The Last Day

 There is really not much to report!  I completed all my packing on Sunday night so that I only had a few items to add on Sunday morning, go to breakfast, check out and wait for my driver.  PSA at Santa Fe Airport was a mess last year and equally bad this year.  Maybe they think that have to slow down to earn their money.

We were held up for 40 minutes on the tarmac, this time, because of congestion at Denver.  Last year, we waited that long for a birth in Denver.  Either way, it adds a smig of anxiety about making connections.  Once again, all's well that ends well.

I feel I can be a little more frank in my summation of the trip than I was to the Road Scholar people.  There is no question that our tour leaders this year were barely adequate.  Two women of advanced age who seemed either unsure of themselves, or were mostly just going through they motions.  Oliver Prezant is very good at what he does, which is to introduce opera on a variety of levels to a diverse group of would be aficionados, and he does it so masterfully that the group does not realize he is actually controlling everything that's going on.  Masterful indeed!

I must comment on the group, this year.  Everyone was old!  I think there was only one woman under 60, and I was only one of two unaccompanied men.  But let me tell you, these were no ordinary old ladies.  Many of them had be coming to the Santa Fe Opera with Road Scholar for 6, 8, 10 years and were knowledgeable about other performance in other venues.  The subject in every conversation was opera, opera, opera.  What a treat to have 60+ people and no dud in the bunch.  I hope a lot of them will be back next year!

It seems apparent to me that The Drury Plaza Hotel is in some distress.  The meeting facilities were cramped, the food was certainly less varied that last year, and the room service was bad.  There seemed to be a lot fewer staff persons around, and those that were, seemed overly occupied.

The last hitch came with the taxi ride in from O'hare.  Of course, it was at 5:30 pm on a Monday night with the temperature at something close to 90 degrees, and bumper to bumper traffic.  It took more than an hour to reach Malibu East in an unairconditioned cab.  I was expecting a devastating bill, but was surprised and happy to discover it was right in the ballpark. 

I've already made my reservation for next year.  That's probably the most telling eval of all.

Day Seven-and-three quarters

 As it turned out, my knee was cooperative and I made it to the New Mexico Art Museum.  It is basically all 20th century art by people who came to Santa Fe in the early 20th century and stayed, either because the museum gave them studio space, or because they just fell in love with the culture and history.  On my way there, I stopped at a street vendor and purchased a ring to replace an amethyst which I have worn for a long, long time.  Its a good match to the ring I bought last year, and it wasn't very expensive, either.

Here are a few pictures from the museum.

Dinner and packing will end this day!  Concluding chapter, later.

Day 7

 Our final opera for this season was "The Marriage of Figaro" by WA Mozart.  It is a classic comic opera in the Italian style, despite taking place in Spain and being composed by an Austrian!  The performance, like all performances at Santa Fe Opera, was pretty much flawless.  The singers were excellent and well cast.  I was a little put off by the voice and physical appearance of Figaro, but I quickly warmed to his energy and commitment to the role.  I was looking forward to the appearance of Dr. Bartolo, played by Maurizio Muraro who came on Tuesday to talk with our group.  He was perfect!

The compelling aspect of the production was the set which consisted of a central structure which expanded and contracted to accommodate the libretto.  It was constructed on the turntable which rotated as needed, and it was all framed by sprockets suggesting a watch works, symbolizing the time frame of the opera which is a single day.  It proved to be very effective and added a great deal to the action.

It was only a little shorter that "Die Walkure", finishing up at 11:45. Another late night and a short sleep!

This morning, I went to early church at Church of the Holy Faith, just a short walk from the hotel.  This was my second visit and, while is checked all the boxes, I made me appreciate Church of the Ascension all the more.  The liturgy was in Rite I, and it took the most old fashioned language available in that rite.  The celebrant by nature seems to be on the sanctimonious style, of which I am less and less tolerant .  Nevertheless, I was able to get back to the hotel and grab some breakfast before our final session with Oliver.

I have to admire Oliver's skill set at engaging a diverse crowd in conversation while still imparting some significant music education and active engagement while also providing a bit of entertainment and humor.  I came away liking him better this year than last.  His final assignment for the groups was to write an aria for Dr. Bartolo that reflected his sudden assumption as father and husband.  It was a fun exercise of no real consequence and a good way to end out time here.

