ART – Page 22 – jane sadek

Architecture, ART, Attractions, DESTINATIONS, Gardens, International, Road Trips, TRAVEL

The Hanging Church & Abu Sarga

July 11, 2018February 16, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: WONDER OF WONDERS

OK. Get ready! This is big. The Hanging Church is a pretty marvelous place, but wait until you hear about Abu Sargus.

Why Is It Called the Hanging Church?

When you don’t know something, your brain can make up weird stuff. I figured it was called the Hanging Church because they used to hang people there. I was wrong. It’s called the Hanging Church because of the way it hung over the city like a mirage, in the days before sky scrapers.

This church was one of the most pleasant tourist destinations we visited. The Old City was not crowded and as you can see by the picture, this is a very lovely place. The walls have pretty murals depicting the most significant events in Cairo’s Christian Community. More about that later.

Abu Sargus

I have to confess to you that I’m not big on relics. I’ve seen more bones, scraps of fabric and hair than your average traveler, because I’m always interested in churches and many churches are interested in relics. Even palaces, like the Hofburg in Vienna, have their relics. In fact, I probably saw more relics in one place in the Hofburg’s Treasury than I have seen in any church.

I feel the same way about religiously significant locales. While I would like to go to Israel, I’m convinced that most of their religious sites are not sitting in the right place at all. In most cases it is the traditional location, not the actual location and knowing there is a difference bugs me.

So, while I had probably read something that told me what I was about to see in the basement of Abu Sagus, known as the Cavern Church, it really hadn’t registered with me. I just marked it up to, uh huh sure, would you like a piece of the True Cross?

Hanging Church Mural of the Holy Family traveling to Egypt

Jesus in Egypt

Now we all know the story of the angel appearing to the Wise Men and warning them not to return to Herod after they had seen the Christ Child. We know how Joseph, Mary and Jesus escaped Bethlehem to avoid the Massacre of the Innocents. We all know that the Holy Family went to Egypt, but have you ever thought about where in Egypt they went? OK, me either. I assumed it was some cave or small town. That’s what you get for assuming.

So, if you are a Jewish Family looking for a place to wait out a bad political situation, wouldn’t you go find some other Jews to hang out with? And wouldn’t you look for a community where you could ply your trade?

To this very day, Jewish families tend to gather in the same area, near their synagogue of choice – especially observant Jews and those who practice the Orthodox tradition. Wouldn’t the Holy Family do the same thing? And where was there a significant Jewish Community and synagogue in Egypt? Well, Cairo, of course, and for good measure it was supposed to be built on the spot where Pharaoh’s daughter found Moses.

We went down to the basement and there was the remains of a two room house, but this wasn’t just any house. This was where the carpenter Joseph lived with his wife Mary and the Christ Child. OK, so it it the traditional two room house where Joseph, Mary and Jesus lived, but this space is more believable to me than most of these types of locations.

Oral histories are very strong in Egypt. I can see the Gospel writer Mark arriving in Cairo sharing his testimony. Someone says, “Jesus of Nazareth? His dad was my family’s carpenter! You say He’s the Messiah! Come on, they went to my synagogue. I can show you the very house they lived in. He died on a cross and was resurrected? Well, I’ll be!”

Without the Jerusalem Temple crowd, who did everything they could to wipe out any hint of a Messiah, I can see the Egyptian Jews accepting this information. Especially since along with the tradition that the family lived in the neighborhood, there are stories of events which demonstrated Jesus was known as someone special, even as a child. Our Muslim guide considers it common knowledge, more than a mere rumor or tradition – just short of a scientifically proven fact.

We don’t get this, because here in American we’ve only been around for a few centuries. Egyptians talk about ancient Pharaohs like we talk about our 2nd cousin on our mom’s side. We might not know them personally, but we know about them. So can I prove Jesus lived in the basement of the Abu Sargus before there was a church there. No, but it seems reasonable to me.

