Sorry for the long absence but we are on the ship and have not had a connection and now only have a very poor dial-up (groan) connection so I won't try to post. I will update tomorrow evening when we get back to Cairo.
We are all well although most of us (Bonnie being the excecption) succunbed to the Pharoh's revenge. That was fun - ha!! but we're all well now and back on solid....beer and wine. ;)
Weather is beautiful - gorgeous. Went on a falucca ride today.
More tomorrow - stay tuned....
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Final comments on Sunday
Being here is a sad reminder of how poor most of the people of this and other third world countries are. Our guide told us today that a huge number - like 60 or 70-some percent of this country are illiterate. Someone asked why the government doesn't do something about it and he answered that they like it that way because it keeps the people from challenging the government.
We can easily see why these people become religious fanatics. They have no chance to change their circumstances in this life so they're hoping for the best in the next life. And they do so believe in the afterlife - else how could you explain all the time and money and effort spent on the pyramids? We can now also understand better how they turn to Jihad.
It's sobering to see this every day. Life changing. I'm glad that we have come.
Peace
We can easily see why these people become religious fanatics. They have no chance to change their circumstances in this life so they're hoping for the best in the next life. And they do so believe in the afterlife - else how could you explain all the time and money and effort spent on the pyramids? We can now also understand better how they turn to Jihad.
It's sobering to see this every day. Life changing. I'm glad that we have come.
Peace
Sunday in Cairo - last day in Cairo
Well, we checked one more item off our bucket list, and lived to tell about it. I'm not sure who's idea this was, but it wasn't a very good one. Ha! We (Ed, JoAnn, Bill and I), actually crossed a busy street tonight in Cairo, looking for a restaurant and then again on the way back after the restaurant didn't open for another hour and fifteen minutes. Whew! It was scarier than the camel ride, and we WON'T do that again. At least I know that I won't. I almost had to go back and change my pants!
Actually, I'm not sure that this one was really on anyone's bucket list.
Today was our religious day. This morning we visited the Muhammad Ali mosque. (not the boxer) It's a gigantic citadel with domed mosque overlooking the city - the ancient part of the city of Cairo.
It reminded me of St Sophia in Istanbul, which I've also wanted to see since Architectural history class during college.
We had to take off our shoes and cover our shoulders. The inside was just one huge room with many rugs - and lots of groups of tourists. Still, it was impressive.
Next we visited the Rifai Mosque where Egyptian royalty are buried, along with the Shah of Iran, which was an interesting story. I'll have to trust Bill to tell it though because I'll get it wrong if I try. There were several tombs that we visited as well as a mosque gatekeeper who sang one of his prayers for us. It echoed thoughout the room that we were in, and it was beautiful. Mackenzie, you'll be impressed that I left my camera by my side however....I did put it quickly on the little video feature and recorded his singing.
We also visited St Servius Church which is a Coptic Christian Church. The alter is supposedly built over the crypt where Mary, Joseph and Jesus stayed when they fled to Egypt. It reminded me of a church in Mexico.
The Hanging Church was another beautiful Christian church - they call it hanging (although it's really not) because it was built over a tower of the ancient Roman fort.
Finally, we visited the Ben Ezra Synagogue. Our Egyptian guide told us that this started out as a Christian church and was converted to a synagogue although there is only about 300 Jewish left in Cairo at this time. This was supposedly built over the spot in the Nile (which has changed over time) where the baby Moses was found in his basket.
After a delicious Egyptian lunch (of which the highlight was watching the waiters trying to get a cat out of the restaurant),
we spent a little time in the bazaar which was an experience. It was fun and I bargained for a shaw to use as a tablecloth however, I couldn't have spent more time there - it was too intense with hundreds of vendors grabbing you - trying to get the rich Americans to buy their stuff. Intense is an understatement.
However, it was worth it - just to watch Bill....who can't say 'no'. ;)
So tomorrow at 4:30AM we leave (fly) for Aswan. Having read Murder on the Nile - I can hardly wait to see it.
Thanks for the comments everyone, esp Mackenz. Now I can sleep easy and report to JoAnn and everyone that all is well....
