Tomorrow morning I'll get up first thing in the morning to visit the Pyramids. It's now 9:45pm here, and the city of Cairo is as awake as ever, but this is my last task before returning to my hostel (Sara Inn) to shower up and hit the sack.
We arrived in Cairo around 8:30am, after we caught a 10pm bus out of Siwa to Alexandria, then made the quick decision in Alexandria to just continue on immediately to Cairo. Although I slept on both buses, even to the point of drooling on the Arab scarf that I was wearing around my neck, my weariness is now catching up to me.
Cairo is one of the largest cities in the world. Due to a population explosion in recent decades, the city's infrastructure has not kept up with the number of inhabitants. And so the streets here are jam-packed with cars and with people. In addition there are very, very few traffic lights; I've been told that there are only two in the whole city, and that may be the truth.
As long as we're on this topic, let me relate an interesting adventure I had earlier this evening. I had to catch a microbus from the wealthy neighborhood of Nasr City (near the airport, and where Roland is staying with friends for the night) to the downtown area, in order to return to the hostel where I am staying for the next two nights. While I was catching the microbus, Karim (Roland's friend) was yelling at me to push my way into the microbus; I ended up squeezing my body facing backward while the sliding side-door to the van (i.e., the microbus) was still open while we were moving. At the next stop someone got off and I was able to replace their spot. The ride lasted for nearly 45 minutes through typical Cairo traffic; it's like the Daytona 500, there are no lanes, and every vehicle is constantly jockeying for position and weaving in and out of the other cars. Looking out the window of the van, I observed how much the city reminds me of the boroughs in New York, as there were lots of well-lit commercial establishments all over the place, with tons of people walking around. When I finally reached the last stop I got out and had to find my way on my own back to the hostel, with only a small map on the hostel's business card to guide me. Of course this meant crossing several major roads and intersections, which as I said earlier none of which have stop lights. This part of my trip reminded of the game Frogger, because I literally had to time my jumps from lane to so-called lane to avoid being hit by a car (earlier today while walking with Roland a car tried to turn where I was walking, and it's right front tire literally rolled over my foot before I hit the car with my hand and the driver stopped). As is common among pedestrians here, there were times while crossing the road that I had to wait, between lanes as cars passed by me, until I could proceed across another lane on the road. It was an exhilirating experience, although one that requires total attention.
Earlier today I visited the Egyptian Museum. Although I really like museums, they invariably make me tired and sleepy. But since I was alone I simply took my time and took plenty of rests. The best part of the Egyptian Museum was the exhibit of the Royal Mummies, for which I had to pay an additional entrance fee. This exhibit featured the mummies of such pharoahs as Hatshepsut and Tuthmosis. It was really cool and really surreal.
After my visit to the museum, I had to get lunch. I walked into a local restaurant, ordered two "ful" (bean-filled pita) and sat down to eat. Two men at the next table started talking to me. They asked me where I was from; of course I told them the USA. They asked me my opinion of Bush and I indicated with a hand-motion so-so; they immediately put their thumbs down. They asked me if Barack Obama was Muslim; I told them that he isn't but his father was a Muslim from Kenya; they hadn't known that. They asked me if I was Christian and I said yes; so I asked them if they were Muslim and they said yes; I told them that I love everybody as long as they're nice to me, they gave me a thumbs up. As it turned out, one was a legal advisor and the other was a lawyer. I asked them what they were eating, they told me it was "kofta" and asked if I would like to have one, I said sure; at the end, despite my attempt to pay for it, they insisted that they treat me to the kofta. It was really nice of them, and it was the type of direct personal interaction between people of different countries and cultures that I so enjoy.
Well, that's about all for now. I will fill in more details and clean up my writing on these posts once I get home. So please bear with me for now. Just know that I am thinking about all of you, yes you! And so you can be sure that a part of you is with me here in northeastern Africa.
Finally I'll say that contrary to what you may think the weather here has been relatively cool. This morning when we came into Cairo on the bus I was wearing a t-shirt, a long-sleeve button-down shirt, and a sweater, and I still felt a bit cool. Throughout the rest of the day, although I rolled up the sleeves, I continued to wear the long-sleeve shirt.
Anyway, a part of me is beginning to miss home now. But I know that I have two more days here in Egypt, then three more days in Europe to let it all out before returning to the grind. Feel free to leave a comment or to send me an email, as I am checking every day and would very much love to get a little transatlantic love from my homies. Peace out, y'all! Keep feeling alive in the 2-1-5!
Showing posts with label Siwa Oasis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Siwa Oasis. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Sahara
Sahara means desert in Arabic, so to say Sahara Desert is redundant. It's late morning on Tuesday right now, and this will be my last day in Siwa before moving on; more on this later.