Come back next week and we’ll see some more of Old Cairo.

Architecture, ART, Attractions, DESTINATIONS, International, Museums, Road Trips, TRAVEL

Sightseeing in Cairo

July 4, 2018February 16, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST?

This trip to Egypt was one best thing after another, but our day in Old Cairo was special for many reasons. Let’s get started!

A Long Wait

During my 1996 visit to Egypt, my niece had plans to take us to the churches in Old Cairo, but those plans were always for bokra (tomorrow) and bokra never came. I really didn’t know what I was missing. I was so focused on getting to the Pyramids and the Cairo Museum the churches weren’t even on my list.

This time things were different. Old Cairo was on my radar and the research I did told me not to miss it. It also told me not to let anyone squeeze it into some part of a day, but to keep demanding the outing needed its own day.

First, Bill and Ayman tried to squeeze it into the day of the wedding, but I said no. Then they suggested I see it on the day we transferred from the Fairmont to the Mena House. I kept saying no. Then I was somehow supposed to drive from Alexandria to Cairo, see the churches and get on a plane. Nope that wasn’t happening either. I’m only occasionally stubborn, but on those occasions, I’m very stubborn.

The Cairo Museum

And speaking of stubborn. Remember Zuzu, our guide to the Pyramids? Well, he was back for a repeat performance. And remember how he was determined to take us to Giza before we went to Dashour or Saqqura? Well, we had the second stanza of that. We were going to the Cairo Museum before we went to Old Cairo and that was that.

I have been to the Cairo Museum and unlike my first trip to the Pyramids, my visit to the museum trip was very satisfying. I felt like I had the time on that trip to process everything I saw. If I lived there, I would go to the museum on a regular basis. Since I didn’t live there, I wanted to spend my time doing new things. That didn’t happen. So here I am out in front of the Cairo Museum with Zuzu listening to whatever it is that he wanted to tell me about the museum.

Old Cairo, Finally!

Old Cairo is very, very old. To impress this fact upon us, Zuzu started with this ancient fortress. It was known as the Fortress of Babylon in the early AD years and once the Nile flowed through it. That’s important later on in the story.

The Old City is a warren of churches. There is St. George’s Church and Covent, The Hanging Church, St. Barbara’s, Abu Sargus Cavern Church and a Synogogue. It gets a little confusing, because some of the properties have changed hands several times. Several have been rebuilt several times. As I researched this part of the trip, I imagined having to walk great distances to see these various sights, but they are actually cheek to jowl – right in the same place.

Next week we’ll go start touring the churches. You won’t want to miss that!

ART, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, Performing Arts, Restaurants & Bars, TRAVEL

Formal Night on Vision of the Seas

June 25, 2018June 25, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: PUTTING ON THE RITZ

I love dressing for dinner. It’s not required on most cruises anymore. They discourage you from wearing flip flops and tank tops, but pretty much anything else goes. Even on formal night dressing up is optional, but I dress up every evening and on formal night I pull out the stops.

The Captain’s Greeting

I can only imagine how much the captain hates formal night. He has to get all dressed up, spend an hour or so shaking hands and taking pictures with skads of people he has no interest in and then he has to get up and make a big welcoming speech. It was probably fun the first hundred or so time, but he does this week after week after week! He probably realizes that most of the people are just there to get the free champagne.

Then after he makes his speech he has to introduce his management staff and let them make their own speeches. How would you like to take the top management out of your organization to entertain a crowd that just wants free champagne? Yeah, who’s running the boat – right? It was almost impossible to hear what they said, but as long as the trays of champagne wandered around the room, they had an audience.

Happy Birthday, Anniversary and Everything Else

Since this cruise was to celebrate Bill’s birthday, our travel agent asked which evening we’d like commemorate the occasion. I chose Formal Night. Bill’s birthday wasn’t the only celebration at the table. The Youth Pastor and his wife also got feted for their anniversary.