Actually, I'm not sure that this one was really on anyone's bucket list.
Today was our religious day. This morning we visited the Muhammad Ali mosque. (not the boxer) It's a gigantic citadel with domed mosque overlooking the city - the ancient part of the city of Cairo.
It reminded me of St Sophia in Istanbul, which I've also wanted to see since Architectural history class during college.
We had to take off our shoes and cover our shoulders. The inside was just one huge room with many rugs - and lots of groups of tourists. Still, it was impressive.
Next we visited the Rifai Mosque where Egyptian royalty are buried, along with the Shah of Iran, which was an interesting story. I'll have to trust Bill to tell it though because I'll get it wrong if I try. There were several tombs that we visited as well as a mosque gatekeeper who sang one of his prayers for us. It echoed thoughout the room that we were in, and it was beautiful. Mackenzie, you'll be impressed that I left my camera by my side however....I did put it quickly on the little video feature and recorded his singing.
We also visited St Servius Church which is a Coptic Christian Church. The alter is supposedly built over the crypt where Mary, Joseph and Jesus stayed when they fled to Egypt. It reminded me of a church in Mexico.
The Hanging Church was another beautiful Christian church - they call it hanging (although it's really not) because it was built over a tower of the ancient Roman fort.
Finally, we visited the Ben Ezra Synagogue. Our Egyptian guide told us that this started out as a Christian church and was converted to a synagogue although there is only about 300 Jewish left in Cairo at this time. This was supposedly built over the spot in the Nile (which has changed over time) where the baby Moses was found in his basket.
After a delicious Egyptian lunch (of which the highlight was watching the waiters trying to get a cat out of the restaurant),
we spent a little time in the bazaar which was an experience. It was fun and I bargained for a shaw to use as a tablecloth however, I couldn't have spent more time there - it was too intense with hundreds of vendors grabbing you - trying to get the rich Americans to buy their stuff. Intense is an understatement.
However, it was worth it - just to watch Bill....who can't say 'no'. ;)
So tomorrow at 4:30AM we leave (fly) for Aswan. Having read Murder on the Nile - I can hardly wait to see it.
Thanks for the comments everyone, esp Mackenz. Now I can sleep easy and report to JoAnn and everyone that all is well....
Saturday in Cairo
Saturday was such an exhausting day that I fell asleep while downloading the day's photos. Literally - head to keyboard. Conk!
The big news is that we were able to cross a couple of items off the bucket list - visiting the pyramids and riding a camel. Yes - we all rode and it was pretty funny. You kind of had to be there however I do happen to have some photos....(if I can upload them - I'm at a great internet cafe however have to find some way to transfer them from my laptop to the PC (forgot my jump drive). If I can get this nice Egyptian guy to quit playing pool and help me, then maybe I can get them posted.
We started the day with the camel ride and rode up to the largest of the three Cheops pyramids. It was a very hazy morning and the pyramids, which one can usually see from the city, just rose up out of the fog as we approached them which actually was a little spooky because they are so huge and they suddenly appeared out of the haze.
The camel ride was uneventful really , no one fell off at least although I didn't think yesterday that I would be ever able to walk straight again. The camels are really large, smelly, lazy beasts and lay down every chance they get. They get up -hind legs first so if you don't lean waaaay back, you can get dumped on your head. Their gait is very rough too and since mine didn't have any stirrups, I was afraid more than once that I was about to go over, which would have been tremendously embarrassing. I did however, take my little camera with me and managed a few photos. Ha!
The ancient Egyptians used to fill the tombs/pyramids with furniture, food, and other household goods that the Pharoah would need in the afterlife, which was a huge amount of stuff. (JoAnn and I think that this is a pretty good idea - that way we don't have to get rid of our 'stuff' and can take it with us and not have to clean it out now) Anyway, it was fairly recently (early 1900s) discovered that the Egyptians also buried their BOATS (!) so they would have them to use in their afterlife. In the early 1920s, a boat was discovered buried next to the pyramid in a stone 'box', which was displayed in a museum next to one of the pyramids. Ed was especially impressed and we joked with him about burying him in his boat, or with his boat, or something like that.
