Dome About Town

Austin is known for bats, live music, the University of Texas, and the Capitol.

Justin's grandparents are in town so we went down to the State Capitol.

Standing underneath the dome, built in the style of Renaissance Revival, reminded us of other places we'd visited on our honeymoon.

Hong Kong didn't have too many domes, but it did have a church, and many other churches have domes, so...

While the wats in Thailand were mostly pointy, the stupas behind them were kind of dome-shaped.

In India, we started to see more domes. While most of India is Hindu, there are many Islamic buildings like the Taj Mahal.

In Egypt, many of the mosques had domes, like this mosque in the Citadel in Cairo.

Now Greece was full of domes. And not all blue, like this one in Santorini.

We didn't get inside any big domes until Italy. Something about the Catholics, they love to put up big domes that make you feel incredibly small. Like this one at St. Peter's Basilica.

The Duomo in Florence is one of the more iconic domes in Italy, and one of the most stunning.

While the insides of some domes had patterns, others, like this one in Valencia, Spain, had intricate paintings depicting different stories from the Bible.

The dome of Basilique du Sacré Coeur looks over all of Paris.

The Panthéon in Paris is a dome that most resembles the capitol buildings you see in the United States. And guess what, it was originally a church.

Goodbye Egypt, Look Out Athens!

The sun has set on our stay in Egypt, the land of the Pharaohs.



The Nile River, which seems to nourish the whole country, is a serene sight as the sun sets.



What the heck, let's sail to Greece!

To be continued...?

What Goes Up, Must Come Down. 3750 Steps Down.

The phrase "what goes up, must come down" is usually associated with the throwing of something in the air, but can actually be applied to a variety of situations. For example, a little child that eats a lot of candy may get a sugar high, only to crash later. Another would be the rise and fall of the Romans. Or, two people who decided to hike up a mountain and don't have any intention of being gurus, they too must go down. Way down.



There are two trails you can take to climb up Mt. Sinai. The trail we took up is a wide, gradual path called the Camel Trail because there are people constantly asking you, "Camel? Camel?" No, they aren't questioning their pronunciation, they're asking if you want to ride a camel to the top, which means you are constantly getting run over by camels on the trail. The other trail, called the "Steps of Repentance," was laid out by a monk as a form of penance. The steps -- 3000 to where it joins the Camel Trail and then 750 to the summit -- can be uneven, steep, and difficult to spot in areas where the steps have been eroded.



The "steps" are generally taken on the trip back down, offering a relief from all the camels, but no relief for your knees, thighs and calves.



The guidebook claims there are 3750 steps, but as it felt like more, we wondered if that really depend more on the individual's stride?



Going for sunrise meant that on the way up we didn't see any scenery. We did see an incredible number of stars, but no mountains. Meaning on the hike down, to admire the scenery we took breaks. Or maybe we were taking breaks on the way down, so we admired the scenery. Potato, tomato, right?



It should be noted that towards the end of the hike we had been up for nearly 24 hours, had been on the mountain for the last 7 hours, and were definitely starting to feel the effects. When taking this photo, Justin thought he could see faces in the rock. Do you see faces, or do you think Justin was slightly delirious from exhaustion?



One of the main reasons to take the "steps" down is the view of St. Katherine's Monastery, although we're not sure our knees thought it was worth it. St. Katherine's was founded in AD 330, making it one of the oldest continually functioning monastic communities in the world. It's named after St. Katherine, a martyr who was tortured and beheaded because she was a Christian. It is believed that angels transported her body away from Alexandria, where she was killed, to Gebel Katarina, Egypt's highest peak, which lies about 6 km away from Mt. Sinai.



Here is a camel. There is the monastery. Not to be confused with a Montessori. Or a donkey.



You'll never guess who we saw inside the monastery! A descendant of the original burning bush. I know! Near by, they have several "No Smoking" signs. Wouldn't want to think you were getting a sign from God, only to find out it was a wrong number, or, in this case, someone who didn't pay enough attention to Smokey the Bear.



We made it! Here we are, back at the same spot where our adventure started. (We collapsed shortly after this picture was taken.)

Mt. Sinai Sunrise

Look! It's the crack of dawn! There is something exciting about sunrise that speaks for itself...









