Today let’s talk about isolation.

Have you ever felt like you had no one to talk to? That people just didn’t understand what you were going through?

I had that experience, and when I started trying to deal with it, I found out one of the biggest effects of growing up in an alcoholic family was isolation. I had to learn to talk to people – people who understood the feeling of being a teenager trapped inside a house, in the dead of winter, an unpredictable drunk in the living room, and no way to escape. I had to talk about what had happened, how I felt about it, and how it was affecting me in today’s world. I found out I was not alone – others had gone through similar things, and talking about those old events helped me begin to release them.

It was very freeing!

Have you ever had a similar experience?

Photo Credits

Image By – Loufi – Some Rights Reserved

Minute to Freedom #1: Isolation is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

The oases of Tozeur and Nefta were a revelation. There was so much undergrowth of other fruits beneath the huge date palms: there were bananas, almonds, plums and apricots and all this on the edge of the Salt pans and the desert.

We traversed the Chott El Djerid – an area of salt marshes with solidified sand piles – on the road which French Engineers had built during their brief Empire. We stopped at Douz for lunch and that was where we found out that Gaddafi had been captured. This part of Tunisia is so close to the border with Libya that it is full of refugees.

Just outside Douz there is a centre for camel rides or 4 x 4 treks into the desert. The Berbers who run most of these trips have cannily caught little desert foxes which they keep on a leash for you to hold and have photos taken with. They are the size of a large cat with huge, very pointy fox-like ears, a bushy tail and a definite foxy colour. They are also terrified because, being nocturnal, their large eyes cannot cope with the blinding sunlight.

I realised there was a gap in my knowledge about Tunisia which the guide wasn’t about to fill. Of course, the Desert Fox! This was Rommel’s nickname to the Allied troops fighting in the North African Desert during World War Two. So he must have been around Tozeur. This part of Tunisia is just next door to Libya and all those famous battlefields we have heard of in films – Tobruk and El Alamein for a start!

Rommel’s fame rests on his success as a military leader, his daring and his compassionate attitude to Prisoners of War. To the British Desert Rats,(see film with James Mason) Rommel epitomised a gentleman’s approach to war. Rommel’s Afrika Korps never committed any atrocities and all prisoners were humanely treated. His masterstroke came in June 1942 when his outnumbered Afrika Korps wrecked the British Eighth Army on the Gazala Line immediately to the east of Benghazi. He then pursued his beaten foe all the way back to El Alamein, the Eighth Army’s last defensive position in Egypt before the Nile. Along the way, he also took the fortress port of Tobruk. The Battle for Tobruk lasted 240 days and by the end of that September, Rommel was suffering from exhaustion and a bout of jaundice that finally forced him to return to Germany for treatment.

We leave the desert and drive north to Matmata, a Berber troglodyte town where LukeSkywalker’s hotel was. We never visited Tataouine (supposedly Luke’s planet but nothing was ever filmed there) – important Berber trading town that had been home to regiments of the Foreign Legion (think ‘Beau Geste’) nor even Medenine where Rommel fought his last battle against Montgomery. These southern Berber towns are, by far, much more interesting than the dusty impoverished towns of the North. Called ‘Ksars’(from the Latin ‘castrum’) these fortified villages nearly all housed huge grain stores built into the rocks and they are essentially Berber, not Tunisian Arab.

As we drove north, we by-passed Kasserine where Rommel had inflicted damage on the American forces (there is apparently a military cemetery there) and were forced to by-pass Sfax as there were demonstrations/celebrations when the population (mainly Libyan refugees)learnt of the death of Gaddaffi.  Somehow, the Berbers, the French Foreign Legion and Rommel all got by-passed and Luke Skywalker was the hero of the hour with Gadaffi coming a close second.

For further interest:

Rommel in Tunisia
A French Guide 
Medenine

Photo Credits:

All photos courtesy of Julia McLean

Luke Skywalker and the Desert Fox – Part Two is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

You know it well – that moment when you open the cupboards and open the fridge and there is nothing to eat. No leftovers to nibble, no packages to tear into, no veggies in the crisper waiting to be tossed into a gorgeous salad, not even an overripe banana or a bag of trail mix – nothing – or so you think.

