Today is the first day of a 4-day organized trip to Cairo and Luxor. Normally I’d like to avoid the big tours because you lose your autonomy and end up doing things to please the group, BUT, let me tell you…after 5 countries…I am SO ready to be shuttled about from place to place and stay in nice hotels! Can’t wait! As soon as customs cleared our ship and our passports were released to us, we were ushered out of the ship and jumped on the tour bus for a 3 hour bus ride to Cairo. On the way, we stopped in Giza for lunch at the Meridien Pyramids hotel. It was a HUGE buffet with lots and lots of choices. I tried a little of everything (surprise!) except the cold salad items. They told us to avoid eating anything that had been washed with cold water or had a skin (like tomatoes) because we are not used to the water. It was sad, though, because it was such a waste of food. : (
Our first site-seeing stop was at Memphis. We went to an outdoor museum of ruins and statues from ancient temples. My favorite item from this site was a GIANT statue of Ramses II (an Egyptian king). It was lying down on the ground because the lower part of the statue had broken off. Even without the legs, the statue was truly gigantic and was incredibly well preserved because it had been completely covered with sand. Really cool stuff. I think I’m going to like Egypt. : )
Next up was a trip to the pyramids of Zoser at Sakkara and Lasataba. These were different type of burial monuments – they slightly resembled pyramids, but were more like big piles of sand and stone over a tomb. We got to climb inside, which was SO cool. To get in, we had to crouch down and keep our heads down to get into a very narrow passage. We had to hold on to the railings and head down a steep ramp until we were all the way down. It was pretty dangerous and several of the people on the trip decided that they didn’t want to do it! It was a pretty tight and awkward climb – definitely not for the claustrophobic. It’s really funny, though, because if we were in the US doing this activity, there would have been detailed training session on how to climb AND everyone would have had to sign a waiver to make sure they wouldn’t sue Egypt if they got hurt. In addition, they probably would have had to install an elevator to make sure it was accessible. But no, not in Egypt. It’s enter at your own risk!
After Sakkara, we drove to the hotel in Giza which was a beautiful complex. We checked in and had a short rest at the hotel before the evening activity, which was a visit to the Khan El Khalil Bazaar. The bazaar was an overwhelming experience. For the first time on this trip, I had a few moments when I felt far out of my comfort zone. This was primary the case due to the blatant and persistent sexual harassment targeted toward women which is so common in this area of the world. I was with Greg and Serena (another girl in my cohort) while we were there. The crazy thing is that I know the harassment probably would have been about 10 times worse if Greg had not been there with Serena and I. Two blonde American girls stand out like sore thumbs in an Egyptian market, let me tell you! In addition to the verbal comments, the vendors were much more aggressive with selling their items than they were in the Grand Bazaar in Turkey. The bazaar in Egypt was also much more dangerous because people push carts around in the narrow streets without stopping – it’s up to you to get yourself out of the way. Scary!
But, even in what appears to be crowded and dirty chaos to an unfamiliar eye, there are moments of sincere humanity. I was touched when a young Muslim women reached out, grabbed my wrist, and pulled me out of the way of a man rushing by with a cart. Startled, I turned and tried to thank her. She smiled and I didn’t need words to tell me what kind of a person she was to pull a stranger out of the way of possible danger. It was a really nice moment and it made me think about it’s the little moments such as that one that make this experience special.
Not everyone had a good experience at the Bazaar, though. One girl that I was with complained the entire time about how we were getting pushed and shoved and how she couldn’t wait to get out of there. The way that I look at it, though, is that we were in THEIR way, right? Everyone else around us seemed to know the drill – walk fast and move if there are carts. We were the ones holding up the line by moseying along, right? How can we blame the others there if we were invading their space and not following the protocol? It is interesting (and annoying) how different people can interpret the same situation so differently…
After walking though the market area, we tried to visit a mosque in that area, but the man at the door told us that no women allowed inside, so I couldn’t go in. I think that was the first time I’ve ever been denied entry into a building because of my sex. It wasn’t a big deal (we didn’t HAVE to go inside), but it certainly wasn’t a pleasant feeling. I was more concerned with…WHERE do the local women of the area worship?? How do THEY feel about that? Is that “just the way it is”? I still don’t know. I need to talk to some local people to get some perspective! Certainly, one of the problems with a Semester at Sea trip is that there just isn’t time or opportunity to interact with normal people (and by normal, I mean folks who aren’t guides or trying to sell you something). It is strange because I feel like I’ve visiting Egypt, but there are so many things that I don’t understand and so many questions that are going unanswered...
After the eventful bazaar, we had dinner at the hotel at 10 PM. Dinner was good and was almost identical to the menu we had for lunch. It was buffet style and there were a variety of meats, chicken, rices, and (of course) pasta for the Americans. : ) Bedtime followed shortly after dinner!
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