Siwa appears at first as a sweet and innocent place deep in the desert
which has just opened its eyes to the modern world and still let's
itself be amazed. Which is not wrong, the asphalted road opened first in
1984.
But the history goes deep beyond the earliest civilizations, to
Paleolithic times. In the 1st millennium BCE, Siwa was famous with the
ancient Egyptians, thanks to its oracle. The oracle was though to be so
true and powerful that generals feared its predictions. Both when the
Persian king Cambyses invaded in 525 and with Alexander the Great before
his expeditions into Asia in 331 BC, was the oracle consulted. During these times,
Siwa was a wealthy place, well illustrated by the Gebel al-Mawta and its
rich tombs. In early Islamic times, Siwa went into decline and sometime
in the 13th century was down as little as 200. Today the population is
on the rise, and has since long passed 20,000. Most live in the town
Siwa, the rest are spread across over 10 smaller villages.
Ruins of Shali
The ruins of Shali dates back to the 13th century, and was in full use
until 3 days of heavy rain destroyed it in 1926. The houses were
originally built to last a couple of decades, then be rebuilt or fixed
after light rain. The building material was kershef, a mixture of
salt and clay. It is not water-proof.
Shali is supposed to have risen 60 metres above the ground level of the
oasis, helped by the two mountains here. It must have been a fabulous
sight. It still is, but none of 5 story houses still stand. Shali today offers
great view, the ruinous state have created many fine views. But
surprisingly, you will find that some of the houses are still inhabited,
although this only applies to the ones at the foot of Shali.
Around Shali
FARAFRA:
The isolated oasis
With only 4,000 inhabitants and about 200 km to the first
neighbor settlement, Farafra is among the most isolated places
in Egypt. It is part of the Western Desert circuit, so it still
gets many visitors. And the place has a number of attractions,
of which the adjacent White Desert is one of Egypt's most famous
nature sights.
The
architecture of Farafra is the old and ingenious one,
where mud brick houses stand close together, with narrow
roads with roofs. Many of the houses have painted
exteriors with murals. Many
traditions live on in Farafra — traditions that die when
locals in towns like this move into nondescript "modern"
box houses. Dresses and shirts have beautiful
embroidery, but little is available for visitors with
hard cash. Of products for sale, olives and olive oil
are of high quality here. In addition, there is a rich
output of vegetables and fruits, including bananas,
mangos and guavas. Most
visitors to Farafra take at least one swim in the many
hot springs in town. Female visitors should respect
local traditions, and bathe only in the afternoons.
Beautiful gardens
Farafra is a very nice oasis to walk around in. You
quickly find your way in between the nice gardens, and
many are well maintained. There are also more variation
in the vegetation here than in many other oases in
Egypt.
Keyhole-shaped wells
Keyhole-shaped wells seem to have a double meaning and function.
The function is to create a twirl in the water stream that
allows oxygen into the water which is purifying. The meaning is
the obvious, the keyhole symbolizes the opening to the water
reservoir.
Traditional houses
These
photos show a part of Farafra's history which seem to be under
threat. The traditional quarters of Farafra represent only a
small part of the village, and it is hard to understand the
mechanisms here. The new quarters are ugly and badly maintained,
while the old quarters are smooth, elegant, clean and obviously
well maintained. Still, people move out of the old quarters and
into the new. Hopefully, they will soon discover that they have
something valuable which can easily be lost.
Holy tomb
This unnamed tomb has a dome which rather visibly
reflects female fertility. While many tombs of this kind
are actually built around the graves of holy Muslim men
and women, some have roots back to pre-Islamic times. What
makes this intriguing is that it is very well-kept,
apparently in full use, but not painted in white, which
is almost obligatory.
Practicalities
The pool of Hotel
Eat and Sleep
While there isn't much of hotels to choose from,
Bahariya has got exactly what a true oasis should have:
A delicate hotel built according to local traditions. It
even has a swimming pool, which at least resembles some
of the pools built around the natural wells of Farafra.
