ORIGINAL POST: 7 Feb 2008
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So, with the last post, I finished the first day... We'll call that Egypt 101 and I promise the rest won't be as detailed per day. It'll only get faster from here...
Recap:
We arrived midday on the first day and spent the entire second whole day in Giza at the Pyramids and Sphinx and Cairo Museum.
The second day was Memphis - Egypt's first real capital city.
So, it is not quite as grandiose as the Great Pyramids or anything, but its quaint Egyptian town atmosphere introduced us to a completely different side of the Black Land on the River Nile.
More of the concept most have of Egypt, right?
Well...
For those of you who are unaware, Egypt-proper in ancient times referred ONLY to the land immediately on either side of the Nile River and the delta up near the Mediterranean. If you read in the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible about Egypt - Abraham went to Egypt, or Moses, or Joseph - all of these were referring to the area immediately adjacent to the river. The Sinai desert was not Egypt. The area west into the desert was not Egypt. Just the tiny narrow strip.
And not just a few miles on either side. We're talking a few hundred METERS on either side. Egypt was the land where green plants could grow - everything else was the "Red Land" and feared by the early Egyptians.
How much has this changed in the 5000 years of Egypt's history?
Not much. Sand on this side. Sand in the distance. Nile in the middle. Green around. And that is the way it has been for thousands of years. Canals don't change it that much... it is just that dry.
And the difference is as abrupt as that wall there. {One of those art-donkey fences, I'd say... ;) }
But drive 5 minutes from here and you see:
The desert tends to have these wonderful blue skies and the city areas... well... not so much... 18million takes its toll on the environment.
And remember the public transit?
At least the driver is wearing a helmet.
And early in the morning, most people wash their cars before work.
And/or whatever means of transportation they may employ.
All on the way to:
While at the Cairo Museum (where cameras are not permitted NEAR it) we saw the mummy of Ramses II. Well, that was a rather bizarre experience. There were 13 of them. Interestingly enough, there are two possible datings for the biblical Exodus. How cool is it that BOTH of the "possible" guys were in that room as mummies!?
The real body of the real man who went toe-to-toe with Moses was one of two of the 13 mummies in that room. Hatshepsut was in there, too... the female Pharaoh. You know who she is? If the man who Moses talked to was Thutmosis III, then Hatshepsut was the "daughter of the pharaoh" that pulled Moses out of the Nile as a baby...
So... yes... pretty cool...
Otherwise, it may have been Ramses II. His mummy still had his hair. And his was in really good condition. This previous GIANT statue was Ramses II. When this statue was constructed, Ramses II was still alive. Did Moses see this statue?
What else?
Driving around... quite a lot...
And the beloved Moleskine...
We visited a rug factory where children are taught the trade. They do very good work... and are extremely precise.
The 30/1.4 again...
And more fun lunch locations.
And fun people...
Why? I don't know... don't ask...
Old Egypt where Jesus lived as a baby. Yes its dark... it was dark... very reminiscent of you see in movies. Oh, wait... they do use it in movies...
But, there is the old Coptic Cathedral built over the site where Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus lived in hiding from Herod.
This is one of those "no photos" places... okay... oops...
By friend Bethany kinda saw me and scolded... Oh twell...
Oh yeah... this Synagogue was off-limits, too...
Someday they'll learn... if a brotha has a camera... with a wide angle lens...
And by the way, I didn't bother taking the Leica to Egypt. Too much security and X-ray to mess with film. I've walked through twice as many metal detectors and had my backpack X-rayed in Egypt as EVER in my entire life. Every hotel, every archaeological site, every restaurant...
So...
This place was definitely camera friendly. And completely okay. As the 5th oldest mosque in the world, they have quite a history to be proud of. The place was clean enough to eat off the floors.
Remove your shoes, of course... and non-Muslim women must wear the full-length cloak.
My friend modeling this seasons finest fashion:
Catching me being a bit of a paparazzi to the green hooded ones... who feel a bit out of place...
And then the ones who belong there.
And as the sun went down over the desert, we headed for the Giza train station to depart for Aswan, Egypt.
Little did we know how fast the next 6 days would fly by... no, really...
In a little sidetrack - which more info will come as it is relevant - I will introduce you to our on-site instructor, Egyptologist extraordinare Khalid Osmon.
For many reasons, he is one of the most amazing men I know. Biggest heart, most connections, hugely wide and unending range of knowledge (the man can just READ hieroglyphics), be a simultaneous translator, and very funny.
For instance: while all the other "tour guides" were using their lesson plans and looking at notebooks for information on the sites, Osmon just knew it all... in fact, he had worked at a lot of the archaeological sites after his service in the military as a diplomatic translator. He lived in a flat overlooking Luxor temple as a child and had pretty much grown up knowing what the other regular tour guides go to college to learn. So...
...yes, he has unending knowledge, but that's just a small fraction of his depth. As a man, he is one that I would dare say it would be easy to idolize. He has such a great demeanor about him, he gives himself selflessly, his energy is contagious and he emits it from 4:30am to 1:30am the next day after he made sure all of us were safely in our rooms.
I've officially met one of my top 3 favorite people in my 22 years.
Anyways...
Hand-held half-second exposure @ f/4 (400ISO) on the Sigma 30mm - eat it you sensor-shift and vibration reduction image stabilized homies out there... prime lenses and sensors mounted solid to the frame 4-life...
Anyways...
Finally we were above the traffic on the train... after a 3 hour delay... or whatever they're called when trains are really really late.
I have no idea what this is about - but it was posted in every room of the sleeper train...
I don't know what YOU do on a sleeper train, but I go belly-dancing! Or not...
And then they woke us up 2 hours early - and we got super bored on the train...
Some had quiet time...
I take pictures out the windows of emaciated cows eating straw and sand...
Or random people sitting in train stations just to have something to do... trains don't stop at these stations anymore... except during harvest season for freight - its February - no trains.
Sorry for the weird reflections... train windows...
Well... we made it to Aswan at 11:20. The trip was hardly begun at this point.
This was the first 48 hours, if you'd been keeping track. I'll be faster from here, I promise... it is now a whole day later and we're still recovering.
I spent the day in Athens, too - I got my Leica film back that I had dropped off earlier... Oh, and DEFINITELY go to 57 Akadimias Street in Athens, Greece, and visit Photo Olympia and get your B&W film drum scanned. I got 4 rolls done for 13Euro. Yes... 13Euro high-res drum scan. Can it be true? Yes, it is...
I'll post a couple of those after I get done with Egypt stories.
Wow... this took all day... these larger pictures take time... but I hope they're worth it to you guys...
More soon...
Much love from Porto Rafti, Greece!
~Noah D.
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