Back in Giza at the Pyramid View B&B, after a one hour fifteen minute flight on a EgyptAir Boeing 737-800.

Flight was pretty full but still was able to get out of my assigned seat and get an empty row to myself.  Slept.  Tired.

The hotel lives up to it’s name.  Had a light breakfast, turned on the a/c, and then CNN to see the most recent news about the blowhard.

Time for a nap.

Will stay 2 nights here at PV and then move to a hotel in downtown Cairo.  Will then start hanging out with Moro and his friend Kevin, also visiting from PDX.  It should be a hoot.

Will go up to Alexandria with them.

Will depart for Morocco in a week

Namaste

Please understand that I am curious about places, geology, history, space, technology and I also enjoy reading non-fiction, fiction and maybe even some scifi.   I do not consider myself a religious skeptic, but some people may.

Per Wiki:

The Red Sea (also the Erythraean Sea) is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez (leading to the Suez Canal). The Red Sea is a Global 200 ecoregion. The sea is underlain by the Red Sea Rift which is part of the Great Rift Valley.

The Red Sea has a surface area of roughly 438,000 km2 (169,100 mi2).[1][2] It is about 2250 km (1398 mi) long and, at its widest point, 355 km (220.6 mi) wide. It has a maximum depth of 2211 m (7254 ft) in the central median trench, and an average depth of 490 m (1,608 ft). The sea is the habitat of over 1,000 invertebrate species, and 200 soft and hard corals. It is the world’s northernmost tropical sea.

 

It is my sincere hope that in writing this blog entry that I not be labeled a heretic or an anti religion zealot, but I was just curious about several things related to the parting of the Red Sea. Don’t misunderstand me, put me in a box (or a bag either) and please do not judge or assume anything about this short commentary, ’cause you know what everyone says about the word ass-u-me.

The fact is this – sometimes I have a feminine side in my writing and sometimes I have an analytical side.

I am just a sayin’…..

First, I enjoy well written fiction as much as anybody, but my personal passions lean toward non fiction and history. I am guessing that it is likely that more people read and ardently believe fiction than there are people that do not believe nonfiction or well written biographies.  Even autobiographies.

I am just a sayin’:

• The Red Sea is between 100 and 220 miles wide
• It is over 7000 feet deep in the central median trench
• The average depth across the entire surface is over 1600 feet deep

The scene in The Ten Commandments staring Charleston Heston, where Charlie, portraying Moses, parts the waters of the Red Sea just does not give the event justice. It must have been much, much grander, given the distances and the depths involved.

So, still I’m just a sittin’, just a thinkin’, just a wonderin’ right here on a beach on The Red Sea….. where exactly did this parting of the Red Sea take place?   How close am I now?  Is there a plaque or a visitor information center?   If there are signs, is the signage in arabic, english or hebrew?  What does my Fodror’s guide to Egypt say?  Are there any geocaches hidden nearby?

I googled and wiki’d my questions, seeking factual answers.

Turns out, based on the best educated guesses (because it is just speculation like so many things in ancient history) that the parting of the Red Sea was about 100 miles south of here. No one knows for sure, not even the biblical scholars. But I am sure that the scholars are sure it DID happen, as sure as they believe so many other things that seem amazing.

I am just a sayin’……..

I kept up my investigation. Such an epic event, there MUST be more information available. I briefly considered asking the hotel staff or others that I have met, but asking an Egyptian Muslim about where, how far, etc. just did not make much sense. I gave it some serious contemplation – about asking someone how to get there.

My best shot would probably be asking a Jew, but they are hard to find here, even with 25% non muslims in Egypt.

I did, however, search for maps and images….thinking maybe a clue will be hidden in an image that will help me in my quest for the actual location.

Finally, I found it.  An actual picture of the parting of the Red Sea, taken by satellite from hundreds of miles in space.  My questions and doubts have been erased, with technology, logic and fact.

Parting of the Red Sea, as seen from space.

I am just sayin’………..

It is 180 miles from Luxor to Hurghada –  north to Qift, then east and into the desert to Safaga on TheRed Sea, then north again along the Red Sea to Hurghada.

I was waiting in the Venus lobby at 4:58 AM. Tired of waiting anxious to get going before the sun washed out all the contrast in my photos and before it reached 110 degrees F, I called Abdoul at 5:30; he apologized for being late and said he was on his way.  When he arrived, he said he had a flat tire this AM.  I guess airing up the tires yesterday after the oil change was not a good omen.