Yesterday we spent the whole day out in the Sahara. For 100 Egyptian pounds (about US$20), we joined a tour out to the desert. Our ride was a 4-wheel drive GMC Scottsdale, probably early 1980s model; our company was an English man, his Greek wife, and their one and a half year old son named Rowan, along with our Norwegian friend Sven, and our driver named Hassan.
After a half-hour ride out, our first stop was at the top of a pretty tall sand dune. This was the group's first opportunity to take photos of the arid expanse, and Roland's and my first opportunity to break out the sandboard. Roland waxed it up for me and then I shimmied my barefeet into the cloth straps, while I told the group watching me to prepare for a royal wipe-out, which did in fact happen after I surfed down the dune for a pretty good distance. Roland and I took turns and even had Sven give it a try too. It was a lot of fun.
Yesterday we spent the whole day out in the Sahara. For 100 Egyptian pounds (about US$20), we joined a tour out to the desert. Our ride was a 4-wheel drive GMC Scottsdale, probably early 1980s model; our company was an English man, his Greek wife, and their one and a half year old son named Rowan, along with our Norwegian friend Sven, and our driver named Hassan.
After a half-hour ride out, our first stop was at the top of a pretty tall sand dune. This was the group's first opportunity to take photos of the arid expanse, and Roland's and my first opportunity to break out the sandboard. Roland waxed it up for me and then I shimmied my barefeet into the cloth straps, while I told the group watching me to prepare for a royal wipe-out, which did in fact happen after I surfed down the dune for a pretty good distance. Roland and I took turns and even had Sven give it a try too. It was a lot of fun.
Our next stop, after our driver entertained us by driving very fast up and down the sand dunes, was a very small oasis tucked away in a topographical depression. There was a small round pool there lined with a short stone wall, the diameter must not have been more than about 6 meters at most. After breaking down to my swimsuit, I dipped into the pool and discovered that this was a hot spring, a very hot spring in fact. It took a few minutes to acclimate to the temperature, but once achieved, the effect was absolutely relaxing. We stayed there for over an hour, just taking it easy at this unlikely refuge in the middle of the Sahara.
And this was something not lost upon me throughout the afternoon: that I was spending the day in the middle of the world's largest desert, and not very far from the Libyan border. I couldn't help thinking what everyone back stateside was doing at that very instant. I thanked God for the opportunity to be here and to be blessed with such special experiences.
We continued on not too far to a lake that we had been able to see from the little oasis. Surrounding the deep blue lake was a lot of plants very similar to those up in the Meadowlands of northern New Jersey ("let me just make this statement loud and clear, Jersey's here!"). While all the other tourists, including those from two other trucks were milling around, staring at the lake, Roland and I had broken down to our swimsuits; on the count of 3 we ran full-sprint toward the lake and dove in boldly. I kid you not when I say that the water was very cold, as implausible as it may seem being in the middle of the desert; perhaps it was the depth of the lake as well as the fact that it is still only spring, not yet summer, even here in Egypt.
The other highlights from the rest of the afternoon were visiting a field of seashells, testament to the fact that much of this land used to be underwater in prehistoric times; the driver taking us over steep sand dunes so that we felt like the car was going to tip over headlong into the sand; and a final stop atop a sand dune to watch the sun set gently into the desert.
Returning to town, not having eaten anything since around 11am -- when, after taking off our shoes to enter the restaurant, we ate bread dipped into a squash-type soup and drank hot mint tea while sitting on the floor -- we looked forward to a solid dinner. We went to the East-West restaurant, where I ate couscous with chicken and tahina with pita bread. After this I was so tired from the long day that I went to the roof of our hotel to chill out while listening to music, and then went to bed early around 10pm.
I woke up today around 7am, returned by myself to the roof to enjoy the cool morning air while I finished reading my book. Roland and I went back to East-West, where I ate falafel tamia for breakfast. I took a nice long warm shower, and now I am here.
Tonight we will try to catch a 10pm bus for Alexandria, which will take around 7 hours. From there we will then go back to Cairo. As far as today I hope to visit the Oracle and then watch the sun set at Fatnas island.
Thanks again for keeping up with my travels, and believe me when I say that you are here with me. Salaam aleikum!
And this was something not lost upon me throughout the afternoon: that I was spending the day in the middle of the world's largest desert, and not very far from the Libyan border. I couldn't help thinking what everyone back stateside was doing at that very instant. I thanked God for the opportunity to be here and to be blessed with such special experiences.
