Middle East 2022 | FindPenguins

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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
Tahrir Square
31 oktober 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
The museum is located at the north side of the Square which is the heart of Cairo and famous for demonstrations, especially the Arab Spring of 2011 that toppled Mubarak.

It is not an easy place to see, divided up with multiple arterial roads, no pedestrian crossings, but is very large. Surrounded by 5 star hotels and office buildings, is certainly a more upscale area than the other 99% of the city.Meer informatie
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ReizigerThose trees look hilarious haha
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ReizigerMy thought exactly
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
Coptic Museum
31 oktober 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
From Tahrir Square subway station, it was a short 5 LE (28 cents) subway ride four stops to the Mar Girgis station literally across the street from the Coptic Museum which is in the centre of a religious complex of many churches and a synagogue.

The Copts are an ethnic group with their own language and go back to the time of the Pharaohs themselves. They became Christian, although one interesting note from the museum is how this happened over a couple of hundred years where you see some of the pagan gods remaining part of the tradition, gradually becoming adapted to have Christian meanings. The Copts have remained in Egypt after Islam defeated the Byzantines despite waves of persecution. The Copts started the concept of monasticism that spread to Europe, and were themselves influential in the early days of the church. They mainly practice an Eastern Orthodox branch, but some adhere to Catholic rites. They are now a significant minority in Egypt of perhaps 10 to 20%

This museum shows some of the art which is quite nice from several centuries.Meer informatie
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
Hanging Church
31 oktober 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
Officially called the Church of the Virgin Mary, the Hanging Church is built atop the southern gatehouse of the Roman-built Babylon Fortress and gets its name from the fact that its nave is suspended over a passageway. This unique location gives the church the impression of hanging in mid-air, but this is hard to see until you get in and see through slits the old passageway far below.

The current church was built in the 7th century, and has had a number of renovations. The ceiling is built of vaulted timber and intended to resemble the interior of Noah’s Ark. The church is famous for its religious icons, however, of which 110 remain on display within its walls.

Many of these decorate the sanctuary screens and were painted by a single artist during the 18th century. The oldest and most famous icon is known as the Coptic Mona Lisa. It depicts the Virgin Mary and dates back to the 8th century.Meer informatie
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
St George's Church
31 oktober 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
Next door to the Museum is another church, St George's Greek Orthodox. It was originally constructed during the tenth century AD, at which time it was dedicated to Saint George who is said to have once killed a dragon as seen over the door.

The church was destroyed by a major fire, but was later rebuilt. In actual fact, the church which you see today is built on top of an ancient Roman tower which connects to the monastery below, and construction was only completed just over 100 years ago in 1904. It is also one of the few round churches ever built in Egypt.

The Church of St. George is an active church. That is, it is still used as a church. It is the country’s principle Greek Orthodox Church. The monastery is also the official seat of the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria

The interior of the church has beautiful stained glass and rich darkly stained wood.Meer informatie
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ReizigerWow! Incredible! What’s the history?
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
National Museum of Civilization
1 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C
Flying out this evening, so time for a visit to Egypt's newest museum. They have a cloak room and it is on the way to the airport so will take my suitcase.
This was opened just July of last year and is only partly opened. The main hall and one other. It will be dedicated to the full sweep of Egyptian history from the Paleolithic to modern era.

The building itself is stunning.

Started in the Royal Mummy exhibit which is down under and dark. It has the actual mummies and the coffins from each king and queen in chronological order. Interesting to see each mummy but also get short biographies and follow the Royal family through the generations.

Upstairs in the main hall were some very nicely presented relics. It was very unusual with a rather open free flow layout that was quite a pleasant walk about some impressive items.Meer informatie
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ReizigerNow aren't you glad your trip was delayed by Covid until this year!
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
Cairo
1 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C
Well it is a bit hard to write about Cairo in a totally positive way, to be honest.

