Fayoum Oasis is Egypt's largest oasis, populated by more
than 2 million. It is not a pure oasis like the other
ones of Egypt, as most of its water comes from the Nile. But it is a depression,
and it has its own artesian wells, allowing water to reach the
surface from underground reservoirs. The extent of it is
quite grand, and the green gardens seem to go on and on. Its
villages are simple and far too often filthy, making a stark
contrast to the gardens and the splendid past. Fayoum's history goes
back in time as far as Egypt's. Its earliest recorded name, in the
time of the pyramid builders, was To-She. With the construction of
irrigation canals in the 19th century BCE, the oasis became the most
fertile region in Egypt. The 4th century BCE king Ptolemy 2
Philadelphia named it after his sister/wife Arsinoe.
With the introduction of
Roman control a few centuries later, a new taxation system ruined
local farmers and resulted in a decline of the oasis that would last
for almost 1600 years, before Mohammed Ali introduced new
programmers, promoting agriculture.
Medinet Madi, or Narmuthis
Getting to Medinet Madi, or Narmuthis, is half the fun. zigzagging
through the poorest villages of Fayoum, on badly surfaced roads late in
the afternoon. finally made it out there,
all you could see from a distance was a small square shape on top of a
long mound. After running across
the field and climbing up the mound, and seeing that the shape was only
a palm frond hut, But then suddenly, you
see Medinet
Madi appearing underneath me. And it was quite a surprise, with its long
temple and a ruined city in the background. Medinet Madi is
considered to be the most interesting site around Fayoum, yet it is one
of few such places in Egypt where there is no
disturbance at all. The main temple of
Medinet Madi was built under the pharaohs Amenemhet 3 and 4, who
belonged to the 12th Dynasty. It was dedicated to two deities, the
popular crocodile-god Sobek and the serpent-goddess Renenutet. Inside
the latter sanctuary some wall-decorations can still be made out.
Qasr Qarun and Dionysias
Qasr Qarun is a a temple dedicated to the Fayoumi god Sobek,
built during Ptolemaic times. It appears immediately as
strangely simple and square from the outside, since it is like a
complete rectangular box with slightly tilted walls. Its interior
is distinguished by a maze of rooms, and stair cases, all ending
on the roof. And this is part of the attraction, since only few
of Egypt's temples have roofs and only few of these have access
allowed.
There is not
much to see inside the temple, since all decorations are gone,
all but the ones above the doors. But for early European
travelers, Qasr Qarun was a destination motiving quite active
travelling. There was for long a theory that the maze of the
temple, as well as the city near it, was the famous ancient
Labyrinth described by Herodotus and Strabo. Of the city
Dionysias, little of interest remains. The foundations and
sometimes even walls of many houses peek through the sand, but
no systematic excavations have been conducted here and you get
no feeling of how the ancient city must have looked like.
Karanis
The history of Karanis goes back to the 3rd century BCE, when
Greek mercenaries founded it, and lasts until the 5th century
CE. The location was strategic, midway between the old centres
of northern Egypt and the increasingly important Fayoum Oasis. It was
clearly a rich town, although never large. Perhaps up to 5,000
people lived here, but 2 temples were built to worship
variations over the god Sobek; Petesouchos and Pnepheros.
The Temple of the South is slightly better preserved than the
Temple of the North. The layout of the two is quite similar, and
they both contain the fascinating house of the crocodile, where
a live crocodile lived and was venerated. It lies in the heart
of the temple, and has a small door on the side leading into a
room about 6 square meters large. Around this, there area a
number of rooms and staircases leading one story up, from where
humans could deal with the crocodile. The town of
Karanis is all over the area, but most of it is little
excavated. The Greco-Roman bath house mentioned in guide books
is little more than a bath tub with a roof where there now only
are some remains of the original wall-decorations left.