Our table mates were a blast, so we were grateful for the delightful company. The food continued in it’s mediocrity. This was the night of the lousy lobster bisque and I followed it up with a steak. Nothing to write home about. One more meal down.

Another Show, Another Disappointment

For formal night the entertainment was Boogie Woogie Wonderland, which was supposed to highlight the music of the seventies. They were a little loose about hitting their target. The seventies were my boogie woogie wonderland, but I have no idea what inspired some of the costumes they wore.

The songs they chose to highlight were among some of my favorites, but the voices just weren’t up to the challenge of the music. Overall, it was an entertaining show, but it just came up short in the quality department.

Awkward!

To top off our night, after the show we headed to the Some Enchanted Evening Lounge for The Perfect Couple Game Show. We were expecting a “Newlyweds Game” knock-off, but instead got the Embarrassment Olympics.

When we arrived Adult Karaoke was still going on. There was a group of drunken bridesmaids dominating the room whether they were on stage or not. I was glad when the spectacle was over.

Instead of a Q&A of martial habits, The Perfect Couple was a series of party games designed to embarrass people who were unwitting enough to volunteer to be contestants. Why pay entertainers when you can get passengers to entertain everyone with karaoke and awkward feats of skill. We made it through a few rounds, but when they started with tennis balls in men’s jeans, we decided it was time for bed.

Come back next week for sure, because we arrive in the Yucatan and enjoy a marvelous shore excursion.o

Architecture, ART, Attractions, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, Restaurants & Bars, Road Trips, TRAVEL

Cruising the Nile Like a Queen

June 20, 2018February 16, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: THE PHARAOH’S DINNER CRUISE

Moksen, my nephew Bassem’s new father-in-law, invited us to be his guest on an early Nile Dinner Cruise. He’d enjoyed our hospitality on a visit to the States and was eager to return the favor. He returned the favor in spades!

An Early Arrival

Since we’d allowed plenty of time to visit the monastery during our trip from Alex to Cairo, we were early to the cruise. Izzat entertained us a little by driving us around the elegant neighborhood near the dock of the boat, but that didn’t take very long and we really didn’t have time for anything else. Hence we arrived at the boat long before anyone else – and what a boat!

I’m telling you Cleopatra would have been thrilled to take a cruise on this boat. The photos really don’t do it justice, but the boat was covered in gilded pharaonic decorations. The waiters wore the same garb as Cleo’s servants would have worn. All that was missing was getting fanned by ostrich plumes and I have a feeling if I’d asked for it, they would have been able to comply with my wishes.

An Excellent Meal

If you remember any of the details about my nephew’s wedding and reception, then you know that no expense was spared. This dinner cruise was similar – the best of the best.

While we waited for our party, I checked out the restroom facilities and they were much improved over our roadside stop. Then we wandered around the boat checking out every elegant detail.

Before long Moksen and his lovely wife Shahira, first on the left side, were coming aboard and the party started. It was a huge, delicious meal and I was thrilled to be with my family once again.

Once we’d eaten our fill (and a little bit more) we all wandered outside to enjoy the view from the decks. Our hosts had invited us to the early cruise – about 2:30 – and this allowed us to see Cairo in all it’s daytime glory. I’m sure the evening experience is romantic, but I would not have traded our daytime views for anything.

I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to enjoy this amazing trip. It seems as if every time I travel I say, “This was the trip of a lifetime,” but each time it seems true. From family tours of historic American sites when I was a child to wandering through the English countryside in my twenties to the Danube Cruise I took in 2016, they are all singular experiences many people never get the opportunity to enjoy. This trip was no different. Each day was an absolute wonder. It has taken over a year to share it with you, but it is finally drawing to a close. Only one more full day to share and then we’ll have to see what our next adventure will be.

Enjoy and come back tomorrow for our return to the Fairmont. The second time around was a little more problematic that our original stay!

