, one of the President line of ships. There are 131 on board and it carries a maximum of 150 with 70 cabins. All of the cabins are the same. The bathrooms are larger than on the large cruise ships we have been on but the room are about the same size. The lowest level are all cabins. The second level are cabins and the main desk. Our cabins are on the second level. The third level is the dining hall and gift shop. The fourth level is the bar-lounge area, a small pool and covered and uncovered lounge area. There is a ping pong table and they do have scrabble and backgammon games. English is the primary language spoken on board. About half of the people on our tour are British and the remainder represent a wide spectrum. The food is good and plentiful. You pay extra for all beverages including water which is all bottled. Breakfast and lunch are buffet but dinner is served and takes about one and a half hours. Afternoon tea is served with cakes and tea.
The Nile river is the longest river in the world 4,132 miles and creates a sliver of fertile land. Egypt depends on it for food, transportation and power. Before the dam was built the farming year was divided into three seasons by the behavior of the Nile. The time of flooding was called the Inundation. It was caused by melting snow and rainwater from the mountains in Ethiopia. The flooding lasted from June until September. The peasants worked on the King's building projects, using the floodwaters to float huge stones on rafts. From October to February the water receded leaving rich silt on the fields to sow their crops. From March to May they harvested their crops including the wild papyrus reed that was used to make paper, boats, baskets and ropes. Today with the dam providing year round water availability cotton is Egypt's most valuable cash crop. Dates grown mainly in the desert oases are perhaps the best known. Corn, oranges, potatoes, rice, sugarcane and tomatoes are also grown.
Temple of Amon at Karnak:
Our guide's name is Abdalla and he is very knowledgeable. It took me awhile to get used to his accent but after that as long as I was paying close attention, I could understand what he was saying. Abdalla's native tongue is Arabic. To me Arabic is a very harsh sounding language. It sounds angry or upset even when they are having a pleasant conversation.
Generations of pharaohs added to the temple at Karnak until it was the largest temple ever built. The vast (247 acres) complex was built over a 1,300 year period. The three main temples of Mut, Montu and Amun are enclosed by enormous brick walls.
Ramses II, the most ambitious builder of all the pharaohs completed the great Hypostyle Hall. The hall having been started by his father Seti I. Hypostyle is the Greek word meaning "to rest on pillars". The halls roof was supported by 134 columns, each showing scenes of the pharaoh worshiping Amon. The outer walls of the Hypostle Hall are covered with scenes of battle.
One of the obelisks was erected by Tuthmois I, who was the father of Hatshepsut. This obelisk stands 70 feet tall and weighs about 143 tons. The obelisk of Hatshepsut is 97 feet high and weighs approximately 320 tons. The single piece of pink granite for the obelisk was quarried at Aswan. Besides the Lateran obelisk in Rome, this is the tallest standing obelisk. The one in Rome is 101 feet high. The inscription on the obelisk says "O ye people who see this monument in years to come and speak of that which I have made, beware lest you say, 'I know not why it was done'. I did it because I wished to make a gift for my father Amun, and to gild them with electrum."
The temples were the god's home on earth and only a few priests were allowed into the temple. Ordinary people worshiped the gods at home.
After our tour Seth negotiated a half hour horse and buggy ride around the city which turned into an hour tour which the driver expected to be paid for. He took us through an actual bizarre that was barely wide enough for the carriage. Clothing was strung between the buildings overhead creating a very colorful sight. Merchants had a wide variety of items from live chickens to Disney merchandise. Baskets of spices including saffron and hibiscus abounded. Running alongside our carriage were children begging for food. The driver used his whip to discourage them but they would soon be back.
The hibiscus is used to make a tea which is a very common drink in Egypt. Add a cup of the hibiscus to a liter of water and let sit overnight. Strain off the leaves and dilute and add sugar to taste.
Don't forget to leave your comments.
Monday, April 6, 2009
April 6th, Spring Break Day 5
The hotel arranged a taxi to take us to the Egyptian Museum today for 40 pounds. We saw the Cairo Tower across the Nile when we arrive at the Museum. It was crowed and we had to wait in lines but not nearly as long or as confusing as the tour books warned us. The building his huge and beautiful, however, they have so much stuff there they don’t know what to do with it, put it, or what all they even have. Very little is marked and there a very few signs or explanations. But it’s not too horrible because you would never have time to read them all anyways. And we would have never gotten my Dad out of there if he had that many signs to read. I did really love the museum though and was amazed to see so many mummies. The most exciting piece had to be King Tut’s burial mask though, just because it’s so famous. Unfortunately you can’t take pictures inside, just the pieces they have on display in the court yard.
