Today was going to be a tiring day for me. I was up early as I took a flight from Cairo to Aswan. It is a one-and-a-half-hour flight to Aswan from Cairo, and as stated in my tour itinerary, I had a tour guide who picked me up from the airport. We first proceeded to the Aswan Dam, one of Egypt’s largest dams. It was made with the help of the Soviets and over 2500 Egyptian engineers. The mammoth dam is situated on the mighty Nile River. It captures the mighty Nile River and is the third largest reservoir in the world built around Lake Naseer.

The United Kingdom first paid for it, then the United States spent 56 million and 14 million to construct the dam, respectively. In total, it cost 270 million dollars to build the dam.

I then took a motor boat into the lower dam area through the Naseer Lake to see the Philae Temple complex. The Philae Temple is dedicated to ISIS, the goddess of birth, healing, and magic, as well as her husband, Osiris, and her son, Horus.

The temple is the last place where the Egyptian religion survived after Christianity swept the entire region in 550 AD. The temple complex and its walls depict scenes from the Greco-Roman Period and Egyptian Mythology. Isis brings Osiris back to life, giving birth to Horus and mummifying Osiris after his death.

The Temple Complex was a favorite spot for novelists Agatha Christie and Winston Churchill. The novelist Agatha Christie’s novel The Death on the Nile was inspired by her cruise on the Nile.

The Temple of Philae Complex has three significant temples: the Temple of Arsenophis, the Temple of Isis, and the Mandoulis.

The carvings on the temple walls depict the mythological stories of that era. The Temple of Philae is an Island-based Temple complex based on the lower Aswan Dam. The temple of Philae is purely dedicated to the Goddess of Isis.

In the evening, I boarded the ship cruise that would take me on a three-day journey across the Nile. Till then, enjoy the pictures of the Aswan Dam and the mythical temple of Philae.

Suez is a seaport city in the northeast of Egypt known for the famous Suez Canal and is the capital of the Suez Governorate. Mainly a transport port, it has petroleum refineries connected by pipelines to Cairo.

The Suez Crisis of 1956 occurred when the Egyptian Government took control of the Suez Canal from the French and the British, who were managing it. This resulted in a crisis in which the US was also involved. The Egyptians, supported by the Russians, took control of the Suez Canal because they were furious at the Americans for not honoring their promise to pay for the Aswan Dam. They then started collecting tolls from the ships passing through the Canal; they wanted to use the revenue to pay and build the Aswan Dam.

The Suez Canal is an artificial waterway that connects the Red Sea with the Mediterranean Sea and was built by Ferdinand De Lesseps.

Suez National Museum

The city is a two-hour drive from Cairo and also hosts a very famous Museum called the Suez National Museum. I ventured into the Museum for some time to see the mummies and the tools used to build the canal and much of its waterways.

I enjoyed much of the prawns and lobsters at a local eatery while enjoying the pictures of my adventures for the day.

My first stop today with my guide Abdul was to see the Museum of the Golden Pharos. This event was held in Cairo, Egypt, when twenty-two ancient kings and queens’ mummies were moved from the Egyptian Museum to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation. This is Egypt’s way of showing their pride in their ancient civilization. It also has a giant sculpture of Tutankhamun, the Golden Pharaoh. Pharaohs means the great house, whereas early Egyptian rulers were called Greta kings. The name Pharos stuck as they were considered intermediaries between Gods and Kings.  

The Twenty-Two Pharos included Rameses Two. He was an Egyptian Pharaoh, the third ruler of the nineteenth dynasty. He was also considered ancient Egypt’s most successful warrior pharaoh, who won over fifteen battles.

The Craven Church and The Martyrs of Sergius and Bacchus 

Sergius and Bacchus were two Roman Soldiers who lived during the reign of King Maximum. The churches were built in the 6th century under the patronage of Byzantine Emperor Justinian 1. The awe-inspiring church has stood the test of time, survived many conquests and even shattering earthquakes. The church is situated in the old Cairo area. Both the soldiers were martyred in Syria for their Christian faith in AD 296. 

I wandered into the church, lit a candle, and prayed for the soul of my slain father. I felt really at peace as I saw the priest perform his prayer ceremony.