Our schedule for today has been amended.  We have lunch and the afternoon to ourselves, and the final dinner has been moved to 6:00 pm.  I'm going to venture out again this afternoon and hope my knee will take me to the New Mexico Contemporary Art Museum on Palace Street. 

I'll be leaving the hotel at 8:00 am, via Rob Rides and taking off at 10:45 for Denver and finally Chicago at 5:05 pm.  Of course there is a time change involved, but it will still be a long day!

Day 6

 Last night was the SFO  production of Die Walkure, and true to form, the production was innovative and enlightening.  In previous productions that I have seen, the setting was rather traditional, i.e. a sort of woodland/Germanic scene.  This production was very intent on presenting the opera as occurring in two separate time frames, one temporal and one eternal where the gods play.  The opening scene is a sort of 1920's kitchen (with an ash stump, of course).  As that is cleared away during act 1, leaving just the  ash stump.  Act 2 is set in a stylized forest scene where gods and humans interact but on different levels, and Act 3 is Valhalla, more of less.

Interesting directorial innovations include the presence of shrouded, mythical figures representing unspecified forces playing on the scene.  There is  kind of permeable boundary which allows for them to enter the scene and disappear.  Although it was a little unnerving at first, I found it an interesting addition which emphasized how much of the action was out of the control of the human characters.

As predicted, it was three-and-one-half hours and got us back at the hotel and 1:30 am.

The morning with Oliver was about unpacking the groups reaction to the production which was diverse but mostly positive,  Again, there was a short introduction by Oliver to "The Marriage of Figaro", which is tonight's performance. 

We have "fee time" until 7:00 pm which we gather to pick up our tickets for this evening.  There are no meals being provided, but that is hardly a hardship since we've been eating very well, all week.  I may venture downtown on my own to visit one of the smaller museums, or take a nap, or just do a little shopping.  I guess that's what free time means. 

My attempt at filling up the afternoon with productive exploration was a failure.  As soon as I stepped outside and took a few steps, it was obvious to me that my knee was not going to tolerate even a modest walk.  When I was  here, last year, on several occasions, I tried to tour the cathedral, but always at the wrong times.  Today, since it is so close to the hotel, I thought I'd try again and was able to spend some time there.  There is what appears to be an appendage to the main church which is actually the original building to which the larger edifice was appended and the original altar reredos has been preserved as a feature of a prayer chapel.  I've attached pictures of some features of the cathedral, beginning with the original structure and expanding into the present parish church.

Day 5

 Rigoletto!  I'm just not a fan of Verdi and although there were excellent singers with amazing voices and stamina, the libretto is overly dramatic and tedious.  I know that Italians have a reputation for high emotionalism, but the extended arias of Verdi tax my patience.  The director's choice of costuming and sets did not enhance the production.  Rather they often seemed to trivialize and distract from the main story.  There was one stroke of brilliance on his part, IMHO.  He cast the Duke as a young, handsome, charismatic and privileged man who is all out for himself and what he can get, regardless of the consequences to others.  We've all met people like that, and it lent an extra air of credibility to the role.  Another unique feature of this performance was a stunning sunset visible though the open back of the theatre.

Oliver's session this morning was more and more about Rigoletto and featured many of the criticisms I had.  Not enough time was spent on Die Walkure which is the performance, tonight. Three and a half hours!  Home by 1:30, the tour guide says.

After a nice lunch (meatless for me, because I'm an old fashioned catholic), we made our way back to Museum Hill where there are two very large museums.  One, The Museum of International Fold Art, I perused last year.  The second The Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, was definitely on my to do list this year.  I was not disappointed!  Wonderful native artifacts in every room, videos of cultural patterns still practiced, today, and a gift shop that I somehow manage to explore without buying anything!

Here are a couple of pictures:

Tomorrow's blog post may be a little later than usual.  I may actually need some extra sleep!