If you’re like me, you probably have a few staples in the cupboard, like brown rice, quinoa, lentils and beans. And if you’re like most people, you probably have a bag of limp carrots buried somewhere in the fridge if you dig deep enough. Perhaps a piece of an onion that’s been there since February…

After walking around the block and deciding that none of the take-out options were a)healthy or b)healthy, I decided that I had enough of a stash, after all, to whip up a quick and simple (it’d have to be!) impromptu stew for one. While it would never cut it in an Iron Chef cook-off, it was very tasty, very healthy, very cheap, and I’m presently perfectly satisfied less than an hour after the cupboard search began. It could also be called “empty cupboard soup.” Of course, if your cupboards really are empty, you’ll need a good take-out option

Impromptu Vegan Stew

• 1/4 onion, diced
• 1 tsp veggie broth powder or 1 veggie bouillon cube
• 1/2 cup red lentils, washed well
• 2 small (limp is ok) carrots, diced
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp sea salt (only if veggie broth mix is unsalted)
• 1 Tbsp miso (optional)
• sprinkle dried seaweed (optional)

Dissolve veggie broth powder in a splash of water in a saucepan on medium. Add onion and carrot and stir until they sweat. Add curry and turmeric.

Add lentils and about 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, covered, and turn down to simmer for 10-15 minutes until the lentils are soft. Add more water as you need to adjust consistency to your liking. I like a thick daal-like soup.

Turn off the heat and stir in the miso. Pour into a bowl and top with some dried seaweed like crumbled nori or dulse (whatever you have in the cupboard!). Any kind of green would be good chopped up on top as well. Or best would be kale chips, if you happened to have any around. Of course, if you did, you’d have had those for dinner! Ha!

Got any favorite empty cupboard tricks to share? Would love to hear what you do in bare-cupboard semi-emergencies!

Photo Credit

Photo By Moira Nordholt – All Rights Reserved

First Published At Feel Good Guru

Impromptu Vegan Stew is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

Recently, the “going green” trend seems to have flourished across the country and over the globe. Among the most common ways that people may participate in a more environmental friendly lifestyle – recycling, driving hybrid cars, saving more water, etc. – one major way to make sure you’re not out of the green loop, is to grow your own crops. In 2009, the GWA – Garden Writer’s Association Foundation – reported the statistics that more than 38 percent of U.S. families planted vegetable gardens in the same year, with 18 percent of households growing herbs and 15 percent growing fruit.

Despite its growing popularity as a fad, going green has a number of other advantages that you can benefit from as well. By growing your own garden and cutting back on harsh pesticides that could otherwise lend a helping hand in destroying the earth, having your own organic crops will help out not only Mother Nature, but you and your family as well.

One major benefit of growing your own garden, is that it can easily save you money. According to the 2009 survey by GWA, that was the most common cause behind the majority of garden growers. Other benefits include: your own vegetables usually taste better and are typically more healthy (typically thanks in particular to the lack of pesticides), you know exactly what is going into your mouth and on your family’s dinner plates, and with a garden full of crops you are likely to consume more vegetables and fruits. On top of that, gardening can play beneficial roles in both your mental and physical health; many avid gardeners claim that the gardening itself is a stress reliever, and according to a 2010 article on planetgreen.com, 45 minutes worth of gardening can even help you lose as many calories as 30 minutes of aerobic exercises.

