What We Did
Blakely Downs
Palau: A Scuba Fantasy

Palau.  Where we swam with a mob of jellyfish, free dove to hidden lagoons, Kayaked caves, and had the best scuba diving we’ve ever done.

 

Palau: A Scuba Fantasy
What We Did
Blakely Downs
Bolivia - Our Quest to the Salt Flats
Bolivia - Our Quest to the Salt Flats
What We Did
Blakely Downs
The Holy Sites of the Old City
The Holy Sites of the Old City
What We Did
Blakely Downs
Jerusalem
Jerusalem
What We Did
Blakely Downs
The Christian Sites of Galilee
The Christian Sites of Galilee

Lessons from the Nile

1.  The colors on many Ancient Egyptian temples are still preserved 2000+ years later because they’re made from natural substances like iron and turquoise.  Plus Egypt’s dry climate causes minimal corrosion.   

2.  Egypt has a tough time managing the precious temples in their care.  The guards allow or even encourage rule breaking for a tip.  They even try to take you into off-limit places.  Once you're in the forbidden place, they'll demand a tip.  It's best practice to ignore anyone approaching you. 

Also, the influx of tourists is incredibly hard on the ancient tombs.  With the help of foreign aid, Egypt is building exact replicas of many tombs so visitors can enjoy the sights without damaging the original. 

3.  Hieroglyphics is a language based on symbols.  Each symbol equals a letter, a sound, or an action.  Hieroglyphics can be written right to the left, left to the right, upward, or downward.  You can tell what direction you should read by the direction that the objects face (bird’s beaks being our favorite tell-tale sign).

4.  Gods and pharaohs of ancient Egypt are sometimes difficult to differentiate because they both have temples, are worshipped, and were considered immortal.   Des was an ancient Egyptian dwarf god in charge of fun.  The original joker. 

5.  The Nubian tribes living on the Nile love crocodiles.  We speak from experience.

Ryan, what is that over the door???

Please, please, PLEASE take this thing away from me!

6.  When shopping for alabaster, you can see if the piece is authentic and handmade by holding it to the light-- you should be able to see the light through it.

7.  In a mosque, it isn't always necessary for a woman to cover her head.  A definite must is to cover your shoulders and knees.

8.  Egyptian temples have graffiti that's older than most European monuments.  

9.  The temples of Abu Simbel are two ginormous rock temples that were relocated stone by stone in 1968 when the building of the new dam threatened to destroy them.  Stone.  By.  Stone.

10.  Young people here love taking pictures with foreigners.  Including us.  I even had a family ask me to take a picture of THEM with my camera.  So, here they are.

Dear Family: If you're reading this, As-salamu alaykom!

Luxor, Ancient Egypt's Masterpiece

Luxor, also known as Thebes, was one of the most important cities in ancient Egypt.  As such, it holds many of the most important temples and tombs.

First, a note on ancient Egyptian temples: Given their ancient construction, the history of these temples spans thousands of years with each generation influencing them.  The result is a wonderfully complex and diverse structure with architecture, stonework, and dedications from many different cultures and religions including Egyptian, Greek, French, Roman, Christian, and Muslim.  By walking through these structures, you walk through history.

Karnak Temple is one of the best examples of this.  Its construction spanned over 30 pharaohs who wanted to leave their mark, plus it has a temple inside the complex built by Alexander the Great.  We wandered around the colossal columns (with beams estimated to weigh 70 tons!) and our fantastic guide Aboudi brought this history to life.

09-IMG_7086.JPG

Next was Luxor Temple.  We opted to view Luxor temple at dusk and then stay to see it lit up at night.  This perspective somehow made the temple even more beautiful and mysterious, which is something we didn’t think was possible!

Luxor Temple is where many believe pharaohs would be crowned.   Alexander the Great even claimed to be crowned there!  Our favorite part was the mosque that sits on top of the ruins.  The mosque was built before excavations on the temple were complete and, once the temple was excavated, locals vehemently opposed tearing the mosque down.  Today, the mosque continues to operate and we listened to the evening call to prayer while studying a Ramses II statue by twilight!