It has those 'bucket list' attractions that are totally worth it, but this is not a place you visit for any other reason. You get more enjoyable exposure to the people, food and culture of the Middle East in Jordan, Turkey and Luxor.

Filthy due to the constant blowing in of sand of course, plus the literal crumbling of the buildings into gravel, but garbage everywhere. Because there isn't municipal collection, they just throw their household garbage in ditches and the shoulders of the road where it decays and is scavenged by packs of dogs and cats. And of course, in a city this size, smog is quite bad.

The difficult thing as a traveler is getting around the city. Cairo is vast and the places you want to visit spread out. People get around using this wild system of casual services. Absolute SWARMS of buses, vans, micro vans and Tuk tuks roam the streets. These do not follow any routes or schedule. You just stand at unmarked spots on the street and as the vans go by you make hand signals. For example if you are going to the ring road, make a circle motion with your finger. The driver will decide if he will be passing that way and pick you up. Tuk tuks you can flag down and as long as your life insurance is paid up and you sign a waiver of liability, you're good to go but it really is terrifying in that traffic. These people have taken Jordanian crazy to a whole new level. Take coaches, trucks, the aforementioned mini buses, cars, motorcycles, these weird tricycle pickup things, tuk tuks going in all directions and I kid you not - donkey carts all mixed together on all roads of every size and speed limit. Too stressful.

Finally, as a tourist you are just a mark. I don't like, but can tolerate the pushy vendors absolutely everywhere near the attractions. However it's not nice being scammed at every turn. They tried to shortchange me in the first and every store and restaurant I went from. And scams at every turn. One guy with a horse stops me at the top of the hill and says the site is closed to pedestrians and you are only allowed to go further on horse or camel! The most disturbing is the police. They are just corrupt. First time was at a remote corner of the Pyramid (I was actually the only tourist in sight) where a cop is stationed to prevent climbing. I had stopped to take a pic and he asks if I would like to climb up to get a better shot. I had heard of this scam where he would then "fine" you. I declined and he then offered a cigarette while standing under a "No Smoking" sign. At the Djoser site, a cop with a machine gun suddenly starts waving me over. I went to him and he then showed me some cartouche carvings. I said nice, took a picture and when I went to leave he holds out his hand and says 'baksheesh". I liked the find so gave him 5 LE. Next time near the Coptic district this cop is randomly stopping tourists on a side street and scanning them with a wand. I move on after and he calls me back. He points to a side alley and goes in. I tend to obey cops with machine guns so I follow. He points a a small wall and says Old Fortress. As if I didn't know. I said yes nice to know and start to walk away. He stops me with a hand on my chest and says 100 pounds. I said "I don't think so" and walked around him. He just let me go. Finally today at the airport, the guard at the x-ray screening stops me and goes through my carryon and confiscated my nail clipper because of the tiny fold out nail file. Huh? He then points at my camera bag and asks "camera?" I said yes and he says "no camera " He was going to shake me down so I picked up my bag and walked away. He shouted but I ignored him and got away.

PS. Connection through Cairo coming home. Don't need to get into details but they mess this place up with a "you can't get there from here" setup. For example there are no stairs from departures to arrivals you have to go outdoors. Then you are not allowed in anyway. The icing on the cake is extreme 'baksheesh'. So going through the security X-ray, there is a shortage of bins. I finally see one. I reach for it but a guy grabs it and puts it on the conveyor and gestures me to put my stuff in. I do so and he then holds out his hand and asks for baksheesh. I literally said "No way you provided me no service" .He starts to take my bin off the line and I had to wrestle it from his grip. All this in sight of the uniformed police. This is the International terminal. What a great image to the visitors of this country.