Lake Qarun
Water not moving is apparently a great attraction in Egypt, and
Lake Qarun is the largest lake in the entire country, 45 metres
below sea level. It is gradually developing into a resort, both
with beaches, beach resorts and now also holiday houses. Early
in the day, green fishing boats rest on the eerie calm lake,
almost melting with the sky. Only the backdrop of the desert in
the north break this unity. Bird
watchers can have nice time here, with 88 species nest around
the lake, including flamingoes. Lake Qaroun was too salty for
fish for a long time, until marine species were introduced in
the 1970's. These include eel, mullet, sole and shrimp. But apart
from a beautiful sight or two, foreigners
think they
can calmly leave Lake Qarun to the Egyptians themselves as The
amenities here area limited, and if a lazy day on the beach is
your thing, the Red Sea resorts, as well as Marsa Matruh and
Alexandria has a better offer. but it is untrue because fayoum
has its great charm I remember a
trip with a rowing boat here one day in 1999. Out on the lake, I
discovered the true depth of the expression: "So what!"
Wadi Rayan
In 1966 the old plan of leading surplus water from the Qarun
Lake to the empty depression of Wadi Rayan was realized. Since
then, a new world, limited in vegetation, but quite rich in bird
life, has developed. Wadi Rayan
has two fairly large lakes, connected by a little river and
Egypt's only water falls. Egyptians are quite thrilled by the
place, and excursions and trips are arranged out here for both
school children as well as adults. , a 3 metre high water fall is nothing special, buyou
will easily get the point of travelling out here. The entire setting is
both weird and quite beautiful. Yellow, creamy sand dunes creep
in on the new lakes, the water has a sweet, blue colour, and the
bird life is richer than most other places around Egypt. Trips with
rowing boats appears to be the thing to do, next to
swimming and sipping a cold soft drink or a tea in the
nearby coffee shops.
Fayoum City
Fayoum city is a pleasant village gone town. More than 300,000 people
live here. Some have called it a miniature version of Cairo, but it is
really more a village of larger houses. The river scene, however, is
nice, cutting through the most popular downtown sections of the place. Apart from the
downtown, Fayoum has fairly little to offer. There are really just two
sights in town. In addition to the water wheels, the most
memorable is the obelisk of Sesostris 1 which stands in a roundabout 10
minutes walk from downtown. It is about 13 metres high and is the only
obelisk with a rounded tip. Sesostris 1 made Fayoum into the most
important centre of Egypt in his time, almost 4000 years ago.
Water wheels
Fayoum has a great number of water wheels, perhaps as many as
200. This was an important addition to Fayoum's economy in the
3rd century BC, allowing the stream of the river to have water
lifted up to a level where it could be transported into the
fields for irrigation. The two best
places to see water wheels are either in Fayoum City, which has
4 standing next to another. 3 km north of town, there is a
cluster of 7 water wheels.
Qasr el-Sagha
In between the petrified remains of a thick forest from antiquity, and
on an outlying scarp of the Qatrani Mountain, lies a temple now called
Qasr el-Sagha. We do not know to which god or gods it was intended to be
dedicated. Since it never was completed, there is a total lack of
friezes and inscriptions.
Its date has been
set to no later than the Middle Kingdom. This can be seen from its plan,
but the construction technique is unique in Egypt. The blocks used are
irregularly shaped, but have corners and angles that fit together as a
jigsaw. By this the structure is held together, but it calls for more
imagination: It resembles an Inca structure of South America. It appears that
there were no nearby settlements to the temple, but there were villages
in prehistoric times on a flat plain to the south.
Umm el-Baragat, or Tebtunis
Near the modern day village of Umm el-Baragat lies the ruins of the
ancient town of Tebtunis. While dating back to the New Kingdom, the
ruins are from the period from the Ptolmaic rulers to the Romans, 4th
century BCE until 3rd or 4th century CE.
At the site, there
is a small temple dedicated to a local variation of Sobek, Soknebtynis,
and a stone-paved processional way leading to the temple. This is
protected by two lion statues made from limestone. There is also a
crocodile cemetery, where more than 1000 mummified crocodiles and
sarcophagi were found in 1900. Tebtunis was also
the site for the find of a valuable temple library with numerous
literary, medical and administrative documents as well as religious
texts.