Belai, the nephew driver and I set out at 6:00 AM, an hour late.  Belai had driven me to The Valley of the Kings and again on the drive from Luxor up to the Dendura Temple (the mud brick factory escape story and the police escort after visiting the Temple).

North from Luxor, we drove through Nile farmland. Heavily agricultural, it had the look and dark rich fertility of the region where the Missouri River joins the Mississippi, but instead of corn and soybeans it was sugar cane, alfalfa and truck produce. Instead of tractors and combines, for the most part it was backbreaking manual field labor.  Instead of grain trucks hauling the crops to the silos it was donkey carts taking food to the local markets.

We paralleled a large irrigation canal maybe 100 feet wide that provided water to the entire region. We stopped and got the flat tire that was in the trunk repaired and then had a bite to eat for breakfast. Five half pita breads filled with a falafel, eggplant and tomatoes ($0.50) and a cup of turkish coffee.  I took pictures. Very friendly men were asking me to take their picture, so I did.  At 7:19 AM we were about 35 to 40 miles from the hotel and still in the agricultural flood plain. Lots of traffic, donkey carts, men and boys already sitting in the shade in the numerous small towns.  I often saw men with shotguns and rifles, as before in this region.  Lots of traffic – donkey carts, lots of people, many houses and buildings, shops and stores and dozens of young men sitting, standing, waiting for rides or buses.  Or just sitting and waiting….for nothing.

Went past past three checkpoints in the first 30 miles.  There are numerous police checkpoints – at every road junction, bridge, major building, temple, etc. and a very visible military presence, but it does not feel dangerous.  Their presence feels more reactive than proactive.  Cars are not searched, IDs are not checked, at least mine has not been checked even once.   Upon entering a temple with a non operational metal scanner and a non operational xray scanner, the policeman looked at me, smiled and said “You have any bombs?” smiled again and waved me through without inspecting my daysack.  Egypt must buy all the old, surplus airport security equipment that is broken to make it LOOK like there is great security.  But I have no doubt they could and would take the battle to anyone that fucked with tourists or anyone attempting a terrorist attack.    It would be hard for a terrorist to escape very far anywhere in Egypt, but they seldom escape very far very often……..anywhere……

Tourism has been hammered in Egypt, especially after the Russian airliner bombing at Sharm Al Sheikh.  Everyone, everywhere, talks about how few tourists there are and how it effects their income.

Upon arrival in Hughada I checked into the hotel that I had booked online this morning at 4:30 AM for just over $25.00.  Luckily, my driver knew exactly where it was and took me to check in.

Entering town, it had the look of a ghost town, a highly developed resort where construction came to a sudden, screeching  stop during boom times and then everyone left.

per wiki:

Herghada
الغردقة (Arabic) al-Ghardaqah
Al-Gouna: a compound on the suburbs of Hurghada.
Al-Gouna: a compound on the suburbs of Hurghada.
Hurghada is located in Egypt
Location in Egypt
Coordinates: 27°15′28″N 33°48′42″E
Country Egypt
Governorate Red Sea
Founded 1905
Elevation 14 m (46 ft)
Population Total 261,714
Time zone EST (UTC+2)
Area code(s) (+20) 65
Hurghada (/hərˈɡædə, -ˈɡɑː-/; Arabic: الغردقة‎ el-Ġardaqa Egyptian Arabic pronunciation: [el ɣæɾˈdæʔæ]) is a city in the Red Sea Governorate of Egypt. It is a main tourist center and the third largest Egyptian city (after Suez and Ismailia) located on the Red Sea coast.
The city was founded in the early 20th century, and until a few years ago it was a small fishing village. But since the 1980s, it has been continually enlarged by Egyptian and foreign investors to become the leading coastal resort on the Red Sea. Holiday villages and hotels provide aquatic sport facilities for sailboarders, yachtsmen, scuba divers and snorkelers. Hurghada is known for its watersports activities, nightlife and warm weather. Daily temperature hovers round 30 °C (86 °F) most of the year. Numerous Europeans spend their Christmas and New Year holidays in the city, mainly Germans, Russians and Italians.

Above is the only chart on tourism revenue I could find.  Before the 2011 revolution, before the downed Russian Airliner last year.

This is a resort ghost town.  Russians flocked here.  Not any longer.  I am sure you could buy a really nice Red Sea view apartment or villa for a song and $15,000.  Probably much less.

