This deserves its own post. I took this photo hoping something interesting would come out, I had no idea what my camera could see because I was holding it right over the glass floor, a foot and a half away from my face. This area, located in one of the churches of the monastery, had a glass floor over an underground chamber. The monk spoke to us about the history and use of the ancient chamber as we all stood over it barefoot.

A Walk through the Monastery

I really liked this early morning trip to St. Anthony's monastery in the middle of the desert in Ain Suhkna. This place dates back to 361 A.D. when followers of St. Anthony built the monastery on the grounds he lived on as a hermit. The oasis her kept the monk alive then and is keeping monks alive now.

Religion is so interesting and the extent of faith is baffling. One devote man was able to draw faithful followers into a very remote area of the Eastern Desert. These monks stay for long periods of time, many stay for life. They live this life of solitude and prayer in the name of righteousness. That is both respectable and unfathomable. I see religions practiced in varying degrees, some are extremely relaxed and others are the absolute extreme. Either way, I believe in loving your faith.

 

The Entrance to St. Anthony's Monastery in Ain Suhkna

Within the tombs and the surrounding area of Pompay's Pillar



Pompay's Pillar

A weekend later and I am back in Alexandria.

This trip was much more educational than the first. Our guide is an Art History professor at the American University in Cairo and she is absolutely brilliant. She knows the facts, stories, and local lengends like the back of her hand.

The pillar is in a really interesting area. The structure is surrounded by a wall, but right outside is the street with modern buildings and cars. This juxtaposition was very fun for me, I wish I could hang glide over the place to get a veiw of it all at once.



I want to explain the long pauses in between posts. I go AWOL. mostly because I am lazy, but also because I am actually living, studying, eating or exploring. So these are a few reasons why posts only happen when they happen.

There is always more

Salam

al Shai, al Shisha, wa limun bin3an3a.

tea, shisha, and lemon and mint

These first three shots are from the boardwalk by the Citadel of Qaitbay. It is not really what one should call a boardwalk, but I cannot think of a better name. Maybe a pier.

These are my boat shoes finally on a boat.

Alexandria at 5 am. I was wide awake. People, families with small children, were swimming on the beaches at this hour. The traffice was the only thing that had lost pace.

Alhamdulilah

Grey in Alex

Al Iskandre

Alexandria

I wanted to meet my friend here to get a better feel for the place. She would know here own city much better than my American companions and I. We explored the a small bit of Alex on our own though, a main highway running along the coastline and the area around the Citadel of Qaitbay. The thing that stuck out about Alexandria is all the grey along the sea line. Grey right along a grey sea. At the time I felt like it could be claustrophobic. Unfortunately, we discovered an area with an abundance of shops and eateries on our departure from our excursion.

This photo is a scene from our hour and half boat ride on the Mediterranean Sea. I did not swim, but I did spot the largest jellyfish I have ever seen in my life. I think it was a monster, in the nicest, most magestic sense.

My favorites from Khan el Khalili

Scenery of the bazaar.