For me, the trip can be divided into three parts, each of which offered different things. The first, as I have already described, was a visit to Coptic Cairo. The second became a journey into the land of hieroglyphs and pharaohs, and the third was a visit to the mosques and markets of Islamic Cairo. What follows is a description of the first 1/2 of the second phase of the trip – sometime, in the near future, I will post more about what I saw on all three phases involving local and international politics in this land.
The Sun through the Cairo Haze and Dust
View of Citadel from Al-Azhar park
After visiting Coptic Cairo, and enjoying a lovely dinner (or late lunch) in a park overlooking a hazy vision of the Citadel of Saladin, I was exhausted, and my lungs were failing. I passed out in my friend’s room, an interior room that was protected from hearing the call to prayer at 5am and from early morning light, and woke up feeling like death, even after downing children’s cough syrup with psuedafed the night before. After a trip to the pharmacy, where I was forced to accept cough syrup and antibiotics, we headed out to Giza.
To get to the pyramids, we took a cab. I had already realized that Egyptian drivers do not believe in lanes, speed limits,lights, signals, and have no qualms about stopping and reversing on the road without warning when they miss an exit or turn. And that was just on the cab ride from the airport. I also knew that they used the horns as blinkers and warning devices to ensure that they could pass in between cars so with what felt like less than an inch of space between them, lights, similarly only need to be used to warn others – and should not be lit at all times. I also knew, from dinner my first night that cab drivers could be jovial and liked to joke and show off their limited English. Even so – this cab driver to the pyramids was exceptional. He tried twice to corral us into using friends of his for camel or horse and buggy rides around the pyramids – once forcing my friend onto the phone with his friend, another time driving past the ticket entrance so we could meet his friends in person. He insisted on playing lets learn the language game with my friend. I was at this point feeling to awful to participate in any games so I sat there silently. At the same time, he obviously liked having two cute Americans in the car, and pictured himself a baller – with his cab being pimped out with Henezy bottles (spelling in the original) stuffed animals, a tiger paw sticker, and, it may be my imagination, fake gold, that glittered an said “bling.” It was quite awesome.
In any case we finally reached the pyramids – and through the haze on one side, and the clear on the other, I was overwhelmed at the mammoth size. After our second Asthma break, and numerous requests for rides, we found a camel merchant we liked.
- Our guide was a 42-year-old “modern Bedouin” who works for himself, unlike many of the operators who work for companies. He owns two camels, Charlie Brown and Mickey Mouse, who live in his house with him, his wife, and four children, the youngest is a girl who is his princess and he takes pride in educating her and his three sons. He also has sent his mother to Mecca twice. He has decorated his camel bags, one saying Mickee Mase, in honor of Mickey, and he is so popular that his and Charlie Brown’s picture has made the New York times. He is Bedouin, and happy to take guests on treks on camels through the desert, using packs and cooking over a fire, but he is modern and on facebook as well as email with guests from all over the world corresponding with him and sending him pictures. (Unfortunately, my friend kept his email – but I would like to send him the picture). He bought his camel Charlie Brown at Birqash, a camel market in a village northwest of Cairo and the most famous in the country – but today Camels are going for two – ten thousand dollars, a steeper price then when Charlie Brown was bought as Camel meat has become a favorite for eating in the region.
My Host with the pyramids, the camels Mickey Mouse and Charlie Brown and our guides in the background
He kindly picked us up at the second pyramid, and after some negation, and being jerked in every direction as the camels arose, we were off. He took us up to a spot to see the three pyramids in a line, and then over to his secret spot – where he and his friend/assistant lit a fire and made us a mint tea. While there his uncle joined us, his father, unfortunately rests in the nearby Muslim cemetery. The tea was amazingly fresh and good, and the fire was relaxing – even in near 90-degree heat in the desert. The tea was cooked over an open fire, with Samira heating water and using that to clean out our cups, but it felt comfortable, and I can easily imagine going with friends a camel trip of a few days using a spare camel to pack tents and food goods. Our new friend invited us to dinner at his house to watch the light show, where we would presumably smoke shisha with him as well, and shared much of his philosophy on the government and tourism (which I will discuss later) but, at this point my death asthma ratcheted up and, our guide, who had already warped my head out of concern that the sun was increasing my sickness sprinted us down to the Sphinx.
The line of pyramids
After observing the Sphinx through the fence, I felt too out of it to go in, we sat down for a drink at a restaurant across the street. Meaning only to get water and a coke, the owner took interest in my friend. The next thing I knew I was sent over cinnamon tea, which is great for coughs, and a neon green tonic of the owner’s invention that honestly worked for a short time. While I was being fixed up – my friend was given a tour of the property. The owner, who lived for a while in England and has to be in his sixties, desires to throw her a birthday party there on the property his family has owned for generations – the block across the street form the Sphinx. He has all three stories, and leases land to pizza hut and the like – but sits all day in his shop smoking shissha and watching the Koran being read on tv. He asked me to stay out of air-conditioning and sent us home, where I promptly passed out until dinner, and then again immediately afterwards.
Sphinx at the Great Pyramid
The next day, I toured the Egyptian Museum by myself. This museum needs some reorganization and care – it is mostly unlabelled, cluttered, and the patrons often touch the antiquities – and still it is overwhelming. The shear amount of history contained in the walls is breathtaking. Currently USAID is working with the museum to digitize its collection and undergo an inventory – I hope that modern curatorial techniques will also be used so that all items will be labeled and the museum will know that it does not have to display every object in its possession but can store and protect some as well. I was particularly impressed with some of the colossal statues in the possession of the museum, the preserved boats, and the mummified crocodile. I would love to go back – one day when they have store with a catalogue so that I can remember all that I saw.
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