If none of these reasons have convinced you yet to switch to organic gardening, maybe you should look at what is actually in the majority of produce that you purchase from the grocery store. Nearly all non-organic crops in the United Sates are sprayed with harsh chemicals that may aid in the destruction of the environment. Other problems with today’s crops is that most are being genetically modified or engineered. Numerous studies, including a 2008 experiment by the Austrian government, discovered that animals such as mice who were fed genetically modified corn, were negatively impacted with health problems such as increased sterility. This is an idea to take into concept as mice and humans share similar genes. Also, in 2010, an experiment by the Organic Consumers Association states: “genetically modified soy linked to sterility, and infant mortality, in hamsters.” The website, Mothers for Natural Law, listed some genetically engineered crops as: corn, cotton, papaya, squash, soybeans, tomatoes and potatoes.

Pest Tip: Keeping it Green

If you do start a garden, one way to keep your crops healthy and organic is to provide nature friendly protection from pests. But without sprays and chemicals, how do you go about doing this? One green alternative to pesticides is to use other insects in order to control the population of predators who would otherwise make a meal out of your veggies, herbs and fruits. These are refereed to as “beneficial insects.”

In order to find out which beneficial insects will help keep your garden safe, you must first pin-point the culprit bugs that are munching on your garden. The second that the threats are discovered, you will need to find out what beneficial insects will go about destroying said pests. For example, if aphids are destroying your rose leaves, toss in a few ladybugs. If you cannot or simply do not want to hunt around for ladybugs, you’re in luck; beneficial insects of all kinds are sold commercially, over the internet and even in some stores. To name a handful, ladybugs, spiders and mealybug destroyers can be found on the net.

If you do decide to engage in organic gardening yourself, congratulations! You’re about to save money, and by the time your crops are ripe, you’ll feel the well deserved rewards of a fruitful season at your hands and soon on your plate.

Photo Credits

Images From – The Microsoft Office Clip Art Collection

Guest Author Bio

Erin Marty
I’ve been writing since I could first scribble misspelled words on paper. At age eleven, I wrote my first novel, at age 18 I dove into the world of freelance writing, and at age 19 I self-published one of my many books. Typically my stories revolve around animals and environment, and freelance-wise I vigorously create quality health and nutrition content for various websites including Livestrong.com

Blog / Website: Erin Marty

Benefits of Growing Organic Crops is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

My husband Shaun and I had just climbed into bed and were getting ourselves settled down for the night. I was engrossed in my book and he was half-heartedly watching a show on his iPad. I was getting drowsy and nearly ready to nod off, when Shaun abruptly turned to me and asked “Are you going to write that book?”

“Huh?” I asked as I quickly tried to come up with a reason why I hadn’t managed to start it yet.
Shaun just looked at me. After nearly twenty-three years of marriage, he was well aware that I knew exactly what he was talking about. He just patiently waited for me to answer.

It was shortly after New Year’s Day that I had braced myself and announced to my family that my one-and-only resolution for the year was to write a book. I was fully prepared to be teased about this goal. After all, I’m not known for my long attention span. I’m more of a short and sweet, instant-gratification type of girl.

Much to my surprise (and delight) my family was entirely on board with my grand idea. They were eager to help in any way that they could. My sweet girls started suggesting names for my characters. When I mentioned that I wanted the setting to be in a small town, my husband surprised me by taking me on a day trip to explore out of the way towns in our area. Then, to my amusement, they all started to vie over who the dedication was going to be made out to.

Despite all this support, when I sat down to start writing, I couldn’t find the words. I was baffled. The story was one that has always been a part of my memory. It should have flowed easily from my thoughts out onto the paper.

It didn’t take too long for me to realize that this story I needed to tell was too important to me. It was about how my parents met and fell in love. In my mind, to have their love story written down would be the perfect gift for their fiftieth anniversary. I had one year to do it.

I turned to my husband and said, “I’m scared. I don’t know how to write a book, what if I mess it up?”

“You won’t,” he told me. “It doesn’t have to perfect. Just start, the words will come.“

He’s right. There’s really no reason to fear the words. If it doesn’t work, all I have to do is start over again.

The words will come.

