Older than Dirt

View from the hotel's garden

Today was our first day in Egypt, and our only day in Cairo! Having arrived last night fairly late, being ready and packed at 8:30 this morning felt like a bit of a stretch. That said, our itinerary was crammed full and consisted mostly of “see as much of Cairo as possible in one day.” After an early breakfast, it was time to get moving!

The apparently largest one (in the center)
is shorter than the pyramid on the left

We started off at the Great Pyramids. Although we’ve all seen pictures of them, somehow seeing them right in front of us was a completely different experience. From one angle, they are practically in the midst of city life, and from another, they are deep in a desert biome. And the blocks Cheops’s is made from! They’re stunningly large.

The effort to quarry, work,
and move these blocks is amazing!

I had to get the photo with the camel in it!

 His son, who built the second of the great pyramids, had a tall order: he wanted to surpass his father’s accomplishment without showing disrespect. How did he manage this? He ended up building a slightly shorter pyramid, but situated it on the highest point of the plateau. From many vantage points, it looks higher and larger than the first.

And the third? By now, we’re on to the grandson. Since his father and grandfather had managed to irritate the populace by spending great sums on these boondoggles, his aim was to create his pyramid to suit his own sense of importance while not inflaming the yokels. His solution was to build the smallest of the three, but covering it with an expensive granite veneer. In the end, his cost as much as the first two combined!

Queens' pyramids (damaged) in
background.
Towards the left are the pits
where the boat was found.

Available for rides.

The boat museum! It's much smaller
relative to the pyramid than this photo shows.

 In 1954, a mystery came to light completely by chance: at the foot of the first pyramid, four pits were discovered. Capped by humongous limestone blocks (think 1 meter by 3 meters by 2 meters, and lots of them) stacked along the top of the pit, when opened (because who could resist finding out what’s underneath?), these holes in the ground contained...a jigsaw puzzle. A large quantity of wood strips (Sinai cedar, to be precise) and ropes (some of which had sample knots in them) were the only thing to come to light. It was your worst Ikea nightmare. However, clever souls noted particular characteristics (including some pieces that looked remarkably like oars), and only 25 years later, there was a complete funeral boat ready to take Cheops to life in the underworld. This boat is now on display in a museum on site, and is truly impressive. Thinking about it, I realized that I’ve been to three ancient boat museums in about as many years. Clearly, I am making a habit of finding old boats.

Booties were required for the museum

Sample knots, 4500 years old

The granite blocks covering the pit.
 The photo makes them look smaller than they are.

Model showing the rope joinery

Second model to show the overall look

The real thing! Yes, it's enormous.

Our guide, Hibba. In the background,
workers' tombs cut into the hillside

Next stop: the Sphinx. Constructed to guard the Great Pyramids, the Sphinx seems simultaneously diminutive (in comparison to the pyramids) and huge (in comparison to people). As we were walking up to the viewing area, we had the chance to see an ancient Egyptian temple (which I didn’t know existed, to be honest). The construction technique was fascinating: no mortar was used, but these huge granite blocks were polished to the point that they practically “stuck” to each other. The corner blocks were curved in order to wrap around and overlap in courses to tie the building together. They also used keystones at strategic points. So interesting!

(non-mortar) joints

Corner blocks

In real life, it looks rather small compared to the pyramids

Sprinkler system. "Spot" watering is very much the thing here.

We saw a lot of dashboards covered in faux fur...to combat/absorb dust?

A papyrus shop came next. Billed as a “museum,” it was actually a bit of a tourist trap which made me think “kickbacks” immediately. However, the fellow demonstrated exactly how papyrus was made, and it was quite interesting...so we didn’t mind too much. After we gave in on one over-priced item, he was desperate to kick in extras; this made me wonder if we’d messed up the expectation of bargaining. It had seemed like a “fixed price” kind of place, but he kicked in items he had previously wanted 300 pounds for (about $18) at the rate of 2 for 25 pounds. But back to the interesting part: You strip the papyrus bark, then slice the papyrus lengthwise. Press it flat, set it to soak for anywhere from 2 days to 2 weeks, then do a basic weave. Shove it into a press for 2 weeks, and you have a sheet of paper!

