Prologue, Egypt

分類：留英歲月
2006/04/16 15:52

2003, February

In my high school days,

Egypt was buried with pyramids in history textbooks,

like other famous old stories were.

In the late 80s,

followed by the boom of tourism in Taiwan,

Egypt has transformed into a dreamland ,

where tourists could wear their turbans while having a camel-riding.

During my stay in England,

Egypt became home of many brown-skinned, thick-eyebrowed, fluent English speakers,

who were mostly named Mohamed, Ahmed or Khalid. 

 
 

In February 2003,

I started to have a new perspective towards Egypt.

Carrie and I visited the Upper Egypt.

We claimed our Egypt-travel agenda as a respectful, archeological one,

but actually we just couldn't resist a 299 pounds' package holiday!

That trip included our flights to Aswan and 5-star accommodation on cruise.

There, we boarded the deluxe cruise, Salacia.

She sailed along the river Nile,

took us to a number of great ancient temples down the very south of Egypt to Sudan.

It was a trip of deja vu,

flashing illusions of previous lives.

I saw the past of the local people, as well as mine.

It was a place where originality was found, literally or metaphorically.

It was such an old place,

that even modernities (for example our cruise) looked ridiculous.

However, lazybones as were have always been,

without the modern transportation,

this trip would have been an ordeal.

We agreed that life should be this relaxing.

Each morning, we found ourselves woken by the babbling and rhythmic waves of Nile,

surrounded by the ecru of the desert,

basked in the warmth of the winter sun.

Elegant white feluccas and clumsy cruises,

which always saluted with others or be saluted by noisy honks,

kept passing, and we waved.

Jolly Italian tourists kept having fun, we laughed.

Egyptian crew remained relaxed all the time, and we chatted.

The best of all, just when we thought we couldn't have possibly asked for more,

the bell was rung, and the tea was served.