Happy on the Nile

Only buy something that you'd be perfectly happy to hold if the market shut down for 10 years.

Warren Buffett, American businessman, investor, philanthropist

With a smile, I crossed the "Happy Nile" in order to board "Hatshepsut" for a 10-minute ride south to the Sonesta St. George Hotel, which is conveniently located across the street from the bank. The journey is significantly less expensive by land using the city's service taxis, but it is significantly more pleasurable using these small boat taxis and staying on the Nile for as long as possible.

From my Nile viewpoint I was surprised to see all the development along the West Bank that has gone up since the revolution and the absence of any authority. Before the revolution, then Governor Samir Farag had begun to tear down buildings along the waterfront, citing them as illegal constructions because land immediately adjacent to the Nile is government property. So what will become of these new buildings when Egypt has her new president and authority returns? Obviously, these investors are willing to gamble.

Riding the Nile

He who rides the sea of the Nile must have sails woven of patience.

William Golding

At Dad's request, Captain Mohamed of the motorboat Hatshepsut took us on a slow tour upstream to 'the bridge' and back. We had beautiful weather and the life along the Nile's banks was fascinating. Such a combination results in a lot of photographs. So as not to overwhelm my kind readers, I have selected five out of more than 200 photos.

Amelia Peabody and Amelia Edwards would both feel quite at home on Nefer Ra (Beautiful Ra), one of the few true old dahabeyyas that still provide visitors with a refined experience of Nile life. Unfortunately, these days many only hoist their sails for photo ops as tug boats tow these lovely cruisers to Aswan and back. Nevertheless, she is a beauty.


Even though multistory apartment buildings are replacing traditional mud-brick homes, women still come to the river's edge to wash their families' clothes in large aluminum tubs.

There was a lot of washing going on today. Clothes and kids. Here, Nile mud was also been bagged for small-scale pottery production.

Many fishermen were at work. Most used nets. On one boat, a young girl threw the net into the river from the stern while one young fellow rowed and another beat the water from the bow to frighten the fish into the net. Familial teamwork, I suspect. Such does life on the Nile depend.

Happy on the Nile

This evening I happened to miss a departing ferry and the wait for the next ferry to fill with people can take some time, so I boarded "Happy Nile" to make the short crossing.


Captain Mohamed always has a big smile to brighten a sandy day.

Love on the Nile

Although the Time Traveller is in another temporal and spacial dimension, there is still lots of love on the Nile. There is the "Molly" boat and her motto, "Love For Ever".


And then there is the "Love" boat itself.


And then there is the old mate on the public ferry who sweeps up tissues with his palm fibre broom.

10P.M. UPDATE: A late afternoon walk into the village to buy eggs provided some interesting experiences.

The first of which was navigating around a flooded irrigation ditch. I had almost made it to the road where I flag down a service taxi (note asphalt at top of photo), but knew I would end up with feet (or worse) in the water hazard, so I turned around and returned to the road by another route.


Lucky I did, because I caught sight of an exquisite 'sweet pea' in full bloom.


Here is another mystery. This frilly pom-pom blossoms on a tall bush. It has nasty thorns protecting its fruit. If I learn what it is, I'll update the post; otherwise I'll just appreciate its complexity.


Walking back from the village, the vegetable seller passed. He calls out his produce over a megaphone. I prefer the bells of the "Dickie Dee" man. Do "Dickie Dee" men still exist?


Lastly, the Sun had almost set but in the waning light I saw a magnificent White Crane perched on top of a dead palm. Taking off she showed just how big, strong and elegant a bird she is. Amazing!

Another Day in Paradise

Seek the Infinite, for that alone is Joy unlimited, imperishable, unfailing, self-sustaining, unconditioned, timeless. When you have this joy, human life becomes a paradise; the light, the grace, the power, the perfections of that which is highest in your inner consciousness, appear in your everyday life.

Swami Omkarananda

I am blessed to have this time to seek out the beauty, the Infinite, in everyday life. I admit, this is a pretty easy mission when surrounded by palm trees.


The heat wave dissipated and I set off to the post office in Luxor. In our rural area, the service taxis working our route look less like vans and more like trucks with human cargo. Ten people 'fit' in the back, two upfront with the driver, and as many as can hang off the 'tailgate'.