Photo Credit:

“Shakespear’s Words.”   Some rights reserved by Calamity Meg

Finding the Words is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

The Fastest Doc In Canada

In the early years of the Twentieth Century the townsfolk of Antigonish, Nova Scotia would often see pre-medical student Ronald J. MacDonald nonchalantly running past horse drawn wagons and carriages on the highways surrounding their town. “What a grand doctor he’ll make”, the old folk said. “He’ll just grab up his bag and set off on the run, and be half way there before a horse could be hitched up. He can beat any horse.” (Antigonish Casket, April 24, 1947)

Ronnie J., as he was known to his friends, was perhaps the fastest physician to grace the roads and tracks of our country…and the United States. Born in 1877 at Frasers Grant, Nova Scotia, near the university town of Antigonish, Ronnie got his early running experience chasing cattle in the fields of the family farm. His father, Lauchlin “the Drover” MacDonald, made his living driving cattle and would often travel on schooners to supervise as cattle were transported around the Maritimes. Tragically, young Ronnie’s father died in 1888, when the schooner “Mary Ellen” was lost with all hands on a return trip from Newfoundland. When he was sixteen, Ronnie’s mother, Elizabeth, decided to move the family to Massachusetts. Older brother Alex became a linesman with New England Telephone and Telegraph. Ronald soon joined his brother in the linesman’s trade, but the two diverted themselves in their off hours by running with Father Scully’s gym club.

Ronnie J. showed early promise as a runner, with especial talent for the newly re-discovered “marathon”. The re-establishment of the Olympic Games by Baron deCoubertin in 1896 sparked a revival of the long distance race, inspired by the feat of a Greek runner who brought news of his nation’s stunning victory over the Persians at the town of Marathon in 490 B.C. In 1897 the Nova Scotian won the 7-mile United States Cross Country Championship. In 1898 he set a new world record for the 11-mile cross country race.

Later in 1898 MacDonald entered the newly established 25-mile Boston Marathon and became the first Canadian, and only the second person to win this event with a time of 2:42:00. The race was a bit of an upset for by the fifteen mile mark Macdonald was two and a half miles behind the 8 leading runners. With a burst of energy Ronnie surged ahead and completed the last ten miles in only 56 minutes, leaving the erstwhile leader, New Yorker Hamilton Gray, in his dust. The Boston Globe described the race as “the fastest ever run by a human being”.

Ronnie enrolled in pre-medical studies at Boston College in 1899, but continued to run, and in 1900 once again entered The Boston Marathon. Betting was legal at that time and thousands of dollars changed hands based on the outcome of the race. MacDonald put in quite a credible performance until he was handed a sponge in the latter part of the race, which turned out to be laced with chloroform. Canadian J. Caffery, from Hamilton, Ontario went on to win the race.

Despite being a Canadian citizen, Ronnie J. was chosen to represent the American Olympic Team in 1900. The 25-mile Olympic Marathon was held in Paris on a blistering hot day. MacDonald was comfortably in the lead near the end of the race, having passed the other contenders in the seventeen-man field. To his surprise he found many of the French contestants at the finish line on his arrival, looking surprisingly fresh. It was alleged that nationalistic Frenchmen had ensured their compatriots would take the top four spots in the race by providing free taxi rides.

In 1901 Ronnie competed in the Boston Marathon once again, running neck and neck with Sam Mellor, the winner, until he was forced to stop due to stomach cramps. Later that year, Ronnie moved back to Antigonish, Nova Scotia to continue his pre-medical studies at St. Francis Xavier University.

In addition to embarrassing the carriage owners of the town over the next two years he broke the Canadian three and five mile records, and went on to set a new world record for the indoor mile. Graduating from St. F.X. University in 1907, MacDonald enrolled in Tuft’s Medical School, and upon graduation completed postgraduate work at Harvard.

Dr. MacDonald went on to set up practice in the town of St. George’s and later in Aguathuna, Newfoundland. He ran his last marathon in St. John’s, Newfoundland, beating John Lorden of Ireland. In 1913 Ronnie J. married Ad Pieroway of St. George’s, subsequently raising a brood of 3 sons and two daughters. After 27 years of rural practice on the island, he chose to relocate his practice to Antigonish to provide his children with expanded educational opportunities. His last appearance at a public race was as a starter for the 1942 Highland Games (which he had won in 1901).