And there's nothing wrong with the price either. Food
is better in Farafra than in the other Western Desert
oases, but not great. they try to make an effort, and
serve with friendliness and an attempt on elegance. In
town food is cheaper, but boring.
PARIS:
The forgotten oasis
Or is it? Although Paris, or Baris as it is called in most
foreign traveler's guides, is neglected by almost all travel
companies bringing tourists around the oases of the Western
desert, it is still the place with the most prosperous future.
The old town
The old town of Paris is practically not visited by tourists;
the few people who make it out here, use their time exploring
the ancient slave city of Dush. Should you
have the time, Paris is actually quite interesting. It is filthy
though, since it is mainly abandoned by its former inhabitants
and taken over by goats. But some houses are still in use, and
the ones not in use are in good condition. Should you be lucky
enough to find an empty house with an open door, you have a
chance to see how traditional life really was. Some houses
are decorated, and then they usually tell the story about the
proprietors journey to Mecca, names and details are described
with Arabic text, the means of transportation has been painted.
A fine example just below.
Nice palm gardens The oasis of Paris is in first class condition, little
is abandoned and owners take good care of their
possession. Entering the oasis is slightly difficult,
walls are high and doors closed. Remember never to enter
without permission.
KHARGA:
Oasis of temples and castles
Kharga is clearly different from the image most people have of
an oasis out in the desert. It has been the most important town
in the development plans for the Western Oases, and has
presently a population of more than 100,000 people. And when the
architecture is totally dominated by concrete blocks and wide
roads, the result is that few tourists use more time than
necessary in town. During my oasis circuit of 2004 I met several
Western travel guides telling me that they omitted Kharga all
together, because there was nothing to see. That is totally
wrong, Kharga has sights from 3 millenniums.
Traditionally keyhole shaped well, but with a modern pump
helping as the pressure of the underground reservoirs has
dropped in modern times.
Kharga means in Arabic "point of departure", in
opposition to Dakhla, "point of entrance", which lies
further to the west. The
population of Kharga are Berbers with roots back to the
time when the oasis was a station on the famous 40 Days
Road between Sudan and Egypt — famous because of the
merchandise; slaves.
Bagawat Necropolis
The Necropolis of Bagawat is a reminder of one of the
most central battles of early Christianity; the dispute
over the nature of Jesus. The 5th century bishop
Nestorius was exiled to Bagawat (as the village was
called) for having claimed that only one of Jesus'
natures had suffered on the cross; the earthly nature,
not the divine. The
large extent of the Necropolis of Bagawat is the result
of the his and his supporters' exile. The tombs here are
believed to indicate that worship of the dead was
continued in a Christian style. There
are 263 mud-brick chapels climbing up a ridge, the
oldest dating back two centuries before Nestorius, the
last dating back to the 7th century.
The tombs were originally plastered, but this is has
since long disappeared.
Interiors of Bagawat
Most of the interiors of the chapels of Bagawat were probably
without much decorations. And among the ones which were
decorated, the hardship of time has been cruel. In the finest,
the figures have been defaced by Muslim fanatics decades ago. ... and the walls of the
interior is decorated with biblical scenes. The best of these is
the Chapel of the Exodus, showing scenes from the Jews and Moses
escaping from Egyptian troops.
Temple of Hibis
This temple, named after the town that once existed here, is unique for
Egypt in one respect. It is by far the largest and finest of temples
from Egypt's 200 years under Persian rulers. It was King Darius 1 of the
6th century BCE who ordered it built, and dedicated to Amon. The temple
was adorned by rulers over the following centuries, but the original
style was always respected. Today it is not
available for closer inspection, as the main structure is swathed in
scaffolding. It is planned to be relocated to a new location, close to
the Bagawat Necropolis, but this will not be realized for many more
years. Should you be
allowed to enter the area (it is guarded by tourist police, ) the kiosk in front of the main entrance is part
of what was an avenue of sphinxes. The interior (visible through the
gates) is noted for its beautiful capitals
Many of the wall decorations are in excellent condition.
