Egypt travel blog
Part I I had spent a couple of fascinating days exploring the ‘Museum of Egyptian Antiquities’ in Cairo (see A Day at the Museum; Another Day at the Museum). This amazing repository is crammed full of ancient artefacts, including the extraordinary treasure found in the tomb of King Tutankhamun. It was nearing closing time on my second day at the Museum, and even though I was going to return the following morning to see the remainder of the exhibits, I…
After walking from my Cairo apartment and along the Nile I was back at the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities (aka The Egyptian Museum) for another look around. Today it was time to climb the stairs onto the first floor, where the Museum’s vast collection of coffins and mummies was stored. It can’t be denied that we humans have a fascination with ancient death rites and looking at long-deceased people. I’m not sure what the root of this attraction is; after…
Having to queue amongst other punters outside The Egyptian Museum was a bit of a shock. Throughout my travels in The Corona Age I have had most tourist attractions to myself. Having said that, it was only a couple of bus loads, and the line moved quickly. Soon I had bought my ticket and was standing in the foyer of the grand old building, which has been welcoming visitors since 1902. Wanting to be clear of the other tourists milling…
The wonderfully named ‘Museum of Egyptian Antiquities’, more commonly referred to as The Egyptian Museum, is about 25 minutes walk from my apartment in central Cairo. Upon leaving the relative peace of the flat, I find the bright sun and noise of the street jarring. I descend into buzzing motorcycles and jostling cars with their incessant horns. Turning at the end of the street, I pass one of the many foreign Embassies located in the district of Zamalek. Bored police…
I was in Egypt. Egypt is one of those rare places that is plunked into the mind of almost every Australian kid of my generation. We watched documentaries about it, and imbibed it through popular culture. We studied it at school, learning of Cairo and pharaohs and pyramids, of dusty desert tombs holding unimaginable treasure, of preserved human beings anointed and wrapped and transported to the afterlife. These were things of wonder to my young mind. We were set assignments…
When I left New Zealand to fly to Turkey last year, the whole Covid-19 circus was a bit confronting (see Air Travel in the Covid Age). We were told to wear both a mask and a perspex face shield when boarding and disembarking the plane, and the shield had to stay in place for the duration of the flight. The airline staff who greeted us at the plane door were dressed top to toe in surgical ward safety gear. Now,…