The original limestone casing on the Pyramid of Khafre
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Friday, April 07, 2006
The pyramids from afar
The pyramids from afar
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Busloads of tourists were piled up at one lookout point, but I hiked out into the sand on my own to get this photo.
The pyramid of Khufu, the largest, is the one in back on the right side. The pyramid of Khafre is the one with the lighter-color on top. The pyramid of Menkaure is the large one to the left. The three smaller pyramids are named the "Queen's pyramids".
Entrance into the Great Pyramid of Khufu
Entrance into the Great Pyramid of Khufu
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
You pay out the nose at the pyramids, but then again, they are the pyramids. I used my student discount card and got in for half price. I went inside the Great pyramid, the oldest one at Giza (2600 BC), and the largest one in Egypt (146.5 meters). Cameras are forbidden inside.
You first start in a carved hallway that is like any other tunnel, but then you come to slanted ramp that goes up the pyramid at a 20 degree angle. It is quite low and narrow, about 3.5 feet by 3.5 feet. They have laid down a ramp with 2x4 steps which are a bit tricky. This ramps goes up for about 100 feet until you come to an opening. This opening also has a ramp at the same angle, but the ceiling opens up about 25 feet high and the walls are about 10 feet apart. This continues for another 100 feet. At the top, you crawl underneath two massive blocks to enter the tomb chamber. The chamber walls are pink granite and sitting on one end is an empty sarcophagus.
There were a couple other tunnels that were gated shut, but I don't know where those tunnels led. It was pretty cool crawling through these tight spaces.
Abu al-Hol, the Father of Terror
Abu al-Hol, the Father of Terror
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
I prefer that name to "the Sphinx". Abu was getting a facelift this morning, so he wasn't looking his best. Supposedly this was carved from mostly one piece of limestone; limestone that was left over from the construction of the Great Pyramid of Khufu.
The Nile cutting through Cairo
The Nile cutting through Cairo
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
The city bus took me across the Nile. This was my first look at this area. There were a lot of massive hotels along the Nile.
The pyramids at Giza
Today I got up early (still three hours ahead of local time) at visited the great pyramids at Giza, a suburb southwest of Cairo. I took a city bus and got there 30 minutes before it opened and before any other tourists. To give you an idea of how few independent travellers there are here: I was the only tourist on the city bus, but within half an hour after it opened, there was a line of tour coaches creeping up to the pyramids.
The pyramids were amazing. We were driving through a suburb, when suddenly I saw one of the pyramids looming in front of me. It was a wierd feeling seeing them, sort of like seeing the Angkor temples. These were built four and a half thousand years ago.
Tonight I am headed down to Aswan on the overnight train. I have signed up for a five-day tour that will take me on a the Nile river from Aswan down to Luxor.
The pyramids were amazing. We were driving through a suburb, when suddenly I saw one of the pyramids looming in front of me. It was a wierd feeling seeing them, sort of like seeing the Angkor temples. These were built four and a half thousand years ago.
Tonight I am headed down to Aswan on the overnight train. I have signed up for a five-day tour that will take me on a the Nile river from Aswan down to Luxor.
Sufi music in Peshawar
This is the Sufi music I sat in on while in Peshawar. There was a lot of hashish in the air.
Music at the Regale Internet Inn in Lahore, Pakistan
The Regale Internet Inn in Lahore is one of those places where you will meet crazy travellers. It is "the" place to meet other travellers to get info or trade books. Malik, the owner, has little concerts on his rooftop every week. The music isn't really my scene, but it was fun watching thebackpackers smoke hashish and suddenly jump up and start dancing like tribal people. This is just a short clip of the music.
Golden Temple at Amritsar
This shows the people walking around the Golden Temple. You can hear the singing or reading of their scripture. It's a very cool place.
Night traffic in Amritsar
This is the evening traffic in Amritsar. I was in the back of a large autorickshaw.
