Part Two of Egypt

I want to review Egyptian Security Procedures. I’ll start with the Cairo airport upon arrival. I have never such chaos at an airport. Bags, travelers, airport security, baggage handlers, and everyone in the airport were going in all directions. There really didn’t seem to be any organization of any kind. We stood around, moved around, and after about thirty minutes, the porters had all our bags stacked on rolling carts and we went through customs. A few quick stamps on the passport, an Egyptian Visa stuck on a page, and we were off to hotel. At the motel, we were greeted by a band and into the main entrance, where we had to walk through a screening machine. Of course, each of us set off the alarm. The first couple of us, including me, started reaching into pockets and walking back through the screener. We were told to just keep going. The alarm meant nothing. How this lead to a sense of safety was beyond me.

We always had an armed undercover security guard on the bus. Most of them got off the bus with us, and walked with us though the venue. One guy will be long remembered—Ahmad. He got on our bus at the Bent Pyramid. He was on the bus about 5 minutes when we arrived at the venue. We got off, and started walking around. He got off too. The venue had lots of visitors and most were either European or American. He watched us walk up to the pyramid; we separated and started off in several directions. After about 30 minutes there, small groups headed back for our bus... there were at least 20 other buses in the parking area. After about 5 minutes at the bus, two people hadn’t returned. Ahmad, who had been standing at the entrance to the bus parking lot somehow knew that 2 hadn’t returned, he walked toward the pyramid and quickly found our two wanderers. How he did that I will never know. We weren’t wearing any badges, didn’t have on any special clothing, didn’t stand out in a crowd of other European/American tourists. Another undercover guard was with us at two venues and always stayed with the bus. Maybe he was concerned that someone would harm our bus.

 At each venue, we had to go through two things—first we had to run the gauntlet of vendors. All were selling cheap tourist stuff—postcards, bookmarks, shirts, and trying to get us into their stores. Some were semi-aggressive, others much more so. A simple NO worked about 99% of the time. The second thing at the venues was the security screening. One could carry a camera with them, but a bag had to go on the X-ray belt. We always set of the alarm, we were always told to keep going. Sometimes the person at the X-ray machine was actually looking at the screen. Most times they were either talking on their cell phone, looking some other way, or even one time, the guy was sleeping.

At the Newer Aswan Dam, we were able to get out and walk around the dam and take pictures. There was a big sign that said “No Zoom Photographs, No Video.” The sign was very old and didn’t take into account that most cameras today will zoom and video as well as take stills. The guards didn’t say anything. Everyone was zooming and many were videoing.

Most of the venues didn’t let any take photos inside, so those places are just great memories. Most venues did not collect cameras and it was an honor system not to take pics. It worked. Other venues collected cameras and tagged them to be picked up when you left. Again the honor system, as visitors weren’t searched for pocket cameras. Again, it worked.

On two different days some of us took taxi rides in Cairo. Undercover was with us. Each time he wrote down the plates of our taxis before we left the hotel. Taxis were negotiated for and were paid upon our return to the hotel. While we visited or ate, the taxi driver waited. A three mile taxi ride with wait time of an hour or so and three mile return cost us E£80 ($14.00) for each cab. Not a bad deal.

Upon arrival in Cairo, I quickly discovered that I could never be an Egyptologist. At one of the ‘practice’ pyramids—the first pyramids built about 3200BC, we went down into the tomb. It was a narrow passage at about a 45° angle with a low roof. The ramp down had wooded slats that could be used for a foothold. Maybe it was the lights, maybe the number of people but whatever it was, the farther down I went the warmer it got. Since one could not stand upright, the trip down and up was adventurous. The tomb was little more than a big circular room, but everyone could stand upright. Many years ago, the first Indiana Jones types did not know what was down there, had no lights on the walls, didn’t have the tourist steps and were definitely exempt from all forms of claustrophobia. While all the tombs were different, I was awestruck by the amount of time it takes to deal with a tomb. Some artifacts took more than three years to be prepared for removal from the tomb. That is working long days, every day preparing objects to be moved. I know I don’t have that kind of patience.

I was there for the first day of Spring. Valley of the Kings, on the West side of the Nile—the dead side, it was 108°F. Yeah, it was a dry heat, but still very hot. We didn’t see any sand storms, but I can only imagine how awful they would be. We were not there in the heat of the summer. That I can’t imagine. Then there is the digging and digging. We all hear about the successful digs. No one talks much about the unsuccessful ones, but there had to be many more that were unsuccessful.