This morning I was the lone rider to the ferry landing. Returning home, the service is always full and I make friends with those who get a kick out of a foreigner riding with them. As I approach the point on the road closest to our home, I knock on the window or press the buzzer (upper left) to tell the driver to stop. Efficient service for 50 piasters (less than 10 cents).


The view from Luxor back towards the West Bank was beautiful as the water sparkled in the not-so-hot sun. The moored boats are dahabeyyas, as Amelia Edwards used to travel the Nile in the nineteenth century. They seldom use their sails these days due to government regulations on the waterway, but they hoist them anyways because even a little canvas unfurled is a fine sight as it wafts in the breeze.


Arabic lacks a p-sound and so B and P are often considered interchangeable, such as ordering a Bebsi to drink. Many Egyptian friends don't hear the difference between the two letters -- just as I don't hear the difference in two of their letters that both sound like "H" to me but they insist are completely different. Oh well, God bless them for my morning chuckle.

A Day with the Animals

Perusing Margo Veillon's Egyptian Harvests yesterday, it struck me that I had not seen oxen
ploughing the fields.


Lo and behold, this morning there they are having a break in the sugar cane still harnessed to the plough. Their owner must have been having a break under a palm tree somewhere as he was not in sight.


I was on my way to visit the ACE animal clinic. Thankfully, I suppose, few of their stalls were occupied. Last week they were full with horses suffering from a respiratory flu that was running havoc through the community. Veterinary services are offered free of charge by Egyptian vets and short-term volunteer vets from Britain. Other volunteers were sewing noseguards for horses and walking kenneled dogs.


Dr. Hannah was treating a horse that had been burned in a stable fire. I was told that such fires are common in the summer with their tinder-dry palm log and frond roofs. In another stall a donkey was recovering from his burns over much of his body. Thankfully, the wounds were superficial and he was healing well.


And for strictly research purposes, I had to stop at Oasis Cafe on the way home. Perhaps, just maybe, my restaurant review will appear in an upcoming issue of Egypt Today. Photos were requested so I spent some time posing Medhat with my Chicken Caesar and chocolate cake. He was a great sport.


Who could resist smiling when faced with a boat decked out with stuffed bears and "I Love You" cushions? The boat's Arabic name is a direct transliteration: "Smile at Me".

Laying It On Thick

Here we are where it all began with a big hole on March 28th. The "Saharawy" evaporative cooler now resides seamlessly in the patched wall. This morning I was at the paint shop when it opened at 10am to buy another gallon. I used almost the entire can. The colour seems somewhat 'richer' than the original: I'm not sure if this is a result of my laying in on thick, or if the fellows at the shop didn't quite get the colour code exact. Doesn't matter. It looks good. Ilhumdulila!


A dust storm was already blowing when I woke up this morning but that didn't stop the farmers from loading up their donkey carts with bales of chaff. The photo was taken at 6:45, so they must have started at 6am.


On my way to the ferry, I spotted another herd of camels, which looked younger than those in the banana grove the other day. This must be the season for the great camel drive from Sudan to the market in Cairo. Camels walk across the desert to Luxor, where they are put on trucks and transported to the Friday market in Imbaba.


They looked a little thin after their strenuous journey, however, everyone seemed content with their breakfast of clover (birseem). I suspect that they are being fatten up so that they catch a better price in Cairo.


As I waited for a motor launch, I spotted a friendly croc. The boat is named after the Egyptian god of creation, fertility, strength, and protection: Sobek.


I keep a careful eye on the waters in the canal beside our home looking for Sobek's cousin, the Nile Monitor. The lilies have been blooming for about a week and with the banana plant blossoming the canal looked quite exotic. Neighbourhood boys were swimming in it as I returned home from the paint expedition. I'll keep to the chlorinated pool.

Hamseen!

Hamseen season arrived today with a vengeance. Hamseen means 'fifty' in Arabic and for the next 50 days we can expect fierce winds blowing loads of sand, dirt, and garbage eastwards. They won't blow every day but we shouldn't be surprised when they blow-up out of nowhere. It was a battle getting home from the ferry on my bike and I returned to find that two banana plants growing outside our flat had been blown down. Unfortunately, I bought a kilo of bananas at the souk so I have no use for the 10-12 kilos of green fruit on were on these two plants. As I write, the sky is orange with Sahara sand. I'm thankful to be indoors!


When I started out this morning for banking and shopping in the city, the weather was quite pleasant. I took a motor boat instead of the ferry and decided to begin a collection of delightful boat decorations.