After Cheops, we went to Kepheren which is guarded by the Sphynx. I thought that the Sphynx would be bigger than it actually was, although it was a huge structure when we got up next to it.
I guess just comparing it to the pyramids made it seem smaller. One thing that we have become very aware of is that Egypt does not have the same (overly) safety standards that the US does which is sometimes a huge relief however many times there are huge drops (like maybe 60 feet!) with no guard rails and so you have to be really really careful not to back up while taking a photo - right over the edge. It would be easy to do. (don't worry - we have JoAnn to warn us) Many times there are no handrails on stairs either which can be spooky, to say nothing of physically challenging because they are usually steep. But I'm not complaining - it's just different.
After the temple, we were bussed to Memphis, which was the ruling city (left my guide book upstairs) many years ago - divided Upper and Lower Egypt. The bus ride to Memphis was a real trip because we ventured outside of Cairo. (we still have never stopped for even ONE stoplight or stop sign, believe it or not) We visited a museum in which a gigantic statue of Ramses lay on his back (he was hansom)
and some other artifacts however, I really enjoyed the ride the most (sitting in the front of the bus) because seeing the countryside was so different from the city. There were at least as many mules pulling carts, famers on their wagons with horses, goat herders, and boys driving cattle - in the streets with the cars and trucks with no stop signs or stop lights.
There are women in burkas, carrying things (one was carrying a large box with a TV in it) on their heads. Everywhere, the kids wave at the buses and sometimes the local people do too although they must see many tour buses, I would imagine.
The last sites of the day were the Pyramid of Sakkara, which looked like a large pile of rubble. We visited the tomb, which had I known how difficult it would be to get into, I would have reconsidered. It was not one of the more impressive tombs other than it was challenging to get into. Being short helped as we had to sort of duck-walk to get into it (and out). However, the temple next to it (Mastaba of T) more than made up for it with the spectacular carvings on the walls. They were the most beautiful ancient art that I have seen. Mackenzie and Ted should see it...it is a spectacular excavation and surely must be a World Heritage Site? Unfortunately, we could not take our cameras inside so I did get a small catalog that shows some of the carvings.
At the end of the day (we were pretty exhausted by this time), we went backwards in time to the Step Pyramid of Djoser, designed by Imhotep - one of the oldest structures in the world. All I can say is that the light, being dusk, was perfect, and we closed the site.
The policemen blew their whistle and we had to leave.
After returning to the hotel, we decided to find the Egyptian McD's however because we really can't cross the streets here (we used the Metro tunnels to cross the streets), we had trouble finding it and gave up and had pizza at an Italian place by the hotel.
Now you can see why my head hit the keyboard and I had to give up.
Oh - one more interesting fact: The Egyptians in Cairo (pronounced Care-row), do NOT turn on their headlights at night. They use them to blink (along with their horns) at other cars. Really weird - like they're trying to save electricity or something?
And.....HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ZACH! I tried calling...but you did not answer. ;( I bought you something really cool today at the bazaar....bargained it down to 5 Egyptian pounds (about a dollar). You'll love it - and thanks, Mackenz, for the comment because I haven't seen your e-mails. And Lee, and Sandy, and Old Faithful (Judy), and Bob....
The big news is that we were able to cross a couple of items off the bucket list - visiting the pyramids and riding a camel. Yes - we all rode and it was pretty funny. You kind of had to be there however I do happen to have some photos....(if I can upload them - I'm at a great internet cafe however have to find some way to transfer them from my laptop to the PC (forgot my jump drive). If I can get this nice Egyptian guy to quit playing pool and help me, then maybe I can get them posted.
We started the day with the camel ride and rode up to the largest of the three Cheops pyramids. It was a very hazy morning and the pyramids, which one can usually see from the city, just rose up out of the fog as we approached them which actually was a little spooky because they are so huge and they suddenly appeared out of the haze.