Day Four

 Last night, we were treated to The Santa Fe Opera's production of "La Boheme"(sic).  It was an excellent production!  However, I was a little disappointed in the design and the direction.  Understandably, my expectations were very elevated due to the reputation of SFO productions.  Two things stand out: The entire second act which is always a challenge to stage because of all the activity, children's chorus, military band, café festivities, arguments, etc., was crammed into roughly half the stage, which is already much smaller than most big opera houses, and: the direction that had all the male singers turned to face the audience and sing at full volume, when in principle they should to interacting with one another.  Also their volume often drowned out the women who have beautiful parts to contribute.  Perhaps the absence of nuance in the men's performance was the greatest loss.  Overall, it was still a fine performance.

This is a picture of the 1st act scenery:

Our Thursday morning session with Oliver rehashed the performance.  I was a little surprised that others also found objections to the same items I identified.  Never content with a quick overview, Oliver decided to spend more time teaching us about "directorial choices", something none of us will ever have a reason to do!

Finally, we had a guest speaker who had been a bass player in the SFO orchestra for 41 years.  He did a lot of demonstrating of the music we are going to encounter this evening at "Rigoletto" by Verdi.  Although I have seen and heard this opera several times, I have yet to really embrace it, probably because it's Verdi.  Pulling out certain things to listen for may be helpful.  We shall see!

We had lunch at Pranzo, a favored Italian restaurant in downtown Santa Fe.  I had eggplant parmesan because I'm giving my lower gums a break by not using my lower denture.  The eggplant was really delicious!  The restaurant was promoted as being one block from where the bus would drop us.  As it turned out, it was more like three long blocks, with no shade and temps at 90+ degrees.  Of course, that meant that there was also the return trip to the bus which then took us to Nuevo Mexicano Heritage Arts Museum, located on Museum Hill, just off the Old Santa Fe Trail.  It is a small museum and most of its contents reflect native arts in the Spanish colonial era.  There is a very small section that shows contemporary works of current New Mexico artists.  After an hour we returned

 to our hotel in time a little rest before dinner and "Rigoletto" tonight.

Day Two-and-a-half

 Our first performance was "Turn of the Screw", an adaptation of a novella by Henry James, composed by Benjamin Britton, probably the most renown English composers of the twentieth century.  I expected the music to be difficult to listen to, but was surprised at both its harmonies and its appropriateness to the libretto.  The story, itself is weird, about a governess and two children who are influenced, or maybe even possessed by two ghosts who present as dangerous and/or potentially harmful.  The story progresses along the lines of the governess becoming aware of the presence of these two pernicious influences and her commitment to safe guard them. Ultimately she fails to protect the boy and he dies.  The your girl is rescued by the housekeeper and presumably survives once removed from the haunted estate.  The staging is interesting because there are two scenes which involve water, one a river, and the other a lake.  There is a lot of playing in the water, which can't have been easy to depict.  The opera leaves one with more questions than answers.

The staging is spare and all takes place in one room of the estate. Here is a picture of what we encountered as we entered the theatre for the production.  The set is open to the backdrop of the scenic location.

Our third day began with Oliver, who processed (endlessly!) the reactions of the group to "The Turn of the Screw."  Many hated it.  Some (including myself) found it interesting if a little confusing and ambiguous as to theme and storyline.  Others, of course, thought it was great.  The majority of the time was spent trying to understand the opera, which seems a waste of time, since Henry James intended for the story to be open ended and unresolved.  Oliver was his usual charming and provocative self and the whole thing went on too long for my tastes.

The end of the session consisted of a guest from the props department who talked about what is involved in providing props for a season at The Santa Fe Opera.  A lot of her conversation ended up being about the great advantage of being a intern at SFO and the great job prospects that derive from it.  She also offered some suggestions of props to look for in upcoming productions.

Lunch was at a local restaurant in Santa Fe, some walking distance from the hotel.  I ordered something I thought would be easy to eat, since I am having a little discomfort with my lower partial denture.  It was listed as a shrimp and avocado salad and it arrived ask advertised, but with the bed of lettuce being a combination of spring mix and endive, both of which do not meet my definition of easy to eat.  To make matters worse, I slopped dressing down the front of my shirt and it immediately stained!  I chose to not go on the walking tour of downtown Santa Fe, as I did that last year.  If you want to see pictures of that tour, check last year's post.

I walked back to the hotel on my own and passed by the plaza where there were some native dancers performing. I watched for a bit and then returned to the hotel for a nap!

Tonight's performance is "La Bohme", which I have seen more times than I can count.  Still, I'm relly looking forward to it as it is one of my favorite operas.

