Jordan & Egypt Uncovered

Alexandria, (àl´îg-zàn´drê-e) city (1986 pop. 2,917,327), N Egypt, on the Mediterranean Sea, W of the Nile R. delta. The city is Egypt’s leading port, a commercial and transportation center, and the heart of a major industrial area with such manufactures as refined petroleum, textiles, processed food, paper, and plastics. Founded in 332 B.C. by Alexander the Great, Alexandria was (304 B.C.-30 B.C.) the capital of the Ptolemies. The city was the greatest center of Hellenistic and
Jewish culture. It had a great university and two celebrated royal libraries, but their valuable collections have not survived. Alexandria became part of the empire of Rome in 30 B.C. and later of the Byzantine Empire. The Muslim Arabs took the city in 642 A.D. After Cairo became Egypt’s capital, Alexandria declined. It fell to Napoleon I in 1798 and to the British in 1801. During World War II the city was the chief Allied naval base in the E Mediterranean. At a 1944 meeting in Alexandria, plans for the Arab League were drawn up. A few of Alexandria’s ancient monuments are still visible. The Greco-Roman Museum houses a vast collection of Coptic, Roman, and Greek art.

AMMAN — Jordan’s capital and largest city (pop. 972,000) is situated just a short drive from the Syrian and Israeli borders (about 45 mi/72 km northeast of Jerusalem.) The area has been constantly inhabited since 6000 BC, though only a few of its ancient buildings endured. This somewhat drab, although modern, city was not much more than a village until it became the seat of government in the 1920s — since then it has evolved dramatically. (Its population swelled with the arrival of succeeding waves of dislocated Palestinians, who today make up a bulk of the city’s residents.)

Sit in on a performance in the 2,000-year-old Roman amphitheater (it holds 6,000) or the new Royal Cultural Center. Also visit the Basman Palace, the city’s Folklore Museum, Museum of Popular Traditions and the National Archaeological Museum. Tour the Forum and Citadel Hill to see the few remaining Roman ruins (including a temple of Hercules). The hill provides a vast picture of Amman and is a serene escape from Amman’s bustling atmosphere. The Jordan National Gallery displays modern Jordanian and Middle Eastern art and the university merits a visit. Don’t miss the huge King Abdullah Mosque, built in the late 1980s.

A short drive west of town in the Wadi Seer Valley are the ruins of Qasr al-Abid Castle and the Araq al-Amir Caves. An journey can be made to the nearby towns of Ajlun (see separate paragraph) and Salt (13 mi/21 km northwest of Amman — features enchanting 19th-century carved-stone architecture). Allow at least a day in Amman.

Aswan, Egypt’s southernmost city, has long been the country’s gateway to Africa and a prosperous market city on the crossroads of the ancient caravan routes. It sits at the ‘other’ end of the Nile not far above the Tropic of Cancer. It was a garrison town known as Sunt in ancient times and it was also important to the early Coptic Christians.

The Nile has Elephantine Island in its centre and this is where the main town and temple area of Sunt were located (the island was known then as Yebu, and later renamed by the Greeks). The temples and ruins here are not nearly as well preserved and impressive as those elsewhere in the country, but there are other good reasons to visit. The Nile is glorious here as it makes its way down from massive High Dam and Lake Nasser, and watching the feluccas glide by as the sun sets over the Nile is about as moving as any travel experience gets.

Cairo , the capital city of Egypt, has been the heart of Egypt for more than 1000 years and it demonstrates the dichotomy of all things Egyptian. Cairo is a timeless metropolis enriched with the unforgettable marks of a glorious past. It is in Cairo where the medieval world and the contemporary western world come together.The home of one of the seven wonders of the world – the Great Pyramids – not to mention the Sphinx of Giza and the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities, Cairo is a treasure chest of discovery, amazement, warmth & enjoyment.Islamic Cairo is the old medieval quarter, and stepping into its neighbourhoods is like moving back six or seven centuries with its tiny alleyways & mud-brick houses. Some of Islamic Cairo’s highlights include the Ibn Tulun Mosque, dating from the 9th century and one of the largest mosques in the world; the Mausoleum of Imam ash-Shafi’i, the largest Islamic tomb in Egypt where one of Islam’s greatest imams was buried.The Citadel, which is an awesome medieval fortress that was the seat of Egyptian power for 700 years. The Citadel has three major mosques and several museums.Coptic Cairo was originally built as a Roman fortress town. It pre-dates the founding of Islamic Cairo by several hundred years and was home to one of the world’s first Christian communities. It is, however, a holy place for Jews and Muslims as well as the Coptic Christians who lived there. The one remaining part of the Fortress of Babylon is a tower which was built in 98 AD and originally overlooked an important port on the Nile. The Coptic Museum is at the foot of the tower and its exhibits cover Egypt’s Christian era between 300 and 1000 AD. This stunning collection includes religious and secular art, and includes stonework, manuscripts, woodwork, metalwork, paintings and pottery.For shopping, the Khan El Khalily bazaar is a must.

Luxor was built on the site of the ancient city of Thebes, and the magnificent monumental architecture and its excellent condition make Luxor one of Egypt’s greatest tourist destinations. For many hundreds of years people have been visiting the temples of Luxor, Karnak, Hetsgepsut and Ramses II. The Nile has feluccas and old barges that shuffle between the luxury hotel ships of the Hilton and Sheraton that cruise between Cairo and Aswan. Luxor Temple was built by Pharaoh
Amenophis III on the site of another Thebian temple and added to by Tutankhamun, Ramses II, Nectanebo, Alexander the Great and various Romans. Excavation work has been underway since 1885. The Temples of Karnak are a series of monuments that were the main place of worship in Thebian times, and they can be divided into the Amun Temple
Enclosure, which is the largest; the Mut Temple Enclosure on the south side; and the Montu Temple Enclosure. The Amun and Montu enclosure were once connected by canals to the Nile providing passage for sacred boats during festivals. Luxor is accessible from Cairo by buses or trains which run every day.