The camel ride was uneventful really , no one fell off at least although I didn't think yesterday that I would be ever able to walk straight again. The camels are really large, smelly, lazy beasts and lay down every chance they get. They get up -hind legs first so if you don't lean waaaay back, you can get dumped on your head. Their gait is very rough too and since mine didn't have any stirrups, I was afraid more than once that I was about to go over, which would have been tremendously embarrassing. I did however, take my little camera with me and managed a few photos. Ha!
The ancient Egyptians used to fill the tombs/pyramids with furniture, food, and other household goods that the Pharoah would need in the afterlife, which was a huge amount of stuff. (JoAnn and I think that this is a pretty good idea - that way we don't have to get rid of our 'stuff' and can take it with us and not have to clean it out now) Anyway, it was fairly recently (early 1900s) discovered that the Egyptians also buried their BOATS (!) so they would have them to use in their afterlife. In the early 1920s, a boat was discovered buried next to the pyramid in a stone 'box', which was displayed in a museum next to one of the pyramids. Ed was especially impressed and we joked with him about burying him in his boat, or with his boat, or something like that.
After Cheops, we went to Kepheren which is guarded by the Sphynx. I thought that the Sphynx would be bigger than it actually was, although it was a huge structure when we got up next to it.
I guess just comparing it to the pyramids made it seem smaller. One thing that we have become very aware of is that Egypt does not have the same (overly) safety standards that the US does which is sometimes a huge relief however many times there are huge drops (like maybe 60 feet!) with no guard rails and so you have to be really really careful not to back up while taking a photo - right over the edge. It would be easy to do. (don't worry - we have JoAnn to warn us) Many times there are no handrails on stairs either which can be spooky, to say nothing of physically challenging because they are usually steep. But I'm not complaining - it's just different.
After the temple, we were bussed to Memphis, which was the ruling city (left my guide book upstairs) many years ago - divided Upper and Lower Egypt. The bus ride to Memphis was a real trip because we ventured outside of Cairo. (we still have never stopped for even ONE stoplight or stop sign, believe it or not) We visited a museum in which a gigantic statue of Ramses lay on his back (he was hansom)
and some other artifacts however, I really enjoyed the ride the most (sitting in the front of the bus) because seeing the countryside was so different from the city. There were at least as many mules pulling carts, famers on their wagons with horses, goat herders, and boys driving cattle - in the streets with the cars and trucks with no stop signs or stop lights.
There are women in burkas, carrying things (one was carrying a large box with a TV in it) on their heads. Everywhere, the kids wave at the buses and sometimes the local people do too although they must see many tour buses, I would imagine.
The last sites of the day were the Pyramid of Sakkara, which looked like a large pile of rubble. We visited the tomb, which had I known how difficult it would be to get into, I would have reconsidered. It was not one of the more impressive tombs other than it was challenging to get into. Being short helped as we had to sort of duck-walk to get into it (and out). However, the temple next to it (Mastaba of T) more than made up for it with the spectacular carvings on the walls. They were the most beautiful ancient art that I have seen. Mackenzie and Ted should see it...it is a spectacular excavation and surely must be a World Heritage Site? Unfortunately, we could not take our cameras inside so I did get a small catalog that shows some of the carvings.
At the end of the day (we were pretty exhausted by this time), we went backwards in time to the Step Pyramid of Djoser, designed by Imhotep - one of the oldest structures in the world. All I can say is that the light, being dusk, was perfect, and we closed the site.
The policemen blew their whistle and we had to leave.
After returning to the hotel, we decided to find the Egyptian McD's however because we really can't cross the streets here (we used the Metro tunnels to cross the streets), we had trouble finding it and gave up and had pizza at an Italian place by the hotel.
Now you can see why my head hit the keyboard and I had to give up.
Oh - one more interesting fact: The Egyptians in Cairo (pronounced Care-row), do NOT turn on their headlights at night. They use them to blink (along with their horns) at other cars. Really weird - like they're trying to save electricity or something?
And.....HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ZACH! I tried calling...but you did not answer. ;( I bought you something really cool today at the bazaar....bargained it down to 5 Egyptian pounds (about a dollar). You'll love it - and thanks, Mackenz, for the comment because I haven't seen your e-mails. And Lee, and Sandy, and Old Faithful (Judy), and Bob....