There is unfinished new construction everywhere – big, big resort style hotels like those in Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas, etc.  It is obvious that tourism has dropped off the cliff.  Some of it was due to the revolution in 2011 but primarily it is due to the downed Russian airliner that had taken off from Sharm el-Sheikh just across the Red Sea to the north and east on the Sanai.

Upon check in around noon or so I could not get water to come out of the faucet in the bathroom nor would the toilet flush or the showers turn on. I found the controls to turn on the bathroom water and when I did turn the water came out brown and dirty as though it has been sitting for a month and not being used.

I saw four guests in the entire hotel. There was a man sitting in the lobby working on a computer and I also saw a man out in the swimming pool. And there was a woman – German I believe  – checking out of the hotel as I was checking in.  The bar is open, the restaurant is open, but basically the entire hotel feels as though there is hardly a dozen guests here.  Maybe they are at the private beach, 300 yards to the east,  which was empty as we drove into town.

I checked into my room, rested and started writing this blog entry.

At 5 PM I went down to the bar to get a beer.  Mouhamed, tending bar, greeted me, shook my hand, smiled.  I asked him how many rooms in the hotel, which was highly rated on TripAdvisor.  He said 480.  I asked how many guests.  He said 7.

Mouhamed had a BS degree in History and was from Kom Umbo.  I ordered a beer and we talked for 30 minutes about perceptions around the world about terrorism, gun deaths in America (30,000 a year, seldom by Muslims but highly reported), perceptions of the west about Muslims, how the news covers terrorism with a bias,  how people react to terrorist acts, how it impacts the lives of everyone – not just those killed.  He was polite, well dressed, friendly, smart, educated, fluent in english.

Pic from my 5th floor room.

I am staying in the hotel on the night before the last night.  The hotel closes…… indefinitely, on Monday.

Muhamed is returning to Kom Umbo, where his father is a poor subsistence farmer.

Namaste

According to the Exodus account, Moses held out his staff and the Red Sea was parted by God. The Israelites walked on dry ground and crossed the sea, followed by the Egyptian army. Moses again moved his staff once the Israelites had crossed and the sea closed again, drowning the whole Egyptian army.

 

Friendly man, he laughed when saw me taking pic.

Halfway between Luxor and Hurghada, on the Red Sea.  All good.

No stinking tour bus, no cramped van.  In Abdoul’s car with the fresh oil change and the compressed air cleaned interior.  Abdoul’s nephew is driving.

Lots of police checkpoints.  One police man wanted to ride with us to Hughirda.  He was told “No room”, though the back seat is empty.  Have not checked my ID.

Have finally figured another other photo posting solution.  Use phone, smaller image sizes, vs 25 mb from camera.

 

 

Well, it is a start of a process.  Everything is so difficult technology wise in Egypt.  Add the language barriers and the willingness of most shops to overcharge by 800%….

The Pencil Girl in the blue dress

Resized a few 25 mb photos down to 80k, a huge reduction in file size.  Was able to upload 8 photos in 15 seconds.  Full resolution took 5+ minutes, if at all.  The app lacks features , folders, and it is difficult to keep track of which photos have been resized, etc.  Will keep searching for solutions.

Abdoul invited me to ride along as he ran errands this afternoon. First stop the ATM for some pounds for my trip tomorrow – 3000 Egyptian Pounds. Next to the oil change guy. His normal place was closed so we headed out, down the narrow dusty streets of Luxor. I am starting to know my way around a little.  I sit in the passenger’s seat and think about how many tourists ever get to see 1/100th of what I have seen in Luxor with Abdoul. Women dressed in black, head to toe. rhythmically walking with baskets or boxes on their heads. How do they do that?

Off to the next garage. They were open. It was surprisingly like a Jiffy Lube, kind of.    Abdoul went into the rear area, where there was a sofa and a TV and bought a gallon of Mobil oil and a filter. Then he popped the hood and the mechanic went to work.

Investigating the store, walking around everywhere, taking pictures…..I heard a very unusual sound.  Playing from some pretty decent speakers was music. Not the chanting of the Koran which is ubiquitous – in restaurants, souks and in cars – but Kenny G!!   I listened carefully. Yep, that is Kenny G.  I was blown away. Seldom do you ever hear western music in Egypt.  And it was blasting in an Egyptian oil change shop!!

After the oil change was complete it was time for the obligatory interior cleaning of the car. The young service man opened all four doors of the car and removed all four floor mats. I watched him walk away and wondered what condition the vacuum would be in. There was no vacuum.

