EGYPT
WHERE HISTORY BEGAN
GOD bless you Nile, clear river, you give life to the entire Egypt....... ( Hymne to the Nile ) Herodotos wrote that Egypt is a "gift of the Nile".Thanks to the river and to its fertile slime ,here began one of most outstanding and important civilisation.Flying from Cairo to Luxor ,the view of this vital green strip surrounded by the desert, is beautiful and significant indeed.
The journey
We flew from Verona to Cairo and the day after to Luxor
Visit of Karnak-Luxor
In the evening we reached our ship and started the Nile-Cruise
Stop at Esna,temple of Khnum,at Edfu,once capital of Upper Egypt ,where you can see the temple of Horus
After a visit of Kom Ombo,temple dedicated to Sobek we arrived to Assuan.
Visit to Philae temple.Valley of the Kings,Valley of the Queens,Aga Khan mausuleum.
Flight to Abu Simbel and visit to the magnificent temple built by Ramses and dedicated to Hamon Ra.On the way back have a look to Nasser Dam
Flight To Cairo;visit to Pyramids,Saqqara,Museum .Shopping in the Souk.
From Cairo back to Verona.
Here is the Nile , with fishermen's pictoresque feluccas.But an amazing spectacle are also the Egyptyan kids floating on the muddy river with their strange little boats. They welcome you singing, in every languages , folk songs from all over the world. For a small " bakshish" of course.
Zoser step pyramid (2750 B. C. - Third dynasty) , was built by famous architect Ihmotep as a tomb for Pharaon Zoser .It is the most important building of Saqqara, the largest necropolis in Egypt situated close to the city of Cairo .
These threePyramids and the Sphinx are probably the most famous monuments in the world. We reached them riding a camel , and in the soft light of a september morning , they appeared us even more magnificent , beeautiful and misterious than we could imagine. Pyramids (about 2600 B. C. IV ) are situated inthe necropolis of Giza ( 12 Km from Cairo ) and were built as tombs for Pharaons Keops , Kefren and Mikerinos. In Giza were found many other smaller pyramids and mastabas . They were the tombs of several Queens , dignitaries and members of the Royal Family .
The Sphinx is the colossal representation of a lion with a human head( Pharaon's Keops face ) and seems to protect Kefren pyramid and the entire area. Her enigmatic face , overlooking the desert, the sky and the human beings, symbolizes the mystery of our history.
Cairo Since 973 A. C. El Qahira is the capital of Egypt . Now is a huge town with more than 12 million inhabitants, composed by old Cairo ( Misr el Atiqa) and Cairo ( Misr el Qahira ). It's a typical arab megalopolis , full of life, people, sounds , perfumes , lights, cars and mosques . In this chaotic and fascinating mixture you can find old minarets and modern hotels, coptic churches and new shops, little arab cafés and cinemas . But don't miss : Egyptian Museum, Islamic Art Museum,Mosque El Azhar, Mosque Ibn Tulum ( 879 A. C. ), Mosque Mohammed Alě ,Khan El Khalili Bazar ........ We won't tell you anything more about Cairo ; you must go to Egypt and ask for GIANNI . Who is Gianni ?... Who is Gianni ? He knows everything and more........
Luxor-Karnak Reaching Luxor nowadays it is difficult to imagine how large,could have been the ancient Tebe. Capital city of the Egyptian Empire from 2052 to 1075 B.C.,Tebe,the city of hundred gates as Homerus wrote,was very famous in past centuries for its richness and beauty. The magnificent temple of Amon,guarded at the intrance by Ramses's two statues is only one great example.
A large road, lined by two rows of small sfinkes leads to the monumental complex of Karnak. Here, the imposing apparence of another temple dedicated to Amon,with the beautiful 123 columns' hall give us back the splendour of that civilisation.
Kings' Valley. Queens' Valley. Achepsut Mausoleum On the Nile west bank lie the two places dedicated to dead Pharaons. Here more than 62 tombs have been discovered. The one of Tutankhamon is the most famous. The extraordinary treasure is now at the Egyptian Museum of Cairo.
Abu Simbel Near the border of Sudan some 350 Km from Assuan,lies the impressive temple built by Ramses the second.Officially dedicated to Amon-Ra, Harmankis and Ptah is now celebrating, for the time being,the glory of Ramses the greatest Pharaon.
Ultimo aggiornamento:20-04-99