ART, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, Restaurants & Bars, Shopping, TRAVEL

Our First Day at Sea

June 18, 2018March 7, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: ENJOYING THE BOAT

There she is! Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Seas. On our day at sea, we explored many of her charms and suffered a few of her deficiencies. Come along and see how it went.

Up & At ‘Em

First up, the gym! I’m an early riser, so I take advantage of it to get in an hour on a stationary bike. The gym on Vision of the Seas is nice, but quite small. On this morning, pretty much every spot on the equipment was filled.

I got my hour in and headed back to the room via the the buffet. I filled up my soda cup, got Bill some ice water and picked up a few pastries in case Mr. Bill was ravenous.

Breaking Our Fast

We enjoy the luxury of sit down service and convivial company, so we returned to the Aquarius Dining Room for our morning repast. There is no assigned seating, so you get the luck of the draw in table mates. The luck of the draw in food was pretty marginal, especially their sorry excuse for Eggs Benedict.

We ended up at a table with a bunch of round dancers, who were nice, but only interested in their dancing, so we were relieved when a mother and her daughter arrived. After a little chatting we discovered they’d been caught in all the flooding from Harvey and it was interesting to hear about their experiences. They became our new cruise buddies and we enjoyed seeing them several other times during the week.

We went back to the room so Bill could wrangle with his computer and the market. I took a shower and got ready for the day, in part by perusing the Cruise Compass and picking out the good stuff, like the Art Auction

Champagne Art Auction

One of my favorite things at sea are the Park West art auctions. How can you lose if you’re spending your morning looking at art and hearing tidbits about artists and the art world, while you sip free champagne? I’m probably not ever going to be bidding, but it’s relaxing, fun and interesting. Bill doesn’t exactly feel the same way. He’ll attend, probably more for the champagne than the art, but he sits there, giving me a running commentary on the dangers of buying art at sea, just in case I get the urge to lift my bidding card.

Were I to actually bid on something, it would be because I thought it was a pretty picture and I’d enjoy looking at it. Occasionally I’ll say something complimentary about a painting and Bill reacts as if I’m considering purchasing a fake Mona Lisa and he demands to know which wall we’d hang it on. It sort of takes the fun out of the dreaming, but I just shake my head in amusement and have another sip of champagne.

Beyond the champagne, there’s always a free gift of art. This time a 7×7 seriolithograph by Yuval Wolfson. If I had any space on our walls, I could frame it and hang it. Instead it will end up in my scrapbook. There was an extra bonus this time which will also find its way to my scrapbook. To hold the audience’s attention, they also have drawings for Royal Caribbean chotkies, like t-shirts and water bottles. To my amazement I won one of the drawings and I got two lovely 8×10 photos of the ship – one of which is shown above – and which will kick off my scrapbook of this adventure.

Winding Up the Day and Gearing Up for the Night

The auction lasted past the sit down lunch, so we were forced to go back to the Windjammer for a buffet lunch. It was marginally better than the Embarkation Buffet, but that’s not saying much.

Usually we would have explored more of the boat, but on this trip, Bill had to keep an eye on the market, so we went back to our room. I really can’t complain about the relaxation. The room was comfortable, the sea was just outside our window and after catching up on my travel journal I did a little reading.

Come back next week and I’ll tell you about formal night.

ART, Cruising, DESTINATIONS, International, Performing Arts, TRAVEL

Dinner & a Show, But Not in That Order

May 28, 2018March 6, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL HERE: WELCOME ABOARD SHOWTIME

Though he was still fighting the internet, my sweet husband put a good face on it and headed to the Masquerade Theater with me for the Welcome Aboard Showtime. Live entertainment is something we really enjoy, but don’t often splurge on it. It’s usually one of the highlights of our cruise. Follow me to the 5th deck.

Getting There is Not Half the Fun

Our least favorite space on any cruise boat is the casino. The area is usually loud, and it also has lots of lights blinking, garish decorations and second hand smoke. For some reason, the people who design ships think it’s cool to direct traffic through there. We disagree with them, but apparently that doesn’t make any difference.