Temple of Nadura
The Temple of Nadura is about 700 years younger than the one at
Hibis, and belongs to the 2nd century CE and was built under
Roman rulers. Few of Kharga's sights have been so badly treated
by time as this, and except for the pieces of the wall, there is
little to see here. It is
generally attributed to the god Amon, but the few remains of
wall decorations represents musicians playing on percussion
instruments and sistra. This indicates that a goddess was
worshipped here. Near the
temple, a semi-troglodyte village lies. The inhabitants built a
mud-brick houses, with cellars largely underground. The purpose
of this sort of structure, found all over North Africa, was to
escape the worst heat in summer time.
Qasr el-Ghweita
About 20 km south of Kharga is the temple Qasr al-Ghweita built
between 250 and 80 BC. It was dedicated to the Theban triad
Amon, Mut and Khonsu. According to
some guide books, it is in a very ruinous state. This is
fortunately not true. The 10 meter high walls are nearly intact,
the houses have high walls still standing and the temple is
about as complete as any other popular ancient destination in
Egypt. Even large parts of the surrounding village can be seen.
Qasr el-Zayan
Several guide books rate the Qasr el-Zayan fortress as in a very
ruinous state. This is not entirely true, walls stand high, the
centre of the temple is almost intact, and the setting is great.
The main drawback is the original small size; you can cover it
all in 5 minutes
The temple was built dedicated to the god Amenebis, the local
town god. It was built during the Ptolemaic period and restored
under the Roman emperor Antoniunus. The local town here was
known as Tchnonemyris which flourished for several centuries.
The modest village here now tells nothing about the rich past. This place
is the lowest in the Kharga Oasis, 18 metres below sea level.
Ain Umm Dabadib
Ain Umm Dabadib is the sight of Kharga that requires the most
effort to reach, crossing sand dunes. The former town here owed
its wealth to being one of the last staging post before the
caravans headed north. Its history
goes back to Roman times, and remains of temples from this
period still stand. There are also ruins of churches outside the
fortress walls. The original water cisterns and irrigation
systems helped use the limited water resources as well as
possible. An underground aqueduct system is still visible. It
used to run for 15 km, and some of it still in use by local
farmers. The original Ain Umm Dabadib was large, perhaps more
than 200 km˛.
Qasr el-Labeka
The Qasr el-Labeka was built by the Romans, yet largely
implementing traditional building techniques. It was on the old
caravan routes, and in its heyday the surrounding area was green
and and with water. Water was carried by an aqueduct that still
stand, but which is silted up. It lies
along a seasonal river (wadi) on an escarpment. The outer walls
are 12 metres high and quite imposing. The location
for this and the Ain Umm Dabadib is both part of the attraction
and the reason why so few venture out here. The journey goes
across real desert, and is only done by 4WDs, which arranged
by
Egypt
target tours
Ed-Deir
Ed-Deir was a fortress that protected the shortest
caravan route between Kharga and the Nile. It stands on
the eastern extreme of the Kharga Oasis, at the foot of
Umm el-Ghanayin Mountain. It
is made up of a fortress with 12 rounded towers,
connected by a gallery. Only some of the rooms have
survived, and are clearly marked by the long career of
the fortress. Graffiti starting centuries ago, also
include decorations of early 20th century airplanes.
The modern city and oasis
Kharga is the most modern of all settlements of the western
oases, planned according to ambitious plans. Wide boulevards,
discrete modern block with wide space around them. It might not
be interesting to foreign visitors, but Kharga is a popular
place to live. Downtown, colorful and small houses dominate. Right at the
point where the city ends, the gardens of the oasis start.
One
of few examples of traditional elements in urban Kharga. These
are private homes, apparently dating back to an early stage of
modern development of Kharga.