Obviously, lunch was going to have to be postponed, since everything closes at 4 and we had a lot to see. Onwards to the Cairo Museum! We only had time for the highlights (2 hours’ worth), including coming face to face with King Tut. Larger in real life than I’d ever envisioned, the death mask lived up to its fame. That said, though, seeing the tomb furniture was extraordinary, and gave us a glimpse of the experience of the explorers who actually found the intact. Gold-covered statues, beds (including a folding bed with its original hinges) ceremonial chairs (including footstools bearing images of his enemies...great symbolism, we thought), games, and more were all tossed willy-nilly into the cramped spaces of his tomb.

Bed with built-in pillow

His sarcophagus was the ultimate Russian nesting doll: there were about four big boxes, each of which was completely covered in gold leaf (and seriously large: call it 4 meters by 3 meters by 4 meters). The interiors of these boxes were often completely covered in hieroglyphics; it turns out (according to our tour guide) that oftentimes these were nothing more than instructions for life in the afterworld, in the event that the resurrected body didn’t know what to do. A type of IKEA instruction set for the revitalized corpse, if you will.

The damage was done just after this pharaoh's
reign, to expunge him or her from the record
(I think this one was Hatshepsut, but not sure)

In Cairo, they have a severe case of embarras de riches, and the museum has had to stack its sarcophagi like so much cordwood. We had time to see just a few more sections as we were zipping out in order to skip forward in time about 3000 years: our first Egyptian mosque! Interestingly, the entire courtyard was open to the sky, making me wonder about noon prayers at the height of summer. The stalagtites in the arches (carved deliberately) were reminiscent of those at the Alhambra, and we discovered that the Alhambra had been constructed only 100 years earlier. The second mosque is built right next to the first, but about 500 years later. It’s a vision of marble inlay and open spaces. It includes a mausoleum which has some tombs that are slightly reminiscent of those at the Taj Mahal, though these are less flowery in their inlay.

Side view of the inlay construction of this sarcophagus

A miniature tray of (stone) offerings!

Can you see the roast ducks on the right?

Tut Ankh Amun's chair

His footstool depicts enemies; great symbolism!

The wings show protection

You could see something like this today!
Tut's enemies are depicted on the insoles, though...a custom job.

A religious chair for Tut

Games for the afterlife

This folding bed retains the original hinges

You can't have too many beds in your tomb!

This was a box for the canopic jars
holding Tut's internal organs.
It's about 2 meters tall

A plethora of sarcophagi

The detail on this one was stunning

Little animals! They were about 1" high

Motif in the entryway

We then had to rush to the mosques. These two are right next door to each other and demonstrate to a nicety the range of dates: the first was constructed in the 14th century, and the second in the 19th century. The Mosque Madrassa of Sultan Hassan was originally conceived as a school and mosque combined, and had study and sleeping areas in the wall cavities. Today, it is used for religious services generally during Ramadan and other holy days.

Ceiling in the entryway

Floor in the open courtyard

Pool for ablution

We were amazed at the intricacy of the carving

Details inside the canopy over the pool

The 19th-century mosque, the Al-Rifa'i Mosque, was built by the mother of the original builder of Mena House (our hotel the first night). This was in response to her getting a snake bite: she prayed to Allah for quick healing, and bargained with the promise of building a mosque. She received healing, and Allah got his mosque. She died before completion, but her son (Mena House's founder) fulfilled his mother's promise and finished the project. The mosque has tombs very reminiscent of those in the Taj Mahal (inlaid stone), as well as a separate area where the Shah of Iran is buried.

Tomb one

Finally, lunchtime! Stopping in a roadside stall/restaurant, we sat down to a flimsy aluminum table and our guide ordered us some kushari. Think Egyptian rice-a-roni, and you might be close. Consisting of rice and a mix of pasta shapes, covered with a bit of tomato soupy stuff and garlic oil, plus black lentils and chickpeas with fried onions. Delish!

After tea at an outdoor restaurant, it was time to head to the airport.

Love,

Alexandra