Dimai
Dimai was originally a Greco-Roman town called Soknopaiou Nesos, which
means "Island of the Crocodile god" in Greek. Although it dates back to
Ptolemaic period, it was probably settled for millennia's before this.
Dimai was the first of the original ancient settlements of Fayoum to be
abandoned, and lies today in an arid region where no agriculture is any
longer possible. Dimai one of is the sight around Fayoum offering least
information of its past, although a processional way to the remains of a
temple dedicated to Soknopaios still exists. There are also remains of
the mud brick wall that ringed the city, a wall that was 10 meters high
and 5 meters thick.
Monastery of the Archangel Gabriel
The legendary background for the Monastery of the Archangel Gabriel, or
Deir al-Malak Ghobriel, goes back to the 5th century, when the grandson
of the king had a vision of Virgin Mary and the two archangels Gabriel
and Michael at this place. For centuries the
monastery was neglected to the advantage of other nearby monasteries. It
lies on an elevated limestone rock on the slope of the Naqlun Mountain.
Although some parts of the present structure may date back to
the 5th century, it is believed that the main church was largely
rebuilt and redecorated late in the 19th century. But during a
1997 restoration, 11th century paintings of saints like Gabriel,
Virgin Mary and Jesus were discovered. In 1991
mutilated 12 skeletons were discovered near the monastery. The
Coptic Church declared them martyrs, and relics of the find has
been distributed to churches all over Egypt and even abroad. After more
than 1000 years of activity, the monastery would be abandoned.
But in modern times, it is being repopulated by Coptic monks. There is an
annual moulid dedicated to Gabriel on December 18. This is one
of few times through the year, when the place gets crowded.
Practicalities
Hotels and Alternatives
Fayoum city's selection of hotels are mainly 1 star or less,
with one 3 star exception. Out of the main city there are a few
more elections, and one high standard hotel. Prices are OK.
Restaurants and alternatives
The selection of nice restaurants in Fayoum resembles the
selection of hotels. But the hotel restaurant
does a decent dinner in fine surroundings . Your best
choice in Fayoum is one of the many stylish fast food joints.
Some of these are sit-down places, and although their interior
seem to be inspired by McDonald's, they actually serve good
food.
Transportation
Police and Security
Over recent years, Fayoum has of some odd reason joined
the rest of the Nile south of Cairo in having police
control every movement of Western visitor. This is not all bad, most of the police men try to
help you as much as they can.
Visit Lake Qarun and Wadi Al
Rayan where you will find
the Natural Reserve of
Birds. Lake Qarun is the
oldest natural lakes in the
world, the third largest
lake in Egypt and the rest
of lake Old Maurice.
Fayoum Bird
Watching & Sightseeing
Morning pick-up from your
hotel in Cairo, via
air-conditioned vehicle, to
drive El Fayoum, then to Kom
Oshim.Enjoy a guided tour of
the Greco Roman ruins of
Karanis and the trade road
of Baharia Oasis.
Overday Fayoum
Mudawarra Rock
Live your dream and enjoy
our daily tours to Fayoum
Mudawarra Rock where you are
going to feel the natural
life. Morning pick-up from
your hotel in Cairo, via
air-conditioned vehicle, to
drive to El Fayoum.
Fayoum Hiking
Trips
Enjoy Fayoum hiking trip
from Wadi El Rayan to Anba
Samuel Monastery. Morning
pick-up from your hotel in
Cairo, via air-conditioned
vehicle, drive on to the way
to El Fayoum until you reach
Wadi Al Rayan.
Camel Trekking
in Wadi El Rayan
Get excited by our overnight
Camel Trekking in Wadi El
Rayan protected area. It is
located on the middle of the
Fayoum desert, about 140 Km
from Cairo. It is now
covered by two gigantic
fresh water lakes.
But it is a depression,
and it has its own artesian wells, allowing water to reach the
surface from underground reservoirs.
