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Published: July 25th 2010
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Its a horrible cliché but I confess that the tune of the eighties girl group hit was running throughout my head on numerous occasions in the days ahead. All I can say in my defence is that I was not alone, and reference to Walk like an Egyptian, either in tune or action, did come to the fore at various moments of our travels. Setting out with our Oasis crew for the first time, our day began in grand fashion with a visit to the Antiquities Museum with local guide Wasim. Understanding more about Egypt in the Ancient World was the main aim as we wandered about this museum rich with treasures from the Ancient, Middle and New Kingdoms. It was my first introduction to the history of this civilisation, having only vague recall of a history lesson of the same nature many years ago. To say I was fascinated hardly does justice to the sense of wonder I felt as I looked at ancient artefacts such as Tutankhamen’s mask and the intact hieroglyphics of temple pillars or statues now on display in this museum. Whatever my level of fascination however, the true 'culture vulture' of our group was to emerge
on this very first morning, with Jan being the first person to head off and dart madly around the museum as he attempted to see all that he could in our hour of free time, and the very last person to join us at the meeting point for our departure. His affinity for all things cultural would become legendary as the days ahead unfolded.
A koshery lunch at a local perfumery provided the opportunity to learn about how perfumes are made and of course, I couldn't resist taking home a bottle identical to one of the most widely loved commercially available scents-Coco Chanel's 'Chance'. Smelling beautiful, or at the very least topical, we headed next to Giza city's ultimate highlight, the Pyramids. Standing beside these amazing spectacles was nothing short of stupendous. They are much, much bigger than I expected-the Great Pyramid being 145metres in height. The total width of the pyramid was reported to equal 40 acres. Although we've all seen numerous pictures and read the statistics, until you're standing in front them, it's just impossible to appreciate their true magnificence. Nothing short of amazing. Inside though, it's crazy to learn just how small the internal space created
is. We didn't go inside the Great Pyramid, choosing instead one of the smaller ones. The path to the centre was certainly challenging for anyone who may be even the slightest bit claustrophobic as it requires a walk with one's self bent over (to avoid banging your head) and moving at a slow crawl toward an ever darker, ever hotter core. The assurances of people coming back along the only entrance in or out certainly helped to encourage you to keep going despite the obvious discomfort. As we got nearer to the core, I discovered the person leading our section of the group heading in was an elderly lady of at least 70 years of age. Very impressive! Eventually we descended far enough to reach the chamber in the centre. Inside this room was nothing but the stone raised plinth where a tomb would've once stood. It was incredibly hot and stuffy in the chamber, though it was a relief to be able to stand upright again before beginning the climb back up to the world above.
In true tourist fashion, part of our tour included a camel ride to a vantage point to get a good view of
all three pyramids. I've never been on a camel before and I was admittedly very nervous as I was lurched forward and backward as the huge animal moved from sitting to standing. Holding on for dear life, I was relieved to find I was not the only one who felt a bit nervous at being so far from the ground. Trusca too looked slightly alarmed as we began the stroll down the hill to get to our desired destination. After a while I was able to relax and enjoy the ride, although it certainly wasn't the most comfortable mode of transport. It was quite comical to see us all poised on these gentle beasts, holding on gingerly and happy snapping with our cameras, while in the corner of my eye I could just make out a local man riding a camel at great speed, hurling through the sand without any saddle or means of securing himself. I was more than happy to move at our snail pace though!
From here we headed to the nearby Sphinx, yet another jaw-dropping creation of Egypt's ancient people. Again, at 22 metres high and 44 metres long, I marvelled at the size of
this beautiful creation which was indeed bigger than I had ever hoped or expected. With the head of a king and the body of a lion, the chamber over which it stood guard is the only valley chamber still intact. It felt like such a privilege to stand before such an amazing spectacle. Undoubtedly these two great sites are unmissable. Of the many things I've seen in my life that I will be forever thankful to have laid eyes upon, this day's great spectacles would be near to the top of this list. I felt so incredibly lucky to have stood before them both.
Our day did not end with the departure from the Sphinx. Indeed, the long journey back to the hotel (complete with the seemingly endless traffic jam we were met with as rush hour in Cairo unfolded) prompted what would be a mad dash to pick up our bags, get food and refreshments and make it to the station in time to catch what would be an overnight train heading south to Aswan. Amidst all these happenings, the buckle on the shoulder strap of my pack of almost 10 years broke as we stood on the
platform with the arrival of our train imminent. With the best ingenuity, informed by my many years of problem solving as an Occupational Therapist, we managed to achieve a temporary solution that would hopefully hold for the remainder of our trip. I was crossing my fingers and toes that this would be the only mishap with equipment on our travels ahead.
When the train finally arrived (in its own good time and certainly not at the expected departure time listed) we settled in for what would be a very long night ahead. It was during this journey that I was struck by just how good our bodies can be at responding to the demands imposed by our mind. Having heard horrible reports about the calibre of the toilet compartment in our 'first class' cabin, I managed to only make use of the amenities once in the 12 duration of the trip (the toilets certainly lived up to their undesirable reputation). My train time was largely spent learning to play 500, which Katy and Andre patiently explained the rules of over and over again as we played hand after hand after hand. Before we eventually dealt the last hand and
turned in for the night (a night in which we would get barely any sleep thanks to a Egyptian local who sat on the edge of the seat across from us, staring at intently while talking loudly to his female companion and playing what I can only assume was Arabic style pop music) we were completely addicted. This game would serve as a wonderful time filler this night and in many others. Eventually, I managed to drift into a dreamless sleep, woken frequently by the strange rattling of the train at approximately 20 minute intervals, but arrived at our next destination with sufficiently charged batteries to head out into the day and explore the delights that awaited us.
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