On Vision of the Seas going through the casino was just about the only way to get to the theater without going outside and when you’re all dolled up, outside is not preferable. Those romantic shows you’ve seen, where a couple stands at the railing of a ship at the end of the evening, are lies. Most evenings, unless you’re on a protected deck, the wind is enough to blow you and your carefully coiffed hair into the sea.

Bill probably didn’t even realize what kind of expression he had on his face as we walked through the casino, but I saw it. It definitely said, “What have I gotten myself into?” I was hoping the show would be good.

The Royal Caribbean Singers & Dancers

For fun lets call them the RCSD for really-can’t-sing-or-dance. Well, there was one guy who was a pretty good dancer, but I’m not sure whether he was all that good or they were all that bad. When he’d do a high kick, he’d almost smash his nose, but none of the others were anywhere in his league, so even that was distracting rather than entertaining. The singers were consistently weak. I know there are all kinds of really talented people out there dying for an opportunity of any sort. Where were they all when it was time for Royal Caribbean auditions?

The Comedy of Nery Saenz

The best part of that evening’s entertainment was that the RCSD were not the whole show. The bulk of the time was devoted to a really funny comedian. I’m not all that crazy about comedy routines, because usually they cuss too much, use foul language, depend on sexual innuendo and insult people. This comedian managed to be funny without resorting to any of that.

The comedian’s primary shtick focused on how un-glamorous it is to be a comedian on a cruise ship. He poked fun at himself and his husbanding skills. You got the idea that while being away from home all the time was difficult, he really loved his wife and family. He also had a show later that evening, so he’s probably well-versed in cussing, foul language, sexual innuendo and insults, but I didn’t go to that show and I’m glad I didn’t. If only people 18 and older are allowed, I’m probably not going to enjoy it.

After the show it was time for dinner. You won’t want to miss that, so come back next week.

Architecture, ART, Attractions, Decorative Arts, DESTINATIONS, Gardens, International, Libraries, Museums, Road Trips, TRAVEL, Travel Books

A Sampling of Alexandrian Museums

May 23, 2018February 14, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: HISTORY, JEWELRY AND MORE

Our second day in Alex began with the usual buffet breakfast and a quick cab ride to the Alexandria National Museum. (No adventures this time!)

Ancient Artifacts

If you somehow landed in Alex and hadn’t yet figured out that Egypt is a country with very ancient roots, you should visit this museum. It’s not as extensive as the famed Cairo Museum, but it is arranged in such a way that you can get a quick overview of Egypt’s history organized by deities. If you’re just somebody like me that geeks out on history, well then you have even more reasons to spend and hour or so here.

Down in the basement is the Pharaonic section when Egyptians worshiped a pantheon of gods led by Ra, the sun god, and Isis, goddess of marriage, fertility, motherhood, magic, medicine and probably a few other things. The main floor is devoted to the Greek and Roman eras of Egypt, when the Egyptian gods mixed and mingled with other religious traditions. Many of the artifacts have, in fact, been fished out of the sea right there in Alexandria. Our favorite floor was the top floor. There Christianity faced off against Islam in a sort of duel by artifacts.

Like many things in Egypt, if you visit this museum you’ll be on a constant seesaw. One moment you are wowed out of your socks by an item you can’t even believe still exists. Then you won’t be able to see into the next case at all, because the light has burned out. It’s exhilarating, frustrating and totally unique. Gorgeous white marble edifices with spectacular polished black granite floors and dust collecting in the corners. It made me want to shake someone!

At this museum you can take all the pictures you want outside, but you are supposed to pay to take pictures inside. Bill didn’t think he wanted to part with the coin, but once he got inside he couldn’t help taking a few pictures of the beautiful Christian artifacts. They didn’t say anything right away, but when he left, they hit him up for the photography fee. Since we had to pay to take them, I’ll share them with you.