When we were finally ready to leave there were taxi drivers waiting at the gate and asking 100 pounds per person back to the hotel. We call these “vultures” and we never even talk to the taxi drivers that wait outside tourist areas. So we walked a block or two and got another guy that wanted only 60 pounds to go back to Maddi. We said no, and flagged another one that also asked for 60 pounds. While we were negotiating with the second driver the first drove back over and said he’d take 50 pounds. Long story short we had both taxi drivers going back and forth on prices until we got to a price we liked. We had fun with that.
After we got back to the hotel we went next door for a bite for dinner at a little Italian place and my parents did something that I never expected!!! They both tried smoking sheesha! I’m still so dumbfounded that I won’t even write about this…just post some pictures as proof.
After dinner we needed to pick up a few items from the pharmacy, which required us to cross a busy Cairo street. Even though one of the rules we gave my parents when they got here was to never hesitate when we cross the street. Mom hesitated and got stranded on the other side of the street. She then couldn’t find a good whole to run across at and wouldn’t come when we told her to go. Eventually a fully covered lady, who probably didn’t speak a word of English and had an infant with her saw mom and took pity on her. She came up and grabbed Mom’s hand at the same time held up the baby for the oncoming cars to see and stepped right out in front of Cairo traffic! It’s pretty sad when a baby has to stop traffic in order for you to cross the street.
When we were finally ready to leave there were taxi drivers waiting at the gate and asking 100 pounds per person back to the hotel. We call these “vultures” and we never even talk to the taxi drivers that wait outside tourist areas. So we walked a block or two and got another guy that wanted only 60 pounds to go back to Maddi. We said no, and flagged another one that also asked for 60 pounds. While we were negotiating with the second driver the first drove back over and said he’d take 50 pounds. Long story short we had both taxi drivers going back and forth on prices until we got to a price we liked. We had fun with that.
After we got back to the hotel we went next door for a bite for dinner at a little Italian place and my parents did something that I never expected!!! They both tried smoking sheesha! I’m still so dumbfounded that I won’t even write about this…just post some pictures as proof.
After dinner we needed to pick up a few items from the pharmacy, which required us to cross a busy Cairo street. Even though one of the rules we gave my parents when they got here was to never hesitate when we cross the street. Mom hesitated and got stranded on the other side of the street. She then couldn’t find a good whole to run across at and wouldn’t come when we told her to go. Eventually a fully covered lady, who probably didn’t speak a word of English and had an infant with her saw mom and took pity on her. She came up and grabbed Mom’s hand at the same time held up the baby for the oncoming cars to see and stepped right out in front of Cairo traffic! It’s pretty sad when a baby has to stop traffic in order for you to cross the street.
April 6th- Sheila's Version
Today we went to the Egypt museum. It was very crowded, especially in the morning. I was amazed by how many sarcophagus's there were. Many items were unprotected and showed the wear of many hands having touched over the years. It is very disappointing that Egypt does not seem to appreciate what they have and make more of an effort to preserve it. Many of Egypt's antiquities are housed in other countries but I feel they are better off there until Egypt can appreciate and honor them. I'm also bewildered at the seeming misuse of tourist dollars. If tourism is Egypt's main source of revenue, why don't they protect that source of income. It appears the philosophy is that it's been there for thousands of years, why start worrying about it now. Odd, don't you think, that not a single Egyptian has made an archeological discovery. I find it very ironic that the motivation of the ancient kings to protect themselves and their people in the afterlife has in such a bizarre twist of fate done just that. Meaning that what they did thousands of years ago is providing an income for the country all these years later even if they would be probably horrified that their remains would be on display. Other artifacts were destroyed for profit. Many mummies were destroyed because a doctor was grinding them up to be used for medicine.
Ancient Egyptians were among the first to use written language called hieroglyphics. Finding the Rosetta Stone enabled the hieroglyphics to be translated. Hieroglyphs could be written left to right, right to left or top to bottom. If an animal faced right you read from right to left. If it faced left you read from left to right. The cartouche was for royal names. Hieratic writing is simpler and easier to understand being used in everyday life. Simple strokes replaced the symbols. Ancient Egyptians also had a 365 day calendar that was remarkably accurate. They also invented the first clocks more that 4,000 years ago.
