When you visit Egypt, there are so many sites that you will want to visit, the length of your trip will never seem long enough!  We often meet people during our tours , that have been to Egypt more than 15 times, and they keep returning to see something new! They ask about this newly discovered site, or some new tomb that has been recently uncovered, or even places that they have heard other people talk about! Here in Egypt, you will always find new sites to visit and enjoy.

Egypt Culture and Traditions

Egypt is a country with an immense cultural mix, in every major city in Egypt you will find traditions that remain from the time of the Pharaohs, and in other parts you will find pure tribal customs that were brought in by many invaders throughout the centuries. That contradiction and contrast between areas of Egypt, when you compare it with other Middle Eastern countries, is what makes Egypt seem advanced against some of the others.

Spring River Nile civilization

The Nile has been a site of continuous human habitation since at least the Paleolithic era. Evidence of this appears in the form of artifacts and rock carvings along the Nile terraces and in the desert oases. In the 10th millennium BC, a culture of hunter-gatherers and fishers replaced a grain-grinding culture.

Ancient Egyptian history covers a continuous period of over three thousand years. To put this in perspective - most modern countries count their histories in hundreds of years. Only modern China can come anywhere near this in terms of historical continuity.

There are no more famous ancient sites within Egypt, or for that matter elsewhere in the world, than the Great Pyramids at Giza. They are, without question, the icon most associated with the Egypt. They have been both the main destination for tourists, and a source of imaginative thought to the world for over three thousand years.

The Name we use today derives from the Pyramid of Pepy I at Saqqara, which is Mennufer (the good place), or Coptic Menfe. Memphis is the Greek translation. But the City was originally Ineb-Hedj, meaning "The White Wall". Some sources indicate that other versions of the name may have even translated to our modern name for the country, Egypt. During the Middle Kingdom, it was Ankh-Tawy, or "That Which Binds the Two Lands". In fact, its location lies approximately between Upper and Lower Egypt, and the importance of the area is demonstrated by its persistent tendency to be the Capital of Egypt, as Cairo just to the North is today.

South Saqqara is actually a completely separate area from Saqqara Proper, located about one kilometers south of the pyramid of Sekhemkhet. It was founded in the 6th Dynasty. Like elsewhere, this is not simply a pyramid field, but a complete necropolis with various tombs, including that of Shepseskaf who may have not built a pyramid but reverted to the Mastaba style of tomb.

As for pyramids, a number of important kings of the Middle Kingdom built at South Saqqara, including both Pepi I and II, among others.

Who exactly was King Tut, known during his early life as Tutankhuaten (or Tutankhaten), reflecting his Amarna roots, and later as Tutankhamun, reflecting the return to Egypt's traditional religion? Despite the richness of his burial, King Tutankhamun remains somewhat of an enigmatic figure, even though he has been the subject of much investigation. Presumably, he was born in Akhetaten (modern el-Amarna), during the latter half of the reign of Akhenaten, the Heretic king who attempted to establish a radical departure from traditional Egyptian religion. We believe that he died in his late teens, judging from various analyses of his mummy.

It all stacked up. It was all circumstantial evidence as such, but frequently that is all that investigators of ancient mysteries have to go on. And yet, the most recent findings on the death of King Tut (Tutankhamun) seem to conclusively indicate that he died of natural causes, rather than being murdered. Specifically, the latest report is that he died of gangrene caused by a broken leg.