Day one-and-a-half

 Unlike the travel day last year, this one was trouble free!  The flights were on time and the service good.  The first day on these tours is always spend in something like and introduction or orientation, followed by at dinner and which we are all supposed to "get acquainted."  All I could think of was retiring to my room and going to sleep.   In order to catch my flights, I had to leave my home at 5:00 am for an 8:35 departure from O'Hare.  So, by 8:00 pm, I was ready to crash and burn.  Fortunately I was able to check into the hotel when I arrived at 1:30, which gave me plenty of time to unpack and get settled.  My sleep wasn't uninterrupted, but all together I logged in 10 hours!

Breakfast was the usual hotel, buffet fare, and was followed by our first session with our opera expert, Oliver Prezant.  Oliver always makes sure we all know that he is qualified as an expert in opera, general music composition, conducting, performance, etc.  Consequently, the first hour is always his resume, which I have to admit is rather impressive and always concludes with his dedication to music education.

We then had a guest artist, Maurizio Muraro, who is singing Dr. Bartolo in "The Marriage of Figaro" this year.  He has had a thirty year+ career in opera and has sung with many of the great conductors in the most renowned opera houses in the world.  He was most gracious in meeting Oliver's requests for different singing styles and demonstrated his versatility with his booming bass voice.  It will be fun to see him on stage in a few days.

The morning finished with Oliver giving us a very brief (and I might add) superficial introduction to "The Turn of the Screw", which we will see, tonight.

Lunch, and then off to the Opera House for what turned out to be a rather disappointing backstage tour.  It seems that there is so much activity around the evening's performance that several of the usual stops on the morning tour had to be omitted.  It was also 90+ degrees in bright sunshine.  Since much of the tours involved being outside, most of our stops were anywhere where there was shade.

Then it was back to the Drury Plaza to prepare for dinner and the evening performance.  I'm attaching a picture of the Santa Fe Opera House.

Santa Fe Redux

 That's right!  I'm on my way back to Santa Fe, New Mexico, for another Opera Extravaganza with Road Scholar again.  Last year, my since desire to record the events of the week were frustrated by the intensity of the experience.  I won't be so taken off guard, this time, and will try to manage my time more judiciously so that a post gets entered daily.  No promises, of course!  More, soon!

Day 2 - It always gets better!

 There was an email waiting for me when I awoke in the morning of Day 2.  My lost luggage had been delivered to the front desk of the hotel at 12:05 am.  Great news for the first real day of the program.  The dinner and the orientation session the night before reviewed the program materials and identified the various venues we would be using, including dining rooms and classrooms.

The day begins, everyday, with a very adequate breakfast buffet, typical of fairly good hotels.  Served from 6:00 to 9:00 am it makes for a leisurely start of the day with a full stomach and a clear head.  The next thing on the agenda, everyday except the last two, is a lecture/discussion lead by Oliver Prezant, who is the person who does the pre-performance lectures before each performance.  I can't say that I was immediately taken with either his information or his style of delivery.  It felt a little like we were being talked down to.  I've come to describe his presentation as a sort of advanced music appreciation class, with a lot of emphasis on what to listen for and historical and cultural background on the operas, themselves.  His knowledge regarding opera is truly encyclopedic.  I guess for me, he was an acquired taste.

His introduction to "The Righteous," the opera whose world premier we would see is a few hours was really quite good, especially at unpacking a very complex plot and introducing the principle characters.  More of that later.

After lunch, we did a walking tour of the historic plaza area of Santa Fe.  Our leader, Christopher, could point out and embellish the history and traditions of a variety of sites, especially those associated with Los Alamos and the development of the atomic bomb,  Christopher has deep New Mexican roots and grew up speaking Spanish and English and carries a vast knowledge and loyalty for the many influences that contribute to the culture of Santa Fe.  He calls the Spanish Conquistadors, colonizers, which should indicate where his cultural loyalties lay.

The statue above represents all the non-indigenous imports to New Mexico by the Spanish which brought a raft of diseases which decimated the native population.  The statue commemorates the arrival of the "colonizers."

I have to say that Santa Fe has embraces its heritage with abandon.  Virtually every building is adobe-mud colored and has that particular look and style associated with the region.