Ancient Egypt was ruled by kings who were believed to be the god, Horus, in human form. From about 1554B.C. the king was also called pharaoh , from the Egyptian words "per aa" meaning "great house". The position of king was inherited and passed to the eldest son of the king's chief wife. In an effort to keep the royal blood pure, the king often married a close relative, such as his sister or half-sister.
The goddess Maat, whose symbol was an ostrich feather, stood for world order, truth, and justice. To the pharaohs living by maat meant ruling justly; to the peasants it meant working honestly. The pharaoh personified maat, and his task was to establish maat instead of disorder. The pharaoh was to rule his people in the afterlife, he therefore needed to be buried with everything he would need like clothes, furniture and shabti.
Shabti figures were placed in the tombs of royals to become laborers in the afterlife. There are 401 in each tomb. One for every day of the year and then an additional 36 or an overseer for every 10 workers. The workers are depicted with the objects they would require for their labor. The overseers are depicted with a flail as a symbol of authority. The Ka or the person's spirit could only survive if it had food which was left daily.
Bodies were mummified because they believed they would need their bodies to pass to the afterlife. Upon death the person's organs were dried, wrapped in linen and placed in jars called canopic jars. The body was stuffed and covered with natron, a salty substance that dried out the body. After several weeks the natron was removed and then the body was rubbed with herbs and wrapped with many layers of bandages. The heart was left in the body because it was needed for judgment in the afterlife. Amulets (charms) like the ankh, symbol of life were put in the linen.
Bread was one of the basic foods in the Egyptian diet. The grain for the bread was ground into flour between two stones. Often pieces of grit blew into the flour. Some mummies have teeth worn down by chewing gritty bread.
Animals were also mummified either to be buried in with the humans or in their own cemeteries. The ancient Egyptians believed that animals such as cats and bulls and birds such as ibises were special to certain gods and goddesses. One chosen animal was kept in the temple where it was believed the spirit of the deity passed into it at certain times. The Egyptians worshipped this divine spirit that came to earth temporarily. Such animals were considered to be the deity's chosen vessel, and therefore treated with the utmost respect. During the late period, anyone who killed a cat was sentenced to death.
After our tour of the museum Seth hailed a taxi to return to the hotel. That morning the hotel had told us how much to expect the taxi to cost. Seth talked to a couple of drivers who wanted more so he just walked away. After he had walked away from one and was talking to another the first driver began honking and beckoned us to return at which time he agreed to Seth's price. Taxi rides like many services are negotiable. Seth has learned to agree upon a price before getting in and then get out before giving them the money. Unfortunately this driver was watching me in his rear view mirror and noticed when I cringed at the close calls and he might have been making the close calls just to see my reaction.
At dinner Seth ordered a Shesha water pipe and Jim and I even tried it. There are hot coals placed on top of the shesha and the lower portion contains water and you draw through the water. It doesn't have a strong smoke smell and the shesha comes in different flavors, like apple. Shesha bars are quite popular in Egypt. Many Egyptians also smoke cigarettes. Non smokers don't have the rights that we've come to enjoy in the last couple of years here in the states.
After making a run to the pharmacy to buy a bar of soap, Jim and Seth had made it successfully back across the street, but Kristal and I were having trouble finding a safe moment. A woman in full veil carrying her baby came up besides us and stepped out into traffic pointed to her baby and got traffic to stop then turned and motioned to us that it was safe to cross. I had reached a new low in my life when a baby is used to stop traffic on my behalf. Maybe we were just getting used to it by then but it seemed that traffic in Luxor and Aswan wasn't as bad.
Alexandria and Cairo are badly littered but it seemed that Luxor and Aswan were cleaner. Due to the fact that there are always cars parked along the streets, street sweeping has to be done by hand. Men with brooms or sometimes just a palm leaf and a wheeled trash can sweep the streets. They leave their piles of trash in big heaps on the sidewalks until men with shovels and a truck come along and shovel the trash into the truck. Of course these piles of trash don't smell very good and they make walking on the sidewalk impossible. I felt very guilty about all of the water bottles that we used while we were there. We needed to drink bottled water for our health but multiply the number of bottles that we used by the number of other tourists doing the same thing and I hate to think about the ecological impact that our visit had. I didn't see any sign of recycling anywhere on our trip.
Remember to leave some comments please.