Tragically, Ronnie J. suffered a stroke in 1942, after which he was confined to a bed or wheelchair. He died on September 3, 1947, apparently after a seizure, and is now buried in Heatherton, Nova Scotia.

Photo Credit

Ronald John MacDonald – Public Domain

Doc Jocks: Dr. Ronald J. MacDonald is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

Woke up this morning, more like came to, long night in the jungles of my memories…How did Dylan know what he knew when he was 21 or 22? “I ain’t sayin you treated me unkind…you sorta wasted my precious time, don’t ya think twice, it’s all right” My precious time…wow and I ain’t no 22 year old neither…gonna run after a meeting, gonna write the day away, gonna remember that some things never change and some things do and with Mr. Dylan once again, it ain’t dark yet, but it’s gettin there. I told her that the string was near to broken. She asked me what that meant. Before my heart broke in too many pieces for me to speak i said goodbye and good luck. Sometimes—Oh hell, sometimes it just be that way and there isn’t a damn thing left to do but gather up the broken strings, tie ‘em in a bundle, roll your collar up, slam your hands deep into your jeans and face into the wind for as long as it takes to remember that what was…was and that if it was a true thing – and I know this one to be just that – it will last forever ‘Cause these things abide as will I when it is time to light out again and look all around. Peace is where you find it, I’m gonna starting lookin’ in to my heart and let the rest take care of itself.

Photo Credits

All Images By Michael Lebowitz – All Rights Reserved

Tarmac Meditations #69: Broke the String is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

I have a question for you.

“What would you do today if you could not fail”?

It’s thought provoking. How would you answer it?

I immediately thought about bringing peace to the world but how would I prevent consequential over-population and more global warming. More education, contraception and redistribution of resources? How can this be achieved in a day! I thought about violence and inequality. How I wish I could tell Americans that they “don’t” have the right to bear arms or invade other countries but they’d probably just shoot me. I thought about cutting excessive executive salaries through a tax that funds hospitals and schools. Or inventing a mind altering drug to stop abuse and discrimination but how would I administer it.

I thought about the little things that irk me like four wheel drives and Barbie dolls. How I wish I could ban four wheel drives from the city. The downside – stopping people’s freedom to make “wrong” choices. Barbie – Huh – how to make a girl feel inadequate – all those curves and successful careers not to mention Ken, the model boyfriend. How I yearn to design Feral Barbie – a doll with a normal body shape and imperfections but boy can that doll party!

Or maybe I could travel through time and undo all my mistakes. But those mistakes are what make me who I am today.

Then I remembered watching a Down syndrome girl in the middle of the shopping mall dancing and singing with no inhibitions and I decided on my final answer. I would love knowing it would be accepted and multiplied. I would speak out with no fear of negative repercussions. I would compose a song that sends shivers down everyone spine and makes them feel happy. I would write words of inspiration and hope and I would smile and laugh. And tomorrow I would do all these things knowing that failure is not an option as I am never a failure as long as I try.

Photo Credit

Photo Provided By Amanda Makrides from Talk Like A Physicist

Guest Author Bio

Amanda Makrides

Mother of two beautiful sons. Aspiring writer and poet. I like to write provocatively with a tongue in cheek style. Political and human rights activist. Lover of music, the arts and square pegs that don’t fit into round holes.

What would you do today if you could not fail? is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

In the Beginning.

To truly understand this new dad’s perspective on parenthood, it’s necessary to go back almost a year. You need to understand how my wife and I went from planning for a child to being the proud parents of a beautiful baby girl.

The first time I was awakened at 3 a.m. by the beeping of a thermometer was a clear sign that life was about to get very different for my wife and me. Bleary eyed, I looked over and gave my wife a quizzical look. “I’m charting,” she said. I groaned and drifted back to sleep.