We were reminded, more than once, that these huge tombs, temples, statues, and pyramids were built by the Pharaoh’s faithful followers. These builders did it to show their love of the Pharaoh. They were not slaves. They were believers. Their work has survived for 5000 years. Whether slaves or faithful; they were amazing builders. Carved stones building blocks, taller than most of us, skillfully placed into a strong geometric shape. They didn’t get it right the first few times. Some pyramids crumbled by the weight. Others have remained. Abu Simbel is a huge monument built for Ramses II. When modern people built the dam to control the flooding Nile, it was decided to move the entire monument some 150 yards so that it wouldn’t be underwater. Stone by stone it was moved and rebuilt. The temple is 100’ high and covers several city blocks. A real save and a modern feat itself.

Big surprises in Egypt: Pyramids @ Giza are right in the Cairo/Giza metro area. The many Egyptian temples are huge, much larger and massive than I imagined. The Nile does have rushes, just like the Moses in the basket from the Bible story. The poverty of modern Egypt is everywhere. The Sunni Muslims are in the majority. There are 5 calls to prayer every day. Not everyone drops what they are doing during the call for prayer; however, it is a reminder to pray. Friday is the Holy Day and all Muslims should go to the Mosque to pray on Friday. Before going to Egypt, I didn’t know that I knew nothing about the ancients, nothing about the moderns, and certainly nothing about Muslims. After visiting Egypt, I now know that I know so very little. A good lesson.

Many cultures and religions have tenants that keep the living and the dead separated. There are many cultural or religious taboos regarding the dead. When we visited Tutankhamen’s burial site I was amazed. He had not been one of the better known leaders. He led for only a short period of time, and until 1922 his burial site had not been disturbed. He died in 1324 BC. He was buried near others, and much of his burial site had been overtaken by more important kings. Since it was still intact, his burial treasures were still there. All of the other tombs and pyramids that were unearthed had been robbed of the treasures. What amazed me was that many of these grave robbers had done their work soon after the burial. While the kings had 5 boats for travel after death; while the kings were buried with many treasures, the cultural and religious taboos of the living did not seem to protect the graves. Nor was there adequate security for the burial site to prevent looting. It was astonishing and sad so many of the treasures had been looted by people several thousand years ago. This also made me think that maybe the tomb builders were not the adoring fans of the King or Queen. Maybe, just maybe, they weren’t so happy about building these huge structures. Somehow it was just a job and once the leader was gone, it was acceptable to take stuff. Remember I’m not an Egyptologist.

The temples, tombs, and monuments we saw on our visit were beyond belief. First was their mere size. Then was their durability. Then was their carvings. Finally was the painted walls. Everywhere we stopped was a new set of treasures. In the Valley of the Kings we saw a current dig underway. At another pyramid, a dig was ongoing. There are many ongoing digs throughout Egypt. So much more is waiting for discovery. How cool is that?

As I mentioned before the first ‘practice’ pyramids were trying to get the mathematical formulas right. The early temples had a more bulky look to the columns. The early carvings were much less refined. As carvings became more intricate, the carvings were painted. The inside of the temples and tombs that didn’t suffer from the devastating forces or weathering are still astonishing. Not only were there stone masons to build and carvers to hone their artwork, the later painters added yet another dimension for the beauty of these monuments. Each new pharaoh was a God on Earth. Each one returned to the heavens as a star in the sky. Each Pharaoh wanted his monument to be different in some way from the previous.

Many Pharaoh’s had to make up their lineage to show that they were from the God’s. If they were from descendants of a God, their power would not be question. Their lives and deaths were of luxury. Their followers did not have such a good life.

Traveling back to those times, if only for a short time, was exciting. Wondering what the common man had to endure during those times was mind boggling. The rich did get richer. It follows, as now, that as that was happening, the poor got poorer. The poverty of the working people traveled though time to today. The magnificent structures are only of the past. Modern Mosques are beautiful, but not to build to last like the pyramids. The Egyptian President’s Palace, at least from the outside, is beautiful. It is also surrounded by guards, high fences, iron gates, and today’s symbol of wealth. In the same area is the poverty of Egypt today. I guess it is not unlike Washington DC.

