I woke up with a sore bum this morning. Two and a half hours on a camel will do that for you.
I took the Metro to Coptic Cairo. The Cairo Metro is great, it has three lines, 1 stations and 70 km of track. Trains run every one to two minutes, and are all marked in English. Transferring lines is also easy. There are two cars reserved for women. And to top it off the cost is one EP (8 cents). Toronto eat your heart out.
The Metro is also much faster than driving. It reminded me of Mexico City. Sandy and I took a cab, and five subway trains passed us while we sat in traffic.
Coptic Cairo is wonderful. The streets are too narrow for any car, so it is peaceful. It is also very clean, and there are some lovely gardens.
There were also a lot more tourists than I have seen, except for the Egyptian Museum. I only saw a handful in Islamic Cairo. Even at the Museum of Islamic Art, I think I was the only non-Arab tourist.
They do have a neat trick to get more money. Everyone charges 50EP to take photos. In some cases that's more than the admission price.
Coptic Christians are some of the earliest Christian converts in history. St. Mark converted Alexandria to Christianity soon after the death of Christ, and Coptic Christianity has existed in Egypt since then..
I also learned that monasticism began in Egypt. Some of the earliest monasteries, dating back to the 4th century were here. Between the 6th and 9th century they were at their prime.
After the Muslim conquest of Egypt, starting in the 7th century, Coptic Christianity declined, but today 10% of Egyptians are still Coptic.
I saw the Coptic Museum, and it's become one of my favourite spots in Cairo. The museum itself is a beautiful building with some of the most gorgeous ceilings anywhere in the world. I was astounded.
It also has a great display of murals and stone friezes from the early monasteries.
There is a large number of tapestries and textiles from the 2nd century on. In addition there are wonderful books, some of the earliest examples of the gospels.
The displays are well laid out and labeled.
Considering it is as old as the Egyptian Museum it looks a lot better.
Coptic Cairo is small, but has almost a dozen churches. They are all well maintained and beautiful. My favourite was the Hanging Church, so called because it was built over the old Roman port on this part of the Nile.
The churches are quite different. The ceilings are wooden and look like an inverted boat. Sort of an upside down ark.
I happened on a mass at St. Barbara's and it looked like home. All the priests were old white men, 95 % of the congregation was female, most elderly.
I'm off to Saqqara tomorrow. After my Pyramid experience I decided to join a tour. Besides it's a fair distance south of Cairo.
I took the Metro to Coptic Cairo. The Cairo Metro is great, it has three lines, 1 stations and 70 km of track. Trains run every one to two minutes, and are all marked in English. Transferring lines is also easy. There are two cars reserved for women. And to top it off the cost is one EP (8 cents). Toronto eat your heart out.
The Metro is also much faster than driving. It reminded me of Mexico City. Sandy and I took a cab, and five subway trains passed us while we sat in traffic.
Coptic Cairo is wonderful. The streets are too narrow for any car, so it is peaceful. It is also very clean, and there are some lovely gardens.
There were also a lot more tourists than I have seen, except for the Egyptian Museum. I only saw a handful in Islamic Cairo. Even at the Museum of Islamic Art, I think I was the only non-Arab tourist.
They do have a neat trick to get more money. Everyone charges 50EP to take photos. In some cases that's more than the admission price.
Coptic Christians are some of the earliest Christian converts in history. St. Mark converted Alexandria to Christianity soon after the death of Christ, and Coptic Christianity has existed in Egypt since then..
I also learned that monasticism began in Egypt. Some of the earliest monasteries, dating back to the 4th century were here. Between the 6th and 9th century they were at their prime.
After the Muslim conquest of Egypt, starting in the 7th century, Coptic Christianity declined, but today 10% of Egyptians are still Coptic.
I saw the Coptic Museum, and it's become one of my favourite spots in Cairo. The museum itself is a beautiful building with some of the most gorgeous ceilings anywhere in the world. I was astounded.
It also has a great display of murals and stone friezes from the early monasteries.
There is a large number of tapestries and textiles from the 2nd century on. In addition there are wonderful books, some of the earliest examples of the gospels.
The displays are well laid out and labeled.
Considering it is as old as the Egyptian Museum it looks a lot better.
Coptic Cairo is small, but has almost a dozen churches. They are all well maintained and beautiful. My favourite was the Hanging Church, so called because it was built over the old Roman port on this part of the Nile.
The churches are quite different. The ceilings are wooden and look like an inverted boat. Sort of an upside down ark.
I happened on a mass at St. Barbara's and it looked like home. All the priests were old white men, 95 % of the congregation was female, most elderly.
I'm off to Saqqara tomorrow. After my Pyramid experience I decided to join a tour. Besides it's a fair distance south of Cairo.
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