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Africa
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Cairo,
Egypt offers a journey through time Egypt's
historic capital city on the River Nile is a
fascinating place where past and present meet. with
evidence of 2000 years of Islamic, Christian
Coptic, and Jewish culture flourishing side by
side. Its Western part includes Memphis (Giza),
former and site of the Pyramids, famous as one of
the "Seven Great Wonders of the World." It is the
largest city in the Middle East and the center of
trade routes to three continents- Africa, Asia and
Europe.
More
Cairo information will soon appear on this page,
however check these other links on this site, and
visit several of the following web
sites. Pharaohs
Lure Tourists Yet,
this is not what the millions of people traveling
to Egypt want to see. If one turns atop the Tower
to the other side, in the distance, a visitor
glimpses the outline of the Great Pyramids. Located
on a desert plateau on the western edge of the
city, they are the magnets that draw these
tourists. (1) Great
Sphinx of Giza (2) Gold Mask of Tutankhamun
Europeans
and North Americans, traveling in groups, usually
stop in Cairo, the cultural capital of the Arab
world, but never in reality see Africa's largest
city, milling with some 15 million inhabitants.
They spend one or two days visiting the Egyptian
Museum of Antiquities and the Great Pyramids, then
are whisked southward to see the other eye-bulging
works of the ancient Egyptians around Luxor and
Aswan. Perhaps
the tour operators have a point when they steer
their herds toward these world renowned monuments.
By any standard, the pyramids - the only one of the
'Seven Wonders of the World' which still exist -
are an unbelievable accomplishment by ancient man.
It is said that no traveler who has viewed them for
the first time, has not gasped in awe, overwhelmed
by their majesty. With
their guardian, the Sphinx, they stand on a desert
plateau some 15 km (9.3 mi) from the heart of
Cairo. Since the days of ancient Greece and
continuing to modern times, they have been visited,
written about, explored and, in this century, have
become a part of world mythology. Called
the Giza Pyramids to distinguish them from the
other 108 pyramids in the country, they are
approached by a wide-straight road built in the
19th century by the Empress Eugénie, the
wife of Napoleon III. She came during the
inauguration of the Suez Canal and in order to see
the pyramids, the empress constructed this avenue
called Al-Ahram - in Arabic meaning 'the
pyramids'. In
the early 1960s, when I first visited the pyramids,
this road was mostly edged by desert. Today, it is
one of Cairo's major and longest streets and, on
both sides, a forest of buildings cover every inch
of space to the very edge of these venerable
monuments. Standing
immutably majestic, the Giza Pyramids of Cheops,
Chephren and Mykerinos, the most famous of all the
attractions in Egypt, have watched humans come and
go for untold centuries. The largest and oldest of
these is the Great Pyramid of Cheops, erected about
2590 B.C. Its base covers 6 ha (13 ac) and it is
estimated to contain 3 million separate blocks of
stones, averaging 2 1/2 tons each. Once
these pyramids and others played a vital role in
the lives of Egypt's kings and peasants. Today, for
many, they are the trademark of lasting power,
drawing, from across the globe, tourists and those
who dabble in magic and the
extra-terrestrial. Watching
haughtily over the pyramids is the nearby famous
Sphinx, carved out of solid natural rock by
Chephren the son of Cheops, the builder of the
second pyramid. He had this huge statue sculptured
from soft limestone with a lion's body, and a god's
face - believed to be his own. For over 45
centuries, it has defied time, witnessing all the
morning suns civilized man has seen. Carved in the
midst of temples, which are in the process of being
excavated, this half man half beast statue has
acquired, through the centuries, an air of mystery
and romance. The
magnificence of the pyramids and the Sphinx are
superbly portrayed in the 'Sound and Light' shows,
presented nightly. After sunset throughout the
year, on different nights, in Arabic, English,
French and German, these shows, the finest of their
kind presented anywhere, draw droves of tourists.