For some reason, the mountain everyone calls Mt. Sinai isn't actually the tallest mountain on the Sinai Peninsula. So, either God was thoughtful and let Moses climb the slightly more accessible mountain, or we have the wrong mountain. Either way, the taller mountain, called Gebel Katarina, is seen here behind us.



Now that Jessica can wield the power of the sun in her hands, we believe we can finally end the world's dependence on fossil fuels.

Dahab and the Sinai Peninsula

From Luxor we took the short 17 hour bus ride to Dahab, located on the southeast side of the Sinai Peninsula. The Sinai Peninsula is bordered by the Red Sea, a world renowned snorkeling and diving site. Seas are made of water, while cameras use electricity, so you'll have to take our word that there is lots of amazing coral and fish life.



Dahab is a popular backpackers destination, offering affordable accommodations and a laid back atmosphere. While it is starting to show some signs of growth toward more upscale tourists, you can still find a good meal and enjoy the view without denting your wallet.



There are also plenty of beach front restaurants, all of which offer the exact same things. But, if you're just looking for a sea of pillows to relax in (or need to work on your scholarship essay), the wait staff generally isn't too pushy. Granted, if you do decide you want to order something, you might need to give the waiter a little shove to wake him up.



One destination that you can visit while staying on the Sinai Peninsula is Mt. Sinai. Tours take groups by the busload to hike up the mountain where Moses received the 10 Commandments. In order to see sunrise, you have to leave early enough to reach the top before 5:30am. With about a 4 hour hike (including breaks) and a 2 hour drive, we left our hotel at 11pm. Here we are at the start. If you look close, you'll notice Jessica is still smiling.



This is inside a little resthouse about 2/3 the way up. You'll notice you can no longer see Jessica's smile. In fact, you can barely see Jessica at all, she is so bundled up trying to stay warm.

Question: Under all that clothing do you think Jessica is:

A) Smiling

B) Filled with butterflies and rainbows

C) Planning to push the smiling man off the next ledge

If you answered C, you might have been correct, except the smiling man then purchased her a warm glass of hot chocolate, which seems to have bought him a few more days.



"Where is the sun? Do do do do. Where is the sun? And I say, "HURRY UP!"



No folks, that's not Moses. It's Justin, and those aren't the 10 Commandments, they're two pieces of broken tile. But hey, sometimes it's fun to play pretend!

TO BE CONTINUED...SOON!

The West Bank...Valley of the Kings

So, after the pharaohs realized that building the Great Pyramids were like an giant neon sign to grave robbers, they decided to implement a new strategy. Hence the Valley of the Kings, which has 63 (and counting) royal tombs spanning hundreds of years. Some have been opened since antiquity, evidenced by the Greek graffiti ("Hector was here!") we saw on the walls, whereas others are just now being excavated. The valley, while a stunning scene in itself, has no external evidence of ruins, but sometimes beauty lies just below the surface...or a bunch of dead guys and their stuff.



Here is Jessica. Here is the Valley of the Kings. Jessica is standing over the Valley of the Kings. Does that make Jessica ruler of the kings?



Here, a slightly less impressive, but equally interesting anthropological study, is the Valley of the Tourists. They walk upright, take shuttle rides everywhere, and are often forced to hand over their cameras to the authorities because of their inability to follow rules. No video cameras are allowed in the Valley, and no photos can be taken inside the tombs. We saw one Egyptian guard, with a concerned tourist hovering overhead, watching home video on a camcorder that was presumably brought into the site. Since Justin left his pen camera in the hotel, we have no photos of the tombs ourselves.



There were several children who where disappointed to discover that this was the line for the tomb of Ramses IV, not for Space Mountain. In an attempt to limit damage to the tombs, tourists are only allowed entry into 3 tombs per visit, and the 10 tombs that are open to visitors at any given time also changes.



In addition to the tomb of Ramses IV, we also visited the tomb of Tawosret and Sethnakht, which was unique in that it was the only tomb in the Valley of the Kings that had two burial chambers. It also contained beautifully intact paintings of the gods on the chamber walls. The last tomb we visited was Tuthmosis III, which was hidden in the hills between cliffs. To reach it, we had to first climb a steep staircase that then plunged down again into the entrance of the tomb. Tuthmosis III was one of the first pharaohs to build his tomb in the Valley of the Kings, and since secrecy was his utmost concern, his tomb was built in the most inaccessible spot and contains a series of winding passages and fake doors. After entering the tomb, we went down another several sets of steep staircases and through other rooms to finally reach the burial chamber. Nothing remained in any of the tombs we saw other than the paintings on the walls and, in some tombs, an empty sarcophogus. Most of the mummies found in the Valley of the Kings are now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.



