The Sphinx and the Pyramid of Khafre
NEARLY all of our travels around the world have been places that are safe to visit. But every once in a while we find ourselves in some place that has had its fair share of turmoil.
In 2010, I regularly visited the tiny Middle Eastern island country of Bahrain before they had an uprising the following year. Our ship was supposed to continue visiting in 2011 but it had become so dangerous that the itinerary was permanently changed.
I think of Egypt in the same way. Anna and I had visited the country several times through the years. We often stopped in the Mediterranean coastal town of Alexandria, which was once the home of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. At 450-meters tall it was the tallest structure on earth for several centuries until an earthquake destroyed it. We also visited cities on the Red Sea coast, from Sharm El Sheikh, the diving resort town on the Sinai peninsula and Safaga, the gateway city to ancient sites of Luxor Temple and the Valley of the Kings, where the tomb of King Tut is located.
In December of 2010, we visited Alexandria with no issues. We then went through the Suez Canal, and as we were transiting, the country was thrown into complete disorder. When we arrived in Safaga in January 2011, access was restricted and it was no longer considered safe to venture out. The country was kept off of itineraries for a long time, but finally we were able to revisit this historic Arabic country.
Two of the landmarks of Egypt are the pyramids of Giza and The Great Sphinx. Giza is located just a few kilometers outside of modern-day Cairo.
From Alexandria, we traveled three hours by bus through the desert to get to Cairo. To say the roads were a little bumpy would be an understatement.
Between the security checkpoints, the speed bumps and the traffic, it felt like we were never going to arrive at our destination. But finally on the horizon we saw the tip of a pyramid. Excitement began to fill the bus; even though there were nearly 60 nationalities working together, all of us studied the pyramids and ancient pharaohs of Egypt at some point of our schooling. History started to come alive in front of our very eyes.
As most people know, the pyramids were built as tombs for the great pharaohs. At the time they believed that they must be buried with their wealth in order to have a better afterlife.
The writer and wife Anna with the twin statues at The Colossi of Memnon
Inside each pyramid is a series of tunnels connecting different chambers. While all of the pyramids have been long excavated and the contents removed, we had the chance to enter some and go underground. It was a surreal feeling to enter a structure that is over 4,500 years old. While I would love to share pictures from our inside trek, taking pictures is not allowed to preserve the ancient pyramids.
While the pyramids are thousands of years old, the irony is that the completely modern world sits just across the street. There is a Pizza Hut and Taco Bell within viewing distance from a bus drop off point. But across from another road is the Great Sphinx, one of the world’s oldest statues at over 4,000 years old and was a tribute to the mythical sphinx creature, a mixture of a lion’s head on a human body.
On our visit through the Red Sea, we stopped in port city of Safaga and took a bus through the desert to get to the Valley of the Kings. Located nearby are the Luxor Temple on the bank of the Nile River, the Memnon colossi, and the famous Valley of the Kings.
The Valley of the Kings will forever be known as the home of the tomb of King Tutankhamun, a somewhat insignificant young pharaoh who ruled Egypt for only nine years (1332 until 1323 B.C.).
But why King Tut is a household name was due to the discovery of his almost intact tomb by British archeologist Howard Carter in 1922.
Our first stop was at the two statues known as the Colossi of Memnon. The massive stone structures have stood for 3,500 years just outside of the burial areas of pharaohs of ancient past. We stopped for photos and got back on the bus to head to the Valley of the Kings.
The Valley of the Kings is a complex of over 60 tombs that was used to bury pharaohs for over 50 years. In the history of Egypt, this was used after the pyramids as a way to bury the leaders. While King Tut might be one of the most famous, there are other notable names such as Ramesses II through Ramesses XI.
Valley of theKings
There are also others buried in the complex from noblemen and family to unmarked graves for commoners. Archeologists have been working on the site for the past 200 years and even through current day.
As with the Great Pyramids, Anna and I were able to enter the chambers. I remember studying these places 20-plus years ago in elementary school and I was given the chance to explore in person.
Our last stop was to visit the Luxor Temple. The temple was not dedicated to a god or deity, but instead was a place for the crowning of kings. What started as a single temple was expanded on over the centuries by people such as Alexander the Great and King Tut. Important to note is the location along the Nile River. Most of the important places in Egypt are built near the river due to the life-giving nature of water. Egypt is located in the arid Sahara desert, meaning that water was always sparse. Life cannot be sustained without water, so the ancient Egyptians searched for water. The Nile River valley allowed life to grow and prosper amidst such dry conditions.
After our Luxor Temple visit, it was time to climb back in the bus and head back to port. The desert heat had taken its toll on most of us as we slept well on the air-conditioned bus. But in the following days and weeks, I kept thinking how lucky
I was to walk the same paths of the Egyptian pharaohs. What was once just a couple of chapters of a history book came alive during our tour.