Reminisecnces from the Diary: Egypt Trip 2006 - First Day First Show

11 June 2006

Hi Everybody,

As some of you may know I am presently in Egypt on an audit. I set foot in this country yesterday and was immediately struck by the charm and aura of the place. The pine trees lining the roads, the vast expanses of open space (with rolling dunes of sand) visible on all sides as I travelled towards my hotel, the blue waters of the Nile with the boats on it and most importantly, the Pyramids visible on the horizon made for a great combination of nature and anthropogenic activities to welcome anyone to Egypt.

It was a day full of fun and joy for me as it was full of firsts - my first trip to Egypt, first look at the Nile, first look at the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx, first ride on a camel and my first exposure to the people of Middle East and Egypt (during my stop at Bahrain and then in Egypt).

It so happens that my hotel is in Giza, barely 3 km from the Great Pyramids and the Sphinx. I had crossed these on my way to the hotel and soon after checking in I could manage to plan a trip to the Pyramids and Sphinx. I went around the Pyramids on camel back, gazed at the setting sun casting a halo around one of the pyramids and then went on to the Sphinx that stands behind the pyramid of King Cheops. I was told that Cheops was the greatest king and his pyramid is supposed to be the 'best' and 'greatest'. The other two large pyramids belong to the son and grandson of Cheops. Each of the three kings is reportedly buried with one wife by his side. There are six smaller pyramids in Giza for the remaining queens (Cheops had three other queens and his grandson had three other queens I was told). I was informed by my guide that there are as many as 99 pyramids all over Egypt though only the ones at Giza are famous.

The trip was great fun even though the Tourist Police shooed us (me and my guide), away from the Pyramids and the Sphinx, reportedly because the Egyptian president, Hosni Mobarak's wife was hosting a party near these. Therefore, I couldn't go near enough to appreciate the limestone bricks of which the pyramids are constructed, nor get a photo of myself right next to a pyramid. Shall try to go back when and if I have some time after the audits. Have however managed to get some photos of the pyramids and am attaching a few of these. I shall put up the rest on the Kodak Gallery website once I return. So check these out for the time being and enjoy.

Once I was done with the pyramids, it was time to take a look at some of the Papyrus art. My driver took me to a place called the Phila Institute of Papyrus. The person there explained the procedure of preparing the Papyrus paper - the first paper invented by humans as he claimed. He then showed me the collection of paintings and explained the context and meaning of each of the paintings with respect to ancient Egyptian beliefs, mythology and the hieroglyphic script. Was particularly attracted to three paintings - sunrise on the Nile with the Pyramids in the background (from the southwest bank), sunset on the Nile with the Pyramids (from another direction, probably Northeast) and one of the Nile and the Pyramids at night, bathed in moonlight.

I shall attend the sound and light show at the Sphinx tomorrow night. I've heard it is very good. I also plan to make a trip to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and take a boat ride on the Nile - close to the hour of sunset, if possible. If I get the time after all this I may even go shopping for some good clothes of the famed Egyptian Cotton - but that's amongst my last priorities.