Like most men, the idea of conceiving a child was exciting – who doesn’t get excited about the idea of sex. Foolish me, I thought it was that simple. That was until my wife began reading every book, magazine and Internet article on conception. Soon my wife was punctuating my days with all sorts of facts on just how difficult it is to get pregnant – thus the charting exercise.

Fortunately for us, we apparently managed to defy all odds and within a month my wife was pregnant. Hooray! No more daily facts on the fine and delicate art of insemination. No more charting. All we had to do now was get through the next nine months and, presto, we would have a child. Yes, I can hear all the parents, especially the moms, out there laughing at my naivety.

In all seriousness, the first three months of my wife’s pregnancy were fraught with angst and anxiety. I won’t go into the details, but our OB/GYN told us that he had some serious concerns and my wife was put on bed rest for six weeks. It was only after my wife was in her second trimester that the doctor told us he hadn’t expected the fetus to make it that far.

Speed up the clock to the due date, go time. Due date comes and goes with no baby. The next day it’s the same thing. Wash, rinse and repeat for two more weeks.

By this time, my wife is freaking out. Her daily mantra has become, “When is this baby going to come out?” My daily reaction: roll eyes, groan inwardly and bite tongue. Wash, rinse and repeat.

Mothers, I can hear you screaming at me, and I’m sure your words are none to kind. Before you start gathering up the pitchforks and torches, understand that my outward reaction and my inward reaction were completely opposite. During my wife’s pregnancy, while inwardly I was going crazy, outwardly I was doing everything I could to make sure my wife was as comfortable as possible. I digress.

Suddenly, the big day finally arrived! Actually, the big day took two days full of labour pains to finally arrive. But when it did and our baby girl came into this world, wow! I like to think of myself as a manly man. I eat red meat. I use power tools. I sometimes grunt to communicate. That veneer washed away in a sea of joyful tears the very moment I set eyes on my daughter.

It didn’t take long for me to recover my emotions and start thinking of the new reality I was facing. Dear Lord, I have a daughter. One day she’ll be a teenager. One day she’ll be dating. One day she might date a guy like me. Time to start stockpiling the guns and ammunition.

Photo Credit:

From Parenting Advice for New Mom and Dad

Guest Author Bio

Glen Plummer
Glen Plummer is an extraordinary civil servant for the Province of British Columbia. But, more than that he is devoted husband to our Guest Author Lara Perzoff and shell-shocked father to the lovely 7-month old Hannah. Glen is not fazed by much, is the person you want at your side when you’ve had terrible customer service and need to give someone a piece of your mind and he has the muscular physique of a stoic warrior. But, Hannah at 17lbs soaking wet reduces him to a puddle of mush. When he’s not working or hanging with his family, he can be found in only good coffee shops or in his kitchen cooking up something marvellous.

Parenthood: A New Dad’s Perspective is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN

It had been a long, tiring flight on Egypt Air, from New York to Cairo, but my fatigue melted away as I entered my Nile-view room at the Ramses Hilton. The evening haze glowed orange, incandescent from the setting Egyptian sun, which reflected in the waters of the Nile. In the distance were the silhouettes of the Great Pyramids of Cheops, Chefren and Mycerinus. It was mind boggling to think that this view had been awing new visitors to Egypt for almost five thousand years.

I wandered downstairs into the hotel’s lobby, passing a lounge where business suited Egyptians sipped Turkish coffee, smoking pungent “sheeshas” or water pipes and listened to the keening strains of traditional Middle Eastern music. After a traditional Egyptian dinner topped off by Turkish coffee and delicious pastries I said “dispah ala kheer” (good night) to my waiter and retired early in preparation for my first day’s sight seeing. EMECO Travel had arranged for me to have my own personal guide, driver and car optimizing my travel experience and day one found me at the site of the Great Pyramids. Riding a camel to the 4700-year-old edifices I dismounted and proceeded to explore the interior of the Pyramid of Mycerinus, making my way down the cramped corridor to the chambers in the heart of the edifice. They were bare, long ago emptied of their riches by the tomb robbers in ancient times. Exiting the mausoleum I walked around the larger pyramids of Cheops and Chefren, visiting the building housing the 4700 year Solar Boat found buried nearby and still looking sea worthy millennia later, though it was intended to cruise not the ocean but the sky as transport for the departed pharaoh. That evening I returned and watched an incredible sound and light show describing the history of the plains of Giza and narrated appropriately enough by the sphinx.

