The last couple of entries have admittedly been "Today we did this, and then we did this, and then we did that..." We know that this can be quite boring to read from back home for our friends and family, but this diary is also meant to eventually become a permanent record for us, so we want to accurately diarize our daily events. Because of this, we apologize for the repetitive nature of our entries.
And now back to our regular programming.....
Our big plan today was to take a hired taxi for the day and visit the great pyramids of Giza (which are 18 km west of the Nile and Cairo), Saqqara (which is which is 25 km south of Cairo) and Memphis (not Elvis' Memphis, but the Memphis which is 3 km south of Saqqara).
Our goal was to be on the road by 7:30 am because we had read that the ticket office at Giza only sells 150 tickets to go in the Great Pyramid of Khufu (more commonly known as Cheops) in the morning and another 150 tickets for admission in the afternoon. If one isn't lucky enough to get one of the tickets to go in the pyramid, one must make do the unlimited number of tickets sold to the Giza Plateau, the area around the pyramids where you can walk around and enjoy them as well as the sphinx from outside.
We arrived at the ticket office very shortly after 8:00 which enabled us to get the tickets to go inside the Great Pyramid.It wasn't just a simple drive out to the pyramids though. Our taxi driver took us to the "government" farm (3 or 4 km short of the pyramids) where we could learn about horses and camels, and even ride a camel up to the pyramids if we chose. A firm "NO THANKS, we want to go directly to the pyramids this morning" was needed to convey our wishes. It appears that the taxi driver stopped at his friend's or our hostel's manager's friend's (whichever, it most certainly was not a "government" farm) to try to set up a deal, a typical Egyptian ploy with the tourists. Never a dull moment while traveling independently in Egypt!
Anyway, back to the Great Khufu. As mentioned earlier, we were able to walk deep inside the pyramid, something that claustrophobic individuals would not be able to do. A section of the tunnel which is about 40 metres deep into the middle is about 1.25 metres high by 1 metre wide, with a fairly steep 50% grade. Added to this, we had to climb up and back down like the Hunchback of Notre Dame. (Louise, your daughter thinks you would have never made it.) Although there wasn't much to really see, the thought that we were deep into the pyramid was pretty cool.
When we returned outside of the pyramid, we walked around the Giza Plateau to admire the other two pyramids and the sphinx which are all within walking distance. The Lonely Planet book did make one comment that we can endorse wholeheartedly. It quoted Tony Horwitz, author of Baghdad Without a Map as having said "it's difficult to gaze in awe at these ancient wonders with modern Egypt tugging so persistently at your sleeve". We couldn't walk 25 feet without being stopped (harassed might be a better word) to buy either pyramid trinkets, postcards from Giza, or asked if we wanted a Camel ride. Even the odd tourist police officer couldn't resist making offers as they often wanted to take our picture, for a small backsheesh (tip) of course. It did get quite annoying after a while.
Visiting the much smaller and less intact pyramids at Saqqara was less awesome on a grand scale, however the hieroglyphs inside were in great condition and you could get a gist of what they were trying to depict in each of the 5 rooms. We did climb down into another pyramid. The site within was not all that memorable, although the sarcophagus of Pharaoh Teti was intact in the bowels of the pyramid. We ended up having to wait for another group to emerge from the shaft of stairs. Although it was quite obvious that we would be unable to descend while they were ascending, a man standing near the entrance told us to wait and "wait here".
Once the final person had emerged, before either of us had noticed, this "guide" had started down the stairway. We did say that we didn't want a guide and he said, "No, not guide, am guard". Oh yes, we could see how dangerous this would be to our safety! Whatever! Without any encouragement from us, he flew into a spiel to explain the hieroglyphs and a couple other details. On our way back up the stairs, Gerald passed him two 50 piastre notes, equivalent to one Egyptian pound, a typical baksheesh for something insignificant. Now remember, we didn't want him and told him so and we tried to ignore him throughout, but we knew we would be in for grumbling if we didn't give him something. So, 50 piastres it was. He unfolded it and said with disdain, "Piastres, no, no." Gerald responded, "We said we didn't want a guide; that is your baksheesh." We walked quickly up the stairs, out of the shaft. We hurried on our way trying to remind ourselves that we had nothing to feel guilty about. Oh, what Canadians...always feeling like we need to say sorry and adding to our BDA fame as TACs (Tight A-word for buttocks Canadians).
Another highlight was the drive from Giza to Saqqara. Two one-way roads were separated by a canal or a creek with traffic heading south on the right bank and traffic heading back north to Cairo on the left. Canal or creek might be stretching it a bit. This was a slew of the dirtiest water that I have ever seen. Not to mention that on the other side of one of the roads was burning garbage (rubbish for our British and Irish friends) which emanated a stench that could only be described as 100 times worse than the landfill behind TCD in Bermuda on a calm hot and muggy summer's day. Uggh! Every once in a while we would see a pump shooting out a spout of water into what looked like a well. There were also women and children using pumps alongside the canal to pump water into buckets. We were afraid to think that they used this for washing, cooking or much worse, drinking. Later, we learned that this water is used for feeding the animals (maybe vegetarian is not such a bad choice).
Part of this journey required us to take a detour. Good thing we had been in BDA for all of those years to get used to vehicles meeting and passing each other with centimetres to spare. What was so neat about this was that we were in a small village/farming area. We really got a taste of how the farmers lived. Once again proving to us that we, as North Americans, have so much and never seem to be completely satisfied with what we have. The people and children we saw lived a simple life and had smiles on their faces well before our car arrived at them.