The Royal Jewelry Museum

This trip to Egypt was so marvelous from so many standpoints I would be hard-pressed to pick out my favorite thing. However, I can easily tell you the Royal Jewelry Museum is a strong contender for the position. In fact, it is on my short list of favorite museums ever!

We took a taxi from the history museum to this gem of a palace. (Forgive me the pun, I couldn’t resist.) It was immediately apparent this was something completely different from the previous museum. Both buildings were magnificent, but the history museum was past its prime and showing its age. It didn’t look like anyone loved it anymore. The edifice holding the jewelry museum is pristine. It’s well-loved and it shows.

The jewelry museum is in a lovely part of the city, obviously still home to the well-to-do. An impressive rod iron fence guards the one-time palace. The security procedure into the grounds is more than cursory, but it was very polite. This is the museum-less-visited, competing with the well-known Bibliotheca and the official history museum, but I would like to see that change. This is a rare and wonderful experience and if you go to Alexandria you should not miss it! They were glad to have such obvious American tourists entering their facility. So glad in fact they gifted me with a beautiful souvenir guidebook.

If this museum did not hold a single piece of jewelry, I would still say it is one of the best attractions I had ever visited. The palace is just awesome – and I use the word in the traditional sense, not in the way it’s used to describe a hamburger. I walked from room to room wishing I could live there or at least I would have had the opportunity to visit when Fatma Heidar herself called it home. She was a several-times-great granddaughter of Mohammed Ali Pasha the Great. I think she and I could have been great friends.

But there was jewelry, magnificent jewelry, in attractive cases spread throughout the elegant rooms. The house looked as if they had only removed the furniture the day before. It was easy to imagine dignitaries in gorgeous caftans and morning suits wandering around. Among the treasures in the cases were items which once belonged to King Farouk I and his wife, the lovely Queen Farida. Here’s a shot of my very favorite piece stolen from the gifted souvenir guidebook. We saw it, but couldn’t get a good shot.

After a morning and early afternoon of touring, we were hungry. Come back next week and find out what we did about it.

ART, Attractions, Decorative Arts, DESTINATIONS, International, Libraries, Museums, Road Trips, TRAVEL

The Museums of the Library of Alexandria

April 25, 2018April 23, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: MORE EXHIBITS THAN YOU CAN SHAKE A STICK AT

When we finally found the museums at the Library of Alexandria, we were stunned by everything there was to see. Come along with us.

Arabian Artists

Confession: I know little to nothing about Arab Art. I like what I see, but I can’t name any favorite artist or tell you the life story of any of them. In sixteen and a half years of formal schooling in the US and a degree in Humanities, that’s a pretty sad situation. The Dallas Museum of Art’s Keir Collection is beginning to open a few doors for me on this subject, but I really do understand the blind spot in my knowledge.

This means that I had no idea of what I was looking at down in the guts of Alexandria’s famous library, but I can tell you it was beautiful. In gallery after gallery I found plenty to enjoy.

There were sculptures and works on paper. There were paintings, from the very modern to the very old, with a great representation of what is known as folk art, but some of it didn’t look very folksy to me. It looked spectacular.

There was a whole gallery devoted to astronomy and scientific instruments, but they were so pretty you couldn’t believe they’d been designed for practical use. I stood before their cases in awe of the men and perhaps women who had crafted the gorgeous items.

Perhaps my favorite section was the many examples of every day items which transcended the idea of crafts, like the lovely caftans and pottery in the picture above. I moved from case to case wondering about the craftsmen who had envisioned these lovely pieces and envying those who had worn them, poured water from them or carried them from place to place.

There are several different galleries with a variety of Arabic names I wouldn’t even try to spell or pronounce, but I didn’t worry about the divisions. You can’t make up for lifetime of neglected information in a few hours. I promised myself I’d learn more about these talented artists and artisians, but on that day, I just resolved to enjoy what I was seeing.