Mosque of Al hakim bi Amr Allah 

The mosque named Al Anwar is situated in old Cairo City and was built by the 6th Fatimid Khalif. It has a grand entrance and a large courtyard with two minarets. The courtyard also has a huge water fountain and a marble bath for Wazu, which is used for washing before prayers begin. I spent almost an hour in the courtyard and then sat inside to witness the prayer ceremony.

The Catacomb of Kom El Shoqafa is an ancient Alexandria site considered one of the seven wonders of the Middle East. The catacombs were discovered when a donkey accidentally fell into the site in 1900; they are Egypt’s largest known burial site.

There is a famous story about the missing girl, Masha. In 2005, some teens from Odessa decided to spend the New Year party in the Catacombs. One girl, Marsha, got separated and lost herself in the Catacombs; she spent her nights wandering the catacombs and, on the third night, died of Dehydration.

The walls of the Catacomb depict the bearded serpent called Agathodaemon, a Greek spirit that brings good luck. The snakes wear the pharollc double crown of upper and lower Egypt. Carved into the stone above them are shields bearing the head of Gorgon Medusas, staring down at visitors with her stern and scary gaze.

The most interesting is the central panel, which depicts Osiris, the Egyptian God of the afterlife, death, and resurrection. Anubis, the God of death mummification, and the underworld are mummifying him.

The two lateral panels show the Egyptian Bull God Apis receiving gifts from a Pharos beside him. She holds the feather of truth, determining whether one can go safely into the afterlife.

The Catacomb dates back to the second century CE, and the structure goes to depths of a hundred feet. It was built using ancient rock-cutting technology.

A rope and pulley system through a large well lowered the dead into the tombs. In its entirety, the complex could carry more than 300 corpses.

The Catacombs have two famous tombs, the tombs of Emperor Tigrane and Wardian.

I spent half a day wandering and exploring the Catacombs with my guide, Samara, a local Egyptian woman who told me about the wonders of the place. After That, we proceeded to see the Alexandria Library. But the most fun part was having the seafood of lobsters, carbs, and fish for lunch at the local restaurant.

The rest of the day was spent exploring the Alexandria Library and admiring its sculptures.

Alexandra is an Egyptian port city almost an hour’s drive from central Egypt. It lies on the Nile Delta and is surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea. It is the second largest city in Egypt after Cairo and is 183 km from Cairo.

Enjoy the pictures of the bustling streets of the grand city of Alexandria.

The most exciting exploration so far has been exploring the Sphinx of Giza. The Great Sphinx of Giza is a Mythical creature with a woman’s head and a lion’s body. This is a limestone structure, and the Sphinx has the wings of a bird. In mythology, she challenges people who approach her with a riddle; if they fail to give the correct answer, she kills them and eats them. The belief is that King Hermes was buried there. The Great Sphinx is home to many tunnels and passageways that treasure hunters created.

The Sphinx has a broken nose, and it is said that a dervish named Mohammad Sami Al Dhar broke and smashed its nose. There is another story that a general in the Napoleon army split it. It was also carved from one single piece of limestone.

Archeologists believe that the Sphinx was built during Egypt’s Old Kingdom circa 2575 -2150 BC by the fourth dynasty Pharo Khafre.

The famous riddle that the Sphinx asked Oedipus was what if one voice goes on four feet in the morning, two feet in midday, and three feet in the evening? Oedipus answered Man. His answer was correct: the Sphinx killed herself, and as a reward, Oedipus got the throne of Thebes and the hand of the widowed Queen Jocasta. 

There is also the second riddle of the Sphinx, which is that there are two sisters. One gives birth to the other, and she, in turn, gives birth to the first. Who are the two sisters? The answer is day and night.

I explored the Sphinx on a camel and ventured deep near the pyramids; this was a magical evening I will never forget. There was also a dance party in the evening organized by a mobile phone service provider. Still, I was so overwhelmed by the image of the Sphinx of Giza that I gave it a miss and returned to my hotel with a guide, Abdul, in tow.

My Guide, Abdul Latif, arrived sharp at nine in the morning, but today, he had come in a new car, a Black Toyota, where I would be driven around the streets of Egypt. The Driver, a young man called Ali, wore a black leather jacket and smart sunglasses as we prepared for a rip-roaring tour around Egypt.

