Christine and Keith's Travels: Grand Tour of Egypt: Alexandria

First visit for the group was to the catacombs. These tombs were dug out of the rock underground in the Ptolemaic period. There were three levels of them, but the lowest level was not open due to flooding. Each tomb was for a whole family and had chambers with alcoves opening off them and decorations that showed a strong Greek influence. Not only were humans buried here but the bones of special animals, including race horses, have been also found. In fact we saw a box of, presumably race horse, bones. When the Romans came they just reused the tombs, but their methods of mummification were not very effective, nor did they place the body in a sarcophagus (enormous stone coffin). After about 20 years they could just sweep what little remained into a container and put someone else in.
We had a pause in our sight seeing to change hotels and this time we were in a charming old Italianesque building with a wrought iron lift that simply rose through a space beside the marble stairs. We were now downtown and closer to all the action.
We visited a beautiful modern mosque, in which the ceiling is all inlaid with mother of pearl and the building shows strong Andalusian influence (like the buildings built by the Moors in southern Spain). Naturally the ladies were in a separate section, but Mamdoh gave his talk close to the barrier and we could listen in. Having handed our shoes in to be put on a shelf, we went to collect them on the way out. Some could not get their shoes back because they didn’t have any money so I showed great largesse in shouting them ₤E1 (Aust 20c) each to retrieve them. The man gave me the wrong change twice before I was given the correct amount. It was a sour note since we had not dealt with people taking advantage of our tourist ignorance for a long time. I realise that they may not have salaries and may be dependent on payment for services to live, but so were others, and they had been scrupulously honest if we had mistakenly given them the wrong note, or if we needed change.

We drove through some market streets where rabbits and birds (perhaps quails) sat on top of baskets in between fruit and vegetable stands. It was all very crowded and colourful but we couldn’t enjoy the scene for more than a few minutes because our mini-bus was off to the new Bibliotheca of Alexandrina, which opened in 2002. The original library was founded by the first Ptolemy in the late 3rd Century BC. It was a centre for ancient learning and the place where the Old Testament was translated from Hebrew by 12 scholars who lived at the library. Agents went out to seek important texts, other texts were copied and copies of texts were made which were distributed as gifts or sold, spreading knowledge around the world. There were three quarter of a million texts in the collection. It is not known exactly what happened to the library – speculation is; a fire during Cleopatra V11’s reign, natural forces such as an earth quake or as collateral damage during the fights between Christians and the pagans (worshippers of the old Egyptian gods). What a loss to the world and to knowledge! You have to pay to enter the library ($2), but that includes an hour’s internet use. There is something very seductive about the hum of a library and I could have spent the whole day there. In the time we had we looked at an exhibition of artists’ impressions of Alexandria over the years and I paid an extra E₤25 ($5 Aust) to enter the rare and ancient manuscripts display. Just looking at marks that someone made so long ago produces a great feeling of connection with the person who held the pen. There were some beautifully illuminated texts, gilt and colours, and an ancient papyrus. Ed and Danny recommended the antiquities museum, which we missed, so we are looking forward to another visit.

The walls of the library are engraved with letters or words from all the written languages of the world.The final site on our tour was the citadel, a fort that was built on the site where the Pharos, an enormous light house built in 283 BC and one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was built. An earthquake in 1303 toppled it but its stones were recycled in the citadel. There was not much to see at the citadel and Mamdoh had advised us against paying to go in, since you could see well from the outside. More interesting was the tourist market where we were not hassled, but some haggling went on. Purchases by members of our tour group included a miniature sarcophagus (complete with mummy), a belly dancing belt, some papyrus book marks and a toy camel. These items were added to the many gifts and personal souvenirs which have been amassed along the way and which, in some cases, required the purchase of more bags to take them home in.