MUMBLINGS October 20, 2005

One of the most visited and interesting countries in the world is Egypt, located in northeast Africa along the Nile River.

A small wonder, Egypt is most traveled…it is home to one of the richest and most ancient civilizations in the world. This history extends to several millennia BC.

Pharaoh Menes united the two kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt and it was known as the Ancient Empire dating from 3200-2270 BC.

Pharaoh Russia ruled from 1279 to 1212 BC and is known for his many buildings, rising temples, statues and other monuments throughout the country. There seemed to be literally hundreds of them, besides the other temples and monuments built in his honor. He must have been quite a guy.

When visiting there 25 years ago, the population of Egypt was 40 million, 98 percent living along the Nile River which runs from the south to the north, on the eastern part of the country. With the huge Sahara Desert, it could well be called the driest land in the world. Only about four percent of their land is arable, all along the Nile River.

Egyptians claim the Nile is the longest river in the world, being some 1,118 miles.

Citizens of Argentina deny the Nile is the longest river in the world, claiming the Amazon is. Egypt's mighty river is perhaps the most important in the world as far as humanity is concerned. Its waters supply the needs of millions of people. They drink it, wash clothing in it, they bathe in it, they use it for human waste and run tributaries, small canals off from it to fertilize and furnish water for millions of acres to grow crops of all kinds.

Another difference of the Nile and Amazon is the fact that the latter's flow of water is many times that of the Nile. The Nile has practically no tributaries, none that last any length of time, as compared to the Amazon, which has two tributaries coming from the north and the south that flows more water than the Mississippi River and also the Nile. Compared to the four percent of arable land caused by the Nile in Egypt, the Amazon floods land almost two-thirds the size of the entire United States.

The longevity of Egyptians, compared to modern countries, is low. The population has now grown to 70 million, far too many for a healthy situation.

Click here to continue

----------------------

Continued

In the 1800's British troops landed at Alexandria, marking the beginning of British occupation until 1922, when Britain declared the termination of British Protectorate and declared Egypt an independent state.

The Great Sphinx, a national symbol of Egypt is located to the northeast of Khafre's Valley Temple. The word, sphinx, which means strangler, was first given by the Greeks to a fabulous creature which had the head of a woman, the body of a lion and the wings of a bird.

The Great Sphinx is believed to be the most immense stone sculpture ever made by man. It must be noted the Sphinx is not an isolated monument and it must be examined in the context of its surroundings. Like many of Egypt's monuments, it is a complex which consists not only of the great statue itself, but also of its old temple, a New Kingdom temple and some other small structures.

When viewed close-up, the head and body of the Sphinx look relatively proportioned, but seen from farther away and side-on, the head looks small in relation to the long body.

The material of the Sphinx is the limestone bedrock.

See you again soon, I hope.