Ancient Egyptians were among the first to use written language called hieroglyphics. Finding the Rosetta Stone enabled the hieroglyphics to be translated. Hieroglyphs could be written left to right, right to left or top to bottom. If an animal faced right you read from right to left. If it faced left you read from left to right. The cartouche was for royal names. Hieratic writing is simpler and easier to understand being used in everyday life. Simple strokes replaced the symbols. Ancient Egyptians also had a 365 day calendar that was remarkably accurate. They also invented the first clocks more that 4,000 years ago.
Ancient Egypt was ruled by kings who were believed to be the god, Horus, in human form. From about 1554B.C. the king was also called pharaoh , from the Egyptian words "per aa" meaning "great house". The position of king was inherited and passed to the eldest son of the king's chief wife. In an effort to keep the royal blood pure, the king often married a close relative, such as his sister or half-sister.
The goddess Maat, whose symbol was an ostrich feather, stood for world order, truth, and justice. To the pharaohs living by maat meant ruling justly; to the peasants it meant working honestly. The pharaoh personified maat, and his task was to establish maat instead of disorder. The pharaoh was to rule his people in the afterlife, he therefore needed to be buried with everything he would need like clothes, furniture and shabti.
Shabti figures were placed in the tombs of royals to become laborers in the afterlife. There are 401 in each tomb. One for every day of the year and then an additional 36 or an overseer for every 10 workers. The workers are depicted with the objects they would require for their labor. The overseers are depicted with a flail as a symbol of authority. The Ka or the person's spirit could only survive if it had food which was left daily.
Bodies were mummified because they believed they would need their bodies to pass to the afterlife. Upon death the person's organs were dried, wrapped in linen and placed in jars called canopic jars. The body was stuffed and covered with natron, a salty substance that dried out the body. After several weeks the natron was removed and then the body was rubbed with herbs and wrapped with many layers of bandages. The heart was left in the body because it was needed for judgment in the afterlife. Amulets (charms) like the ankh, symbol of life were put in the linen.
Bread was one of the basic foods in the Egyptian diet. The grain for the bread was ground into flour between two stones. Often pieces of grit blew into the flour. Some mummies have teeth worn down by chewing gritty bread.
Animals were also mummified either to be buried in with the humans or in their own cemeteries. The ancient Egyptians believed that animals such as cats and bulls and birds such as ibises were special to certain gods and goddesses. One chosen animal was kept in the temple where it was believed the spirit of the deity passed into it at certain times. The Egyptians worshipped this divine spirit that came to earth temporarily. Such animals were considered to be the deity's chosen vessel, and therefore treated with the utmost respect. During the late period, anyone who killed a cat was sentenced to death.
After our tour of the museum Seth hailed a taxi to return to the hotel. That morning the hotel had told us how much to expect the taxi to cost. Seth talked to a couple of drivers who wanted more so he just walked away. After he had walked away from one and was talking to another the first driver began honking and beckoned us to return at which time he agreed to Seth's price. Taxi rides like many services are negotiable. Seth has learned to agree upon a price before getting in and then get out before giving them the money. Unfortunately this driver was watching me in his rear view mirror and noticed when I cringed at the close calls and he might have been making the close calls just to see my reaction.
At dinner Seth ordered a Shesha water pipe and Jim and I even tried it. There are hot coals placed on top of the shesha and the lower portion contains water and you draw through the water. It doesn't have a strong smoke smell and the shesha comes in different flavors, like apple. Shesha bars are quite popular in Egypt. Many Egyptians also smoke cigarettes. Non smokers don't have the rights that we've come to enjoy in the last couple of years here in the states.
After making a run to the pharmacy to buy a bar of soap, Jim and Seth had made it successfully back across the street, but Kristal and I were having trouble finding a safe moment. A woman in full veil carrying her baby came up besides us and stepped out into traffic pointed to her baby and got traffic to stop then turned and motioned to us that it was safe to cross. I had reached a new low in my life when a baby is used to stop traffic on my behalf. Maybe we were just getting used to it by then but it seemed that traffic in Luxor and Aswan wasn't as bad.