The Egyptian Museum in Cairo is a must see for all visitors. It contains such a wealth of artifacts that some say they basement will have to be re-excavated one day to find many of them. Of particular note are the treasures of King Tutankhamen. His solid gold burial mask immortalizes the youthful face of the pharaoh who died in his late teens, and was quite unknown until Howard Carter found his untouched tomb in 1922. An apparently well-documented series of events followed the opening of the crypt, including the devouring of Carter’s “lucky” canary by a cobra the night of the find. The cobra is the royal insignia of Lower Egypt. Lord Carnarvon, Carter’s patron, died shortly after from an infected mosquito bite at which point the lights in Cairo mysteriously went out for 12 hours, and the Lord’s favorite dog back in England let out a howl and keeled over dead. Supposedly quite a few others who entered the tomb died of unusual illnesses, though Carter, the main culprit if Tut was looking for retribution, went unscathed (if we discount the loss of his canary). Other treasures include Tut’s solid gold coffin, much meticulously crafted jewelry and a throne which has a remarkable relief of Tut with his wife Ankhesenamen.

A visit to Cairo is not complete without a trip to The Citadel. This was the former headquarters of Saladin, the remarkable ruler who routed the Crusaders from the Holy Land in the latter part of the 12th century. The Citadel also provides a remarkable view of Old Cairo where a sea of minarets ensures none of the pious will miss the muezzin’s call to prayer. The 19th century mosque of Muhammad Ali (not the boxer, but the Albanian who took power after Napoleon’s troops vacated Egypt) provided a quiet refuge where my guide, Rania, explained some of the philosophy of the Islamic religion. In those grandiose surroundings I confess she almost made a convert of me. Later we visited Coptic Cairo. Ten percent of Egypt’s population are Christians who were converted during the time of the Roman Empire and these are the true descendants of the ancient Egyptians. The only modern use of the ancient pharaonic language is during their religious ceremonies. At St. Sergius church tradition holds that the Holy Family hid out in a crypt in the basement during their flight to Egypt. Unfortunately the crypt is flooded by the rising ground water which plagues modern Egypt. Much of Coptic Cairo is under reconstruction at present, which disturbs the traditional peacefulness of the district. Also worth a visit is the Ben Ezra Synagogue with a shrine that traditionally marks the spot where Moses was found in the bulrushes.

The Khan el Khalili bazaar is a paradise for shoppers, but a must see for everyone. The winding streets, exotic goods and galabiyya-clad peddlers make the district look like a scene from the Arabian nights. Best buys include gold, silver and colorful hand blown perfume bottles. Make sure the precious metals are stamped and that the glassware will be appropriately wrapped after purchase. Be prepared to bargain hard as the goods are marked way up for tourists. On my departure I found most of the things I purchased were cheaper at the airport gift shop!

The next leg of my trip was a flight to the city of Luxor in southern Egypt (also known as Upper Egypt because it is upriver, as opposed to Lower Egypt, which is north and down river). Here I boarded a cruise boat, The Nile Plaza, my home for the next four days. Cruising is the best way to see this part of the country and provides a leisurely way to observe rural life along the Nile. Luxor (from Arabic El Uqsor, “the palaces”), called Thebes in ancient times, was capital of Egypt for over one thousand years and repository of some of its most fantastic archeological treasures. The temple at Karnak is one of the largest temple complexes in the world, covering about sixty acres. The famous hypostyle hall contains almost two hundred monstrous columns, topped by lotus and papyrus motifs. Try to find a spot where there are no other visitors, close your eyes and imagine the sound of the sacred procession leading the statue of the god, Amun-Ra out of the sanctuary during the Opet Festival. The smaller temple at Luxor also has many fine reliefs and an evening visit to the flood lit structure worthwhile.