He returned with an air hose with the hose end crimped over in half, like you do to a water hose to stop the flow.  Then he flipped the hose open and using about 90 PSI of unregulated compressed air (in the US this practice is prohibited by OSHA) he blew all the rocks, leaves, dust and trash out from the front passenger’s side out through the driver’s side door. He crawled in and worked his way across to the driver’s side and blew everything out in a big cloud of dust. Then he repeated the process in the back seat. I thought “I never thought about doing that, but it works.”

Next he blew off the floor mats. Then we were off.

Stopped and bought $0.40 worth of fresh bread, about 10 pancake sized pieces of pita bread.  Then to Abdoul’s home on this side of the Nile.  I was greeted by his young children, Yousef, 3 and Rhakma, 6. They have been asking about me…..“Where is the big man?”

We ate spicy eggplant, some beef, beans, salad –  all was delicious. Abdoul rested on the couch and I again spent time with Rhakma going through her english picture book. Dog, cat, elephant, dolphin, house, apple, boat, etc. Rhakma is adorable. Yousef is a devil child and even Abdoul admits it. Took some great pics of the three of them. I thanked his wife for the wonderful lunch and we departed.

Now 6:13 PM, sunset and have a caleche driver waiting patiently to take me for a carriage ride for an hour to take pics for $4.00.

Namaste

Friday, May 13, 2016.  Luxor.

Posted online from the same room I had last week, with double bed, private bath, a/c, cable tv w/ CNN for $15.00 a night.  Ran errands with Abdoul today, getting the oil changed in his car, to the ATM, picking up his Rx at the pharmacy.  We then went to his apartment and had lunch.  Spicey egplant, a beef dish (cow killed yesterday) bread, and several other didhes.

I played with his 2 young children, Yousef, 3 and Rhakma, 6.  Rhakma and I again practiced her english using her picture book- dog, cat, bike, whale, house, apple, bananna, etc.  She is adorable.

The Sarah docked at Luxor last night, after dark, and I slept aboard.  The cruise was much more enjoyable returning downstream to Luxor.  I was familiar with my surroundings.  I knew the routine.  There were only about 20 people aboard vs 90 on the upriver leg.

There was a stiff breeze yesterday and it was delightful sitting on the top deck in the shade. We stoppped at the two temples – Kom Ombo and the Temple of Edfu, where I saw the Pencil Girl on the upriver leg four days ago.  Unfortunately for both of us, she was not there at the landing yesterday.  I planned to be very gracious to her and make her touting very worthwhile and write more about her.  I wanted to meet her.

The Edfu Temple was spectacular.  I enjoyed it more than the Karna Temple, the second largest religious temple in the world behind Angkor Wat.  After spending 5 days walking around the complex at Angkor 2 year ago, I must say that Angkor is much more expansive and more impressive.  The pyramids are another kettle of fish. The Great Pyramid is 3800 years older than Angkor Wat and it is a really, really big pile of rock.  It is mind bogling.

I planned to return to Karnak today at 4 PM for pictures in the evening light, but it is just too hot.  103 F right now, at 3:30 PM.   Monday, when I fly back to Cairo from Luxor, the forcast says  116 F.

Edfu was remarkably intact and I read that it is the best preserved temple in all of Egypt.

Took great pics, but until I download and learn how to use an app on my ipad to compress my high resolution photos, I will not upload pics. Takes forever and burns up my data.  Wordpress does not give me an option to compress file size like Apple does in their native iOS apps for iPad and IPhone. I will try to work on this over the next two days, as time allows.

Upon our arrival at Edfu, I approached Phil, the Aussie at my dinner table and asked him if I could tag along with him and his prepaid, package tour guide.  We asked the guide if he would mind and he replied of course not, as my baksheesh payment would be nothing but gravy and any money would be only for him with no middleman taking a cut.

We climbed into a caleche for the ride through town to the temple.  Phil, younger than me but not as agile, gave everyone a show as he laborously climbed aboard the caleche, flashing the lingering crowd of touts that surrounded the caleche with a big white Aussie plumber’s ass crack about 8″long as he attempted to climb board.  Midway into his second attempt,  I was forced to look the other way as I chuckled to myself.

I gave the caleche driver 20 pounds and the guide 50 pounds or $5.00.  A guide would have charged about $25.00 or $30.00, so it was a great deal for a guided tour of the temple.

Google and Wiki have some great images of Edfu that you should browse.

