Cairo Part 2

Egypt is located in North Africa but still considered to be part of the Middle East…

We used Cairo as a base and did some trips to other parts of Egypt but flew in and out of Cairo. Our hotel was very near the Giza Pyramids about 15 km from downtown..

Views from our hotel…

We had an opportunity to spend some time in Central Cairo which has the most crazy traffic we have ever experienced. No seatbelts, no helmets and whatever you could jam in a vehicle seemed to be the norm…

No lanes, no traffic signals and it felt we were taking our lives in our hands every time we got in a taxi! 

Most people live in tall apartment blocks…

There is usually clothes drying out the windows and many buildings are not finished. Apparently you don’t have to pay taxes until a building is completed so many are left undone.

The centre of Cairo is El- Tahrir Square..

It is also called Martyr Square as it is a public town square which has been the focus for many political demonstrations over the years, including the site of Egypt’s 2011 revolution.

The Nile River also runs through the center of Cairo with some famous bridges crossing it, including 

the Qatar Al-Nil Bridge which is guarded by four bronze lions. In the background you can see the Cairo Tower which is considered Egypt’s second most famous landmark after the Pyramids. 

Some views of the river from the Corniche which is a walkway along the river…

All the upscale hotels are also located along the river, we stopped into the Hilton for a rest and it was fancy…

Cairo has a lot of museums including the Grand Egyptian Museum which is opening later this week so we will miss it. It took over 12 years to open and will be the largest museum in the world for a single civilization. 

We did however visit the older Egyptian Museum which is the oldest archaeological museum in the Middle East…

It is quite large with many exhibits…

Don following our guide…lots to see!

In the Central Hall is an extensive collection of large scale works including statutes, reliefs and architectural elements. They are arranged chronologically from the pre dynastic to the Greek Roman period…

Here are some close ups…

These often came from tombs made to be part of the funerary equipment to accompany them to the afterlife. 

Many of them have their left foot forward to symbolize movement, power and life, representing a step into the future or afterlife.

There were many sarcophagi which were painted with various pigments and inlaid with precious stones…

The most famous is mask of Tutankhamen which is gold, it is now being moved to the new museum…

Another interesting exhibit was the silver coffin of Psusennes1 which especially remarkable because it is silver rather than gold which was considered at the time to be more valuable. It was discovered in 1939 by a French archaeologist…

A few other exhibits, can only take so much…

Near the museum was the oldest market in Cairo being more than 600 years old…it is called Khan el-Khalili.

Outside the market…

lots of places for tea and coffee and the vendors were not too aggressive…

 

Unfortunately most of the merchandise was made in China, as this market is now more of a tourist market than a local one.

Our last museum visit in Cairo was the National Museum of Civilization which is fairly new with a beautiful building and gardens situated by a lake in the middle of Old Cairo…

It was a hot day! 

This museum has two floors with the first outlining the history of Egyptian Civilization and the lower floor containing the rooms of the Mummies.

Here are a few exhibits from the first floor…

This guy has been around for 35,000 years!!

Painted coffins…

 

The Egyptians used a lot of turquoise, the bottom symbols are called ankhs which is a representation of eternal life in Ancient Egypt. It was created by Africans long ago and is said to be the first or original cross…

The queens wore beautiful jewelry…

And had lots of cosmetics for eye liner and hair pins as well…

It is believed that the Holy Family came to Egypt to escape Herod as shown on this map and stayed for three and a half years This journey also introduced Christianity to Egypt and their are many sacred sites across Egypt indicating where the family would have stayed. 

 

This tent called the Mahal as used to complete a sacred journey to carry the two books of the Holy Quran.The procession was led by the head camel and guarded by soldiers.

We then went downstairs to the Royal the Mummies Hall but no photos. It contains the mummies of 17 Kings and 3 Queens of Egypt. 

In accordance with their beliefs they preserved their bodies for the sake of their souls. They constructed their tombs on the West Bank of the Nile and equipped them with all the necessary objects for life after death. The tombs were then blocked and hidden for eternity. 

The most famous of the Pharaohs was Ramses II who became king between 25 and 30 and ruled for 67 years. He had many queens and around 100 children( busy man!). He died in 1213BC

Another famous mummy is Queen Nefertiti who was a very powerful woman leader…

Her coffin…

These were quite amazing to see as they were mummified 1000s of years ago. They still had their teeth, hair and skin. They were preserved by removing moisture, organs and then drying with natural salts before being wrapped in linen bandages and treated with oils and resins.

These pictures I took from the museum’s webpage really don’t do them justice. 

And of course you couldn’t be on a tour in Cairo without being taken to a Papyrus Palace where they demonstrate how paper is made from the papyrus plant and hope to sell you a piece. I bought a very small one of an ankh.

So that’s our visit to Cairo, a very hot, loud, chaotic city which I am glad to have seen but not to return. Now on to a cruise on the Nile…