Goose-stepping border guards
The show at the border is the marching procession of guards. They find the tallest guys on both sides of the border. They have hats that make them even taller. Anyways, this is a short clip of them goosestepping to the gate.
Cheering crowds at the Wagah border crossing
This short video gives you an idea how patriotic everyone is at the closing of the Indian-Pakistani border.
Autorickshaw ride to Pahar Ganj backpacker ghetto in New Delhi
This is a short video showing the street scene around Pahar Ganj in New Delhi. It is right outside the New Delhi train station so it is especially chaotic.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Midan Talaat Harb
Midan Talaat Harb
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This is the downtown area of Cairo, and what I think is the most European. At night clothing and electronic shops open up.
Minarets in the Islamic quarter
Minarets in the Islamic quarter
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
I walked to this area from the downtown "European" area. There were a lot of old mosques and remnants of the Citadel from the 12th c. Besides that, there were a lot of tourist shops selling hookahs and t-shirts.
Serving up kushari
Serving up kushari
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This is a blend of rice, pasta, black lentils, fried onions, and tomato sauce. A bowl cost about 40 cents. Very delicious.
Egyptian Museum
Egyptian Museum
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
I showed up just past 0900, along with all other tour groups in Egypt. Holy cow. The museum was more crowded than the metro train. They were all in massive tour groups that hogged all the exhibits. It didn't matter to me so much, because the museum actually SUCKED. There were no informative signs or placards, so it was like walking around in a big warehouse. I didn't learn anything.
I did get to see the mummies, all dried up and three thousand years old, and the golden "head piece" they found on King Tut's mummy.
The museum collection is huge, but it didn't mean anything to me. Oh well.
City bus in Peshawar -- interior
City bus in Peshawar -- interior
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
As interesting on the inside as it is on the outside.
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Salaam aleikum!
"Peace be upon you!"
I am in Cairo, Egypt now! I just arrived this afternoon. The past couple days have been a little frustrating. Prince gave me the impression that it was quite easy to get a transit visa for Iran from the Peshawar consulate, especially since he had a friend there, but when I showed up on Monday, I was told it would take 25 days to get a response from Tehran and my visa fee was non-refundable. I had already tried to get a visa from the embassy in Islamabad (7-10 days). After talking to many other travellers (one Australian was waiting for three weeks), I decided that the current "crisis" over nuclear energy development was going to impede my ability to get through Iran, and that it was too cold to cross the 'Stans of Central Asia to get to Turkey, so I opted for a flight to Cairo. Interestingly, the prices for flights out here from Pakistan are the same whether you purchase the tickets months in advance or the day before. I tried to buy a one-way ticket, but when it came time to furnish the ticket, I was suddenly informed that the airlines could not sell a one-way ticket to Egypt from Pakistan. I don't know if it was a scam, or just ignorance, or immigration laws, but I was told that because I was getting a visa on arrival, I needed a ticket leaving Egypt, but then later I was told that it was something that the Egyptian government required of tickets issued from Pakistan. Maybe it's another funny rule to keep "terrorists" out. Anyways, I bought a roundtrip ticket from Peshawar (the same price from any of the airports in Pakistan -- relatively cheap), stopped in Abu Dhabi (wow, the UAE looks great!), and landed here. I took a city bus from the airport and learned how to read Arabic numbers in the process (the buses are labelled in Arabic).
So far Egypt is great. Cairo is remarkably European. The buildings and the streets resemble Madrid or Paris. I have to take care of some more visa business here so I will be here for a few days, other than just sightseeing.