Friday, February 22, 2008
Friday from Cairo
Today we awoke to quiet - at least compared to last night. Apparently the Cornish is a party place - right on the (Nile) river. There are party boats that are commissioned from right below our window and the party goes on until 1AM, when it abruptly stops. Nothing could have kept us awake last night however, we'll see about the coming nights. We have to leave the window open if we want any air, as there is no heat, air conditioning or fan. However the nights are cool and people evidently are used to sleeping on their roofs even. Cairo is very densely populated and what looked like bombed-out areas of town are actually densely arranged apartment buildings.
This afternoon we toured the Egyptian Museum with our Egyptian tour guide. There were of course no cameras allowed which actually was nice because people were squeezing in to see the exhibits and not only so that they could take their photos. It was fabulous - although the building itself was in terrible repair. The Egyptian museum opened in 1901 and after the discovery of the King Tutankhamen's (King Tut) tomb in 1922, the exhibit was expanded to include a wing for all the artifacts from the tomb, which were numerous. Seeing King Tuts gold mask was nothing like seeing it in a book or catalog. JoAnn and I were especially impressed with all his jewelry, which was probably 100 times more than I'll ever own. My favorite (jewelry) was the scarab bracelet.
We saw many mummies - some wrapped and some not, but mummies are mummies to me and with the exception of the mummy that died from two arrows and an ax to the head (which bore the holes from the attack), they all looked pretty much the same - dried up, black...skeletons with the black, shriveled skin still on them. We did find out however that they pack the bodies in salt to absorb all the moisture out of the body. It took precisely 70 days to prepare a mummy for burial.
Bill's one surprise was the role that the Greeks, Romans and other nationalities played in Egyptian Pharohdom. JoAnn thinks that we need a cheat-sheet to map out all the ancestry - too hard to keep straight. I was surprised that there was a female pharaoh - Hatchepsut. More about her later.... and Ed was surprised at how Cheops is really pronounced.
Bill and I did a little window shopping today although I did buy some sunglasses as I forgot mine in DC and tomorrow we're going to see our first pyramid although we did see them from the air when coming into Cairo on the plane. It's a little dangerous (financially) to window shop as the shop people come outside and try to persuade you to come into their shops....start cutting prices before they even get you in the door.
We're off to some reception that involves food....not to be missed of course.
And by the way - if you leave comments (click on 'x comments' below), we can read them from here.... (hint hint-and thanks Judi & Louise)
Shalom
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Cairo at evening
We arrived in Cairo late this afternoon after a long trip starting at Washington, DC to Frankfurt, Germany. According to our Egyptologist, this is the first beautiful weather they've had in five weeks. It was about 70 degrees (F) and sunny. Yeah!We are all SO tired and I keep falling asleep as I write this but wanted to let you know that we've arrived safely. Here's a few photos from our 8th story balcony overlooking the Nile River.
The ride from the airport was an....experience. Although I thought that I knew what to expect - seeing it is different. Two incredible bits of info (and then I'm going to join Bill who is already snoring loudly):
1) Everyone ignores the stopsigns and stop lights in Cairo so they've just removed most of them or they've been destroyed. They've warned us NOT to try and cross the streets here. There are no pedestrian walkways and you literally take your life in our handl
2) We passed miles and miles and miles of what I thought looked like bombed out buildings...and as it turns out, people LIVE there. (and they all have satellite dishes) OK -having trouble loading photos on this network......more tomorrow.
that's it - more tomorrow when I'm lucid
Shalom (Peace)
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Washington DC
It's wonderful to be here in Washington DC with our friends and sort-of relatives (we must have some relational name) but the weather here has been weirder than in Oregon. Yesterday we wished we had shorts, by the afternoon is was pouring and cool and today we wore winter hats and gloves (or at least I wished that I had gloves).
Yesterday JoAnn and I went to a photography exhibit at the Smithsonian Science museum - and the photos were fabulous. Bill and Ed went to the boat show - Bill's been telling JoAnn that Ed bought a yacht....(maybe Ed really DID buy a yacht and this is all a big joke).