We continued on not too far to a lake that we had been able to see from the little oasis. Surrounding the deep blue lake was a lot of plants very similar to those up in the Meadowlands of northern New Jersey ("let me just make this statement loud and clear, Jersey's here!"). While all the other tourists, including those from two other trucks were milling around, staring at the lake, Roland and I had broken down to our swimsuits; on the count of 3 we ran full-sprint toward the lake and dove in boldly. I kid you not when I say that the water was very cold, as implausible as it may seem being in the middle of the desert; perhaps it was the depth of the lake as well as the fact that it is still only spring, not yet summer, even here in Egypt.
The other highlights from the rest of the afternoon were visiting a field of seashells, testament to the fact that much of this land used to be underwater in prehistoric times; the driver taking us over steep sand dunes so that we felt like the car was going to tip over headlong into the sand; and a final stop atop a sand dune to watch the sun set gently into the desert.
Returning to town, not having eaten anything since around 11am -- when, after taking off our shoes to enter the restaurant, we ate bread dipped into a squash-type soup and drank hot mint tea while sitting on the floor -- we looked forward to a solid dinner. We went to the East-West restaurant, where I ate couscous with chicken and tahina with pita bread. After this I was so tired from the long day that I went to the roof of our hotel to chill out while listening to music, and then went to bed early around 10pm.
I woke up today around 7am, returned by myself to the roof to enjoy the cool morning air while I finished reading my book. Roland and I went back to East-West, where I ate falafel tamia for breakfast. I took a nice long warm shower, and now I am here.
Tonight we will try to catch a 10pm bus for Alexandria, which will take around 7 hours. From there we will then go back to Cairo. As far as today I hope to visit the Oracle and then watch the sun set at Fatnas island.
Thanks again for keeping up with my travels, and believe me when I say that you are here with me. Salaam aleikum!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Oasis = Water + Life
Today we swam in the Kleopatra spring, located within the Siwa Oasis. Although the air was a bit cool due to a steady wind coming out of the desert, the water of the spring was warm and refreshing. We dove in from the ledge of the stone wall surrounding the spring.
In order to arrive here, we caught a bus at 7:30am in Marsa Matruh, and rode 4 hours through the desert. For miles and miles, there is nothing but rocky desert on either side of the road. If it were not for the road, the surface of the earth to the horizon in any direction appears as the surface of Mars. The only break came halfway through the trip at a small cement structure, which housed a kitchen and some plastic tables. There I ate two soft breadsticks filled with some kind of red sauce.
Siwa is an interesting place. It is literally an oasis in the middle of the Sahara desert. Roland and I climbed a tall rock structure this afternoon, easily one of the tallest in all the oasis, from which we gained an amazing vista of the surrounding area. In one direction we could see the salt lake. Below us was the small town of Siwa, its central plaza and the streets radiating outward. All the buildings appear to be made out of mortar and limestone, to a great extent they resemble the adobe buildings of the American southwest. Surrounding the human settlements are hundreds and hundreds of palm trees. But then not too far out in the distance, one can clearly see the desert; all of a sudden the palm trees end and there is only sand and rocks stretching off towards the horizon. The sight is really amazing.
After checking into the Yousef Hotel right in the center of town, we decided that the best way to quickly explore the town and find the spring would be to rent bicycles. We did so and then did our best to avoid the young boys driving donkey-pulled, two-wheeled carts around town. The main streets in the middle of town are paved, but one doesn't have to go far until they turn into packed sand. Everywhere we rode (or later walked), little children would wave at us and say "hello!", it was truly wonderful. Some of the friendly adults would say "welcome to Egypt." The feeling here in Siwa has been so amazingly warm and welcoming.
Because we were simply riding our bikes with only the goal of eventually reaching a spring, we unintentionally took the long way to our destination, thereby traveling through some of the very poor outlying areas of town. But even in those areas the children were genuinely happy to see us and any time we asked adults for directions they were quite willing and ready to help point us in the right direction.
So we finally got to the Kleopatra spring, where there was a very chill juice bar and treehouse built around the large palm trees already growing there. The owner was a cool Egyptian guy who spoke English very well and loved using the word "wicked" to come off as being really hip to the game. There were also a handful of other tourists there, including a family from the south of Germany, a couple young guys from Hamburg, and later we had a reunion with Sven, a Norwegian backpacker whom we had met on the bus from Matruh to Siwa.
While Roland was speaking German with the guys from his country, I went up to the treehouse, which was really the roof of the juice bar, covered above with dried palm leaves to provide shade from the sun, and covered below with authentic Egyptian rugs on the floor, and pillows colored either turquoise, purple, or orange, lining the two-foot walls around the perimeter of the roof. I leaned back against a few of these pillows and listened to the chill music that was playing from below, some Marley, chill West African music, jazz, and other cool stuff. It was very relaxing, and it was exactly what I was looking for.