They add much to the appreciation of the Giza
phaorononic monuments and their history. On
the other hand, more thrilling to many tourists is
the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities, housing some
100 thousand exhibits. It contains a very rich
store of remains from the Ancient Egyptian
civilizations, including the 4000 piece treasure
found in Tutankhamen's tomb. Few museums in the
world can even come close to its impressive
exhibits. This
huge classical-style museum was built in 1853 by
Auguste Mariette, the great pioneer archaeologist,
but its collection has only occupied the building
since 1902. Days are needed to truly appreciate the
exhibits, not the half or one day tours allotted
most visitors. However,
the museum has long become too small for its
ever-increasing collections and a modern and larger
one is in the works. Nevertheless, this too will
likely be not spacious enough after it is
completed. The untold thousands of pieces of one of
the oldest and grandest civilizations on earth can
easily fill half a dozen museums. After
this storehouse of priceless ancient treasures, one
becomes eager to explore the boundless pharaonic
monuments around Luxor and Aswan where, it is said,
half of the world's important ruins are to be
found. The Egyptian Museum of Antiquities in Cairo
is the best door through which tourists can enter
into this heart of the pharaonic
history. The
best way to see the most important monuments of
Upper Egypt is to take a Nile cruise from Luxor to
Aswan. Luxor, the pharaonic Thebes, a city of a
half million, was divided by the ancient Egyptians
into two parts - on the East Bank of the Nile, the
City of the Living; and on the West Bank, the City
of the Dead. On the East Bank, the Karnak and Luxor
Temples where the gods lived - two of the 10
temples in the area - still greet the sunrise; and
the sunset on the West Bank throws shadows over the
400 tombs located in the Valleys of the Kings,
Queens and Nobles; and Queen Hatshepsut's
Temple. The
city's most important monument, the Karnak Temple,
dedicated to the god Amon-Ra, was for the ancient
Egyptians, a highly esteemed place. Covering over
40.5 ha (100 ac) and spanning thirteen centuries,
the complex is a massive collection of ruins on
which at one time 81,000 people toiled - the
largest series of temples ever built in one
complex. In
both the Karnak and Luxor Temples, imagination
overtakes eyesight, as thousands upon thousands of
these visitors take a thrilling walk through
history. Beneath pillars carved with lotus buds and
the papyrus plant, past statues of gods and
animals, and climbing down into fantastically
decorated tombs, they are never far away from the
early Egyptians and their remains. From
Luxor the ship stops at Esna - 64 km (40 mi) to the
south. Its temple, dedicated to Khnun, the
ram-headed god who modeled people on his potter's
wheel, is a Ptolemaic building with Pharaonic,
Greek, Roman and Coptic elements. At one time, the
Temple was completely concealed with debris and
sand. This kept the hypostyle hall with its forest
of 24 columns, 13 m (43 ft) high, topped by
capitals of flowers and plants, in almost perfect
condition. The
next stop, Edfu, 123 km (76 mi) north of Aswan, has
the best preserved of Egypt's 100 temples which
were built to honor some 750 gods. The sand that
for centuries had covered the temple and was
responsible for its preservation. Dedicated to the
falcon-headed god, Horus, the most famous deity in
Upper Egypt, it is covered inside and out, with
mythological and religious decorations, bas-reliefs
and hieroglyphic texts. Before
reaching Aswan the ship stops at the Temple of Kom
Ombo, dedicated to Sobek, the crocodile god of
fertility, and Haroeris, the Good Doctor. Built a
few centuries before the Romans occupied Egypt, the
temple also served as a hospital - a whole series
of medical instruments are sculptured in reliefs on
the temple walls. At
Aswan, the Philae Temple and, to the south, the
Temple of Abu Simbel, both moved due to the waters
of the High Dam, draw annually thousands of
visitors. From Cairo to Aswan and beyond, these,
and the dozens of other temples, especially after
peace has returned to the Nile Valley, are again
enticing tourists in the millions. With the foreign
exchange these Ancient Egyptian monuments bring,
there can be little doubt that the god-king
pharaohs are lending a helping hand in the life of
modern Egypt. Habeeb
Salloum E-mail:
mailto:habeeb.salloum@sympatico.ca http://ce.eng.usf.edu/pharos/cairo/ http://www.aucegypt.edu/
(American University in Cairo) http://www.cairohotels-discount.com/
(Cairo Hotels group) Modern
Cairo and the Nile river How
to Get There: The
best way to see Egypt is to take an organized tour
from North America or Europe. There a good number
of companies offering these excursions. No matter
what one pays to take these tours, it will be much
less troublesome and cheaper to join a group before
travelling to that country. If
one does not join a tour group, Misr Travel in
Egypt, 1 Talaat Harb St., P.O. Box 1000, Cairo,
Tel: 20-2-392-3177, Fax: 20-2-392-4440, e-mail
Misrtrav@link.com.eg will make arrangements for
tours to any part of the country. Also, there are
excellent river, air, bus and rail connections
between Cairo and Luxor. Facts
to Know About Egypt: 1)
Visas are needed to enter Egypt. Tour companies can
easily obtain them, but they are available at the
airports in Egypt - cost $15. 2)
The best place to exchange foreign currency is in
banks. Branches are found in all major hotels. The
U.S. dollar hovers around 3.80 LE (Egyptian
pounds). 3)
Despite reports of Islamic fundamentalist
terrorism, Egyptians are very friendly and
hospitable to tourists. The country is very safe -
safer than most countries in the West. Also, in
spite of poverty, crime is rare. 4)
To get around the cities, taxis are the best bet,
but you must bargain - make sure of the price
before you enter the cab. Small autos rent for
around $40. per day, but renting a car is not
recommended. Traffic does not seem to have any
rules. A
Good Places to Stay in Aswan: Hotel
Sofitel Old Cataract, an excellent luxury hotel
which is reasonably priced. Abtal El Tahrir St.,
Aswan, Egypt. Tel:(+20)97/3l6000.
Fax:(+20)97/316011. Daily cost for a room from a
$130. to $160., depending on location. Also, hotels
in Egypt charge an extra 26% for taxes and services
charges. Note:
All prices quoted are in U.S. dollars For
Further Information Contact: Egyptian
Tourist Authority, 1253 McGill College Ave.,
Suite 250, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3B 2Y5. Tel:
(514)861-4606. Fax: (514)861-8071. or Egyptian
Tourist Authority, 630 Fifth Ave., Suite 1706,
New York, NY 10111, U.S.A. Tel:
(212)332-2570. Fax: (212)956-6439. Muguette
Goufrani,
Africa Travel Magazine's Francophone Editor covers
West African destinations and events in detail. Her
native language is French and she has lived in five
West African countries, working for Air Afrique,
Royal Air Maroc and Citroen. As a Travel Agent, she
worked in North Africa, where her family operates
an inbound tour company, and later in Tahiti and
Cambodia. Muguette has been a partner in the
magazine since it was founded in 1995.
E-mail
Muguette
with your travel experiences in Cote d'Ivoire and
other West African destinations. We welcome your
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