The next day, we made a quick stop by the Colossi of Memnon—two enormous statues that stand as 3000-year-old sentinels for the ancient treasures of Luxor.  Next, we sped on to the Medinet Habu Temple.

Medinet Habu Temple, like many Ancient Egyptian temples, resembles a city more than a temple.  It also still has original colors preserved on its ceilings!  Along with architectural and sculptural beauties, it has a gorgeous relief of a battle of Ramses III.  It may have been the Egyptian heat, but when you stare at it, the characters seem to move!

Our next stop was one of our favorites:  The Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut.  Hatshepsut was the most powerful of ancient Egypt’s female pharaohs.  The temple is built into the cliff-side and it has gorgeous stone reliefs that explain stories even two Westerners can understand.  Unfortunately, many of the reliefs were destroyed by Hatshepsut’s stepson after her death.  Later, the temple was used for building materials for a Christian monastery.  To continue the tragic tale, this temple was also the site of the appalling massacre in 1997 where Islamic Extremists killed 67 people, mainly tourists, visiting the site.   Our talented guide, Aboudi, used the destroyed reliefs as a moving illustration for the useless and tragic destruction in which we humans continue to engage.

We then went to the famed Valley of the Kings.  After learning that pyramids were easy targets for tomb raiders, pharaohs of the New Kingdom opted to be buried in the desert valley in hidden tombs.  63 tombs have been excavated and we believe some haven’t been found yet.  These temples contain the earthly treasures of the pharaoh and provide clues as to daily life and rituals of the ancients. Even with modern technology, the discovery of tombs comes down to chance which leads to the assumption that there remain many unexcavated.  Modern scanning is no match for the limestone that encases these mysteries. 

We visited four tombs including that of King Tut.  King Tut’s tomb was broken into along with his neighbors, but his treasures remain untouched because of the ingenius hiding techniques of his tomb.  However, after excavation, his treasures were transported to the Egyptian Museum where, in the 2011 Revolution, looters sadly got away with a few of them.

Pictures weren't allowed so click the caption for the photo source!

Ramses IV Tomb was one of our favorites.

The entrances were daunting but gorgeous.


Lastly, we visited an alabaster factory and learned how to tell the difference between authentic handmade products and machine made imitations (hold it up to the light—you should be able to see through it!).  We even tried our hand on the techniques! 

With our heads full of new knowledge, we left Luxor for our fantastic cruise down the Nile!  Details on that to come!  In the meantime, Click Here to read What We Learned in Cairo and Luxor.

A Tour of Crazy Cairo

Egypt is a magnificent mess.  With breathtaking landscape and a glorious history, it is a destination that everyone should visit in their lifetime.  Unfortunately, modern issues overshadow its past splendor.  The recent plane crash solidifies its tumultuous reputation and it will be years before tourism is back on track.  We’re thankful we were able to view these wonders and grateful to the many Egyptian people who kept us safe during our stay and infused us with enthusiasm for their remarkable country.

To try and see as much as possible safely, we enlisted the help of Encounters Travel who hooked us up with an itinerary of a lifetime!  Their thorough safety procedures sealed the deal for us and their local guides were knowledgeable, passionate, and brought a unique perspective to both modern and ancient Egypt.  Hold onto your hats and travel with us back through time. 

We arrived in Cairo and got settled into the Mena House Hotel.  What a history and what a view!  The hotel was originally a sultan’s palace and it looks the part!  If that doesn’t impress you, the view will.

We began our tour just outside Cairo in a city called Memphis.  This was an appropriate introduction because Memphis was the capital of the Old Kingdom (3000 BC) and today has an incredible open air museum that houses a gigantic statue of Ramses II (he’s arguably the most powerful of all the pharaohs ever.  So, a pretty big deal). 

Next, we headed northwest of Memphis to the home of the Saqqara necropolis, a National Park and the burial ground of the Old Kingdom.  We saw the famous Step Pyramid of Djoser, which is the oldest complete stone building complex in the world.  At Saqqara, we also visited our first tomb!  And WOW.  Covered in hieroglyphics from 5,000 years ago, it was humbling to see.

After a morning building up our early pyramid knowledge, we were ready to visit the Great Pyramids of Giza. Despite all of Egypt’s ancient treasures, these structures steal the show.  They are the only remaining Ancient Wonders of the World and left us speechless (no easy task).  How can stone be so gorgeous?

