age’s theme, not from their instructors, but from their interactions with Egyptians. A few students of Egyptian descent visited family, with one student—Amira Yousef—seeing her relatives for the first time in 10 years. As we sail to our final destination before heading back to the U.S., several SAS students shared their experiences from Egypt. While this is a longer blog entry, the students’ reflections are engaging, heartfelt and well worth the read. Enjoy!Sunrise at the Great Pyramids
Jon Simmons, UConn
Words cannot describe the splendor of the Great Pyramids. Soaring heavenward with blocks nearly matching my 6’1” frame, they dominate the skyline. Even in the hazy half light of morning they seem to gleam all on their own. As the sun slowly rose up behind the pyramids, each ray illuminated the monuments and highlighted the simple beauty and power of these structures.
Standing at the base of a pyramid, one can’t help but feel a sense of smallness. The pyramids have conquered the test of time and modern machinery. I feel honored to be a visitor here, like I have joined the ranks of a group—a group that has come to enjoy the majestic power and splendor of the pyramids of Giza.
On Experiencing Egypt
Timothy Jones II, Morehouse College
Egypt has truly been both a liberating and exhilarating experience. The stories o
f the people of the Nile and the ancient temples embellished with hieroglyphics that I have studied in class are no longer just pictures in some book. Instead, they are real people and places with a timeless history. I have eaten their food, walked in their steps, and admired their culture. These pyramids and giant temples have withstood the test of time and embedded within each brick and stone there is a history greater than my own. It’s the history of a people—my people—your people. In experiencing Egypt, I have come to the conclusion that we have come to a place where we can stand amongst the giants—the great pyramids. In doing this, we open ourselves up to truly understanding past, present, and new stories that are meaningful moments captured in time.The Temple of Abu-Simbel
Jessica Kenyon, Lenoir-Rhyne University (N.C.)
Visiting the Temple of Abu Simbel was definitely my favorite part of my trip to Egypt. I had no idea what or where Abu Simbel was before we got there, but now I’ll never forget it. When we first arrived I was thinking, “Oh, it’s just another temple.” But seeing the Great Temple honestly blows the others out of the water. I am still fully impressed by the Karnack and Luxor temples, but nothing can top Abu Simbel.
Abu Simbel is where Pharaoh Ramsses II built a temple for himself and his queen, Nefertari. In the 1960s, UNESCO had to literally move a mountain to sav
e the temple from the rising waters of Lake Nasser because of the building of the Aswan High Dam. Hearing that a mountain was literally moved in order to save the temple was unbelievable. I mean people just don’t go around moving mountains. They had to take apart the temple stone by stone and move it to a higher location to rebuild it. (The original location is underwater today. The water is still very visible from the Great Temple's new location.)Our tour guide told us that when they rebuilt the Great Temple during the move they had to align it so that the sun would still shine on the face of the statue there. Today, this is visible on February 22nd and October 22nd. We weren’t allowed to take pictures inside, but walking inside the Great Temple and seeing all of the hieroglyphics and carvings that are still visible to this day was breathtaking.
Just to listen to the history behind the temple and then to be able to walk inside and see it for myself, it's unlike anything else.
Egypt’s Lesson on Social Justice
Colby Melvin, Spring Hill College (Ala.)
My tour guide in Egypt, “Mr. Tito”, changed my outlook on the world. He was assigned to lead our small group by travel agency that organized an independent tour for us in Egypt. The stories Tito shared with me made me realize why human rights and social justice—the theme of this voyage—are such important issues.
Tito was incredibly gracious and generous throughout our days together, giving us free t
ours around the city, seeing that we caught our train to Luxor, and texting me to make sure we all arrived safely. During a dinner on the Nile he even paid for a cake and had the band sing happy birthday to someone in our group who was celebrating a birthday. We learned that it was Tito’s 30th birthday the next day and included him in the festivities. But we were concerned that our new friend—who was so jovial the day we first met—seemed rather distant and removed despite the celebrations.Then he revealed his story.
Two years ago Tito fell in love. However, he told us that, in the Muslim culture marriage is not solely based on love. Typically, a man buys an apartment and pays the father a price for his daughter. If the father accepts the daughter must marry the man. If she doesn’t it is considered a great dishonor to the family. Tito’s love had been “purchased” by someone else and, unfortunately for Tito, she chose honor over love. Two years later, he’s still in love with her and feels a sense of helplessness. He has tried to move on. He has applied for visit to study in the U.S., but has been denied every time. He wants to find a woman he loves before he marries her, something that is against the norms of Muslim culture. His family is pressuring him to get married. And his conflicting view has estranged him from his family. He feels trapped in a culture that he doesn’t agree with and sees no way out.