The Sadat Museum

My ultimate destination in the Library was the Sadat museum. This is the area with a personal touch to my favorite Egyptian, my husband. Bill’s Uncle Raouf had been a translator for Nassar, president while Bill was growing up, but Sadat had been actively involved in Nassar’s administration. All of the personal items included in the exhibits of the Sadat Museum were familiar to Bill.

Bill was already hungry when we got to the Library. He’d endured the hour of wandering around lost among the stacks. Then he patiently stood by while I gawked at all the beautiful items in the art galleries. The exhibits in the Sadat Museum were so interesting to him, that hunger stood still.

He lingered at each case, pointing out items similar to those in his own home. He read headlines to me. He’d say, “We had a radio just like that.” The suits Sadat wore were the same style Bill’s dad and uncles wore. The newspapers documenting important events in Sadat’s life were the same newspapers Bill’s family shared around the breakfast table. He looked for familiar faces in the photos.

I’d had a hard time finding the museums of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, but when we finally walked among these treasures, it was well worth the effort. It would have been worth the effort if there had been no Sadat Museum, but because there was, I had a special peek into my husband’s history. It’s something he doesn’t talk about very often, and I loved every moment of it.

If Bill was hungry when we got to the museum, imagine how hungry he was after all the time we spent there. I collected my belongings from the area where they’d been collected and checked. Now it was time to eat. Join us next week as my hungry husband looks for the fish market. In the meantime enjoy these few photos from the museums. Unfortunately, no photos were allowed in the Sadat Museum, but there are other lovely things to see.

ART, Attractions, DESTINATIONS, International, Libraries, Museums, Road Trips, TRAVEL

Don’t Bother Asking the Librarian

April 18, 2018February 13, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: LOST AT THE BIBLIOTHECA ALEXANDRINA

So Rom the Rogue Hantoor Driver dropped us off at the Library of Alexandria. We knew we were there, because the unique curved roof is unmistakable. What we didn’t know was how to get inside.

A Little Signage Please

We thought we were standing in front of the Library. Huge plate glass windows allowed us to look in, but nothing told us we needed to go around to the other side. We did eventually find our way to the front, but that was even more confusing.

The world was lined up at a building over to the side of the Library, but nothing suggested the crowd was headed into the library itself. Remember, I may not read or understand Arabic, but Bill does and we stood there at the curb reading every sign we could see and watching the people to figure out what they were doing.

Through trial and error (and an exasperated guard) we found out we had to join the crowd and check pretty much everything on our persons, except the clothes on our back at the place with the crowd. Then we got the secret sauce to entering the library. Once inside there are all kinds of signs directing you to the various stacks of books over many floors, but nothing seemed to direct us to the free museums we were there to enjoy. Now they have great signage to the museum that has a pricey entry fee, but I wanted the free stuff.

We even asked people for directions and they’d point vaguely in a direction which wouldn’t help at all or they’d give us very detailed directions to something that wasn’t what I wanted to see. We were literally about to give up and walk out when I decided to see if there was any wi-fi. Rest assured there was no signage to suggest they did, I just thought it made sense for them to have it.

VOILA! There was wi-fi, but the first thing it told me was the exhibit I had been asking about for the last hour was closed for restoration. It also sent me down a staircase I’d been down several times before and directed me to what seemed like a dead end. We’d been there at least four other times. We decided to give the dead end a try and suddenly we were in free exhibit heaven.

How to Get There

So, if you ever go to Alexandria, here’s what you do. First, find the front of the building. It will be on the opposite side from the part facing the beach. Go get in the huge line at the building next to the Library. At the counter, hand them everything not actually connected to you and pay them whatever they want. Move quickly during this process so you can follow the person who was in line in front of you or you won’t find the entrance.

Once in the foyer, look for a stairwell on the right side. Go down to the next floor. Right in front of you will be the museum you can pay to go into, but turn to your left instead. Go to the end of the hall and turn to the right, even though it looks like you are entering a warren of offices. If you walk down the hall past the offices, you will suddenly find yourself in a treasure trove of exhibits.

