After Egypt's mummies parade: top five sites to visit


Mona Farag
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The world tuned in on Saturday to watch with fascination the procession of 22 mummies through Cairo on climate-controlled floats decorated with wings and symbols associated with ancient Egypt's pharaohs.

The preserved remains of 18 kings and four queens made their way through Egypt's capital, moving in order of the oldest first, in a multimillion-dollar event intended to draw attention to the country's ancient heritage.

It also showed Egypt's world-leading tourist potential to a global audience, with the coronavirus pandemic causing losses to the industry of about $1 billion a month.

The mummies were relocated from Cairo's Egyptian Museum to the new National Egyptian Museum of Civilisation (NMEC) in the historic city of Al Fustat, now part of Cairo, built after the Muslim conquest of Egypt in 641.

The procession for the five-kilometre journey was accompanied by artistic performances staged at Egypt's ancient landmarks, from where pharaohs had ruled from their thrones in magnificent temples.

Here are the top five landmarks in Egypt that should be on any traveller's list:

Hatshepsut's Temple of Deir El Bahri 

Deir El Bahri Temple of Pharaoh Hatshepsut, Nile Valley, Egypt. Alamy
Deir El Bahri Temple of Pharaoh Hatshepsut, Nile Valley, Egypt. Alamy

The Deir El Bahri Temple Complex includes one of the most beautiful temples in the world, built by the architects of the New Kingdom ruler Pharaoh Hatshepsut, in the 15th century BC.

Three colonnaded terraces were built within a steep half-circle of cliffs on the west bank of the Nile River, guarding the entrance to the great Valley of the Kings.

The walls of the temple are illustrated with Hatshepsut's autobiography, including stories of her fabled trip to the land of Punt, considered by some scholars to have been in the modern countries of Eritrea or Somalia.

Hatshepsut's  temple was damaged after her reign ended, when her successor, Thutmose III, had her name and images chiselled off the walls.

Additional damage was done to the temple at the orders of the 18th Dynasty heretic Akhenaten, whose faith tolerated only images of the Sun god Aten.

Step Pyramid of Djoser in Saqqara

A security post near the Step Pyramid of Djoser, at the Saqqara necropolis, south of Cairo. AFP
A security post near the Step Pyramid of Djoser, at the Saqqara necropolis, south of Cairo. AFP

Saqqara, south of Cairo, was the necropolis of ancient Memphis. It contains the  remains of several pyramids from the 5th and 6th Dynasties and the famous Step Pyramid, the earliest true pyramid in Egypt, built for King Djoser of the 3rd Dynasty, in about 2630BC, by his prime minister Imhotep.

The entire structure was originally covered with a casing of fine white limestone and had a granite burial vault beneath the pyramid's centre.

When discovered, the vault was sealed with a granite plug weighing about 3.5 tonnes, but ancient looters had been able to enter the tomb, making off with the king's treasures.

Mummy fragments were found in the vault in modern times, but carbon-dating indicated that they were from a much later date than the reign of Djoser.

Giza pyramids and the Sphinx 

The Sphinx at the Giza pyramids, on the western outskirts of Cairo. AFP
The Sphinx at the Giza pyramids, on the western outskirts of Cairo. AFP

Constructed between 2589 and 2504BC, the pyramids of pharaohs Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure are a testament to ancient planning and architecture.

The pyramids were originally encased in white limestone, most of which has been lost.

Despite differences in size and mass, the south-east tips of each pyramid align together almost precisely.

Each pyramid had a mortuary and valley temple, with a causeway connecting them.

They also had smaller pyramids referred to as satellite or queens' pyramids.

In the case of Khafre's pyramid, near his valley temple is an enigmatic reclining limestone monumental statue, the Great Sphinx of Giza, with an uncompleted temple dedicated to it.

The face of the Sphinx, a mythical creature, is generally believed to represent the pharaoh Khafre. It is the oldest-known monumental sculpture in Egypt and is commonly believed to have been designed, sculpted and constructed during Khafre's reign, between about 2558BC and 2532 BC.

The National Egyptian Museum of Civilisation

Visitors at the Museum of Egyptian Civilisation, in the historic city of Al Fustat, during its official opening on April 4. AFP
Visitors at the Museum of Egyptian Civilisation, in the historic city of Al Fustat, during its official opening on April 4. AFP

This is the new home to the 22 mummies that were the stars of the procession of pharaohs. The NMEC opened its doors to visitors on April 4. Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced that tickets will be sold at half price for a month.

