Life in Egypt is hard, humorous, and extremely human. Many times along each day's trek through the cities' streets, local Egyptians call out or approach us. Admittedly, in the souks (markets) or other shops these are often invitations to part with our Egyptian Pounds. (The mantra has become familiar: "Only 5 pounds! Small money!" When we politely refuse these offers of commerce, there is often a plaintive "Why?") But other times those who acknowledge our obviou...

Hello again, Blogonauts! These blog entries became sparser from Luxor primarily because the internet service there, amidst the tombs of the Pharaohs, itself became mummified. So now that I'm in Alexandria, here’s a brief and presumably accurate update. Our last day in Luxor was rather low key. Before heading out to buy some souvenirs, I visited the Luxor Museum, which contains a few items extracted from King Tutankhamen’s tomb, found just across the...

Egypt is in the midst of a parliamentary election campaign. As with most countries, an election tends to stir the the social soup a bit. For example, parts of the opposition are boycotting this year's campaign. But such votes are among the most "internal" activities possible for any set of people, and Toby & I are thus poorly informed interlopers. It is nonetheless interesting to notice some of the campaign posters that have begun appearing on cars and build...

Luxor lacks Cairo's hectic pace, but expands on its ancient roots. Today Toby & I visited the two primary religious sites for ancient Egyptians: The Karnak and Luxor Temples. We reached Karnak via horse carriage, which is common here in Luxor. The temple there is said to be the largest religious structure ever built and honors the Sun God, Moon God, and War Goddess. It contains several separate smaller temples, and for hundreds of years Pharaohs would expan...