The pictures above are all of the library proper, which you enter through many doors all along the back of the foyer. I do recommend you take some time wandering around. We happened upon several interesting exhibits that way, which weren’t even listed in the cornucopia of materials I’d been studying for weeks before the trip. It’s also the only way to seem the amazing architecture of the place. But if you want to see the free museums, follow the instructions above.

I’m all out of words today, but come back next week and I’ll share some of the marvelous things we found down in the guts of the library.

Architecture, ART, Attractions, DESTINATIONS, Gardens, International, Road Trips, TRAVEL

Rom & the Hantoor Tour

April 11, 2018April 11, 2018 Jane Sadek

TRAVEL THERE: ALEX OVERTURE VIA HORSE & BUGGY

Stepping out of The Cecil on our way to the famous Library of Alexandria, we met Rom. He was waiting at the curb to offer us the services of his horse and carriage, which they call hantoor in Egypt. The day was gorgeous – just right for taking a ride in an open buggy. To my delight Bill was able to make a good deal with him and soon we were gliding around the streets of Alex as the horse’s hooves clip-clopped along.

First to Fort Qaitby

Since the hotel was situated pretty much in the middle of most everything we wanted to see, we had planned on walking to most of the attractions on my list. However, there were a few I wasn’t sure we could make it to on foot. Fort Qaitby was one of them. Located on a small peninsula near the ancient site of the Pharos Lighthouse, Fort Qaitby was the end of the line for Alex’s Corniche, the beautiful sandy crescent of beach along the Mediterranean.

Since the Fort was 2-3 miles away, it wasn’t that we couldn’t walk there, I was just concerned about taking the time to do so when there were so many other things I wanted to see. Rom seated us in his buggy and took off for the fort. This is a big time tourist locale, so there was a shopping opportunity and also a small museum inside the old English fort. I was tempted to go in, because I love all museums, but with the Library of Alexandria calling for me, I managed to drag myself away.

We’d seen everything I was interested in seeing in just a few minutes, but then we stumbled onto a group of fishermen throwing their lines into the sea from a rocky beach on the other side of the Corniche. Bill was fascinated. Alex used to be a place he came on vacation and the coastal activities, like fishing and eating at fish restaurants were one of his favorite memories. I reined in my urgency to get to the library and relished Bill’s childlike delight in the fishermen, the birds, curious cats and crashing waves. Here’s a few pictures from our time near the fort.

Too Much of a Good Thing

After the Fort, Rom drove through a whole lot more of the rest of the city than we actually wanted to see. It started out pretty well. We were in the downtown area, where we got out and took pictures along the Corniche. We saw Kom al-Dikka, some Roman ruins I’d wanted to visit, but knew we wouldn’t have much time for. It was a great overview of the city.

Then we got into some of the residential areas and that wasn’t quite so pretty. Alex is a city whose time has past. While there are a few areas where there are new developments and hotels, most of it is old, peeling and falling apart. There’s plenty of beautiful historic areas to enjoy also. However, once you get off the main drags, things get a little scary. The charm is completely worn off and the residents look at you with narrowed eyes, as if to say, “What in the hell are you doing here?”

We finally convinced Rom we’d seen all we needed to see. He clicked his tongue and slapped the reins, heading towards the Library. With the exception of the run down residential area, it had been a wonderful morning, but unfortunately, the ghetto was not the only ugly thing we were going to see that day. When we arrived at the Library, Mr. Nice Guy Rom turned into somebody else. He hit Bill up for a lot more money than we’d agreed to pay him for the tour. A small disagreement erupted. Bill paid the amount he’d agreed to and walked away, leaving a very angry Rom. Apparently we had not committed too serious of an infraction. We saw him later in the day and he greeted us like we were his long lost friends.

That’s all for today. Come back next week and visit the library with us! In the meantime, enjoy some of the sites we saw on our tour.