We have just landed in Qatar after spending 8 wonderful days in Egypt, which took us into a historical journey of the most fascinating sites.
From Doha, we flew to Alexandria a.k.a. Iskandariah where Hubby’s niece who studies Bahasa Arab at the prestigious Al-Azhar University awaited us. A grand welcome indeed as we were picked up by a mini bus as the van that we booked was not available at the last minute. We settled into the Regency Hotel, a room with a balcony facing the Mediterranean sea. The hotel claims to be 4-star but hey, this is Egypt isn’t it? Anyways, we had a good rest in spite of the non-stop honking down the streets – an everyday scene in Egypt, we soon learned. The next morning, we headed for Cairo a.k.a. Kahirah via the turbo train. The reckless driving of our taxi driver from the hotel to the train station is not to be forgotten as we struggled to grip our seats hard while passing other vehicles hardly an inch away left, right, front and back. After much elbowing in the hustle & bustle of the train station, we finally made our 2.5-hour journey to Cairo. Nothing turbo-ish about this train, which went at pretty much the speed of the KL-Port Klang Komuter. As we disembarked in Cairo, we were picked up by our chauffeur cum tour guide for the week, a final year syariah Malaysian student of Al-Azhar University. Another hour or so in the chaotic traffic of Cairo before we finally reached our accommodation, Rumah Tamu (guest house) at the 11-storey apartment of Rumah Kedah. We were reliefed that Cafe Hijau Kuning located on the ground floor served all sort of Malaysian dishes. So apa lagi, nasi paprik, kueteow goreng, fuhh, sebijik macam makan kat gerai. We were told that this area in Cairo, called Al Nasr City, housed all the Malaysian hostels which are owned and run by respective state governments – ada Rumah Selangor, Rumah Penang, Rumah Perak, Rumah Pahang, almost all except for 1-2 states. These are mostly student hostels and some like the Rumah Kedah, has a guest house and a cafe too. Our 3-bedroom apartment with super spacious dining and living room, finely decorated and maintained, was superb!
The next day was spent visiting the beautifully architectured old mosques in Cairo. First, Masjid Imam Shafie which contains the makam of Imam Shafie. Next, Masjid Al-Azhar – the world’s oldest university. Inside the centre of the mosque, there is a spacious courtyard. Apart from the prayer hall, there were many doors lined up alongside the corridoors, each door leading to a room. Di bilik2 inilah pembelajaran ilmu bermula. Amazing! Next, we went to Masjid Al-Hussein, named after the grandson of Rasulullah s.a.w. This mosque contains the makam of Sayidina Hussein as well as the oldest complete Quran manuscript. Hubby managed to do his solat Jumaat at this mosque while we waited at the nearby Khan Al Khalili Market. Buzzing with tourists, this bazaar sells souvenirs, clothes, scarves, Arabic perfumes, you name it. Sempat lah shopping sikit2 though kids were getting cranky having to berhimpit-himpit di celah2 orang yang tersangat ramai. Next, we stopped by Masjid Sultan Hassan and Masjid Al Rifai which are located next to each other. Both share the same look from the outside though the former is much bigger. Sultan Hassan was one of the former rulers of Egypt and his makam is located here. There is nothing modern about the design and architecture of this mosque. I stared in awe at the walls, pillars, domes, all so finely crafted and beautifully lit with hanging light bulbs. The mosque contains four halls which once represented the four schools of Sunni – Shafie, Maliki, Hanafi and Hanbali. I am flattered to have had the opportunity to do my solat here. Next, Masjid Ibn Tulun, with its airy courtyard and a spiral tower much like the Islamic Centre in Doha. As the day ended, I felt historically enriched having seen the most significant Islamic buildings in Egypt and perhaps the world.
