A Letter to my Father from Upper Egypt

Daddy, I'm sailing on the Nile right now, and you'd be totally jealous of all the archaeological sights and the beautiful scenery I've seen. Just earlier I passed an area of the Nile that is used for farming. There were beautiful rushes all along the shallow banks of the river with black and brown cows drinking and bathing on the water and on the water's edge. The shoreline is flourishing with low tropical trees and agricultural lands from which we see a man in a long robe peak out every now and then. Beyond the flora are low desert hills as dry and barren as the Sahara. The aviary life on the edge of the river is quite active and stunning. The river is wide and calm, and I am just waiting to see an alligator stick up its head. As we sail, every now and then I'll see a little boat with oars or a small sail on the edge of the river or manned by a dark skinned figure going about his work as if seeing a large cruise ship was an everyday occurance. Yesterday our ship was surrounded by small merchant boats all around. They caught hold of our boat and were gathering together joining themselves with ropes. The men were shouting at us on all three decks trying to sell us various goods throwing the merchandise onto the ship and then demanding money. The scene was quite a hilarious one to behold! Since Friday, we've visited a handful of temples and archaeological sights which would make any archeology lover pee his pants. The artistic work and magnificence of it all is just mind blowing. We've received historical lectures with a tour guide from the university all along the way, and it is all more than I can digest. Nevertheless, I find it intriguing. To think that these structures have been present, whether above or below the silt of the Nile, for upwards to 4-6,000 years is outstanding! I cannot completely enjoy my little vacation because of my workload from school and my desire to be in the mountains (I should not keep reading about the mountains and climbing if I want to be content for the years I must spend in this desert). Just the same, I'm more than grateful for this opportunity!