Next to the Great Pyramids is, you guessed it, the Great Sphinx.  Wowza.  There are many a sphinx in Egypt, but this one overshadows all others.  Its Arabic name translates to "The Terrifying One" and it stands as a monstrous guard to the Great Pyramids.  It is built out of a single piece of limestone and is the largest statue of this type in the world.  

We were exhausted and dusty after our whirlwind tour of Cairo, but there was no time to rest!  Next up, one of our favorite cities in Egypt.  Luxor! 

That's What We Did in Cairo.  Click Here to read What We Learned!

Cairo and Pharaohs

An ancient civilization on the front lines of the war on terror, Egypt is an extraordinary country to experience.  We began in Cairo to study pyramids, pharaohs, and life in the volatile land of the Nile.  Here are some things we learned:  

1.  Pyramid conspiracy theories suggest that the pyramids were built by aliens or angels.  Experts are able to prove the pyramids were built by nothing more or less than manpower, because we’ve found evidence of the “rough draft” pyramids all over Egypt.

This pyramid still has it's original Limestone cap!

2.  Also, the pyramids weren’t built by slaves.  Construction occurred during the annual Nile flood season when farming wasn’t possible and the river provided an easy way to transport the huge stones.  So the pyramids could be seen as a sort of civil employment system to farmers that otherwise would’ve spent half the year out of work.

The stone blocks are MASSIVE!

3.  Uniforms matter.  In order to protect tourists and citizens in Egypt, there are heavily armed soldiers and frequent security stops.  However, some of the soldiers don’t have on uniforms.  It’s incredibly unnerving to see a man with an assault rifle in street clothes.

4.  The Nile truly is the lifeblood of Egypt.  It cuts through the desert and Egyptian life, even today, couldn’t exist without it.

5.  In Ancient Egypt, yearly taxes depended on the level of the Nile Flood, because the flood was indicative of the productiveness of the harvest.  Most temples have a “Nile-o-meter” which indicated the flood level and thus taxes for the neighborhood.

Nileometer at the ancient temple of Komombo.

6.  Despite living and depending on the Nile, Egyptians are historically terrible sailors.  The wind blows one way and the current flows the other so there isn't much need for expertise.

7.  Because of the heavy pollution, one day spent in Cairo is the same as smoking one pack of cigarettes.

8.  King Tut, arguably the most well-known Pharaoh, was not exceptionally great or rich.  He's special because his tomb was the only one we’ve found that was not raided by tomb robbers.  The magnificent treasures were uncovered almost completely intact.  

9.  Despite surviving ancient robbers, a few of King Tut's priceless treasures were stollen from the Egyptian Museum in the 2011 uprising.  Good grief.  

10.  No one knows why The Great Sphinx is missing his nose.  Many blame Napoleon's soldiers though this is highly unlikely.  Napoleon was obsessed with Ancient Egypt and is responsible for cataloging and preserving many of the relics we enjoy today.  Our favorite "Missing Nose" theory is that, for thousands of years, the Sphinx was buried up to his neck in sand.  As people walked by, they would rub his nose for good luck.

Bonus Fact:  The 2011 Egyptian Revolution and increased terrorism in the Middle East has taken a gigantic toll on Egypt’s tourism and economy. The revenue from ancient monuments has fallen a whopping 95% since 2011.  One of the incomes saving tourism was resorts on the Red Sea.  The recent plane crash in Sharm el Sheikh (a resort town that was considered one of the safest places in Egypt), will further devastate the Egyptian people and economy.  We flew out of Sharm el Sehikh a few weeks before the crash and our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the passengers.  Our thoughts are also with the millions of innocent Egyptians who will face the repercussions of these extremists.

That's What We Learned in Cairo.  Click Here to read What We Did.

Africa, It's Complicated

When I think of Africa, I think of red sunsets over endless lion-colored land.  I think of people scarred but not bitter and land dry but full of life.  I think of dark skin in bright clothing. 

If Africa was a song, it would be a chaos of a violent and soulful harmony.  It would be heartbreakingly sad, yet hopeful.  It would be old, but not finished.

