Holy Land Trip (Day One in Cairo)

Wednesday, March 11, was our first full day in Cairo, Egypt, and it was a hectic one!
First off, Cairo is a major city and one of the largest in the world. The streets are always crowded and driving is very Darwinistic (survival of the fittest).
Its history goes back thousands of years. We were able to see some of that history today.
In the morning, we went to Old Cairo and saw some significant religious sites.
We saw some of the early Coptic (early Egyptian Christians) churches in Egypt including the “Hanging Church,” built over the bastians of a Roman gate.
We also visited the Ben Ezra Synagogue where tradition holds that the baby Moses was pulled from the Nile and raised in the Pharaoh’s palace.
Among the other significant places we saw today was a church built over a place where it is believed Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus lived for a time when the family fled Herod in Israel.
After we left Old Cairo, we went for a lunch a beautiful city park called El Azhar Park.
Things got interesting as our group tried crossing a major highway to get to the park entrance. Remember Egyptian drivers do not stop for anything.
A few squealing tires and dirty looks later, we made it across. I’m happy to report no one was injured.
Following our lunch, we made an all-too-quick visit of the Egyptian Museum. The museum has the largest and finest collection of ancient Egyptian history. There is also one wing dedicated to King Tutankhamon alone. The detail and artwork that was done 4,000-5,000 years ago by the Egyptians blew me away!
Following the museum, we hustled over to the Great Pyramids & Sphnix for a light and sound show. The show used lasers and lights on the pyramids to tell more about the history of several Pharaohs and Kingdoms.
We will be going back to the Pyramids tomorrow for a longer visit followed by a dinner cruise on the Nile River. It should be great.
I’m sorry, but there are no pictures today; however, I’ll try my best to post some tomorrow.
The internet access at the hotel (the Amarante Pyramids Hotel) is not free here so I’m trying to manage my time the best I can.


God bless,
Greg Herriford