Our first stop was the mosque of Ali Pasha, a large ancient mosque teeming with students from schools and colleges desperately trying to get in with their respective history teachers, no doubt wanting to explore the ancient history of one of the most ancient mosques in Cairo city. Built in 1830 for his son, the mosque was commissioned by Ali Pasha. The great man was buried here in the courtyard, and his tomb is from Carrara Marble. The admission tickets cost from 180 EP to 90 EP for students, and they even have golf carts and tuk-tuk to ferry visitors from one side of the mosque to the other.

The dome height is 41 meters, and the minarets are 82 meters high. The mosque is a symbol of the Military power of the Ottoman Empire. Muhammad Ali converted to Sunni Islam and was more interested in the Sufi tradition, the mystical way of approaching Islam.

Authentic Brands Group owns the rights to the Muhammad Ali Pasha mosque and manages the estate of many celebrities worldwide.

The mosque has tall minarets, large chandeliers, hanging lamps, and beautifully painted walls.

Before entering the inner sanctum of the mosque, one has to wear plastic shoes so as not to sully the mosque’s internal floor and marble flooring. I spent a few hours just taking in the breathtaking beauty of the mosque, and then Abdul Latif decided to take me to another beautiful place, a museum full of mummies and tombs.

The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities was where I got lost for hours. It is a large museum full of mummies and old sculptures of ancient Egyptian Kings and Gods. There is a room full of animal mummies, treasures, and gold artifacts of ancient kings and Egyptian queens.

I was fascinated by the giant sculpture of Ra, the great Egyptian sun god who flies in the sky on a chariot with the head of a Falcon. Then, there was the giant sculpture of Sekhmet, the daughter of the sun god Ra. She breathes fire, and the city winds of the desserts are linked to her; she also causes plague when angered.

The nine Egyptian Gods are Atum, Shu, Tefnut, Geb, Nut, Isis, Seth, and Nepythys. I explored the museum to my heart’s content and spent a lot of time on the first floor exploring the treasures of ancient kings.

As of now, enjoy the pictures of old Egyptian mummies and the colorful caskets they were kept in.

As today was going to be my last day in Doha, I was determined to see most of the hotspots of the City City, and my day started early, at around 10:00 am. The taxi driver with whom I had made a deal arrived on time. I would pay him 250 Qatari Riyal to tour me around the City for six hours at a stretch. Our first destination was Pearl Island, an area of four square kilometers, the first freehold land mass available to foreigners to develop. It has the City’s most high-class luxury shops, restaurants, and exclusive living areas. I was fascinated by the enormous skyscrapers with the most unique shapes. I even walked into the Ferrari and Royce showrooms. There were exclusive showrooms of all the luxury brands from around the world: Gucci, Prada, Zara, Apple, you name the brand, they were all there. This is an area where the Uber-rich people of the City live.  

The City also walked around the area’s most abundant and beautiful mosque, which reminded me of India’s famous Taj Mahal monument in its richness and splendor. The Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al Thani Mosque is a pure white marble structure with rich architecture and beautifully carved walls. 

The next stop was the Islamic Museum building, next to a pristine water body. There was a vast garden where people were resting and enjoying the sun. I walked around the opulent and plush green gardens of the area.

Taking a picture in front of the Raffle Doha Hotel was another experience. The hotel’s shape is a wonder as it looks like the horns of a buffalo. My taxi driver told me that once, a trapeze artist had tied a rope from one side of the building to the other and walked on the tightrope across the two poles as people watched him do the act from the ground below.

Lunch was at the Sushi Library at the largest and most exclusive mall in Doha City, the Bendon Mall. I had a meal of Sushi and Lemonade and shopped for some exclusive perfume after watching a Grand display of fountains streaming jets of water in the air.

But the highlight of the day was a visit to the Katara Mosque. I managed to get inside the mosque and also managed to pray there. I was also enthralled by the way the walls of the mouse were painted and decorated in true Islamic fashion.

My fever had gotten better after popping a few more Panadol tablets. I managed to keep my fever in check. The day was hectic, but I got an authentic taste of the City and its science today.

The last few days in Doha, Qatar, have been very hectic. I ventured into the desserts of Doha and then into the Salem Beach. Having explored most of its opulent malls with my friend Taleb Mirza, I have gotten a good idea of the city and the country as a whole.

But moving from the hot temperatures of about 35 degrees in the afternoon to my cold, air-conditioned hotel room had taken its toll on me as I woke up with a chill, a temperature, and a cold in the morning. I could feel my body aching, and I had a bit of a runny nose, so I had to tell my taxi driver that I would be taking a break today. I stayed in bed till the wee hours of the afternoon. But I could not muster the courage to go out into the street to a pharmacy to grab some medicine that would soothe my ache and pain and settle my temperature.