One of the interesting sites we visited was "The Miraculous Stairway."  The Sisters of Loretto were brought to Santa Fe to educate the girls and they built buildings to that end.  One of the buildings was a French style church.  It is a beautiful church but someone neglected to design a way to get into the gallery/balcony.  The sisters were clueless about what to do, so they began a novena.  At the end of the ninth day, there was a knock at the door of the convent and a wondering carpenter was asking for lodging.  The sisters said he could have lodging if he built them a way to get into the balcony and his handy work is still admired, today.

It was back to the hotel to prepare for dinner and the opera.  I'll close with the first views I had of the opera theatre.

fin

Day 1 - Travel - Bah!

 Everything was going great.  I arrived at O'Hare at 6:35 am as planned, was assisted (mightily) by United Airlines staff and received my first ride on an airport wheelchair.  Of course, the gate for my flight was at the absolute end of Terminal 1 which made me even more grateful for Bill's (my travel agent) suggestion that I acknowledge my limitations and make use of this airline service.

The flight to Denver was on time and unremarkable, until we reached Denver Airport and had to wait 50 minutes for a gate in which to disembark.  As I watched the time tick away, I began to wonder if I would have enough time to make it to my next gate and the final leg to Santa Fe.  Luckily, there was a wheelchair waiting and a vigorous youngish man to hurry me from the very end of the A concourse the the very end of the B concourse.  We arrived just as their were getting ready to close the doors and I collapsed into my seat as the engines were starting.  I couldn't imagine that my luggage had made the transfer, and I was correct.  

Upon arrival in Santa Fe, no baggage!  After an hour of filling out forms and making a claim, I called for an Uber to take me to The Druray Plaza Hotel and checked in with what little carry-on I had with me.  No clothes, no toiletries, etc.  Luckily, I had all the program materials, my phone, my compute, my meds, and two pairs of shoes.  Hopes are high that my luggage will show up sometime tomorrow.  We shall see!cct

No pictures today, as my camera is among the missing items.  Perhaps I will have another opportunity to capture the stunning New Mexico landscape in the days ahead.

The Day Before the Day Before...

It's Saturday, and I will be leaving very early Monday morning to catch my flight to Santa Fe via Denver.  All I really have to do pack for a week away in a strange place and the few odds and ends that must be done before leaving home for any lengthy period of time, empty trash, wash last load of dishes, water plants, etc.  Some of that will have to wait until tomorrow afternoon.  Tomorrow morning, I'm celebrating the 9:00 am Sung Mass at Ascension and assisting at the 11:00.  I then have three or four hours before my dinner engagement and bed.  All is well!

I'm really only making this post to that I can still make it all work.  I think I'd better try to add a picture to complete my trial run.

I guess I'm a ready as I'll ever get!

More, lateer....

Opera Extravaganza in Santa Fe, New Mexico!

 A wonderful trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico, is about to begin.  It is the first travel I've attempted since the Co-vid epidemic shut me and the rest of the world down.  I had two trips scheduled for 2020, and we all know how that turned out!  Inactivity put me into a physical decline that rendered anything other than the essential basics out of reach.  However, some progress in recent months encourages me to "test the waters" and hopefully discover that more challenging travel is not out of the question.  Time and experience will tell.

This is meant to be only an introduction to a more extensive blog during the Santa Fe adventure.  I will be flying to my destination via Denver and Santa Fe airport.  The program is eight days with five Opera performances and museum tours, with ample free time to do as much exploring, locally, as desired.  It promises to be an informative and artistically fulfilling time away, and with some trepidation I'm really looking forward to it!

More, later.

Meet the Puebloans.

Day 2-- too early.  Typically, I awakened a little after 3 am, having slept about 5 hours.  Even taking into account that I'd gained an hour with mountain time, it was not enough.  So I forced myself to try to return to sleep, eventually giving up and using the rest of the night to continue my reading in Ancient Peoples of the American Southwest, one of the recommended books I purchased in anticipation of this trip.  It's actually quite a good read, but, as I discovered in our first lecture from Richard Friedman, our touring archaeologist, presents only one perspective among reasonable and accepted ones regarding the history and achievements of the ancient Puebloans.  Friedman has worked in this field for 40 years and strives to impart far more information than I can take in.  So, after a decent Hilton breakfast and a mind numbing lecture and slide show by Richard, we boarded a bus and headed for the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center.

Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Albuquerque, New Mexico

There are currently nineteen surviving Pueblo communities living in New Mexico and despite speaking three different languages and multiple dialects, they have banded together to create this center to introduce and illuminate their history, culture and contemporary expression.  As one might expect, there are displays of ancient artifacts, dioramas, videos, all showing aspects of Pueblo life as it was and is.  As the self-guided tour winds its way through Pueblo history, art and culture, one eventually ends up at a very expensive gift shop featuring the work of regional artisans, and, of course, the predictable trove of souvenirs.  The jewelry, pottery and textiles are all of excellent quality with price tags to match!  I nearly bought a T-shirt, but was saved by the absence of one in an appropriate size.  Whew!  There is also a restaurant where we had a lunch of blue corn enchiladas, beans and summer squash.  The tour ended at the dance floor where we were treated to examples of "the butterfly dance," and "the eagle dance."

Butterfly Dance

The Eagle Dance

Around the dance floor there were local artisans displaying and selling their pieces.  These were much more reasonable in price and of comparable quality with the gift shop items, and I was sorely tempted to buy a exquisite piece of pottery.  But, reluctantly decided that I did not want to be responsible for such a fragile item during the rest of the trip.  My experience from the past tells me that there will be ample, future opportunities for a similar, suitable expenditure.  On the way out, I took this shot of a truly arresting sculpture by a contemporary Pueblo artist.

Our next visit was to the Petroglyph National Monument on the outskirts of Albuquerque (if I get nothing else from this trip, I've at least learned to spell Albuquerque).  The monument is situated in the basalt rocks of an ancient lava flow.

The edge of the ancient lava flow

Getting to the actual petroglyphs required a hike of some distance over sand in 95 degree heat.  For the effort it took and the discomfort engendered, I would say that it was hardly worth it.  I saw better petroglyphs at Capitol Reef National Park in Utah last year.  These were pretty unimaginative and scarce, and had obviously been amended over the years to include "Bill" who at some point added his own contribution.  The most valuable lesson for me was that there were other people in this tour who struggled more on this adventure than I did--some comfort to me as I have carried a concern about my fitness for the three mile a day warning that comes with the designation of the Road Scholar activity level of "Let's Go."  So far, so good!

Petroglyphs on basalt with spectator

As clouds began to roll in, I couldn't help but take a picture or two of the high desert on the long, tedious trek back to the bus.

Still hot and sweaty, we stopped at a whimsical restaurant for a dinner that no one wanted since it was less than three hours since we finished lunch.  Nearly everyone selected the "fresh berry salad with salmon," and we headed back to the Hilton for another lecture and slide show by Richard on current innovations in archaeological research and a movie on Chaco Canyon, narrated by Robert Redford.  I think I only nodded of once!  I gratefully fell into bed at 9:30.

Whimsical restaurant in Albuquerque called "Home Range" (I think)

Arrival!

The flight from Chicago to Albuquerque was truly uneventful, delayed take-off (O'hare!!) but a smooth and comfortable three hour flight.  American Airlines provided me with a small bag of unsalted pretzels and a entire can of Coke, not the usual plastic cup fulled with ice.  Upon arrival, I called for the hotel shuttle as the tour directions instructed, and then waited for a hour in the New Mexico heat for the driver to show up.  Checking into the hotel was no problem and the room is satisfactory.  I had to join Hilton Honors to get free WiFi.  Since there is no cost, I can afford it.

The first event of the tour is orientation which we just finished.  It really amounts to no more than an introduction of the tour director and the archaeologist and, of course, each of the participants.  There are 24 signed up, although this evening three were still MIA.  It is far too early to put forward any opinions about the group.  I couldn't help but notice that there are only six men, and a bunch of very masculine-looking women.  We'll see how this plays out!  Tomorrow we begin the tour in earnest with a visit to the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center and Petroglyph National Monument which are more of less local.  More about that later.