Oct 29 was a travel day, seeing the city from a car and just a walk up the block for a meal came to 7,410 steps
Oct 30 was the "Day of the Pyramids" at Giza then Djoser was walking around in the desert landscape for a total of 19,054 steps
Oct 31 was all museums that still came to 14,402 steps
Nov 1 I just did the one museum and walked around Cairo airport as my Uber took me to the wrong terminal in order to eke out 9,619 steps.Meer informatie
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ReizigerPretty crazy about the garbage…
02-11-2022Reageren
ReizigerAnd they say Mexico is bad for scammers and corrupt cops
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
Arrival Luxor
1 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ 🌙 21 °C
Flight delayed a half hour but had sent hotel my local number so we were in contact as I had booked and paid for them to arrange a transfer to the hotel.. Driver met me outside the airport. The Spring Hotel on the West Bank seems perfectly lovely and these are the nicest family you can imagine. My faith in people is restored. Welcomed by Momid the son of the owner and I requested a glass of tea with fresh mint. and then the manager Ashraf who is the owner's nephew and runs the place came along.

I sat down with Ashraf at 9pm and discussed the sights I really wanted to see. He got on his phone and within a few minutes he arranged a custom private tour. He hired a taxi driver to take me around all the West Bank sights and bring me home. Then a rest and a wonderful buffet lunch at the Crocodile Restaurant next door (also owned by the family) before a ride across the Nile with a private boat which was for my exclusive use for the rest of the day. In the afternoon, as mentioned later, another driver was mine for the afternoon on the East Bank. Dinner was a la carte at the Spring Hotel's own restaurant for an extra charge.

The hotel was in very good repair in the public areas and only a few defects in the room, but it was all in good working order. The best thing was the genuine care they took of their guests without ever getting the sense you were nothing but a source of money to be extorted. At one point he said The East Bank is full of homeless people in the streets and scammers at the sights and he wants to protect his West Bank guests and allow them to enjoy the more peaceful life on his side of the river. He was especially caustic about Cairo, considering it a blemish on his whole country's reputation.Meer informatie
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
Valley of the Kings
2 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C
As agreed with Ashraf last night, my driver picked me up at 530 after a nice and quick breakfast and I was the first customer to arrive a minute or so after 6. Paid the entry fee which includes 3 tombs. plus the extra for Seti I.

So, the Pharaohs and other notables of the 18th to 30th dynasties of the New Kingdom were buried in tombs cut into the rock in the years from 1600 to 1100 BC. Most of the tombs had been robbed centuries ago, with the notable exception of Tut's tomb which was found intact.

Around 60 tombs are known and the access to visits rotates among them and an admission ticket allows you to pick three from the current list of openings plus you can buy additional tickets to one of the more special or popular tombs. , I visited 2, 14, 11 and 17Meer informatie
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Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut
2 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C
My driver was waiting as I came out of the Valley of Kings. Doesn't that sound so decadent,: "my driver "?

A short drive took us to this lovely building. It was built for a female Pharaoh. She was a very interesting figure in Egyptian history. Hatshepsut was the daughter of Thutmose I. She married her half brother Thutmose II and became regent when he died while his son who would become Thutmose III was young, so she became Regent, but then declared herself Pharoah. Her descendent Thutmose III eventually took over and tried to erase her memory, possibly because any history of a female as ruler was deemed ideologically wrong.

The temple's was started in 1479 BC and the design and architecture is the most impressive aspect of this site. It is partly carved out of the rock face with a facade of limestone, sandstone and granite. Classic and elegant proportions as the three levels of terraces rise up the face of the mountain

The inside decorations are faded or destroyed and it is a bit hard to make out some of the features that are said to be there. The paintings tell the story of her life including a famous expedition to the land of Punt and the legend of her divine birth.

At the top level are the various shrines to the gods. This is called one of the 'top sights' and I would agree.Meer informatie
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
Medinet Habu
2 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
We were doing well for time, so decided on the fly to add on this stop, and spent an hour and a bit there, which was just enough for a quick walk to the rear of the complex and back out. This is the second largest and second most important site of the New Kingdom after Karnak.

