A Journey through Cairo

Ryan, David, and I began the day with a trip to the Cairo Museum in Egypt.  It was hot, the cab ride was long, with no AC, and fighting through the crowd of tourists was not easy.  But getting to the museum totally made up for it.  We were surprised by the shear number of people at the place, all socializing and walking around right outside of the entrance.  The museum building was huge and only had one narrow entrance, but that didn't discourage us from the cool things we knew we would see inside.  After paying for our entrance tickets and walking inside, we soon discovered that we weren't allowed to use video cameras.  We all thought that this policy was ridiculous, and so after a brief conversation we all decided to try to sneak our cameras into the building.  However, after a few noisy metal detectors and several guardsmen asking us to check our bags we realized that this wasn't happening.  So we went back outside of the museum to drop our camera's off at a check-in location located across from the museum.  To say that I had my doubts about the camera check-in center would be an understatement.  It was literally a small wooden hut, with an elderly man inside.  He took our cameras, gave us a registration number (a 3-digit number written in marker on a small piece of wood), and placed our cameras on a shelf with several others that looked just like them.  His organization method consisted of placing an identical small piece of wood with a matching number in front of our pile of cameras.  I thought to myself "This can't be good," but justified our decision by saying the following prayer: "Lord, please allow me to return from the museum to retrieve a camera that is intact, identifiable as my own, and not 'missing'...Amen,"  and off we went to go see some mummies and sarcophagi.


The Museum
Walking into the museum was like stepping into another world!  I could see how huge it was from the outside, but stepping into it put my mind into a totally different state of being.  I equate that first look inside to walking into a funeral, or stepping in a couple minutes late as an important speaker begins talking.  Looking inside it was dark, very dry, and dimly lit...quite the contrast from the sunny, humid day outside...and so I did what every other entering visitor did; I quieted myself and began to slowly shuffle towards my first destination.  The first image I encountered was breathtaking.  I saw two giant statues, approximately 15 feet tall, off in the distance.  They depicted King Amenhotep I and his wife sitting on their thrones.  The statues were made out of some sort of yellow stone, and each figure had a perfectly symmetrical face, was adorned with large hooded crowns, and held two scepters (known as a crook and flail).  I wanted to run over to them to examine them more closely, but my path was blocked by various crates and tablets covered in hieroglyphic writing.  As I walked up to one of the tablets I was in awe of the intricate detail that went into making each hieroglyphic image.  There were symbols for cranes and snakes, water and sun, and various lines and shapes in perfect geometrical order.  All I could think about at that moment was trying to read these important messages that someone had left behind.  What did the symbols mean?  When were they written?  I didn't see any signs or postings to help me understand! Oddly enough, I found myself reaching out and running my hands over the symbols trying to find a deeper meaning when I was interrupted by a security guard who said to me "No Touch."  I couldn't believe it!  I had broken one of the most commonly accepted rules in most museums..."Don't touch the displays!"  I didn't know what came over me, or why the security guard chose to be so nice about it, but it was then that I realized that none of the exhibits in this room were encased in any materials.  In fact, I would find out as I walked through the rest of the museum that about 90% of all the displays weren't encased in anything.  I thought that the museum put an amazing amount of trust in its visitors until I realized that there was only one visible entrance into the place.  So if something were to be stolen, the security guards could apprehend the culprit.


I could have spent all day at the museum.  It's very difficult to explain, but I felt some sort of deeper connection to the exhibits in that place.  It's a fact that displaced individuals often associate with people, places, and things that feel familiar and/or comfortable to them.  I believe that this was the case today.  When I looked at those statues I saw people who had similar features to my own.  When I saw the images of events on paintings and pottery, I felt like I could be a part of that environment.  When I saw a mysterious tool or device I began to rack my brain trying to figure out what it was used for.  I was immersed in the culture, and it made the journey there all the more enriching. 


However, as I continued to look at the displays and exhibits, I got frustrated.  I don't know how long the museum has been at that site, but for some reason only a handful of the displays had writings to explain where more about them.  This bothered me because I felt like I should have known more before taking the tour.  I contemplated starting from the beginning and finding a local resident to be a make-shift guide, but that just wasn't feasible with our allotted amount of time.  As I walked through the museum it became clear that I would have to make my own inferences along the way.  However, I've never found comfort in being ignorant about something, and so I made a promise to myself that when I get back to the US I'm going to do more research on Egyptian civilizations.


Top 5 Displays at the Museum
1. King Tutenkamen's (Tut's) sarcophagus
2. Papyrus rolls (8 feet long with stories and records in hieroglyphics)
3. Black Onxy statues of King Amenhotep II (15 feet tall)
4. Traveler's chest (engraved with pictures of the 4 sons of Horus...with heads of a human, dog, falcon, and baboon)
5. Ancient musical instruments (including a harp, guitar, tambourine, and flutes)




The Bazaar

One of our more interesting excursions today was to the Khan el-Khali market in the shopping district of Cairo.  Imagine a thrift store, a garage sale, and yard sale all mated and produce a freakishly ginormous baby.  The place was huge and everyone there was a master salesman.  I had someone try to sell me an "authentic" Egyptian statue for 100 pounds. 
-->I said, "I'm sorry, I don't want to buy it." 
-->He told me, "You'll never find a finer piece of work!" 
-->I said, "Dude, I just passed someone else's stand selling the same item
-->He said, "...okay 80 pounds!"
I laughed and walked away.  But some of the items here were really beautiful!  The market had everything from hookah bongs and belly dancer outfits to unique jewelry to refrigerator magnets.  I have to admit that I was very tempted to buy several items, but I knew that i couldn't fit them into my travel bags. 



Lunchtime
Because my mom and sister were so worried about what I would be eating in Africa, I thought I would post a picture of what we ate for lunch today.


Lamb with falafel, salad, and a rice/pasta combo dish...Enjoy!

     
















Highnote
In my fraternity we would always end each meeting with a "highnote," which usually consisted of some interesting or funny tidbit of news or information.  My highnote to end this posting is a Youtube video about the crazy traffic in Cairo.  In my last post I talked about playing a "dangerous game of Frogger" to get across the street.  Now you'll understand what I mean!