Alexandria and Cairo are badly littered but it seemed that Luxor and Aswan were cleaner. Due to the fact that there are always cars parked along the streets, street sweeping has to be done by hand. Men with brooms or sometimes just a palm leaf and a wheeled trash can sweep the streets. They leave their piles of trash in big heaps on the sidewalks until men with shovels and a truck come along and shovel the trash into the truck. Of course these piles of trash don't smell very good and they make walking on the sidewalk impossible. I felt very guilty about all of the water bottles that we used while we were there. We needed to drink bottled water for our health but multiply the number of bottles that we used by the number of other tourists doing the same thing and I hate to think about the ecological impact that our visit had. I didn't see any sign of recycling anywhere on our trip.
Remember to leave some comments please.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
April 5th, Spring Break Day 4
We took a school van and driver and picked up Dr. Joyce (our head of school) and her daughter and son (Leticia and Manuel). We will be traveling with them for the next several days. We drove down to Cairo and picked up Joyce’s friend Sherif, who lives and works in Cairo and was to be our tour guide for the day. First stop….THE GREAT PYRAMIDS OF GIZA. Seth and I were excited to finally be showing my parents some of Egypt’s great wealth of ancient history. We were all very disappointed to see that it was such a hazy day and where hoping it would burn off soon for some better pictures. We spent several hours at the great pyramids walking around, going into one of the Queens Pyramids, seeing the new Cheops Boat Museum and of course, the Sphinx.
It was fun to watch the awe inspired faces of my parents and Joyce’s children, since it was their first visit to the pyramids. Seth and I found this visit interesting since last time we came was in November, not during tourist season and were surprised at the lack of tourist and how it was mostly Egyptian school children. Not so this time, there were tons of tourist buses mostly from Europe, not many Americans tour Egypt often.
After we got our fill of the main tourist attraction of Egypt, and the corresponding crowds, we headed over the Sakkara to see the Step Pyramid. It’s unfortunate that people don’t know more about Egypt. Did you know that there are 118 known pyramids in Egypt? Not just the three in Giza. In fact, three other more amazing pyramids in my opinion are just a few kilometers south of Giza, the Step, the Red, and the Bent pyramid. Seth and I went to the Red and Bent Pyramid in February. (see blog for Feb. 5th) These three pyramid sites are barely visited and never crowded. In fact, none of the big tour bus trips ever come here. They are more interesting to me because they show the trial and errors of constructing these great tombs thousands of years ago. At the right spot on Sakkara, you can see the Pyramids of Giza to the north and the Pyramids of Dahshur to the south.
Since we hadn’t quite got out eye’s full of pyramid gazing for the day. We went back to Giza and had a late lunch at a famous fish restaurant latterly across the street from the Great Pyramid. We sat on the balcony to get the full view. Fish is a main staple in Egyptian food and Seth and I enjoy it at least once a week if not more. Egyptians know how to grill up a good fish. However, we forgot to tell mom that they serve the fish whole here, and she was quite surprised when they set her fish down in front of her and it was staring back at her. Dad got to sample his first Egyptian beer. There are only three types of beer in Egypt. They import Heineken and then the two local beers are Stella and Sakkara. If you were reading carefully you know what Sakkara was named after. I had Mom try some lemon juice, one of Seth and mines favorite and one of the most popular drinks here.
After lunch we went our separate ways from Dr. Joyce’s family for the night, they were staying with Sherif’s family and we were staying at a hotel in Maddi. Maddi is an area of Cairo that is known to be very nice and were a lot of the expats live and also a lot of the foreign embassy. On the ceiling of our hotel room is a little sticker with and arrow that points to which way Mecca is so that Muslims can pray.
PLEASE leave a comment.
It was fun to watch the awe inspired faces of my parents and Joyce’s children, since it was their first visit to the pyramids. Seth and I found this visit interesting since last time we came was in November, not during tourist season and were surprised at the lack of tourist and how it was mostly Egyptian school children. Not so this time, there were tons of tourist buses mostly from Europe, not many Americans tour Egypt often.
After we got our fill of the main tourist attraction of Egypt, and the corresponding crowds, we headed over the Sakkara to see the Step Pyramid. It’s unfortunate that people don’t know more about Egypt. Did you know that there are 118 known pyramids in Egypt? Not just the three in Giza. In fact, three other more amazing pyramids in my opinion are just a few kilometers south of Giza, the Step, the Red, and the Bent pyramid. Seth and I went to the Red and Bent Pyramid in February. (see blog for Feb. 5th) These three pyramid sites are barely visited and never crowded. In fact, none of the big tour bus trips ever come here. They are more interesting to me because they show the trial and errors of constructing these great tombs thousands of years ago. At the right spot on Sakkara, you can see the Pyramids of Giza to the north and the Pyramids of Dahshur to the south.