Earlier this evening, while Roland showered and then went to prayers at a local mosque, I hung out on the roof of our hotel, where we had a view of the illuminated rock dwellings of the ancient people of Siwa. The sight really cannot be described in words; to be sitting alone, listening to my music through my headphones, while sitting under a starlit sky and looking directly at illuminated ancient dwellings and the quiet expanse of the desert beyond, was absolutely mystifying. All of this in addition to the calls for and recitation of prayers over the loudspeakers of the several local mosques. After absorbing the sentiment of my existential surroundings, I finally attended to a more practical matter: my first shower in Egypt. There are few things more pleasant than a warm shower to wash away the dust, sweat, and grime of three days' travel, even if the showerhead was positioned directly over the toilet.
Tomorrow we will stay in Siwa for some more fun. We hope to go sandboarding as well as visit the Oracle here in the oasis. After this we have no plan, other than to take it one step at a time. Thanks for checking in, and I will try to write again tomorrow.
In order to arrive here, we caught a bus at 7:30am in Marsa Matruh, and rode 4 hours through the desert. For miles and miles, there is nothing but rocky desert on either side of the road. If it were not for the road, the surface of the earth to the horizon in any direction appears as the surface of Mars. The only break came halfway through the trip at a small cement structure, which housed a kitchen and some plastic tables. There I ate two soft breadsticks filled with some kind of red sauce.
Siwa is an interesting place. It is literally an oasis in the middle of the Sahara desert. Roland and I climbed a tall rock structure this afternoon, easily one of the tallest in all the oasis, from which we gained an amazing vista of the surrounding area. In one direction we could see the salt lake. Below us was the small town of Siwa, its central plaza and the streets radiating outward. All the buildings appear to be made out of mortar and limestone, to a great extent they resemble the adobe buildings of the American southwest. Surrounding the human settlements are hundreds and hundreds of palm trees. But then not too far out in the distance, one can clearly see the desert; all of a sudden the palm trees end and there is only sand and rocks stretching off towards the horizon. The sight is really amazing.
After checking into the Yousef Hotel right in the center of town, we decided that the best way to quickly explore the town and find the spring would be to rent bicycles. We did so and then did our best to avoid the young boys driving donkey-pulled, two-wheeled carts around town. The main streets in the middle of town are paved, but one doesn't have to go far until they turn into packed sand. Everywhere we rode (or later walked), little children would wave at us and say "hello!", it was truly wonderful. Some of the friendly adults would say "welcome to Egypt." The feeling here in Siwa has been so amazingly warm and welcoming.
Because we were simply riding our bikes with only the goal of eventually reaching a spring, we unintentionally took the long way to our destination, thereby traveling through some of the very poor outlying areas of town. But even in those areas the children were genuinely happy to see us and any time we asked adults for directions they were quite willing and ready to help point us in the right direction.
So we finally got to the Kleopatra spring, where there was a very chill juice bar and treehouse built around the large palm trees already growing there. The owner was a cool Egyptian guy who spoke English very well and loved using the word "wicked" to come off as being really hip to the game. There were also a handful of other tourists there, including a family from the south of Germany, a couple young guys from Hamburg, and later we had a reunion with Sven, a Norwegian backpacker whom we had met on the bus from Matruh to Siwa.
While Roland was speaking German with the guys from his country, I went up to the treehouse, which was really the roof of the juice bar, covered above with dried palm leaves to provide shade from the sun, and covered below with authentic Egyptian rugs on the floor, and pillows colored either turquoise, purple, or orange, lining the two-foot walls around the perimeter of the roof. I leaned back against a few of these pillows and listened to the chill music that was playing from below, some Marley, chill West African music, jazz, and other cool stuff. It was very relaxing, and it was exactly what I was looking for.
Earlier this evening, while Roland showered and then went to prayers at a local mosque, I hung out on the roof of our hotel, where we had a view of the illuminated rock dwellings of the ancient people of Siwa. The sight really cannot be described in words; to be sitting alone, listening to my music through my headphones, while sitting under a starlit sky and looking directly at illuminated ancient dwellings and the quiet expanse of the desert beyond, was absolutely mystifying. All of this in addition to the calls for and recitation of prayers over the loudspeakers of the several local mosques. After absorbing the sentiment of my existential surroundings, I finally attended to a more practical matter: my first shower in Egypt. There are few things more pleasant than a warm shower to wash away the dust, sweat, and grime of three days' travel, even if the showerhead was positioned directly over the toilet.
Tomorrow we will stay in Siwa for some more fun. We hope to go sandboarding as well as visit the Oracle here in the oasis. After this we have no plan, other than to take it one step at a time. Thanks for checking in, and I will try to write again tomorrow.
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