The day after, we headed to the much anticipated visit to the great pyramids of Giza. We reached there bright and early but was a little disappointed that the weather was gloomy with no sunshine to be seen. The largest is the Pyramid of Khufu, and hundreds of metres away are the smaller Pyramid of Khafre and Pyramid of Menkaure – father, son & grandson respectively. The Great Pyramid was once the tallest man made structures in the world. I experienced the same feelings which I felt when I visited Taj Mahal. All that painstaking labour to construct and with no technology nor transportation. Truly deserve to be one of the wonders of the world. We did not visit the chambers inside the pyramid as the thought of the mummies is enough to make the hair behind my neck stand.. The Sphinx is also located in this pyramid area. Sphinx is supposedly a mythological creature with a human head and a lion’s body. The nose unfortunately, is long gone. There are a few versions of what actually happened to it, so I’ll skip that. All in all, it was the kids that enjoyed the pyramid most. Next stop for the day was the Salah al Din Citadel. Perched on top of a hill overlooking the city, the huge fort-like area contains Masjid Muhammad Ali and the Military Museum, among others. Another mosque with magnificient interior that made us gape.
The next day was less hectic as we visited one more mosque, dropped by a famous local crystal factory and ended the day cruising down the Nile River. The Nile is the longest river in the world spanning across nine countries. Its importance lies not only on its length but due to the fact that settlements began around it, leading to civilization of ancient Egypt. Last but not least, a quick drop at Hard Rock Cafe Cairo to add to our collection.
The next morning we checked out from Cairo and started our road trip back to Alexandria. The highway ride was pretty smooth with one stop at the rest area. It took over 4 hours to get to Alex as compared to 2 hours by train. We again checked into the friendly Regency Hotel and had a good rest. On the way, we stopped by our niece’s flat not far from the hotel. If you have watched the movie Ayat-Ayat Cinta, the flats that the students live in and the street life portrayed in the movie was no exaggeration. Inside the flat however, is similar to a Malaysian flat, and all nice and cozy. Oh and by the way, that movie was actually shot in India but the Malaysian students in Egypt agree that it successfully created the correct environment of Egypt and the Arabic dialect was just right. To my amazement, they actually do use those baskets with strings tied onto them to carry little things purchased through the balcony! We were told that there are 8,000 Malaysian students in Egypt. Though initially popular for Islamic related studies, more and more Malaysians come to study Medicine and other courses as well. University fees are very minimal but it is extremely difficult to get through a degree without having to repeat any subjects.
Our second last day in Egypt was spent sightseeing in Alexandria, a city named after Alexander the Great. We started off with Montazah Palace – a huge park with King Farouk’s palace, a bridge and fantastic view of the ocean crushing the rocks. This particular day happened to be freezing cold with gusty wind that turned into a rain storm in the evening. We walked passed Farouk Bridge and didn’t quite make it all the way to the lighthouse due to the weather but I totally loved this place. I imagine the gardens will be beautiful in the spring. Next, we visited Qait Al Bay, another Citadel. The rain had started by the time we got there and since the Citadel is open-aired, we decided to only take pictures from the outside. We moved on to the popular tourist sites with Graco Roman influences. The Pompey Pillar is a tall memorial column erected to commemorate the Roman emperor. Surrounding the pillars are remains of the Serapium temples and other stuff like the basins that the Romans used to purify themselves, a Nilometer which measures the Nile floods and sphinx statues. There are also stairs leading to a dimly lit underground sanctuary. Another Roman site we went to is the Roman Amphitheatre. Unfortunately, it was not what we expected in terms of size so we took a quick look at it and left for the Masjid Nabi Danial which is just a street away. Makam Nabi Danial is located here as well as makam of his companion Luqman Hakim. We walked a couple of blocks away in the rain for a sumptuous lunch of humus, tehina, kofta, chicken, arabic bread and special rice with chicken liver slices. Yums!
Finally, our 8-day trip was over. On the last day, we walked through the markets looking for last minute souvenirs to bring home. And in the evening, off we went to the airport with mixed feelings. Kids were eager to get home but was sad to leave their cousin whom they have just bonded with during these 8 days (they only met once a year prior to this). As for me, though Egypt was chaotic, noisy & dirty just like India or Pakistan, the Islamic history that the country holds is invaluable. Definitely an eye opener and well worth the visit.
