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Chapter 8

Chapter 8. Egypt. Egypt. Country name : Arab Republic of Egypt, Egypt Capital : Cairo Location : Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula

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Chapter 8

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  1. Chapter 8 Egypt

  2. Egypt • Country name: Arab Republic of Egypt, Egypt • Capital: Cairo • Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula • Border countries: Gaza Strip, Israel, Libya, Sudan

  3. Government type: republic • Population: 74,718,797 (July 2003 est.). Most populated in the Arab world, and the second (after Nigeria) in Africa. • Languages: Arabic (official), English and French widely understood by educated classes • Religions: Muslim (mostly Sunni) 94%, Coptic Christian and other 6% • GDP – per capita: purchasing power parity - $4,000 (2002 est.) (134th in the world)

  4. Industries: textiles, food processing, tourism, chemicals, hydrocarbons, construction, cement, metals • Currency: Egyptian pound (EGP) (CIA, World Fact Book)

  5. Important Facts • One of the top destinations (with Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates) in Middle East • 4,9 million international tourist arrivals • $3,8 million international tourism receipts (the highest in the region) (WTO, 2003) • Coastline: 2,450 km • Terrain: vast desert plateau interrupted by Nile valley and delta

  6. Climate: desert; hot, dry summers with moderate winters (CIA, World Fact Book). Egypt is dominated by sand and water. Nearly all Egypt is desert, except the area along the Nile River where 95% of the population live around.

  7. Selling Points • The Pyramids and the Sphinx, the Valleys of the Kings and Queens, Cairo, ancient temples, museums, churches, casinos, Nile cruises, spas, desert culture and scuba diving.

  8. Very Brief History • in 3050 BC, the first Pharaoh united Upper and Lower Egypt and started an empire legendary with its elaborate tombs, magnificent pyramids and hieroglyphs • in AD 640, Arabs invaded Egypt • Ottomans, French and British invaded the country as well • in 1953, Egypt won its full independence

  9. Cairo • populated (9 million people live), polluted, beautiful, with traffic jam and world famous treasures • Egyptian Museum (the prime attraction for tourists; thousand year old mummies are displayed in oxygen-free cases; the contents of the tomb of the Tutankhamen; artifacts from the Greek and Roman periods)

  10. Khan-el Khalili Bazaar (winding streets with shops and stalls and carts) • Mohammed Ali Mosque and Alabaster Mosque (fine examples of Islamic art and architecture) • some other attractions include; • Museum of Islamic Art • casinos • a museum detailing the making of papyrus • the Coptic quarter (several million Egyptians are Coptic Christians) • the Opera

  11. Giza • a suburb of Cairo • The Great Pyramids and the Sphinx are located here (though most photos make them appear that they are out in the desert, they are actually at the edge of Cairo) • The Great Pyramid (the biggest one; 5000 year-old; built for Cheops; built of 2,5 million blocks of stone; its engineering still amazes) • The Sphinx (located just off to the side of the Great Pyramid; mystery for scientists, since no one knows when or why it was built)

  12. Saqqara • very close to Cairo • The Step Pyramid of Zoser (one other famous pyramid, much older than the Giza pyramids) and a number of interesting tombs (which has more impressive artwork compared to the Great Pyramid) • ruins of Memphis (once the largest and the most important city of Egypt; has an imposing statue of Ramses II)

  13. Luxor • most important destination in Egypt • The Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens (final resting places of ancient Egyptian royalty; the tombs spread out over quite a large area) • The Colossi of Memnon( two enormous seating statues at the entrance of the valley) • The colors and the artwork on the walls are very impressive

  14. one of the best known tomb is the young Tutankhamen (discovered with its treasures; contents are displayed in the Cairo Museum) • Temple of Luxor and the Temple of Karnak (incredibly impressive structures with statues and colonnades)

  15. Abu Simbel • 3200 year-old temple • four huge statues of Pharaoh II facing the Nile • marvel of repeated engineering; first it took 25000 workers 25 years to carve it into a mountainside, then (due to the completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1960, it was in danger) stone by stone, it was moved to a higher ground where first a mountain similar to the one it was taken out had to be constructed (the international effort was headed by UNESCO)

  16. Alexandria • beautiful atmosphere; relaxed Mediterranean feel • more cosmopolitan than Cairo • Nice contrast with the ancient ruins • Greco-Roman Museum (the displayed items which are dated from 300 BC to AD 300 maybe considered modern by Egyptian standards)

  17. a causeway leads from the city to the island of Pharos (once the site of the Great Lighthouse, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World) • Mersa Matruh (the resort with good beaches, excellent reef diving and turquoise water)

  18. Aswan • fairly modern, pleasant city at the end of the rail in Upper Egypt • Two islands in the Nile are the main attractions • Elephantine (has two old authentic villages) • Kitchener’s island (also called Botanic island, has tombs and attractive gardens) • Aswan High Dam

  19. Nile Cruises • easiest way to see the major sites in Egypt • the cruises range from five-day “felucca” (sailboat) trips from Aswan to Luxor, to two-weeks luxury cruises from Cairo to Aswan • generally ships cruise between Luxor and Aswan; the trip between Cairo and Luxor is a long one which may be boring

  20. Red Sea Resorts • The resorts along the Red Sea, Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqada offer diving, snorkeling, fishing and desert scenery • Hurghada (one of the best established resort area, has beautiful crescent-shaped bay, rugged mountains, great beaches, offshore coral reef) • Sinai Peninsula • Sharm el Sheikh (year-round resort area, offers deluxe accommodations, and water sports

  21. Taba (expensive resort on the Israeli border, offers eater sports, tennis, nightclubs) • Nuweiba (on the Gulf of Aqada, offers superb sand beaches and water sports)

  22. The Sinai Desert • East of the Suez Canal • Much more beautiful than the Western Desert which covers most of Egypt • Its terrain is rugged and rocky with dunes reaching Mediterranean • Air and land tour are possible from Cairo and Eilat (the resort in Israel)

  23. Mt Horeb (believed to be Mt Sinai where Moses received the Ten Commandments) • St Catherine’s Monastery (has a large library of early Christian manuscripts and relics; built on the site of Moses’ burning bush)

  24. Things to Remember • heat and the amount of walking required to see the important attractions in Egypt may be bothering. Carrying a bottle of water around would be a good idea. • traveling in a group may be much safer.

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