E is for Egyptian

Egypt has always been on my bucket list.  I think most people have had, at least momentarily, an interest in ancient Egypt.  My interest in Egypt increased megafold after I got ensnared in the world of Graham Hancock.  He’s a journalist who has some intriguing theories on how old Earth really is.  Whether you believe his theories or not, his evidence is FASCINATING! 

We actually tried to book a trip to Egypt back in 2021, but we had a really hard time getting information from travel agents about it.  I hear it’s also pretty dangerous and tourists have to be careful, and I wonder if that on top of the post-Covid issues resulted in slow communication.  We ended up in Thailand for our international trip that year, which was pretty amazing.

But that means Egypt still awaits!  And it seems like the kind of place you don’t just visit, you contemplate it.

Top Sites on my Egypt Wishlist:

• Great Pyramid of Giza
  • This is the last remaining Wonder of the Ancient World!
  • It is precisely aligned to true north.
  • The structures have survived for over 4,500 years, or more if you believe Graham Hancock!
• The Sphinx
  • This is one of the most iconic and mysterious monuments on all Earth.
  • Similar to many other Egyptian monuments, it has astronomical alignments, specifically facing east aligning with the rising sun and possibly the Leo constellation.
  • Its weather face raises questions about erosion, age, and its symbolism.  It seems there’s a new consensus every year about these mysteries, but one thing is sure is that there is no universally agreed upon answer.
• Karnak Temple
  • Located in Luxor, this temple is massive!  It was built, expanded, and modified over thousands of years.
  • The Hypostyle Hall is an otherworldly forest of columns.  It’s still the world’s largest room in a religious building and covers 54,000 square feet.
  • Its original name was “Ipet-Isu” or The Most Select of Places.
  • Parts of the complex align with astronomical events such as the winter solstice.
• Valley of the Kings
  • This was a hidden burial ground for New Kingdom pharaohs, with their tombs filled with intricate artwork to guide them to the afterlife.
  • Despite looting from the ancient days, there were tons of treasures dug up in modern excavations (from modern looters…)
  • This is where King Tut was found in 1922 by Howard Carter, nearly intact!
• Abu Simbel – colossal statues carved into a mountainside engineered to align with the sun on specific days of the year.
• Saqqara – home to the Step Pyramid – maybe early practice for building on a larger scale?
• Nile River Cruise – the Nile River is the backbone of Egyptian civilization, both ancient and modern.  I’d love to do a river cruise with an Egyptian History expert as a guide!

Life brings with it a lot of questions.  Did the ancient Egyptians have the answers so many of us desperately seek?  Or would a visit to Egypt serve only to instigate more questions?  Egypt is ground zero for debates about forgotten knowledge, ancient catastrophes, and civilizations that existed long before recorded history.  Egypt is undeniably a place that invites deeper questioning and curiosity.  I want to see it not just to see it, but also to feel the weight of time pressing in from every direction.