It was started in the early days of the New Kingdom by Hatshepsut and Thutmose III. as a temple for the god Amun who was believed to have first appeared at this site. Ramses III massively enlarged the site as his memorial and built a wall around the temples which actually served as defenses and at one point during wars with the Libyans, the entire population of Thebes was able live in this massive site.

Entrance is through the huge 'Syrian Gate'. Throughout the temple are very well preserved hieroglyphics carvings and paintings which still have incredible relief and rich colours considering the age of these outdoor buildings. It also has the only still-standing royal palaces with the throne rooms and living quarters.Meer informatie
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Colossi of Memnon
2 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C
Last quick stop on the way back to the hotel for a break.

The Colossi of Memnon are two massive sandstone statues of the Pharaoh Amenhotep III, which are just standing by the side of the road in a field. They were constructed as guardians for Amenhotep III's mortuary complex and have stood since 1350 BC but the statues are all that is left. They are 60 ft (18 meters) high and weigh 720 tons each; both carved from single blocks of sandstone.Meer informatie
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Crossing the Nile
2 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
After lunch. Ashraf had arranged a boat for me which took me across the Nile to the east bank. The Nile is an impressively large river with a buzz of those little power boats that seat 20 or so, felucca sailing boats and large river cruise boats.

Had four trips across the Nile at various times and enjoyed the water sceneryMeer informatie
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Middle East 2022 Reiziger
Karnak
2 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C
On the other side I was met as we docked by Mahmoud who took me to his car and we headed up to Karnak.

Karnak is a huge complex of huge structures and like every other site over here, it is just amazing to see the scale the Egyptians built at. They were building this a couple thousand years before Rome. The Great Hypostyle Hall has to be seen to be believed.Meer informatie
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Luxor Temple
2 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C
After Karnak, I planned on visiting the air conditioned Museum, but we discovered it was closed and would reopen only at 5. Decided I would have a short break and get a drink and tackle the Luxor Temple. Mahmoud drove around a bit and stopped in an alley and asked if I wanted a Stella. (A Muslim who understood a decadent Westerner's needs). He popped into a hole in the wall and we stopped in a shady spot where the nice cold beer soon revived me.

Luxor Temple is a smaller version of Karnak with a series of courts opening up one after another.

I especially liked the front facade and the Sun Court.Meer informatie
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Luxor Museum
2 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ 🌙 26 °C
It was a very short interlude to rest up at the hotel before I headed back across the river for the evening opening of the Luxor Museum.

This is a smaller museum than some I have been to on this trip and found the hour and a half I spent there was enough to fully appreciate it. The pieces on display are mainly from ancient Thebes (Luxor). The are some very stunning sculptures.Meer informatie
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Luxor departure
3 november 2022, Egypte ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C
My last post in real time but will catch up on missed posts from the last couple of days. Will also add progress notes to this.

Taxi pickup at 5:30 AM and here I am at Luxor International Airport heading home. Just a little matter of 26:45 of flying and 91:30 of total travel time and this trip is history.

Exactly a month ago I landed in Istanbul and have seen and done so much. What a great trip.

Now it's to work planning our Iberian Peninsula trip in April.

Update 1: Connection in Cairo. Little over an hour to get to Cairo. Airport is nice and new but a s**tshow to change terminal security etc. (See my update to the Cairo Summary post). I hoped to move to an early flight and save a 9 hour layover but Qatar couldn't change me so stuck with more time in Cairo. About 4 more hours.

Update 2: Got out of Cairo, connected in Doha, but was a close connection -- 1:25 is not much in this big airport. Midnight when I went through and place was busy. Now on the flight to Dallas - 4 hours into the 17 hours

Update 3: Waiting in Dallas for my flight to Seattle. Arrived, scanned my face at a kiosk and walked in without showing my passport, back in the terminal in 20 minutes.

Update 4: In Seattle waiting for my last flight to Kelowna. Tired.Meer informatie
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Het einde van de reis
3 november 2022