I didn't spend much time in Pakistan, but I've gotta say that the people were some of the friendliest and most helpful I have encountered on this trip. Maybe it is because there are so few tourists, but Pakistanis are extremely hospitable. It is such a difference from the typical Western opinion that it is a threatening place full of terrorists. The news media is such crap and there really is an agenda in the way they portray the news. Pakistan was great for meeting travellers -- so very different from SE Asia and all the other places I had been to on this trip. Everyone I met was very much into the "overland" thing. It didn't even have to be explained. These folks reminded me of the intrepid travellers I met in Mongolia. Half the folks seemed to have come from Europe via Iran and the other half was going in the other direction. The folks that had just come from Iran had nothing but great stuff to say about that place: modern, clean, and friendly. I was told by one guy, "Not many people speak English, but if you meet someone who does, that person will be your best friend and show you around." One 19-year old Swiss kid had just spent eight months travelling overland through the former Yugoslav states, spending two months in Iran and a month in the western half of Pakistan (where it's supposedly dangerous, if you believe the Pakistani media). He was headed up through the Central Asian nations and then to China and by boat to Japan. Another Swiss I met was overlanding between Switzerland and India (where he spent five months taking lessons to play the tabla). This is the second time he has made this trip (the first land crossing took three months, but this time he was planning on doing it in two-three weeks). Anyways, I think there are going to be a lot of travellers in limbo waiting for their Iranian visas.
I am in Cairo, Egypt now! I just arrived this afternoon. The past couple days have been a little frustrating. Prince gave me the impression that it was quite easy to get a transit visa for Iran from the Peshawar consulate, especially since he had a friend there, but when I showed up on Monday, I was told it would take 25 days to get a response from Tehran and my visa fee was non-refundable. I had already tried to get a visa from the embassy in Islamabad (7-10 days). After talking to many other travellers (one Australian was waiting for three weeks), I decided that the current "crisis" over nuclear energy development was going to impede my ability to get through Iran, and that it was too cold to cross the 'Stans of Central Asia to get to Turkey, so I opted for a flight to Cairo. Interestingly, the prices for flights out here from Pakistan are the same whether you purchase the tickets months in advance or the day before. I tried to buy a one-way ticket, but when it came time to furnish the ticket, I was suddenly informed that the airlines could not sell a one-way ticket to Egypt from Pakistan. I don't know if it was a scam, or just ignorance, or immigration laws, but I was told that because I was getting a visa on arrival, I needed a ticket leaving Egypt, but then later I was told that it was something that the Egyptian government required of tickets issued from Pakistan. Maybe it's another funny rule to keep "terrorists" out. Anyways, I bought a roundtrip ticket from Peshawar (the same price from any of the airports in Pakistan -- relatively cheap), stopped in Abu Dhabi (wow, the UAE looks great!), and landed here. I took a city bus from the airport and learned how to read Arabic numbers in the process (the buses are labelled in Arabic).
So far Egypt is great. Cairo is remarkably European. The buildings and the streets resemble Madrid or Paris. I have to take care of some more visa business here so I will be here for a few days, other than just sightseeing.
I didn't spend much time in Pakistan, but I've gotta say that the people were some of the friendliest and most helpful I have encountered on this trip. Maybe it is because there are so few tourists, but Pakistanis are extremely hospitable. It is such a difference from the typical Western opinion that it is a threatening place full of terrorists. The news media is such crap and there really is an agenda in the way they portray the news. Pakistan was great for meeting travellers -- so very different from SE Asia and all the other places I had been to on this trip. Everyone I met was very much into the "overland" thing. It didn't even have to be explained. These folks reminded me of the intrepid travellers I met in Mongolia. Half the folks seemed to have come from Europe via Iran and the other half was going in the other direction. The folks that had just come from Iran had nothing but great stuff to say about that place: modern, clean, and friendly. I was told by one guy, "Not many people speak English, but if you meet someone who does, that person will be your best friend and show you around." One 19-year old Swiss kid had just spent eight months travelling overland through the former Yugoslav states, spending two months in Iran and a month in the western half of Pakistan (where it's supposedly dangerous, if you believe the Pakistani media). He was headed up through the Central Asian nations and then to China and by boat to Japan. Another Swiss I met was overlanding between Switzerland and India (where he spent five months taking lessons to play the tabla). This is the second time he has made this trip (the first land crossing took three months, but this time he was planning on doing it in two-three weeks). Anyways, I think there are going to be a lot of travellers in limbo waiting for their Iranian visas.