After wandering the valley, we headed up the mountain. We hiked up a trail and found our way along the cliff edge pictured above. We were warned by a Polish couple who had made the hike the day before that they had some trouble with the heat. We told them we were from Texas and that the heat was not an issue. Then Justin informed him that the only Polish word he knew was "psiakrew," a swear word he learned from his grandmother.



As you can see, we made it. If your wondering why Justin is wearing dress pants and a collar shirt, it was laundry day. Also, we might have run into a potential employer, and in the current economy it's always good to be prepared.



This is the Temple of Hatshepsut, placed in the most stunning of settings against these jagged limestone cliffs. The picture of the two of us was taken on the cliffs directly above the temple before we hiked around and down the side to reach the bottom.



Looking out from our vantage point, you could see right where the desert ended and the irrigation began. Pretty amazing to see how the Nile River allows Egyptians to turn desert into something so green. Usually the change in terrain is gradual, like forest - marshes - plains - tundra - desert. Here, it goes green - desert. Teeming with life - Rod Blagojevich's upcoming birthday party.



Also while hiking, we came across this scene. We believe it might be the site where they staged the Mars Rover landing.



On our way out we met the greeters of the West Bank, the Colossi of Memnon. They were originally made of single pieces of stone which each weighed over 1000 tons. You will notice they are called the Colossi because there are two, yet only one is pictured. The other was covered in scaffolding, and this blog is currently boycotting all monuments with scaffolding. Enough is enough, and we're putting our foot down!

Next stop, the Red Sea!

The East Bank...of Luxor

After spending a few days in Cairo, we headed south to Upper Egypt. And no, that's not a typo. The Nile River flows north, and for it to do that, southern Egypt has to be at a higher altitude than northern Egypt. We made the nine hour journey to Luxor by overnight train, arriving at 5 in the morning.



Nope, this is not that same morning. This is a few mornings later when we made the 4 km jaunt to Karnak Temple at sunrise in an attempt to miss the crowds.



The temples of Karnak include an incredible configuration of sanctuaries, temples, obelisks, and massive monuments dedicated to the Theban gods and, of course, to the glory of the pharaohs. The massive figures above mark the entrance to the Temple of Ramses III.



The site includes over 2 square km of monuments and temples, and the Temple of Amun, the complex's main structure, is the largest religious building ever built. The massive columns of the Temple of Amun were where the god Amun lived on earth. Not that we met him personally -- we heard he was visiting his winter home in southern Florida.



The site was built, added to, restored, dismantled, and enlarged for over nearly 1500 years by ancient Egyptians, the Ptolemies, and the early Christians. There were many incredible carvings in the walls, many of which still contained remnants of the paint that would have covered the entire temple when it was in use. Some of the carvings, however, seem to have been altered/censored. Looks like a messy divorce if we ever saw one!



We were struck by the mood captured by this photo -- it seemed to embody the kind of reflection and solemnity felt in such a magnificent place. It's incredible to think that in actuality, this caretaker had just finished spitting when this was taken.



Anyone up for an ancient jigsaw puzzle? Oh wait -- did we mention that some pieces are missing? And you're not really sure what you're trying to build?



For those of you who are not fluent in hieroglyphics, let us provide a brief translation:

Bird, bird, squiggly line, eye, squiggly line, bird.

Our guidebook claims this is from a religious text, but we like to think that it's some juicy gossip about Ramses II.



Contrary to popular belief, Egyptians seem to walk left foot in front of right foot, hands at their sides. Take that, Steve Martin!



The road leading to the Temples of Karnak used to be lined by sphinxes, some of which are still standing.



Nearly 3 km of sphinxes lined the road from Karnak to Luxor Temple, which was built in most part by the pharaohs Amenhotep III and Ramses II. Here it is beautifully illuminated at night, located just a few hundred meters from the banks of the Nile.



Pigeon is a delicacy in Egypt. Here, Justin handles this delicacy before eating it. Jessica did not handle his eating of the pigeon quite as well, quickly losing her appetite. Looks like someone is going to be returning to her vegetarian ways...