I learned something worth remembering, today, though.  I decided to make the trip to O'hare on public transportation even though, when I left Malibu East I still hadn't decide how I would do it.  I took the first bus that came, and it decided my route: Sheridan bus to Foster bus to Jefferson Park Blue Line to O'hare.  The whole trip took about one and a half hours, probably twice as long as taxi or Uber.  On the positive side, it cost a total of $1.35 instead of $45 or $60, and since my time is not that valuable, it seems like a pretty good trade off.  The depression mentality so deeply implanted in my infant brain is alive and well!  O yah, and American Airlines has raised the price of checking a bag to $30.  Outrageous!

Tomorrow, more worth reading and some pictures.

Off again!

I'm starting this blog the day before I leave, just to make sure everything is still working and connected.  My history with technology is fraught with failure and frustration, and, when I am in unfamiliar surroundings, it is even worse!  So, this is the start of a new adventure.  I will resume posting to this site in Albuquerque, New Mexico, tomorrow evening when I have something to report.  My anticipation of this trip is that it will be essentially an exercise in cultural anthropology illuminated by the exploration of important archaeological sites.  I find that I have a lot more interest and even passion for knowledge of ancient people and places than I do of anything that might be identifies as roughly contemporary.  Is it a sign of old age, or meaningful commentary on current events? I can't tell!

The Last Look

The journey home began with a departure from the Fairmont at 6:30 am.  Eight of us had the same flight on Turkish Air to Istanbul, and then our separate ways thence.  Departure meant another pass through customs and much security, and our flight was an hour late in taking off, which caused not a little concern as the time allotted for transfers in Istanbul was not generous.  I'm sorry to say that this experience in Istanbul international was not a great deal different from my first experience there six years ago, chaotic congestion a transfer points, and, now, extra security checks.  As with the last time, an agent had to come out and "fast-track" those of us who were catching the flight to Chicago, despite the fact that it had already been delayed by more than an hour.  The flight home was very much like the flight there, except that there was no turbulence, it was two hours longer, and I returned to my usual practice of not being able to sleep.  I watched a total of five movies, ate two pretty good meals, and arrived in Chicago, miraculously, on time!  Add an hour and a half for customs, baggage claim, and an extra security check, which I am assuming was a consequence of my coming from Egypt, and I was home by 9:00 pm, and in bed in record time, thereafter.  Adding it all together, from the time I got up in the morning in Cairo, until I hit the bed in Chicago is was 26 hours.  The return to CST has not been easy, but I am confident that eventually all of me will finally be back at home.

I've scanned a few "internal" photos from the Valley of the Kings, and Abu Simbel.  They are offered here as a sample of some of the artistic and engineering marvels recently encountered.

Rather typical relief from tombs in the Valley of the Kings

Celestial boat to the afterlife from tomb of Ramses IX

Burial Chamber of Tutankhamen

Wall art - Tutankhamen making offering to Amun-Ra (?)

Ramses II accepts tribute from conquered people - Abu Simbel

Sunlight penetrates the dark at Abu Simbel

But Ptah, God of the underworld, remains in the dark

In the aftermath of a trip like this one, there are always regrets.  I regret that the time that was allotted for the fabulous museums was so short.  It left me with a feeling that my emergence into Egyptian culture and history was superficial at best.  I wish I had known about other tours of longer duration and less intensity.  I wish I had added a stop in Alexandria to the package, and I wish I were better at managing the settings on my point and shout camera.  But, in the final summation, I was a fine trip, and who can argue with being in Luxor with 70 degree temperatures, while the folks at home are enduring a sub-zero deep freeze!  I call that great planning!

-End-

Curious Old Coots Contend with Cairo

The second to the last day of our tour dawned on a rainy day in Cairo.  The travel literature says that February is the most likely season to have rain, and our experience certainly confirmed that prediction.  The temperature was in the low 60's, and the traffic put us in nearly continuous stop and go mode.  I spent a good part of the day perfecting my reading of Arabic license plates.  It will be interesting to see how long this new-found expertise stays accessible to  me.

The pictures from the day are of poor quality due to lighting issues and photography restrictions in virtually every place we visited.  But, here are a few worth sharing.

Early rainy morning view from my room in the Fairmont Nile

I really hadn't anticipated our first destination.  Travel fatigue, I suppose, but I quickly became engaged and delighted.  We invaded the old Christian section of Cairo with churches dating back to the fourth century A.D.  I was immediately struck with the venerable antiquity of these congregations, and reminded of the dominant role Egyptian Christianity played in the early history of the church, something which is easily overlooked by our Roman/western perspective and historical proximity.