Africa taught me the world is full and thick and deep.  It taught me my age. It taught me my size.  It taught me to not feel sorry for people who live differently than me.  Africa taught me to look.  It taught me to listen.  It taught me things are usually better in daylight.  Africa taught me how to not be afraid.

Quotes from our Travels

He said, She Said

“I’ve got some bad news.  Instead of Giza, you said we were in Gaza.”          -Ryan spell checking Blakely’s post.

“I wish the sun would go down so we can go to sleep.” -Ryan.  Our habits have changed a bit.  We see LOTS of sunrises.

At a bus station before dawn.  A young ragamuffin boy with a wheelbarrow was helping us with our bags.  He could barely speak English but, before we entered the chaos of the station, he turned and sternly told us: “Don’t trust anyone!”

Same bus station.  The bus driver was cutting a rope with a rock.  Ryan asked if he wanted a knife and the bus driver replied good naturally: “Oh no.  We don’t allow knives in the bus station or we’d all kill each other!”

“Whatever you do, don’t run.” -Our walking safari guide’s advice if we encountered a lion or leopard.

“There’s more to see than can ever be seen.  More to do than can ever be done.” -Circle of Life lyrics and perfect description of our time in Africa.

“This face is too fat to be you.” -Storekeeper to Ryan when she checked his ID.

“Travelers, in general, are horrendous.” -Blakely in a dark moment.  

“Whoa!” -Us 10x per day.

New Hope for a New Generation

It’s difficult to identify New Hope’s greatest accomplishment.  Their orphanage provides shelter, nourishment, discipline, and counseling to over 100 HIV positive children.  Their school educates over 170 children and their clinic provides affordable healthcare to nearly 500 patients from the surrounding area.  Each of these is monumental.  But none compare to the extraordinary revolution New Hope has given the Meru Community.  

Clinic patients wait to be seen.

Caroline, a clinic technician.

In defiance of norms, superstitions and ignorant health concerns, New Hope treats both HIV positive and negative patients in their clinic and teaches both HIV positive and negative children in their classrooms.  The result is massive progress towards abolishing the devastating social stigma that surrounds HIV.  

It’s impossible to overstate how destructive the HIV stigma is in Africa.  It causes physical and psychological suffering to HIV positive people and denies them their basic human rights (an example being the HIV positive children who are pitilessly abandoned and now live at New Hope).  These repercussions cause many people to deny their condition and take no medication or precaution.  The HIV medication, along with helping with symptoms and progression, prevents the disease from passing to a child during pregnancy.  The parents remain in denial and the result is the generation of innocent HIV positive children at New Hope who dutifully take their medication morning and night. 

Each child has a cubby for their medication.  The dosage depends on their stage of HIV.

A house mother calls roll to give out morning medicine.

It begins and ends with these children.  If you watch them play, it would be easy to overlook that most of them have endured nothing short of horror in their short lives.  One of our jobs while at New Hope was to have the children write their story.   In simple seven-year-old language, they describe starvation, beatings, death, child labor, and abandonment.  And then, they describe coming to New Hope.

They didn’t expect to be received.  They didn’t expect to have friends.  Many had never had a home.  They were scared, lonely, and HIV positive.  They’d never known a secure future.  And then, New Hope swooped in.

A chalkboard from Class 5 at New Hope School.

The kids are constantly holding hands.

And the older ones take care of the younger ones.  And all of them take care of the babies.

And the older ones take care of the younger ones.  And all of them take care of the babies.

Now, the children play.  They study hard and sit quietly through three-hour church services on Sunday.  They eat five meals a day and take medicine every morning and every night.  They laugh when they catch balls and cry when they fall.  They talk openly about being HIV positive and they have teachers and counselors who will listen. 

Africa is complicated and the challenges are overwhelming.  We were discouraged and, without seeing it with our own eyes, we wouldn’t have believed that an organization like New Hope could exist.  But it does.  And they’re nourishing a new generation of Africans who will carry their banner and change their world.  And we should all cheer them on. 

Click Here to learn more about New Hope and their parent organization March to the Top.  For information on how to sponsor one of these incredible children, please email info@marchtothetop.com.

