Traveling, although awesome almost 99% of the time, does have the occasional drawback. Getting sick by accidentally ingesting some tap water, eating something off, or by some other unknown method, is a constant threat. This finally caught up with us (me) when we arrived in the much-anticipated Siwa Oasis.

The first few days we spent in the Oasis were miserable for me. Somehow Val managed to escape whatever toxin or bug I picked up, which is miraculous because we do almost everything together. Even if we order something different at a restaurant we usually share. At its worst I had a fever of about 101 and felt horrible. I didn’t have an appetite and could do little more than sleep (uncomfortably, at that) for the better part of two days.

I’m finally better now, so that’s good. The only really annoying thing is that we actually have a ticket booked for Nepal, so a few days in bed means a few days not doing something else. The rest was good for both of us though, and it’s something that was bound to happen sooner or later. And I have a feeling that one of us will get something worse with some of the places we’re heading to. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen.

Still Isolated

Egypt has around five or six separate Oases in the Western Desert. All but Siwa have been connected by asphalt road to the Nile Valley for years. It was only about twenty years ago that they built a road from Marsa Mutrah to Siwa, so it is one of the most interesting places in Egypt. The Siwans have their own language and a culture that is very different from that of the rest of Egypt.

It’s a 9 hour bus ride from Alexandria, so most tourists go to one of the closer oases to arrange a desert safari. I went to Bahariyya the first time I came to Egypt, so this trip I was really interested in visiting Siwa. Despite getting sick, I’m really glad we did. There are only about 25,000 people in the oasis, and it’s landscapes are beautiful. It appears out of the stark desert like a mirage, with its lush palm trees and lakes.

The most striking feature when you arrive in Siwa Town is the Shali, the old living quarters. It was destroyed by rainfall in 1926, but the remains help the imagination picture what it must have looked like. It was built of mud bricks and used to be both housing and protection from the occasional desert raiders from Libya. Now it looks like an organic mess, melted out of the rocks on which it sits. There are the remains of the mosque and some of the rooms, but most of it is just a mass that was fused together by the heavy rains that destroyed it. It’s particularly beautiful at sunset, and they light it up at night.

The oasis has a laid-back attitude, which we enjoyed. Passing through Alexandria reminded us of Cairo, with the manic traffic and pollution. There are a few nice hotels and restaurants nestled among the palm gardens, which are great places to sit for a few hours sipping tea and reading a book.

One of the main reasons most people visit Siwa, in addition to see the unique culture of such a formerly isolated place, is to organize a desert safari. Siwa is near the Great Sand Sea, a huge stretch of inhospitable desert filled with every kind of dune imaginable. In order to really go deep into it you need seasoned professionals and lots of expensive equipment. Or, you can just drive to the edge of the Sand Sea from Siwa and still feel like you’re in the middle of nowhere.

I’ll let Val tell you about the desert safari we took.

The most interesting historical site in Siwa is the Oracle of Amun. Amun was the most powerful Egyptian god, and later became associated with Zeus. The Oracle to Amun in Siwa was one of the most powerful and influential in the ancient Mediterranean area. The most famous visitor to the oasis was Alexander the Great, who came after founding Alexandria to consult the oracle. He wanted to ask the oracle if he was really the descendant of Zeus. Apparently the Oracle said that he was, and afterwards his status as a god among men was unquestioned.

There is also a story of the Oracle releasing a prophecy about a Persian king dying early. He sent an army into the desert to destroy Siwa, but it vanished in a massive sandstorm. As you can imagine, this only increased the prestige of the Oracle at Siwa, and its power and influence continued to grow.

We visited the Temple, which isn’t really much to look at these days, but its historical significance is more than enough to make it interesting. The oasis probably looks much as it did when Alexander the Great would have visited, and if you stand at the top of the complex and look out over the lake, the palm groves, and the desert beyond, you can really get a sense of how old and mystical the place is.