I have never imagined or experienced this internal struggle. I always thought love was a basic human freedom. I have the freedom to be and be with who I want and to live the life I desire. Tito doesn’t. It is hard to tell a man to keep looking to the future in a culture that is so focused and keeping him back.
I am so grateful to have met Tito. He has taught me to be grateful for the things we often take for granted—the many “freedoms” we have as Americans.
Parent-Student Travel in Egypt
Kate O’Hara, Nichols College (Mass.) & her dad
Keith O’Hara (Dad): I came to Egypt because I missed my daughter and because Egypt was on my top 10 list of places I wanted to visit. The voyage’s theme was also really important to me. This is my first extensive period in an Islamic country and it has been very eye opening and interesting. For me, it’s all about the opportunity to walk the talk about human rights, which starts with learning. And the adventure of it all is wonderful. The guides are truly Egyptologists who give us a cultural, historical perspective. It’s
all very exciting. Sharing this time with my daughter, to listen to her recount all of the stories from the other countries truly makes this an unforgettable and touching trip for me.Kate O’Hara (Daughter): The parent trip came at a time in the voyage when we all started missing our families. But even more I feel like Egypt is one of the most profound places I’ve been in my life so it was nice to have my dad here to share it with. Seeing all the poverty and the lifestyle changes that are completely opposite of our own was really mindblowing to me. My dad has traveled a lot so I know he’s seen things like this before, but it was nice that he was here with me the first time I got to experience it. We just enjoyed the time together and soaked everything in. For me, seeing the three ancient pyramids with my dad was the most special time. He and I went to the ancient temples in Mexico together when I was 12, so it was kind of cool that we got to do it here, too. Because we have so many children in my family [there are seven kids], it’s been really awesome to have the one-on-one time with my dad.
Reconnecting with Family
Amira Yousef, Cal State Channel Islands
It had been 10 years since I saw my family in Egypt. I was around 11 years old the last time I visited Egypt. There isn’t much I remember of Egypt from that trip, except for seeing the Pyramids and playing with my cousins.
When I found out that Semester at Sea was coming to Egypt I definitely wanted to see them. Nine months ago, I told my family in Egypt that I was coming and there was madness over there; they were really excited that I was coming. This my dad’s family; he is from Egy
pt. Aside from my dad and my uncle, no one from his family has ever been to the U.S. I have a couple of uncles and aunts there and lots of cousins.When we arrived in Alexandria, my uncle was there to pick me up. My mom sent a picture of me so he could recognize me, but I didn’t recognize him so he had to call my name. … Every time I saw a new family member I hadn’t seen in so long, it felt really good to see them.
I visited the pyramids with my cousins, some of whom I had never met and others who I remember playing with in my dad’s village. My uncle also took me to my dad’s village. It was hard going there; it was very hard to see. There were houses still made out of mud there. The people are very poor and living in unhealthy conditions. In a lot of the houses they live with their animals in the same room with them. So, there’s feces on the floor and they’re living there. So it was hard to see my family living in such horrible conditions. It’s a very stark view of poverty, which is very different than what tourists see in the cities like Alexandria and Cairo. My dad’s brother and his wife still live in the village with their kids. And a lot of my cousins live in the village. I probably saw 60 people in that village that I am somehow related to.
My family in the village made a big dinner to celebrate my visit. We had pigeon and duck, which is only cooked for a special occasion. We had a big gathering at the house of the priest of the village, because he’s my dad’s cousin. There were probably 30 people inside that little house. They were all so welcoming to me and so loving.
Even though they hadn’t seen me for 10 years they never lost any love for me at all. I felt so welcome there and I felt like I belonged there. You don’t get that in the states very much for people you haven’t seen in 10 years and only had met one time.
My visit to reconnect with my family really made me want to return soon to Egypt to study Arabic. Because I’m from a family where my mother is from the U.S. and my father is Egyptian and I’m first generation in the U.S., I’ve always felt different from the rest of my friends. I felt like I was missing something. And when I was there in Egypt, I really did feel like I had a connection with all of these people and this is something I need to learn more about. It is my culture and I feel like I need to learn more about that.
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