People always ask why do you love Egypt so much?
Most of the time, I say something like it's the greatest civilization the world has ever seen and throw in a few facts to support my claim.
I want to say that I belong to Egypt as if I were born of its deserts and drank my first water from its oasis.
I rarely have a proper answer because it's like asking why you love your mother or father.
They're a part of you - the essence of "home."
It just is.
Egypt was home even before I arrived — and I knew it.
Egypt is ever-changing, yet constant in antiquity
I see only beauty in Egypt's rough edges and ancient streets. I love every part of her, not just the Red Sea beaches and the Pyramids of Giza.
I love the bits that make her difficult to love because it's part of her intrigue — like getting stuck in traffic for 2 hours during rush hour.
The mystery behind her chaos is part of her charm.
Moments like these inspire me to love the parts of myself I usually judge — a welcome side-effect of life in Egypt.
Yes, everything is a riddle here, complicated and multi-layered, but every place has its quirks, and I prefer Egypt's above all others.
When did my love affair with Egypt begin? Between 5–7,000 years ago
There are over 5,000 years of history on this land; you feel it every time you walk outside because the sun shines differently here.
I don't know why, but it does.
Perhaps it has something to do with the fact you're standing where Ramesses the Great once stood or even Queen Cleopatra.
Maybe it's because you see ancient pottery chards mixed with golden sand in the desert and fossils from who knows when.
In Egypt, you have the chance to touch greatness because it's everywhere
You can place your hands on Pharaoh Hatshepsut's temple walls at Deir El-Bahari, and feel the power of Egypt's famous female king, whose reign was unprecedented and considered a golden age.
You can imagine what Ramesses the Great felt when he presented his beloved Nefertari with the temple he built for her at Abu Simbel.
The world came together to preserve Abu Simbel when they cut it stone by stone and moved its location to save it from rising water levels due to the Aswan Dam.
I'm not the first to have an eternal love affair with Egypt
British-born Dorothy Eady, aka Omm Sety, claimed to remember her past life as a priestess of Isis at Philae temple in ancient Egypt.
Her archaeological achievements were many, but she was primarily known for her absolute belief she was reincarnated and lived as an ancient priestess in the 18th dynasty.
Egypt was her first and last love.
Dear Egypt, I love you
It's the first time in my life I've felt a stable love state that didn't come from another person,
I'm somewhat private, but I delight in public declarations of love.
With that said,
Dear Egypt, I love you.
It's a wholly foreign sensation being in a state of love with an essence, a history, and literally, a land.
I may not know what's going on with work, my love life, or anything else, but my faith in knowing my life is supposed to unfold in Egypt is more than enough.
Egypt is a direct line to an energy portal I can't access anywhere else
I could go on about energy vortexes observed by science.
The Pharaohs constructed many of their pyramids and temples to access such phenomenon.
But for me, Egypt is a living, breathing, evolving entity just as much as a person - like a universal focal point.
It feels otherworldly. There's no explaining it logically, and I'm okay with that.
However, I do not think aliens built the pyramids; you're welcome.
I recognized myself in Egypt long before I set foot here.
I could tell you I spent many lifetimes in ancient Egypt, but would you believe me?
Do I believe me?
Does it matter?
No.
In the end
Not long ago, I made a discovery that sent shockwaves throughout my being.
The Philae Temple of Isis has an inscription officially recognized as the last written hieroglyphs in ancient Egypt.
It's known as the Graffito of Esmet-Akhom, or "the day Egypt ended" (in ancient Egypt).
The date reads:
August 24, 394 AD, the birthday of the great god Osiris, the day Egypt ended
August 24 — the day of my birth.
Why do I love Egypt?
Ancient Egypt makes my soul vibrate like an oud.
My love affair with Egypt is eternal as the afterlife ancient Egyptians so sought to attain.
May Ma'at guide my path, keep me true, and protect my soul in the tribunal hall of judgment.
For every decision, I trust my heart to lead me home.
It's Egypt.
It's always been Egypt.
I need coffee strong enough to wake up my ancestors! You can buy me one here if you enjoy my scribblings! Many thanks, xoxo
If you liked this article, you might fancy How a 9-Hour Full Moon Night Hike In Sinai Changed My Life.