The Great Migration: Safari on Steroids

The border of Kenya and Tanzania holds a plethora of safari options.  The most interesting to us?  The Ngorongoro Crater for the scenery, and the Maasai Mara for the infamous Great Migration.

The Ngorongoro crater is deservedly a UNESCO heritage site and a natural wonder.  If the crater itself wasn’t enough of a draw, inside the crater is home to tons of game animals including the Big Five.  We saw lions, elephants, giraffes and even the rare and endangered rhinos!

Stretch!!!!

The biggest show for us, however, was the supreme safari of the world: The Great Migration.  The Migration is one of the most impressive natural phenomenons in the world—about 1.7 million wildebeest, 260,000 zebra, and 470,000 gazelle follow water up to the concentrated land in Maasai Mara, Kenya.  The precarious journey is a highlight for both the predators and spectators alike! 

Wildebeests migrate in a straight line and you can see it stretch across the entire horizon!

When you pick your destination for the Migration, it all depends on timing and where the herds will be.  That made the Maasai Mara the place for us.  We found the fabulous game lodge Aruba Mara to make the experience complete.

Wow.  With all of the wildebeests and other prey, the predators come out in droves. We saw a cheetah and her babies eating a kill—twice!  We saw multiple lion prides, a family of leopards, giraffes, elephants, massive crocodiles, and tons of others!

It was the perfect finale to our safari experience and certainly the highlight.  A huge thanks to Gerdi and her Aruba Mara team for making our Great Migration experience everything we hoped.

With all of the good given to us, it’s time to give back.  Next up: Volunteering with New Hope in Kenya.  In the meantime, Click Here to read What We Learned in the Maasai Mara.

Lessons from the Maasai Mara and Ngorogoro Crater

More Lessons from the Wild

1.  Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania was formed when a volcano collapsed on itself.  It is 2,000 feet deep and covers 100 square miles.

2.  Horns grow directly from the skull.  Not sure what we thought they did (maybe a joint?), but there ya have it.

3.  During the great migration, 1.7 million wildebeests migrate from Tanzania to Kenya.  In our inexpert opinion, wildebeest are possibly the ugliest creatures on the planet and our guide told us they’re also fairly dumb.  But they certainly reproduce in large quantities!

4.  Giraffes have their babies standing up.  Ouch.

5.  Hyenas have the strongest teeth and jaws of the African predators.

6.  When Lions mate, they do so up to 100 times per day for up to 7 days around the clock.  They usually don’t even stop to eat.  We learned about this process first hand.  Email us for a pic—we felt weird posting it!

7.  The Maasai are the best know tribe in East Africa (thanks, in part, to the book Out of Africa).  The Maasai Mara Game Reserve is even named after them!  Today, their indigenous lifestyle remains fairly consistent with their ancestors and they act as guides to kooks like us. 

8.  The Massai are generally Christians as well as polygamists. 

9.  Out of Africa explains the Massai’s obsession with cattle and this is still true today.  In fact, a girl is considered a blessing because a male must pay in many cattle to marry her.  In their dowry system, the male pays to marry a female instead of her father paying for the husband to take her.

10.  Elephants mourn.  For years after they lose a loved one, they’ll often return to the place of the death on the exact day of the loss.  Other scientists record them crying and showing signs of depression over loss.

That's What We Learned in the Maasai Mara, Click Here to read details on What We Did.

Salaam Means Peace

For the first time in my life, I was surrounded by Muslims. 

Zanzibar, located off the coast of Tanzania, is 99% Muslim.  After my time there, I feel profound awe and respect for a religion where women drape themselves in gorgeous fabric to hide everything but their faces.  Where throughout the day, and wherever they are, grown men hear the call, turn to face the birthplace of their Prophet, drop to their knees, and pray.  I sometimes have a hard time bowing my head before meals.

We were treated with such kindness and respect.  I dressed modestly, but blushed over my exposed collarbone.  Not for the first time on this trip, I suddenly understood an entirely new perspective.  These women cover everything but their eyes.  Whereas I cover my eyes and show almost everything else. 

Despite my decidedly Western appearance, the women smiled and made me feel welcome and safe.  In our exchanged smiles, I imagined a communication of mutual respect and an apology for our peoples' cruelties against the other's.  I fantasized of the progress if a billion such smiles happened between a billion different people from each side of the hemisphere. 

