Stargazing in the World´s Largest Desert

Ahlan wa sahlan (Welcome) to Live from Egypt Entry #5.

Outside of the office, my colleagues and I try to enjoy Egypt.
This week my colleagues and I enjoyed dinner and stargazing in the world´s largest desert, the Sahara. What a treat as I witnessed my first Moon Rising, the image of the moon rising was extraordinary. For me, it was one of the most beautiful things I have seen in nature. In the picture, notice the moon rising just above my shoulder in the distance.

Once the moon was set we were all smiles and giggles despite the wind and cool temperature.

We enjoyed a traditional meal - breads, tomato tajine (tajine means the meal is cooked in a clay pot, which makes the food extremely hot) and beef fatah. Take a look at the chef preparing our food. Remember we were in a desert- I could get used to this type of service!










After eating we had an opportunity to stargaze with two high-powered telescopes that operated from GPS calculations. I looked at several stars some of which included the North Star, Sirius, Big Dipper, Orion, and even the Moon. The telescopes were so high powered we were able to look at the unique craters on the moon´s surface. Very cool, and another first for me!

Upon stargazing we asked if we could be escorted by a trained ¨guitar player¨ up a ridge in the desert to get a better view of everything. You cannot see but there is a deep rocky-sand dune immediately behind us.

The Sahara Desert is a must visit, especially during the evening with friends. As I mentioned in a Facebook posting this week, Egypt is definitely a place to bring someone that you care about!



Until next time...
Salam alekum (Peace be with you)

Egypt's Finest: Valley of the Queens and Valley of the Kings

Ahlan wa sahlan (Welcome) to Live from Egypt Entry #4.


On the West Bank of Luxor, the Valley of the Queens, Valley of the Kings, and the Valley of the Nobles can be seen. One landmark that I truly enjoyed was the temple of the great female pharaoh, Hatshepsut. She was one of only 3 women to have ruled Egypt.

Carved into sheer limestone rock, the temple has three floors and is simply picturesque; as you see in this photo it looks like the background is "fake," but trust it is real!

It is said that Hatshepsut wore a fake beard so she could be accepted as a pharaoh, as you can tell in the picture she certainly had something hanging from her chin.

There were many hieroglyphics throughout the temple, very intricate in detail and rich in color. We learned that the Egyptians used egg whites, flowers and oil to make their colors. You may not be able to see, but the images are deeply embedded in the stone. Why you may ask? Because when a pharaoh "left office" for whatever reasons, it was not uncommon for the replacement, particularly when there was a problem between the outgoing and incoming leader to ruin or destroy previous structures. The deeper the image into the stone, the harder it is to deface and change.

For the Valley of the Kings, it dates back to around 16th to the 11th centuries BC as a necropolis of the Pharaonic Egypt's New Kingdom dynasties. It is believed to have been used for around 500 years, and is the resting place of the kings and other nobles of the 18th and 21st dynasties.

Unfortunately I do not have any images of the Valley of the Kings or Nobles because cameras were not permitted.


Until next time...
Salam alekum (Peace be with you)

Untapped Treasures of Egypt: Nubian Culture

Ahlan wa sahlan (Welcome) to entry# 3!

As you continue to embark on the journey to Egypt with me it is important to remember (and my team and I are constantly having to remember this, at least the first few days) that we are not here as tourists. We are here to assist Egypt's Ministry of Internal Trade and the Governor of Luxor. That being said, the past few days have been stacked with meetings, observations, high-level assessment, and at the root, absorption.

An experience that highlighted this was our trip to the Nubian Culture Center of Luxor. This is one of the projects that we will be working on. As we entered into the center we were attracted by the large sign out front.
As we spoke to the Nubians we were amazed at the crafts that were on display:








It is important to note that all pictures were taken with permission, and if you look, the young lady in the light colors is actually smiling, or maybe laughing at me as I take her picture :)


In a few weeks we will be going to a location that will give us more historical context of the Nubian people and will aid us as we recommend solutions on preserving the Nubian Culture. Stay tunes for the pictures (and hopefully) video feeds that will follow.

Until next time...
Salam alekum (Peace be with you)

Cruising on the Nile

Ahlan wa sahlan (Welcome) to entry# 2.
Last evening I cruised on the Nile with my colleagues...although we were on a sail boat, there was little wind so we were "pushed" along by a small motor boat. It was interesting to say the least, but we all enjoyed the food, conversation and of course the wonderful scenery.

Here is a picture of the group before the cruise, as you can see we have a diverse team, coming from all ends of the corporation, representing a wide variety of skill sets.





Here is a picture of the Opera House that was built and "donated" by Japan to Egypt. In fact, the Governor of Luxor (where I will be tomorrow, and for the remainder of the stay use to serve as the President of the Opera House before being appointed as Govenor).







Finally here is a picture of our meal before we all completely devoured it. I am beginning to realize that we don't really eat lunch, just breakfast and dinner. I really don't know if that is part of the Egyptian culture, or just an element that we have so many things to do during the actual work day.




Until next time...
Salam alekum (Peace be with you)

Egypt Count Down...8 Days Left until unique leadership opportunity

I will be off to Cairo, Luxor, and other Egyptian cities next week for a leadership development program with 11 other colleagues. It was an honor to be selected into the Corporate Service Corps program through my company, a program that has been coined "more selective than any Ivy League school."
After weekly briefings since November 2009 the journey will commence next week. Below are the two projects that I will be working on:

1. Preservation of the Nubian culture
2. Agri-Business Solutions for small farmers and entrepreneurs

Thank you in advance for following this blog and passing the pictures and stories on to others!

My best!

L. Trenton Marsh