Since we hadn’t quite got out eye’s full of pyramid gazing for the day. We went back to Giza and had a late lunch at a famous fish restaurant latterly across the street from the Great Pyramid. We sat on the balcony to get the full view. Fish is a main staple in Egyptian food and Seth and I enjoy it at least once a week if not more. Egyptians know how to grill up a good fish. However, we forgot to tell mom that they serve the fish whole here, and she was quite surprised when they set her fish down in front of her and it was staring back at her. Dad got to sample his first Egyptian beer. There are only three types of beer in Egypt. They import Heineken and then the two local beers are Stella and Sakkara. If you were reading carefully you know what Sakkara was named after. I had Mom try some lemon juice, one of Seth and mines favorite and one of the most popular drinks here.
After lunch we went our separate ways from Dr. Joyce’s family for the night, they were staying with Sherif’s family and we were staying at a hotel in Maddi. Maddi is an area of Cairo that is known to be very nice and were a lot of the expats live and also a lot of the foreign embassy. On the ceiling of our hotel room is a little sticker with and arrow that points to which way Mecca is so that Muslims can pray.
PLEASE leave a comment.
April 5th- Sheila's Version
Today we took the school van and met Dr. Joyce and her son and daughter to go to Cairo. We will be going on the Nile cruise with them. Upon arrival at the pyramids the sky was very hazy but cleared by the time we went back down to the base of the pyramids. We toured the Sun boat which Seth and Kristal had not been to before. Seth, Jim and I went into the queen's pyramid but Kristal having had such a bad experience in the Red pyramid chose not to go. When we got out we told her that it was much shorter, not as stuffy and wider entrance so she agreed to try it again and was pleased that she had tried it. Jim got accosted by a vendor and was "forced to by a headdress". The vendors are very pushy and know enough English to continue harassing you after you say "no". School children all want you to say Hello to them. It was very crowded at the pyramids of Giza with many tour buses but was not as crowded at the step pyramid.
There are about 80 pyramids along the edge of the Nile. The pyramids are one of the seven wonders of the world. The largest pyramid is the great pyramid in Giza built for king Khufu. The three great pyramids at Giza were built about 4,500 years ago as tombs for the kings, Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure. Khafre succeeded Khufu after the short reign of Khufu's son Ra'djedef It was 482 feet high and contains 2.3 million limestone blocks each weighing at least 2.5 tons. Granite blocks weighing over 15 tons were floated down the Nile from Aswan, about 500 miles away. Masons laid a core of solid masonry and then chambers and passages were tunneled deep into it. As the pyramid rose, stone blocks were drug up ramps of sand. Finally the pyramid was faced with polished limestone or granite, and the halls inside were decorated with scenes of the pharaoh's life. Years of sand erosion has left jus the top of the limestone intact. The pyramids required a great deal of planning. First the base was marked out to form a perfect square. Step like terraces were then built, onto which stone blocks were later laid. The accuracy of pyramid angles may have been achieved by counting the revolutions of a rolling drum. Everything they would need for the afterlife was buried with them. Most valuables have been stolen from the tombs.
In the Old Kingdom, only the pharaoh had the ability to live beyond death. He was a living god on earth and was the connection between the divine and the mortal. The pharaoh's duty on earth was to uphold Ma'at, the principle or order and truth. Upon the pharaoh's death he was to become the sun. However the journey was dangerous and the funerary texts was to provide instructions for a safe journey to the afterlife.
The funerary texts consist of about 800 prayers which are carved into the walls. The earliest text is thought to be at the pyramid of King Unas at Saqqara. None of the pyramids contain all of the utterances, nor are the in a particular order.
Since the Pharaoh's destination was the sky, the pyramid in it's original stepped form, provided him with a staircase to the sky. Later the pyramid symbolized the sun's rays, which was another way by which the king could ascend to the heavens.
The sphinx is a mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head of a man. It is 69 feet tall and 243 feet long.
King Zoser built the step pyramid of stone. Prior to the step pyramid tombs had been made of mud brick. The step pyramid had stepped sides so that the king's soul could climb up them to reach heaven. They were later built with straight sides to represent the sun's rays. The king could walk up the rays to the sun god.