Yesterday JoAnn and I went to a photography exhibit at the Smithsonian Science museum - and the photos were fabulous. Bill and Ed went to the boat show - Bill's been telling JoAnn that Ed bought a yacht....(maybe Ed really DID buy a yacht and this is all a big joke).
and my favorite....
Today Bill and I went to the Holocaust museum. I had been there once before - it was still spell-binding. I had to drag Bill out of there so that we could take the Metro (I love the Metro) back to Arlington in time for dinner at Nam Viet.
Dinner with a 1 1/2 year old and a 3 month old is always interesting but it was still fun as there was plenty of people to keep the 1 1/2 year old entertained. (it's easy - you just let them do whatever they feel like doing) I did notice however, that this really cute little kid is capable of doing what we call 'the crocodile death roll' whereby they can escape from whomever is holding them. Ha ha! Smart kid!
This is called: How To Make Sure Adults Get Their Exercise.
Tomorrow we leave for Frankfurt, Germany and from there to Cairo. So ciao until ...Thursday?
Friday, February 15, 2008
Latest Photography Projects
I love photographing construction workers. They are big hams and always say 'take my picture!' when I walk by with a camera. A few days ago a particularly gregarious carpenter posed for me with his gigantic stomach and said 'how about this?' I love that he thinks he looks great and because he thinks that he does - he does! That's why men age better than women, in my opinion - they have the self confidence and don't sweat (ha!) the small stuff. I have a dream project photographing construction workers at work for a construction company. I can't wait to get back to this project in two weeks....I spend half my life waiting. Waiting for the sun, waiting for the sun to go behind a cloud, waiting for someone to quit posing, waiting for someone to show up. Tonight I waited for ambulances. And none came. I'll try again in two weeks and hope that it's not raining. Although that could look cool - wet, shiny pavement with red flashing lights reflections.
Monday, February 11, 2008
The Pups are Two
George & Gracie were two years old this week. That would make them about....14 or 15 in people years. They act like they are teenagers. They want to sleep until noon, eat junk food, watch TV and chase squirrels all day. They quarrel and bicker and chase each other around the house - and squabble over toys. And then they crash in the chair and nothing - except food - can raise them. Today I found some old photos from their puppy days. 
The learning Process
Do you remember when you first learned to use the computer? We forget how scary it can be - you think that you're going to 'break' the computer if you do something wrong. I've been helping Joy learn how to load her photos onto the computer, organize and file them, and some minor photo editing. Anyone younger than about 28 doesn't remember it - they grew up with it....so imagine how intimidating it must be for someone 80 years old to learn about the computer. My mom, 82, has become a wizard. It still scares her sometimes but she's an ace for her age. And she still learns lots of new things every day. She said that she'd never use a digital camera. Now I get photos almost every week.
I've been working on taxes and financial junk. Yuck! Like my friend said - it's like having to write a thesis. Every year. Here's what Georgie thinks of the whole thing:
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Millinium Park was very interesting - I want to go back to hear an under the stars (is there stars in the middle of the city?) concert. Outside Chicago, there is field stubble and vast stretches of snow that is beautiful. I took my little point and shoot camera and shot from the back seat of a moving car, with a really dirty window. That's about the worst way to shoot and I wish I could go back and take some time with my real camera. The snow on the tree limbs was especially beautiful.
And the potholes!! Wow! I forgot about potholes that are as big as VW buses! I do miss the midwest though. It felt like home even though I haven't lived there in 30 years.
Church luncheons. Snowball fights. Fire flies.
Marshall Fields (now Macies, much to the chagrin of Chicagoans)
Having a return flight that was at the same time as the Super Bowl was tough - especially when they loaded everyone on the plane and then they closed the airport because it was snowing so hard. It was the third quarter and fans on the plane were getting restless. Finally they let everyone off the plane to watch the end of the game and then loaded everyone back on the plane, de-iced and took off. I imagine that SW Airlines made some loyal customers that night. Even the Pats fans.
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