Directory to Ancient Churches in Cairo

 The feeling as we entered this complex of buildings and institutions was of entering a closed and secluded world, as perhaps befits a minority community.  I could not help but wonder if this rabbit-warren type configuration was a result of early persecution under the Romans, or a reaction to the incursion of Islam at  later date.  Under either circumstance, the sense of entering a special, perhaps a sacred space was undeniable.

Just an interesting shot inside the Christian complex

The first church we visited was dedicated to the Holy Family and at its rear, displayed through  Plexiglas flooring a cave like grotto in which the Holy Family was purported to have stayed during their sojourn in Egypt.  Unfortunately, again, there were no pictures allowed.  As might be expected, the iconography highlights the church's dedication.

Relief marking the entrance to Holy Family Church

Coptic Christianity has elaborated the Holy Family's stay in Egypt to an extent unexplored in the western Church, and maybe in the Orthodox traditions as well.  I was fascinated by this "map" of the Holy Family's travels in Egypt, and I hope in the coming days and months to investigate this tradition more fully.  This map will have to be my starting point.

The Holy Family itinerary?

The second church we visited was the fourth century Church of St. Sergius, called the hanging church, due to construction techniques used at the time of its building.

Information plaque for the Hanging Church

The Hanging Church

The inside of the church is beautifully decorated in the worn "orthodox" style that befits its age and use.  No pictures allowed, of course, but our timing was excellent because we were able to witness a part of a Coptic mass with a good number of the faithful in attendance.  Whether this was appreciated by other members our tour group or not, I cannot say, but I was gratified to have had even this limited exposure to Coptic liturgy and piety.

Shrine to the Virgin Mary - Church of St. Sergius

Our next stop was in the old Muslim section of Cairo where there are a number of mosques dating from the 8th and 9th century.   We visited a huge one that allowed pictures, but had little to photograph, being stark and unadorned in the fashion of its time.

Mosque interior

Central ablution station (no longer in use)

Perhaps one of the more memorable impressions from this stop was the police presence, insuring that tourists did not venture into the surrounding neighborhood(s).  We spent an hour or so at the Cairo bazaar.  Mohamed had discouraged much shopping on this trip because, he said, most of the things that were available for sale were not Egyptian but Chinese in origin, and for the most part he seemed to be correct.  The one exception, I believe, was the Cairo bazaar which teamed with beautiful and riveting displays in every shop.  Covering several blocks, it seemed more diverse in its offerings than other bazaars I'd seen in the Middle East.  And, there were plenty of things to temp this shopper, had I been able to figure out a way to get it back to Chicago.  Thankfully, good sense prevailed and I left, empty handed, as did most of our contingent.

After a nice lunch in a rather exotic restaurant which was too dark to photograph, we made our way through Cairo traffic back to the hotel.  Along the way we passed the famous Tahrir Square, where Egyptians effectively  protested the government of Mubarck in 2011, and then his replacement Morsi in 2013.  It was obviously a more peaceful time under the present regime.  During the course of the trip, we heard comments both supporting and criticizing the Sisi military oversight, and, people seemed free to speak freely, which says something in itself.

Tahrir Square on an ordinary, rainy day

After a brief rest, we were off to the Egyptian Museum.  This is the famous collection of Egyptian artifacts from the last five of six millennia.   No pictures, allowed!

The Egyptian Museum

The number of arresting displays contained in this building is incomprehensible.  Once again, our time was so brief that the most thorough knowledge we obtained was what we were missing.  Mummies, sarcophagi, jewelry, tools, weapons, statuary, carvings, more than can be assimilated in an afternoon or in a lifetime.  It is no wonder that Egyptology has so many sub-specialties!  I saw again the treasures of King Tut, last see by me at the Field Museum sometime in the earl 1960s, and treasures from many other less famous tombs which nevertheless carry high archaeology value.  I took interest in the Mummies of Ramses II, whom I'm sure would be horrified to know that he has become a tourist spectacle, and of Hatshepsut (maybe) whom the placard stated was chronically obese and had bad teeth.  How's that for a memorial epithet?