Cairo

We had such a pleasant, interesting trip on our Nile River boat. It was a comfortable floating hotel. One evening we enjoyed a fun Egyptian costume party. (Doesn't Dennis make a grand-looking Egyptian?) After a week though it was time to leave and fly back to Cairo for our final two days in Egypt.


Cairo is a big, crowded, noisy city. Twenty million people call it home. There are huge modern office buildings, small old-fashioned shops and open-air markets. The traffic is unbelievably terrible. Cars and trucks crowd five lanes of traffic onto a two lane road and honk constantly. Mixed among the millions of cars are donkey carts and bicyclists balancing baskets on their heads piled high with bread. The skyline is dominated by the great pyramids which are at the edge of the city. Mixed among all this loud confusion are some very interesting, historical sites.

Cairo, like all of Egypt, is a predominately Muslim community. There are large populations here, though, of Christian and Jewish communities. In an older part of the city we saw the oldest known Christian church building in the world, the oldest synagogue in Egypt, and the oldest Mosque in Egypt. It was interesting to see these ancient places of worship in such close proximity. As our guide explained these faiths have much in common. They all worship the same Almighty God. They all trace their roots back to Abraham. We are all known as people of The Book. Wouldn't this world be a more peaceful place if would celebrate our common heritage and respect our religious differences?

The most beautiful mosque we visited is know as the Alabaster Mosque. It was built by Mohamed Ali (not the boxer) in about 1800. It is a magnificent, awe-inspiring building.


The oldest Christian church building was built in the third century. It is know as the Hanging Church. We visited while a service was in progress. This is a Coptic (Eastern Orthodox) Church and the service was conducted entirely in the Coptic language which is only spoken by the priesthood. It is an ancient language understood by very people today.


The courtyard of the church was filled with beautiful mosaics depicting scenes from the life of Jesus.


Just down the street from the Hanging Church is the oldest synagogue in Egypt. It is said that the site of this building is where the holy family hid from King Herod and the slaughter of the babies.


Our last afternoon was spent in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. It is filled with an amazing treasure of antiquities. The most spectacular were the wonderful treasures found in King Tut's tomb. No cameras were allowed inside the museum so I cannot share pictures of those wonders.

Then it was time to pack and get ready for the long journey home. We were filled up with wonderful memories of our journey through Egypt, but our hearts were turning toward home.

We celebrated our last meal in Egypt at this world-famous international restaurant.


It is good to be home.