We had a late lunch at a restaurant at the base of the pyramids. I ordered fish and I got fish - including the head and tail. When the driver picked us up after lunch, he stopped and loaded us in the middle of the street. That's were I took the picture of the basket hanging from the balcony. I'm told that since it is a hassle for a woman to cover herself to go out into public that she will lower a basket with her shopping list and money and whoever is passing by also going to the store will take the money and list and go to the store for her, returning the items to the basket saving her the hassle of going out. Our driver asked a taxi driver where our hotel was but was given faulty information, so he backed down the street for a half block.
Please leave comments!
There are about 80 pyramids along the edge of the Nile. The pyramids are one of the seven wonders of the world. The largest pyramid is the great pyramid in Giza built for king Khufu. The three great pyramids at Giza were built about 4,500 years ago as tombs for the kings, Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure. Khafre succeeded Khufu after the short reign of Khufu's son Ra'djedef It was 482 feet high and contains 2.3 million limestone blocks each weighing at least 2.5 tons. Granite blocks weighing over 15 tons were floated down the Nile from Aswan, about 500 miles away. Masons laid a core of solid masonry and then chambers and passages were tunneled deep into it. As the pyramid rose, stone blocks were drug up ramps of sand. Finally the pyramid was faced with polished limestone or granite, and the halls inside were decorated with scenes of the pharaoh's life. Years of sand erosion has left jus the top of the limestone intact. The pyramids required a great deal of planning. First the base was marked out to form a perfect square. Step like terraces were then built, onto which stone blocks were later laid. The accuracy of pyramid angles may have been achieved by counting the revolutions of a rolling drum. Everything they would need for the afterlife was buried with them. Most valuables have been stolen from the tombs.
In the Old Kingdom, only the pharaoh had the ability to live beyond death. He was a living god on earth and was the connection between the divine and the mortal. The pharaoh's duty on earth was to uphold Ma'at, the principle or order and truth. Upon the pharaoh's death he was to become the sun. However the journey was dangerous and the funerary texts was to provide instructions for a safe journey to the afterlife.
The funerary texts consist of about 800 prayers which are carved into the walls. The earliest text is thought to be at the pyramid of King Unas at Saqqara. None of the pyramids contain all of the utterances, nor are the in a particular order.
Since the Pharaoh's destination was the sky, the pyramid in it's original stepped form, provided him with a staircase to the sky. Later the pyramid symbolized the sun's rays, which was another way by which the king could ascend to the heavens.
The sphinx is a mythical creature with the body of a lion and the head of a man. It is 69 feet tall and 243 feet long.
King Zoser built the step pyramid of stone. Prior to the step pyramid tombs had been made of mud brick. The step pyramid had stepped sides so that the king's soul could climb up them to reach heaven. They were later built with straight sides to represent the sun's rays. The king could walk up the rays to the sun god.
We had a late lunch at a restaurant at the base of the pyramids. I ordered fish and I got fish - including the head and tail. When the driver picked us up after lunch, he stopped and loaded us in the middle of the street. That's were I took the picture of the basket hanging from the balcony. I'm told that since it is a hassle for a woman to cover herself to go out into public that she will lower a basket with her shopping list and money and whoever is passing by also going to the store will take the money and list and go to the store for her, returning the items to the basket saving her the hassle of going out. Our driver asked a taxi driver where our hotel was but was given faulty information, so he backed down the street for a half block.
Please leave comments!
Saturday, April 4, 2009
April 4th, Spring Break Day 3
Today we took Mom and Dad to the Alexandria Bibliotheca (library). We went on the guided tour and then spent some time looking around the exhibits and the actually library on our own. They wouldn’t let us into the children's library without a child though, we were disappointed about that. It is so depressing when you think about how much was lost when the original library burned down; the largest world collection and so many original historical manuscripts-gone. The new library is doing quite the good job of trying to catch back up to its former glory though. The building itself is spectacular in its architecture and design and is one of the most recognized modern buildings in the world. The outside of the building has every known written language on it. The front of the building is slanted and has windows that provide direct sunlight into the reading tables no matter what time of day and also represent the Eye of Horus. And they have learned from their past disaster and have quite an impressive fire proof system set up. We picked up a book about its architecture to give to Amy and Sean. They are also doing quite the feat by trying to rebuild the collection, not only that, but trying to get their whole collection digitalized and available remotely all over the world! If you would like to see more on the Alexandria Bibliotheca, here is the link to its website. Don't forget to leave a comment.
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