Upon arriving at the Memphis museum, Sayed stopped and parked across the road at the Papyrus Factory, a shop which sells many Egyptian motif papyrus prints. Our first reaction was here we go again. He pointed us towards the museum, and indicated that it should take us about 30 minutes to visit the museum. Once again, he warned us that we should not be tricked into purchasing other tickets once inside. As with the other two sites, there would be official-type looking men by ticket booths encouraging us to buy a ticket to a newly opened part. We soon learned that we could simply walk by all of these "internal" ticket booths and say no thank you to these men who wanted to guide us (tip expected, of course). This is a neat little museum with artefacts unearthed here at Memphis. It was the original capital of Egypt and had a massive sculpture of Ramses II.
We returned to our agreed upon meeting spot with Sayed and decided to pop our heads into the store as Gerald was interested in possibly picking up a print. After deciding on a print, and bartering and haggling until a mutually agreeable price was reached, the owner, Ahmed, invited us to sit and have a cup of tea with him. At first we were hesitant, but Tamalyn had read that it is a privilege to be invited for tea, and it is insulting not to accept. The shop employee brought us some tea, again with fresh mint leaves, and we sat down to have tea Ahmed, the shop owner, and Sayed, our taxi driver. We spoke to him about our homeland, Canada, and he told us about Egypt. He spoke of his children, two boys and a young handicapped daughter. He spoke English very well.
The most amusing story that he told was about a tourist from Japan who came to the store a few years ago but was in a rush. The tourist came in and picked out five or six prints that he wanted to purchase. When he asked the owner how much he owed, Ahmed gave him a number. The tourist then proceeded to pull out the amount in US$, handed it to Ahmed, grabbed the prints and ran of. Ahmed even called after him to come back saying, "You gave too much, I owe you money", He looked back and continued to run along. We all laughed for two reasons. Firstly, even the least experienced tourist in Egypt should know that the first price mentioned by a salesman is never the real price. The friendly banter of dealing and negotiating should never be omitted. Secondly, the price quote was in Egyptian pounds, not US$'s. With an exchange rate of roughly 5EGP to 1USD, the tourist probably paid about seven to eight times more than he otherwise would have had he taken his time, bartered and paid in Egyptian Pounds!
Ahmed then saw Gerald shift his weight in his chair. Asking if Gerald wanted to go, Gerald deferred to Sayed, saying that we were on holidays and we were following Sayed's lead. Sayed mentioned that he was not in a rush, so Ahmed then ordered another round of teas with fresh mint leaves. We continued to speak about our families, the rest of our Egypt trip, diving and Ahmed and Sayeds' fear of swimming for the duration of the tea. When we got up to leave, Gerald asked Ahmed how much we owed him for the 2 rounds of tea. He replied, "Nothing my friend, it is my gift. Thank you for coming to my shop. Maybe you will return someday." We were extremely touched. Tamalyn got quite teary-eyed about it all. Although we speak about the touts trying to "take our money", the average Egyptian has the reputation of being very hospitable. This was a genuine representation of that.
All in all, we spent roughly an hour sitting and chatting with Ahmed and Sayed. This obviously pre-planned stop ended up being enjoyable, relaxing and very touching. Maybe a lesson was learned today.
Upon return to Cairo late in the afternoon, we asked Amir, the gentlemen who picked us up at the airport for a recommendation of a good Egyptian restaurant. Asking if we liked seafood (how can you not after living in Bermuda for 6 ½ years!), he suggested El Nir's Restaurant. A restaurant that has fresh fish packed on ice available for the guests to see. Once an order is placed, they grill the fresh fish whole with spices, onions, and fresh herbs inserted in the middle. Amir walked us to the restaurant, placed our order with the waiter, and then left us to our devices. We were the only westerners in the entire restaurant. The table next to us had a family of five, and the little boy laughed along with his sister at how we were dressed and how we said Thank You in Arabic. Their father scolded them in Arabic, but when Gerald and the boy made eye contact, both smiled and the little boy knew that his actions had been taken in jest. They continued to look our way and give us little giggly smiles.
The main course was preceded by a fresh salad of red onion, tomatoes, cucumber and cilantro, tossed in local herbs and olive oil, along with some bread which resembled Indian Naan bread (although much thinner) with a type of Tahini sauce for dipping. If this was a taste of what was to come, we were excited for the main course. The fish was served whole, with head and tail still attached, accompanied by rice that was also kicked up a notch with some local spices, and fresh half limes with which to squeeze juice on the fish. Although one fish would have been sufficient for the two of us, we each were presented with a whole fish. The meal was so delicious we couldn't resist consuming all that was presented to us. The entire meal, including a large bottle of fresh mineral water, came to 57.75 Egyptian Pounds, about $12 Canadian. That won't even buy a bottle of water at Mickey's in Bermuda!
Well, that's been our day in a nutshell. Tomorrow night (Sat Aug 20), we take the overnight train down to Aswan, where we are expecting to roast in temperatures approaching 44 degrees Celcius (about 110 degrees Fahrenheit). On that note, Tamalyn wants to thank Wendy McDonnell for the gifts that she gave us and Aunty Betty for endorsing their effectiveness. We are not sure what they are called, but once these "necklaces" are dipped in water, they become awesome cooling agents to be wrapped around your neck. We have used them both days in Cairo and have definitely benefited from the cooling effect of the wraps. Sunday becomes the first big test for these magical items.
TTFN
Gerald & Tamalyn
PS - We will upload our pictures when we hit an internet cafe with a fast USB port. This is an old one that felt like I was using a dial-up internet connection.
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