Sudan - Khartoum

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We arrived late Friday night in Khartoum, spending a little over an hour at the airport while our (expensive!) visas were processed. Then we met our guides, including Hamed who is an actual archaeologist. Our bus to the hotel entertained us as the interior was covered with red fabric and lots of dangling trinkets. Our hotel was located in town, up a flight of stairs and run by a Greek guy who had been there for a couple of decades. There was a sign in the lobby reminding us to not go on to the balcony as this was still a time of protests in the country. But otherwise, the hotel was nice and the room quite comfortable! I was able to take a nice shower in the morning before a good breakfast. We were all given a (expensive!) PCR test in the hotel office before we left - even though it was not required for Dubai, they worried that we may be denied entry to the airport for our flight back.

Sudan National Museum

Our first stop of the day was the Sudan National Museum. Supposedly the museum has been shut down throughout Covid, understandably, but really, the museum looked like it had been abandoned for much longer. We were not allowed in the building, but were free to explore what was available along the grounds, which was quite a bit. There were many exhibits of remains of temples and other structures that were relocated to protect them from flooding with the construction of the Aswan Dam.

The next exhibit, Buhen Temple was conmmissioned by Queen Hatshepsut. It was enclosed by glass from protection from the elements, but that did not protect it from the dozens of birds who made the interior their home and thus bird poo was everywhere. However, the temple remains were pretty impressive, and the description at the entry helped you place yourself within the interior layout. Semna Temple was mainly built during the reign of Pharaoh Tuthmosis III and had one main room with some pretty cool inscriptions. Kumma Temple was built during the reigns of the first two as well as Amenophis II, and had many small rooms and really cool inscriptions. In addition to the temples, we also so remains of other temples, rock fragments, Tabo Colossi (two statues at the building entrance) and man eating lion statues.

Khartoum Market

After the Museum we journeyed to the main city market. Apparently, we were visiting on a slow day as our team leader said the previous times he has come it has always been super busy. For me, it was busy enough! This was full of basic supplies and pretty much where everyone comes to get their necessities. A few of us got some small souvenirs (magnets, typically). Then we all sat near the entrance to a covered alleyway and a woman served us fresh brewed tea and coffee, which was quite yummy.

Mahdis area

From 1881 through 1898, Sudan was ruled by the Mahdist State which overthrew the Egyptian and Ottoman government. They declared jihad and the leader, Muhammad Ahmed bin Abduallah, took total control and declared it a jihad against the Egyptians and Turks. Unfortunately, half the population died during the famine and fighting, the economy was completely destroyed, and anyone who did not agree with him were killed. The area we visited had a small museum devoted to that period of history as well as a pretty mosque area nearby.

Sunset cruise on the Nile

After coming back from our pyramid road trip (separate blog), we found a small boat (crossing a bigger boat that we initially thought was ours!) and cruised along the Blue Nile just prior to sunset. We were able to see the city start to come alive at night, lights coming on and the sun setting over the bridges and skylines. In one area, a local 'beach' were people lounging in plastic chairs and tables with small restaurants. It looked interesting and fun! We came to the junction of the slower moving Blue Nile with the much swifter White Nile. We hung out there in the boat for a few minutes, not getting into the fast waters, getting photos where the sunset was the loveliest. I was in awe, seeing this historic and geographic spot. It is really hard to capture in photos, but I felt strangely satisfied and at peace.

Corinthian Hotel

Our last stop of the night was the unique and large hotel on the river where at the top you got great views of the city. It was a bit hard to make out the areas in the dark, but this would be amazing at sunset. Then we were on our way back to the airport and saying goodbye to Hamed and back to Dubai!

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Great photo
Creative