Luckily, my cleaner, who had come to clean up my room, gave me a few tablets of Panadol that helped my fever settle and relieved me from the cold. All I had was mushroom soup the whole day with brown bread as I did not feel hungry due to my temperature.

I managed to have a Chicken Madrooba, a traditional Qatari Speciality. It’s like a chicken stew, which was best for me in these conditions. 

By the late evening, my cold and cough had settled a bit, but only after I had taken a hot shower. I called my friend Taleb Mirza, and we made plans to meet tomorrow for coffee, as tomorrow would be my last day in Doha before proceeding to Egypt, my next destination in this part of the world. Until then, enjoy the pictures of the traditional Qatari dish Chicken Madrooba.

It was early morning, and I was aching to explore Doha fully. I had made a deal with a Bangladeshi Taxi Driver named Zahiruddin, who promised to take me around Doha. I had to pay him 200 rials a day, and he would fizz me around in his taxi for five hours every day wherever I wanted to go in Doha.

Our first spot today was the sandy beaches of Salem Beach in Doha. It was an hour’s drive to the beach as we navigated the plush highways of the city, meandering through markets and passing through large mosques. The town’s roads are broad, and Doha is an immaculate city. There is a fine if you split and litter in the town.

Giant camels are on display just before the beach, and the tourists can take camel rides. But I was more tested in taking a Jeep ride into the shady desserts, which I duly did.

The Jeep ride cost a hundred rials, and my driver, a Pakistani guy named Imam, took me for a roller coaster ride up and down the shady hills of Salem Beach. It was like sitting on the merry-go-round as I bowed up and down the dunes. It was fun but scary, too, as I felt we might overturn at any point.

Just in front of Salem Beach is a vast LPG gas and oil refinery, one of the largest in the country; one can see poisonous gas being burnt and large flames appearing from its chimney.
“We burn the poisonous gas as it is not good for the people’s lungs .” My Pakistani driver lamented.

After touching the salty waters off the beach with my hands, I took a short dip before climbing back on the dusty beach.

But the highlight of the evening was flying the desert falcon. I wire a leather glove and let the sizeable majestic bird climb on my glove. The Falcon stared at me in wonder for a while and then flew a few distance before it came back to me and sat on my leather glove again. I took more pictures, which I want you to sit back and enjoy. It’s been two days in the city, and I am getting a real taste of Doha and the city of Qatar.

Souq Waqif is a hugely popular tourist spot in Doha. It is famous for its coffee shops, eateries, and markets selling traditional clothing and other artifacts denoting Qatar’s cultural heritage. I enjoyed coffee and some Tiramisu before entering a painting exhibition to see paintings. I also walked into a famous movie theatre for popcorn.

Qatar is a prosperous and famous country with a vibrant trade of almost 18 billion dollars with India. It sells LPG Gas to India and imports rice, food items, and spices from India. This is a trade partner of India.

Yesterday, the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Doha and was given a state welcome by the Emir of Qatar. Modi was here to negotiate the release of eight Indian Navy workers who had been in prison for over a year and had been convicted to be hanged for espionage. Narendra Modi used his diplomatic channels to get these eight Navy officers released.

One US dollar equals 3.64 Qatari Riyal. That way, the currency is powerful. Qatar is a total of Opulent Mall selling all sorts of luxury goods and thus is a paradise for shoppers. The country has a large population of Indian expats, who make up almost 25% of the population. Most of them are from Kerala and work here as immigrant workers in hotels or driving taxis.

Qatar also has a vast population of Bangladeshi and Pakistani people, most running shops and other small businesses. So, for me, connecting with the locals was easy as everyone spoke Hindustani, and thus, navigating my way through the city was easy. 

I spent the evening with my friend Taleb Mirza and his wife at one of the luxury malls in the city. I had sushi after a long while and enjoyed some great conversations with old-school friends.

My first impressions of the city are that it is excellent: it is clean, opulent, rich, and regal, and it’s straightforward to navigate one’s way through the city center. One can also use a metro to move about the city, but I choose to ride around in a Taxi cab instead.

Tomorrow will be more exploration of the same till then, enjoy the pictures and videos of the city center of Doha.