We have entered Muslim territory and this is just the start.  I know we will likely have some bad experiences.  But I’ll always remember and be humbly grateful for this beginning.  

Zanzibar, We Love You

To get to Zanzibar, we took a three-day train (which we aren't ready to talk about) from central Zambia to the coast of Tanzania and then ferried to the fabulous islands.  Zanzibar is an archipelago off the coast that has been a long time trading port where Africa, Arabia, India, and the Far East meet.  These influences continue today to make a fascinating place for architecture, food, and people.   

Zanzibar is 99% Muslim and the call to prayer rings out for everyone to hear.  Stone Town, the main city, is a maze of small cobblestoned streets where it’s better to spend the day getting lost rather than to worry about directions.

The Stone Town spice market is a delight to the senses and, not surprisingly, the food is as well!  Take a break from the sun on the reclining cushions at Monsoon where they serve local cuisine with charm.  To top off the day, every night there is a food stall market by the harbor.  Blakely particularly recommends the Zanzibar Pizza!

Laid back!

His face is my favorite.  He's like "Who is this crazy lady?"

We stayed at the recommended Hiliki House in Stone Town and the manager, Aboud, was a wonderful host.  Plus, the breakfast is a reason to wake up in the morning.

After Stone Town, we headed to the beach for some much-needed R&R.  There are a variety of beach village options depending on your mood.  We selected Jambiani which is fairly quiet with beautiful beaches.  The water is one-thousand shades of blue so we dove twice to fully appreciate the shades!

To get to Jambiani, we took a traditional dalla dalla!

Teeeensy bit cramped!

The tide in Zanzibar is a marvel!  Everyday on the Eastern beaches, low tide and high tide expand and retract by about a mile.  This is because Zanzibar is a coral island and very flat so small changes in the sea level create huge movements in the waterline.  It makes for perfect strolling and exploring!  The local women harvest seaweed and fisherman’s boats travel around the many lagoons.  

Now it's floating...

Now it's not!

Zanzibar was exactly what we needed to rest up for more safaris!

That's what we did.  Click Here to read What We Learned.  And see all of the pictures from the train ride and Zanzibar here!

Spicy Learning in Zanzibar

1. We already knew some Swahili, a language spoken in Eastern Africa!  “Hakuna Matata” truly means “No Worries” in Swahili.  The Lion King uses other Swahili words: Simba means lion, Rafiki means friend, and Pumba means foolish one.

2. “Thank you very much” in Swahili is “asante sana.”  Sound familiar?  It’s the beginning lyrics to Rafiki’s song “Asante sana, squash banana.”  Yes, this is how we remember it.

3. Lion King’s plotline has many possible sources (some say Hamlet), but simply analyzed it is based on facts of nature.  Male lions fight for dominance and will kick younger males out.  The banished younger males fend for themselves and then come back to the pride when they’re old enough to fight for dominance.

Ok, enough about the Lion King.  But it’s hard not to think about it in Eastern Africa!

4. When your husband says the three-day train ride through Africa is going to be a little rough, he means the 3-day train ride will be a nightmare.  Get a jug of Purell and beef up your prescriptions.  You’re in for a ride.

5. Never underestimate the smile-and-wave.

6. Zanzibar is an archipelago off the coast of Tanzania and, while technically part of the country, it operates and considers itself separate (you have to show your passport and vaccinations card to be allowed in). 

7. Zanzibar is 99% Muslim and was one of the ancient trade islands that connected Africa with Arabia, India, and the Far East.  These islands are often called the Spice Islands and rightly so.

A stall at Stone Town's spice market

A stall at Stone Town's spice market

8. Dar es Salaam, the largest city in Tanzania, is half Christian, half Muslim and both sides live very peacefully together.  Dar es Salaam is Arabic and literally translates to “the home of peace.”

9. When stung by a jellyfish, rub sand on it (don’t ask how Blakely learned this).

10. When cutting your own hair, always cut less than you think you should (don’t ask how Blakely learned this either).

That's What We Did in Zanzibar.  Click Here to read What We Did!