Wiki says :
Monument information:

Deity Horus (primary), Hathor, Harsomtus
Historical information
Period Graeco-Roman Period
Dynasty Ptolemaic Dynasty
Construction start date August 23, 237 BCE
Completion date 57 BCE
Architectural description
Construction material Sandstone
Height 36 meters
The Temple of Edfu is an ancient Egyptian temple, located on the west bank of the Nile in Edfu, Upper Egypt. The city was known in Greco-Roman times as Apollonopolis Magna, after the chief god Horus-Apollo.[1] It is one of the best preserved shrines in Egypt. The temple, dedicated to the falcon god Horus, was built in the Ptolemaic period between 237 and 57 BC. The inscriptions on its walls provide important information on language, myth and religion during the Greco-Roman period in ancient Egypt. In particular, the Temple’s inscribed building texts “provide details [both] of its construction, and also preserve information about the mythical interpretation of this and all other temples as the Island of Creation.”[2] There are also “important scenes and inscriptions of the Sacred Drama which related the age-old conflict between Horus and Seth.”[3] They are translated by the German Edfu-Project.

Contents
History
Religious significance
Influence on British architecture
Gallery
See also
Notes
References
History Edit
Edfu was one of several temples built during the Ptolemaic period, including Dendera, Esna, Kom Ombo and Philae. Its size reflects the relative prosperity of the time.[4] The present temple, which was begun “on 23 August 237 BC, initially consisted of a pillared hall, two transverse halls, and a barque sanctuary surrounded by chapels.”[5] The building was started during the reign of Ptolemy III and completed in 57 BC under Ptolemy XII. It was built on the site of an earlier, smaller temple also dedicated to Horus, although the previous structure was oriented east-west rather than north-south as in the present site. A ruined pylon lies just to the east of the current temple; inscriptional evidence has been found indicating a building program under the New Kingdom rulers Ramesses I, Seti I and Ramesses II.

A naos of Nectanebo II, a relic from an earlier building, is preserved in the inner sanctuary, which stands alone while the temple’s barque sanctuary is surrounded by nine chapels.

The temple of Edfu fell into disuse as a religious monument following Theodosius I’s edict banning non-Christian worship within the Roman Empire in 391. As elsewhere, many of the temple’s carved reliefs were razed by followers of the Christian faith which came to dominate Egypt. The blackened ceiling of the hypostyle hall, visible today, is believed to be the result of arson intended to destroy religious imagery that was then considered pagan.

Over the centuries, the temple became buried to a depth of 12 metres (39 ft) beneath drifting desert sand and layers of river silt deposited by the Nile. Local inhabitants built homes directly over the former temple grounds. Only the upper reaches of the temple pylons were visible by 1798, when the temple was identified by a French expedition. In 1860 Auguste Mariette, a French Egyptologist, began the work of freeing Edfu temple from the sands.

The Temple of Edfu is nearly intact and a very good example of an ancient Egyptian temple.[7] The Temple of Edfu’s archaeological significance and high state of preservation has made it a centre for tourism in Egypt and a frequent stop for the many riverboats that cruise the Nile. In 2005, access to the temple was revamped with the addition of a visitor center and paved carpark.[8] A sophisticated lighting system was added in late 2006 to allow night visits.[9]

 

I am heading to the Red Sea tomorrow at 5 AM.  It is a three and a half hour drive due west through the desert.  Have a cab through Abdoul for 1000 pounds, about $87 USD.  It works out to about $10.00 USD per hour for the cab.  Will investigate further and keep you posted.  Will be going to Hurghada to eat some fresh seafood and spend the night at a resort.

Wiki:

The city of Hurghada was founded in the early 20th century, and until a few years ago it was a small fishing village. But since the 1980s, it has been continually enlarged by Egyptian and foreign investors to become the leading coastal resort on the Red Sea. Holiday villages and hotels provide aquatic sport facilities for sailboarders, yachtsmen, scuba divers and snorkelers. Hurghada is known for its watersports activities, nightlife and warm weather. Daily temperature hovers round 30 °C (86 °F) most of the year. Numerous Europeans spend their Christmas and New Year holidays in the city, mainly Germans, Russians and Italians.

Hurghada stretches for about 36 kilometres (22 mi) along the seashore, and it does not reach far into the surrounding desert. The resort is a destination for Egyptian tourists from Cairo, the Delta and Upper Egypt, as well as package holiday tourists from Europe, notably Italians and Germans. Today Hurghada counts 248,000 inhabitants and is divided into three parts.

Namaste,

abackpackandadaysack