The Gallery of Royal Mummies, however, will open on April 18.

The NMEC is the first museum to be devoted to the entirety of Egyptian civilisation.

Designed by Egyptian architect El Ghazzali Kosseiba, the NMEC  displays Egyptian civilisation from prehistoric times to the present day, with its core permanent exhibition devoted to the achievements of Egyptian civilisation.

It features six thematic galleries covering: the Dawn of Civilisation, The Nile, Writing, State and Society, Material Culture, Beliefs and Thinking and the Gallery of Royal Mummies.

The Grand Egyptian Museum

A 3,200-year-old pink-granite statue of King Ramses II at the entrance of the Grand Egyptian Museum, in Giza. AFP
A 3,200-year-old pink-granite statue of King Ramses II at the entrance of the Grand Egyptian Museum, in Giza. AFP

Egypt will inaugurate the Grand Egyptian Museum (Gem) near the Giza pyramids in the coming months, which may house the mummy of the most famous pharaoh, Tutankhamun.

Located only two kilometres from the pyramids, Gem will be the largest archaeological museum complex in the world and home to more than 100,000 artefacts. For the first time, King Tut's entire treasure collection will be on display, alongside artefacts from pre-historic times, through Egypt's thousands of years of pharaonic civilisation and ancient Greek and Roman periods of Egyptian history.

Egypt open to visitors

Egypt is open to tourism and the government is now issuing visas. Travellers from 46 countries can quickly obtain their eVisa to enter Egyptian territory.

Visitors should check they meet all the Egypt eVisa requirements before proceeding with the application.

The International Air Transport Association has stated that everyone who arrives at the Egyptian border must have a health declaration form completed and signed. This form will be given to visitors upon arrival to be completed and submitted to immigration.

Most travellers to Egypt must have a negative PCR test certificate for Covid-17, taken a maximum of 72 hours before their flight departure.

Exceptions are people travelling from Japan, China, Thailand, North America, South America, Canada, plus London Heathrow, Paris and Frankfurt airports. They are allowed to provide a PCR certificate obtained up to 96 hours prior to flight departure, due to long travel times and transit periods.

Travellers must present paper copies of the PCR test results; digital copies will not be accepted.

Those arriving directly at Hurghada, Sharm Al Sheikh and Marsa Al Alam airports without a printed PCR test will be tested upon their arrival, at their own expense.

All children under the age of six are exempt from PCR testing requirements.

Incoming tourists must show proof of health insurance upon arrival.

Read more about Ancient Egypt:

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Third-place play-off: New Zealand v Wales, Friday, 1pm

Final: England v South Africa, Saturday, 1pm

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UAE National Schools: Al Safa School
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International Vets: Joining Jack

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Lions tour fixtures

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Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion

The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.

Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".

The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.

He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.

"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.

As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.

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The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.

The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.

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All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.

Your rights as an employee

The government has taken an increasingly tough line against companies that fail to pay employees on time. Three years ago, the Cabinet passed a decree allowing the government to halt the granting of work permits to companies with wage backlogs.

The new measures passed by the Cabinet in 2016 were an update to the Wage Protection System, which is in place to track whether a company pays its employees on time or not.

If wages are 10 days late, the new measures kick in and the company is alerted it is in breach of labour rules. If wages remain unpaid for a total of 16 days, the authorities can cancel work permits, effectively shutting off operations. Fines of up to Dh5,000 per unpaid employee follow after 60 days.

Despite those measures, late payments remain an issue, particularly in the construction sector. Smaller contractors, such as electrical, plumbing and fit-out businesses, often blame the bigger companies that hire them for wages being late.

The authorities have urged employees to report their companies at the labour ministry or Tawafuq service centres — there are 15 in Abu Dhabi.

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India 236 (50 ovs)

England win by 86 runs

Next match: Tuesday, July 17, Headingley 

A little about CVRL

Founded in 1985 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory (CVRL) is a government diagnostic centre that provides testing and research facilities to the UAE and neighbouring countries.

One of its main goals is to provide permanent treatment solutions for veterinary related diseases. 

The taxidermy centre was established 12 years ago and is headed by Dr Ulrich Wernery. 

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