MONEY & ENTERTAINMENT

Since the end of the nineteenth century, Egypt has been evolving at a very high speed. Its political, economical and cultural life has undergone striking changes. From the inscription of the first hieroglyph to the construction of the new hi-tech Smart Village, Egypt has always been a pioneer on the frontier for emerging information technologies in the Arab world.

Located at the crossroads of Africa, Asia and Europe, Egypt is built around the Nile Valley, a very fertile land bordering the river and bounded by 2 seas: the Mediterranean Sea (to the north) and the Red Sea (to the east). The thin area on either side of the Nile was historically where 90% of the population settled.

To the east of the valley is the Arabian Desert, bounded by a high ridge of mountains. To the west is the Libyan Desert which stretches across the top of North Africa. The demarcation line in Cairo, the capital city, separates Lower Egypt (everything north of Cairo) from Upper Egypt (everything to the south). To the east, across the Suez Canal is the triangular wedge of Sinai with Mt Sinai and Mt Catherine, the highest mountain in Egypt (2642m).

During the summer, from March to November, the climate is hot and dry in most of the country. December to February can be quite cold in the north. The sky is usually blue and cloudless. The temperature varies considerably in Egypt. It can be extremely hot during the day and very cold at night, especially in the desert.

It rains more often in Alexandria than in Aswan and Cairo. During the early days of the spring season, a hot wind called "Khamasin" blows in from the western desert at up to 150 km/h. The truth is that even today, Egypt is still synonymous with the legends of the Pharaohs, the Great Pyramids, treasure-laden tombs and undeciphered hieroglyphs.

Names like Ramses, Cleopatra, Tutankhamun and Nefertiti, echo through the art and literature of so many different cultures. Death and the afterlife were essential to Ancient Egyptian society. The pharaohs were not just kings or queens, they were gods and they were worshipped as divine rulers. But they also commanded vast administrative armies, models of modern management and efficiency.

It was their sophisticated system of bureaucracy that enabled the construction of Egypt's greatest monuments, the pyramids of course and also the tombs in the Valley of the Kings, the great temples of Karnak, the ruins of Thebes not forgetting the Sphinx at Giza.

The relics of Ancient Egypt still survive to bear witness to the refinement and beauty of many golden ages. The pyramids of Egypt are very spectacular things which are worth visiting while you visit Egypt. Although the construction of the pyramids was only an episode in the long history of the pharaohs, this period has left us some of the most impressive monuments that can be seen. Besides the three giants of Gizeh, more than 70 pyramids can be counted along the Nile.

The three Great Pyramids of Giza are guarded by the lion-bodied Sphinx. Over 4,000 years ago, the mummified bodies of Kings Cheops, Kefren and Mykerinos were ferried down the Nile to be buried and prepared for the journey to the afterlife within these massive monuments.

The largest, oldest and finest of all three is Cheop's Pyramid, simply known as the "Great Pyramid". It was the tallest structure in the world until the end of the nineteenth century (145 meters). But Kefren's Pyramid, Cheop's son and successor, makes a bigger first impression. On higher ground with its limestone cap still intact, it looks loftier even though it's 4 meters shorter.

The smallest of the three, Mykerinos' Pyramid, makes up for its size with its fine funerary and valley temples. There are a lot of things you can visit in Egypt, places that will amaze you through their luxury.

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If you get to Egypt, here are some of the places that we advise you to visit because you will not be disappointed:

The Great Sphinx from Giza
Like the broken arms of the Venus de Milo, the Great Sphinx's long lost nose has made it all the more iconic. Standing guard at the hallowed entrance to the Great Pyramids of Giza, the human-headed, lion-bodied Sphinx is the oldest of all Egypt's superhuman stone sculptures. It is also the most instantly recognizable. Part of it is in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and the other part is in the British Museum in London.

The Valley of the Kings
Inconspicuous and unassuming, the Valley of the Kings hides its secrets well. The grand pyramids of the earlier pharaohs proved too tempting to grave robbers, so from the eighteenth to twentieth Dynasties, 26 pharaohs opted to build their tombs in the valley. Carving them deep into the mountains, far from reach, Tutankhamun, Ramses the Great and Tuthmosis the third's tombs lie in this single, sprawling necropolis.

Colossi of Memnon (Luxor)
These are the first ruins visible when arriving by ferry. They are the sole surviving remains of the funerary temple of Amenhotep III which, according to recent discoveries, was vaster than the complex of Karnak. Even with a great deal of imagination, it is difficult to picture.

The faceless giants stand in front of the first pylon with their backs to the mountain. They represent the pharaoh’s sovereign majesty seated on his throne. The funerary complex, of which nothing remains, was the biggest on the west bank.

The Ramesseum (Luxor)
The funerary temple of Ramesses II has lost much of its splendor over the centuries. Poets sang of its glory in antiquity but the dream of self-glorification of Ramesses II, already responsible for the construction of Abu Simbel, has not survived the passing of time or successive pillaging. The broken columns and thorny trees create a romantic and moving sight particularly at sunrise when the first rays brush the gigantic statue of Ramesses II lying in pieces in the ground. Calculations indicate that the statue must have measured at least 17 m high and weighed around one thousand tons.

There are also a lot of monuments built after the Romans conquered Egypt and Cleopatra committed suicide:

Roman Amphitheatre in Alexandria
The Roman Amphitheatre was found buried, quite literally, under a pile of rubble ˜Kom-el-Dikkah'. Unearthed beneath a Napoleonic era fort, it's the only known example of a typically circular Roman theatre in all of Egypt.

Pompey's Pillar
Majestic but solitary, Pompey's Pillar is a 25 meter column of solid red granite, from the bottom of its Greek inscribed base to the top of its Romanesque capital. Surprisingly, Pompey's Pillar has nothing to do with its namesake. It was built in honor of the Emperor Diocletian in 292 AD.

The Catacombs of Kom ash-Shuqqafa
Hewn in the bedrock of the mountains in the second century, Kom ash-Shuqqafa is the largest burial place in Egypt with three underground storeys that accommodate over 300 bodies. The lowest level is now submerged, but a spiraling staircase descends to the first two levels, complete with banqueting hall for funerary feasts, and the principal tomb with its eclectic clash of Egyptian, Greek and Roman symbolism.

A trip to Egypt is like a trip in time. You will feel the pharaohs’ spirit all the way to your trip to Egypt and you will be amazed by the beauty of the places. But I must warn you about something. Egypt is a very nice country, full of history, but the people who live there nowadays are quite poor. So, don’t be disappointed by the way people live today, and try to go back in time to smell luxury.

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