Stripped down truck
Stripped down truck
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
I asked Prince about the colorful transport vehicles, so he brought us to a chop shop. Here, old battered trucks and buses were stripped and redecorated, heavily-laden with wood, paint, lights, and all sorts of unnecessary ornaments. It cost around $6000 to do this. It didn't seem logical considering how old the engines already were, but whatever.
Sufi music
Sufi music
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We went to a mosque to listen to some Sufi music. Sufi is a more mystical branch of Islam. Here, some performers played a guitar-like instrument and a clay vase, while singing (which actually resembled flamenco). The music was okay -- but everyone was smoking hashish around me, so we left after a bit (no, I didn't smoke any, but everyone was offering).
Camels on the silk road
Camels on the silk road
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
We saw these herders bringing camels and sheep up the Khyber Pass to go to Kabul.
Landi Kotal
Landi Kotal
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Gun-toting men walk around in the Tribal Areas. This is the last town before you hit Torkham at the border. There used to be a smuggler's bazaar here, but the Peshawar one has sucked all the business away.
Posing at the Michni checkpoint
Posing at the Michni checkpoint
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
This is as far as you can go on the Khyber Pass road if you don't have a visa for Afghanistan. I got lucky with clear skies so I could look into Afghanistan.
The Pakistan-Afghani border
The Pakistan-Afghani border
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
A few kilometers away was the Durand Line (the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan) and the border crossing of Torkham.
Walled forts
Walled forts
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
A lot of the structures we passed were walled compounds, a reminder that this was the wild west of Pakistan.
Passing a Buddhist stupa
Passing a Buddhist stupa
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
A remnant from a different age -- there are a few ruined stupas from the time when Buddhism was in the area.
This is the narrowest point of the pass
This is the narrowest point of the pass
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
It used to be so narrow that two fully-loaded camels could not cross side-to-side. This bottleneck was the only way to the Indian subcontinent from Central Asia. Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan came through this way, and the British feared German tanks would roll through here, so they placed tank stoppers in the riverbed. These are cement blocks that would impede the tanks' progress.
Gate at the start of the Khyber Pass
Gate at the start of the Khyber Pass
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Since the Khyber Pass is in the Tribal Area, foreigners are required to get permits and an armed escort. There is a smuggler's bazaar here (for contraband from Afghanistan) and loads of gun shops. There were a lot of people carrying AK-47s.
Here I am posing with our armed soldier and Prince Malik Ullah Khan, a very interesting character and our guide.
Carpet seller
Carpet seller
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
I met Mathieu, a Quebecois, in the lobby of my hotel in Peshawar. He was headed to the Khyber Pass the next day, so I went along. We got a free tour of the old city with our tour guide. Of course, we were led into a carpet shop and given tea. This shop was run by a Turkman, a guy from Turkmenistan. Apparently, I could pass for a Turkman.
Mahabat Khan Mosque
Mahabat Khan Mosque
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Built in 1630 by the governor of Peshawar under Shan Jahan.
Crowded minibus to Peshawar
Crowded minibus to Peshawar
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
From Islamabad, I took at 80 Rs, 2-hour minibus ride to Peshawar. There were 20 people crammed in this minibus. Peshawar means "frontier town" which is exactly what is was back in the Mughal period. It continues to be an outpost near the tribal areas that do not fall under Pakistani law. It is filled with interesting bazaars and is the access point to Afghanistan via the famed Khyber Pass.
Wide organized streets in Islamabad
Wide organized streets in Islamabad
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, is a giant suburb organized into separate neighborhoods. The air is much cleaner than other cities in Pakistan, presumably due to the lower population density.
Pakistani pizza?
Pakistani pizza?
Originally uploaded by bastchild.
Basically, it's a large deep-fried chapati with tomato paste and herbs on top. Very greasy, and not very pizza-like in taste.
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