26 March 2009

An Egyptian Evening

Posted by BaBa under: Daily Life; Special Days .

The Last Thursday in March, we got to attend a lecture with Dr. Zahi Hawass. Dr. Zahi Hawass is an Egyptian archaeologist and Egyptologist and the current Secretary General of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities. He has stared on many of the specials about Egypt on the Discovery Channel, the History Channel, and the National Geographic.

As you can tell from the photo, he looks a little like a real-life Indiana Jones. I have watched his many specials and never thought that I would get the opportunity to see him let alone meet him. His appearance in Atlanta coincides with the
TUTANKHAMUN AND THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE PHARAOHS exhibit here in Atlanta. I can remember when the exhibit traveled the US to six lucky cities. This was the time that Steve Martin did his “Walk Like an Egyptian” comedy routine. It was a real event and millions saw the exhibit in Washington D.C., Chicago, New Orleans, Los Angeles, New York and Seattle.

I can remember the buzz around town and in the Fox Theater, where I was working, about the exhibit as people planned trips to these cities to see the exhibition. I have always been fascinated by Ancient History especially Egypt and Rome. These are places that I read about and later viewed on TV, but never thought that I would see up close.

Many years later, I have indeed traveled to Egypt and hope that we can gain go (all three of us) to see this land of mystery and intrigue. I have gazed on the Golden Mask of the Boy King in the Cairo Museum and seen the mummies along with entering the Great Pyramid. I have also been through the desert to see the temple of Abu Simbel which was relocated during the 1960’s. I remember as a boy reading about this in National Geographic at school.

The salvage of the Abu Simbel temples began in 1964, and cost some USD $40 million. Between 1964 and 1968, the entire site was cut into large blocks (up to 30 tons averaging 20 tons), dismantled and reassembled in a new location – 65 m higher and 200 m back from the river, in what many consider one of the greatest feats of archaeological engineering.
      
So as you can see, I was thrilled to see Dr. Hawass in person. My lovey wife agreed to accompany me to this lecture. Dr. Hawass had to be in Egypt on the original date and so it was moved to the next week and to the Fox. The Fox was built in the 1920’s and was heavily influenced by the discovery of King Tut’s tomb in 1922. A more appropriate venue for this lecture than the Civic Center and one that made it all the more memorable.

MaMa and I left Magoo with Ms. Kristen and headed downtown. We got there early and got great seats. We had a little popcorn and I bought one of his books with the hopes to get it autographed. He is a wonderful speaker and is so passionate about his country and archaeology. I moved quickly at the end of his remarks and waited a short time (6th in line) for him to come to the Spanish Room for the book signing. I was able to get my book signed for MaMa, Magoo and Me. I even had the help of a lady right ahead of me in line to get my picture with Dr. Hawass. It was a great night. We will take Magoo to the exhibit before it leaves town so that he can experience some of the wonders of Egypt.

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