Overnighting on board The Nile Plaza, we had an early visit to the Valley of the Kings in the desert on the western bank of the Nile. We managed to visit four tombs including that of King Tut. It was actually one of the less impressive dwellings in the necropolis with reliefs found only in the actual burial chamber. The pharaoh’s mummy is still on site in its huge red stone sarcophagus. More impressive was the tomb Thutmosis III, one of the greatest of Egypt’s New Kingdom pharaoh’s. Despite the inaccessible site a good hundred feet up the side of the cliff, it was also robbed in antiquity. Interestingly the tombs were rarely finished. Usually as soon as the pharaoh died work was stopped, so many walls are unfinished, or partly finished with only the overseers’ sketches present. Also, despite the fact that one expects the tombs to be gloomy, the neon bright colors actually are quite cheerful, at least in the glare of electric lights. By the way, bring a flashlight, as the guards have been known to turn out the lights in the tombs and demand a little “baksheesh” to turn them back on.

While in the necropolis it is worth seeing the funerary temple to Hatshepsut, a woman who ruled Egypt for years as pharaoh, even having herself depicted wearing a beard. The building is surprisingly modern looking despite being over three thousand years old. Most of her inscriptions were scraped off by her irate nephew, Thutmosis III whose power she had usurped.

Further upriver we visited the well-preserved temples of Horus at Edfu, and the Temple of Sobek and Haroeris in Komombo built in Greco-Roman times. Our cruise terminated in the town of Aswan in Nubia, where the fabulously preserved Temple of Philae rests on a lush island in Lake Aswan. Almost completely intact, it was built by the Greek Ptolemaic rulers of Egypt, who took power after Alexander the Great’s conquest (and included Cleopatra, who was actually Greek, not Egyptian). Later additions were constructed Roman emperors as late as the 2nd century AD. This temple was the site of active worship of the Egyptian mother goddess Isis until the sixth century AD. Unfortunately most of the reliefs of the lithe, unclothed goddess were defaced by prudish Coptic Christians who occupied the temple after its closure

After visiting Philae we took a ride on a traditional felucca, the single masted lateen rigged vessel, which has cruised the Nile for millennia. Sailing on Lake Aswan we glided past the fabled Elephantine Isle, with its thick cloak of palm trees and foliage, and scattered ancient ruins. In contrast to the west the yellow sands of the Sahara reach right to the shore. Myriad other brightly colored boats plied the waters of the lake. Our Nubian helmsman grinned toothily, his burnoose streaming in the breeze and as he tacked our vessel towards shore. I turned to one of my fellow passengers, a producer for the Discovery Channel. “Sandy”, I said, “There may be more exotic things we could be doing right now, but for the life of me I can’t think of any”. She smiled and nodded.

The cruise terminated in Aswan and for the final leg of my trip I flew to Abu Simbel, deep in the heart of Nubia and only a few miles north of the Sudanese border. Here lies the great temple of Abu Simbel rescued from the rising waters of Lake Aswan by a joint international effort after the High Dam was built. Carved in solid rock in the 13th century BC, the edifice is faced with four massive colossi of Ramses II, each almost seventy feet high. It is said that in ancient times marauders from the south bent on plundering Egypt would take one look at the brooding countenance of these colossi and would flee terror stricken. I believe it.

My trip to Egypt had been brief, but incredibly packed with history and new and exotic experiences. For those with limited amounts of time a well-organized tour can eliminate hassles and free up time to do more enjoyable things.

Photo Credits

Camel Back Photo By George Burden – All Rights Reserved

Tomb Entrance – Public Domain

Giza View From Plan – Creative Commons

First Published In The Medical Post, March 6, 2001

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A Land Fit For Kings is a post from: LIFE AS A HUMAN