There were questions about women always wearing a head covering and in some cases, covering everything except the eyes. Hamdy explained that when a girl reaches womanhood, she covers her hair because it is something only her husband should see. A woman’s hair is considered very sexual. It is not for others to see. Many of the women today simply cover their hair. Others wear the burqa. The burqa wearers are more conservative and traditional. As a Westerner it was hard to understand. I grew up around Catholic Nuns when they wore their habits. It was difficult for them. I was around Nuns when they stopped wearing the habit. It was hard for the older Nuns to change. The younger Nuns said it made it easier to do their work at the convent and outside the convent. Change is always difficult; traditions are very difficult to change. Change brought from the outside is much harder than change from within. For outsiders to try to change the head coverings probably will not bring change.

Hamdy and Soha began an interesting conversation over afternoon Tea. Soha, a divorced woman who raised two children, was discussing a recent ruling that women play a larger role than simply being faithful, caring for the home, and having children. Hamdy seemed to have a hard time with this, and the conversation quickly moved to Arabic. After tea, they excused themselves and moved to another table and seemed to continue the conversation. Arabic is a language that uses lots of gestures and sometimes appears to get heated. The topic wasn’t discussed again in our presence.

Soha, Outstanding Tour Guide

I have so much more to learn about Islam.

Today I started going through my 500+ photos of Egypt. I am trying to figure out a grand pattern to put them into a program. I have yet to be successful in finding that pattern. I’m sure something will come to me in the next few days. So far, I have The Nile; Ancient Egypt; Modern Egypt; Our Group. That may be the best I can do. When I develop the presentation, I won’t be using all the photos, but will want to highlight what I saw. I’m thinking it may be four short presentations. Time will tell what finally happens.

Egypt had so many contradictions for me. The magnificence of the Ancient times and the poverty of today. The variety of life around the Nile and the desert at the Valley of the Kings that had no vegetation, no bugs, no lizards. The uniforms everywhere we went and the apparent lack of security procedures. No easily found connection between the Ancient Egyptian culture and the Standing Stones or the Mayan Pyramids; yet, in today’s Egypt a real connection to the occupation by the British and the French.

Overall I am glad I went. I have walked in the Land of Ancient Egypt and will never be the same.

Our Focus Group: As our Focus Group was waiting to board the plane in JFK on the way to Egypt; one of the couples and I started talking. I said I was from Flagstaff, but grew up in Wheat Ridge. Scott asked where I went to High School. Turns out we were at the same high school. He graduated a year ahead of me. While we didn’t know each other back in the day, we made good travelers. He also was a Federal Employee, recently retired and like me, glad he bureaucracy was behind us. Jan, his wife, had been a school principal. Nancy and her husband Ed overheard part of our conversation. She joined in by asking me where I had gone to Elementary School. Turns out she started her teaching career in third grade, while I was in sixth grade at good old Reed Street Elementary. I didn’t remember her, but my brother and Bob’s daughter Lori did remember her. My sixth grade teacher was amazing. He is probably why I became a teacher. Nancy had kept up on the teachers and told me the last she heard, Dick was still working at a travel agency in Wheat Ridge. Upon my return to Denver, I picked up a phone book and gave him a call. I had last talked with him in the early 70’s while he was still at Reed Street and I was starting a career with the Bureau. Amazingly, he remembered me. I knew this for sure when he asked about my brother by name. Turns out it was his 82nd birthday and he said I had made his day. I do know how cool it is to meet former students. I wish I had his memory. I can usually place the school I knew them from, but names don’t always come easily. I was very glad that I had gone to Egypt, met Nancy and her husband, Ed. That she told me my mentor was still around. Most of all I was glad I had given him a call. One other thing about Dick. He was a stern teacher but had a laugh that one doesn’t forget. As we talked, he laughed several times. To my amazement, he didn’t have an old man laugh, he laughed, just as he did in class in 1961. Some things never change.

While I was in Egypt I bought two small parchments. Today I put them into two frames and put them on the wall. They look very nice. I was able to see how parchment is made, how it is painted. The parchments are only about 8 ½” x 10” and look good on the wall. I’m still trying to find a place to put a small Egyptian Silk Rug—it is about 15” x 21”—and it really cool. Again we were at the ‘school’ where they make them. The amazing thing about silk rugs is that, depending on the angle you look at it, the background changes from dark to light. To easily see the color changes, you have to twirl it have it land on the floor. It is very amazing. My problem is that any horizontal surface in my home has been covered. If it isn’t covered, it just screams to have stuff piled up there. Putting it on the wall, I won’t be able to show off the ‘magic’ of the rug. The ‘magic’ is the reason I bought it.

So now my Egyptian trip will be a great memory. One that I will treasure for years to come.