Les Pyramids

Back after yet another week. The high level of punctuality's probably becoming a regular feature of this blog!

Anyway, so there we were in Giza, next door to Cairo, in the Hotel Les 3 Pyramids. Probably not on the Top 10 list in Trip Advisor but a decent place, nevertheless. Finally, we would get to see the remains of the Pharaohs, and get a glimpse of everything that history books had shoved down our throats ;)

But then, good things always take their own sweet time. We were first taken to the museum of Ramses 2. The guy was so confused, he ended up marrying one of his daughters! I guess all that does deserve a museum of honour ;) The next stop was the step pyramid in Saqquara--the precursor to the Great Pyramids. A little bit like the rough architect's sketch before the final building goes up. A slight detour at a carpet shop and then finally, the pyramids!

One of the biggest names on the Greatest Wonders list, the first is the Pyramid of Cheops, the second, of Khefru, and the third, of Macarenas (sounds very familiar). While our parents very wisely decided not to enter the belly of the beast, my sister and I had the spirit of the explorers upon us. So we went down a steep ramp, just about ready to slip every few steps, pretty sure that we would end up with broken limbs, or die of suffocation in the Pyramid of Macarenas.The scary trek was worth it. Though it's been a few years, I still remember the sense of awe that we felt when we could finally walk around this ancient burial site.

Unfortunately, the Sphinx had closed its doors for the day and we ended up getting pictures of it only from the outside. But then we were never ones to give up early. A bit of sauntering around the shops, and then we were back for the Son et lumière, as the Sphinx came alive to tell us the story of the Pyramids and the Egypt of yore. It was a fascinating show, with the light from the stars above and the mesmerizing voice coming together to take us back into one of the richest periods in the world's history.

More later...

Aswan finally!

So two days later and we get to Aswan. Well, it takes two days on the blog. It is just an overnight cruise from Etna to the Dam really. As an aside, I tried researching the Cleopatra reference from my earlier post and well, it's just too confusing! Too many ladies with the same name, marrying their uncles, brothers and so on. Too confusing, so I will let sleeping dogs lie.

Sorry for wandering off... Back to Aswan. The Dam is impressive--I think the closest in India may be the Bhakra Nangal. I mean it feels like a whole big stretch of road which also doubles to harness water power into electricity. I am sure one of those World Bank and other 'global' organization aided miracles in the developing world! (Cynicism courtesy recent reading of World Bank criticism)

Anyway, the point is, the whole structure was huge. Certainly did not feel like something that would simply hold back water. But then, dams are certainly accomplished multi-taskers. Or definitely meant to be. Plus, this one had a special commemorative seal marking USSR-Egypt friendship. I forget but I think the sign included an olive branch (you get the drift...).

Up next was a charming experience--a visit to a Nubian village. Well, charming if you reside in the developed world and quite like the slums back home, if you don't. We took a boat from the modern splendour of the dam to a place, that I can only describe as the exact opposite--home to archaic lifestyles and obvious squalor. The houses resembled the poor houses in the little towns in Haryana and UP that one sees by the side of the highway, while speeding from one city to another. Grimy inhabitants, the purpose of whose existence seemed to be 'being on display'. Far from being citizens with quaint practices, like the century old houses in the Swiss Alps; these Nubians (upper Egyptians who have greater cultural similarities with Sudan than Egypt). Upper and Lower Egypt is nomenclature for ancient Egypt. While Upper corresponds to modern day Egypt south of Cairo, Lower refers to the part north of Cairo!

The grimy village tour done, we were whisked off to dine on Nubian delicacies. Apologies for being one of those pessimists, but I doubt if too many of the Nubian village denizens had ever tasted their 'own' delicacies! As my father pointed out the other day, while foreigners relish Ethiopian food, a huge chunk of that country's population starves.

Before we knew it, our day at Aswan was over. We barely had time to saunter through an Egyptian souk, before we had to board our train back to Giza (Cairo's twin city). Hopefully that comes up tomorrow!