QARA:
Beyond space and time
Everyone knows that Egypt has 6 inhabited oases, 7 if Paris is
counted as one. The truth is, there is one more. It rests right
on the point where the Egyptian desert is about to tip down into
the Qattara Depression, 18,000 km˛ and 133 meters below sea
level.
n the Qara Oasis some 300 people live in an isolation
unimaginable, that you will be treated as a combination of
ambassadors and movie stars when arriving there one day .
The Qarawis take standard Egyptian hospitality and curiosity to
a higher level. The oasis of
Qara may appear a bit like a disappointment, since it seems to
begin for so long time. There are scattered date palms for
kilometers before you arrive in the heart of the oasis.
Considering its isolation, that only 300 people live here, you
may expect that this is the place where sand dunes suddenly
transforms into luscious gardens and a little lake in the
middle. Forget about
that, and reflect on the fact that you step back from the 21st
century here. Also, notice the skin color of the locals here,
compared to Siwa. They have much darker skin. Nubians? Slave
ancestors? Second, what
about the local legend telling that exactly 317 people shall
live here? When a child is born, it is said that one of the
elders will die the following night
Third,
stroll off for the traditional village on the top of the
mushroom mountain. Or rather not, it is abandoned, so
admire it from a distance and make up your own mind
about how life must have been here until floods in 1982
made it inhabitable.
Town on the mushroom
The original town of Qara was in reality a fortress,
using the natural defense of the mushroom mountain,
topped by the outer walls of the houses. Qara is
sometimes called "Siwa of Yesterday", but yesterday is
gone even here. The original town is all abandoned for
typical shoebox houses down in the oasis. Originally,
there was only one entrance, and only one road running
through it, roofed to keep it cool on hot days (which is
most of the year)
BAHARIYA:
Where the Nile disappeared
Bahariya Oasis is nothing compared to
Siwa, but if you come here
first, it has charm. The oasis is consisting of erratic colonies
of palms. And you really never get an impression of this being
an oasis, until you find an elevations, where the landscape of
thousands of palm trees stretch out in front of you.
you will
find
most charming were the children of Bawiti, the capital of the
Bahariya oasis. This place is something between a picturesque
village and a dump. But the people around you, are beautiful. Me
and some other tourists were adopted by a bunch of kids, running
to and fro, pointing, explaining, looking interested at
everything we did. Small girls with a finger in their mouths,
small boys with a new jogging suit. Proud mothers came out,
patting their children's heads, smiling to us, saying something
in local Arabic dialect, probably "Welcome" or a
blessing. we as Egyptians don't understand them easily as well
Why
is there an oasis here, and why do you find a couple
more of them running in a bow stretched out from the
western bank of the Nile? Well, this is the way the Nile
was running several thousand years ago, long before the
eve of the first Nile civilizations.
The water popping up now from deep underground, in wells all
over Bahariya, are leftovers from those days. These reservoirs
were long considered a long time resource, and large funds were
pumped into the region. When newer research proved the reserves
more limited, and sufficient for only 100 years of today's
exploitation, the large schemes for development were left dead.
Places like Bahariyya still suffers from this, and Bawiti is in
many ways a sad place.
During these times,
Siwa was a wealthy place, well illustrated by the Gebel al-Mawta and its
rich tombs. In early Islamic times, Siwa went into decline and sometime
in the 13th century was down as little as 200. Today the population is
on the rise, and has since long passed 20,000. Most live in the town
Siwa, the rest are spread across over 10 smaller villages.
These
photos show a part of Farafra's history which seem to be under
threat. The traditional quarters of Farafra represent only a
small part of the village, and it is hard to understand the
mechanisms here. The new quarters are ugly and badly maintained,
while the old quarters are smooth, elegant, clean and obviously
well maintained. Still, people move out of the old quarters and
into the new. Hopefully, they will soon discover that they have
something valuable which can easily be lost. 
The pool of Hotel 
The tombs were originally plastered, but this is has
since long disappeared.
One
of few examples of traditional elements in urban Kharga. These
are private homes, apparently dating back to an early stage of
modern development of Kharga.