Christian churches at Cairo--The Esbekie-square--Theatre--Howling
dervishes--Mashdalansher, the birthday of Mahomet--Procession and
religious ceremony--Shubra--Excursion through the desert to Suez--
Hardships of the journey--Scenes in the desert--The camel--Caravans--
Mirage--The Red Sea--Suez--Bedouin camp--Quarrel with the camel-
driver--Departure for Alexandria.
I visited many Christian churches, the finest among which was the
Greek one. On my way thither I saw many streets where there can
hardly have been room for a horseman to pass. The road to the
Armenian church leads through such narrow lanes and gates, that we
were compelled to leave our asses behind; there was hardly room for
two people to pass each other.
On the other hand, I had nowhere seen a more spacious square than
the Esbekie-place in Cairo. The square in Padua is perhaps the only
one that can compare with it in point of size; but this place looks
like a complete chaos. Miserable houses and ruined huts surround
it; and here and there we sometimes come upon a part of an alley or
an unfinished canal. The centre is very uneven, and is filled with
building materials, such as stones, wood, bricks, and beams. The
largest and handsomest house in this square is remarkable as having
been inhabited by Napoleon during his residence at Cairo: it is now
converted into a splendid hotel.
Herr Chamgion, the consul, was kind enough to send me a card of
invitation for the theatre. The building looks like a private
house, and contains a gallery capable of accommodating three or four
hundred people; this gallery is devoted to the use of the ladies.
The performers were all amateurs; they acted an Italian comedy in a
very creditable manner. The orchestra comprised only four
musicians. At the conclusion of the second act the consul's son, a
boy of twelve years, played some variations on the violin very
prettily.
The women, all natives of the Levant, were very elegantly dressed;
they wore the European garb, white muslin dresses with their hair
beautifully braided and ornamented with flowers. Nearly all the
women and girls were handsome, with complexions of a dazzling
whiteness, which we rarely see equalled in Europe. The reason of
this is, perhaps, that they always stay in their houses, and avoid
exposing themselves to the sun and wind.
The following day I visited the abode of the howling dervishes, in
whom I took a lively interest since I had seen their brethren at
Constantinople. The hall, or rather the mosque, in which they
perform their devotions is very splendid. I was not allowed here to
stand among the men as I had done at Constantinople, but was
conducted to a raised gallery, from which I could look down through
a grated window.
The style of devotion and excitement of these dervishes is like that
I had witnessed at Constantinople, without being quite so wild in
its character. Not one of them sank exhausted, and the screeching
and howling were not so loud. Towards the end of their performance
many of the dervishes seized a small tambourine, on which they beat
and produced a most diabolical music.
In the slave-market there was but a meagre selection; all the wares
had been bought, and a new cargo of these unfortunates was daily
expected. I pretended that I wished to purchase a boy and a girl,
in order to gain admittance into the private department. Here I saw
a couple of negro girls of most uncommon beauty. I had not deemed
it possible to find any thing so perfect. Their skin was of a
velvety black, and shone with a peculiar lustre. Their teeth were
beautifully formed and of dazzling whiteness, their eyes large and
lustrous, and their lips thinner than we usually find them among
these people. They wore their hair neatly parted, and arranged in
pretty curls round the head. Poor creatures, who knows into what
hands they might fall! They bowed their heads in anguish, without
uttering a syllable. The sight of the slave-market here inspired me
with a feeling of deep melancholy. The poor creatures did not seem
so careless and merry as those whom I had seen on the market-place
at Constantinople. In Cairo the slaves seemed badly kept; they lay
in little tents, and were driven out, when a purchaser appeared,
very much in the manner of cattle. They were only partially clothed
in some old rags, and looked exhausted and unhappy.
During my short stay at Cairo one of the chief feasts of the
Mahommedans--namely, the Mashdalansher, or birthday of the Prophet--
occurred. This feast is celebrated on a great open space outside
the town. A number of large tents are erected; they are open in
front, and beneath their shelter all kinds of things are carried on.
In one tent, Mahommedans are praying; in another, a party of
dervishes throw themselves with their faces to the ground and call
upon Allah; while in a third, a juggler or storyteller may be
driving his trade. In the midst of all stood a large tent, the
entrance to which was concealed by curtains. Here the "bayaderes"
were dancing; any one can obtain admission by paying a trifling sum.
Of course I went in to see these celebrated dancers. There were,
however, only two pairs; two boys were elegantly clothed in a female
garb, richly decorated with gold coins. They looked very pretty and
delicate, so that I really thought they were girls. The dance
itself is very monotonous, slow, and wearisome; it consists only of
some steps to and fro, accompanied by some rather indecorous
movements of the upper part of the body. These gestures are said to
be very difficult, as the dancer must stand perfectly still, and
only move the upper part of his person. The music consisted of a
tambourine, a flageolet, and a bagpipe. Much has been written
concerning the indecency of these dances; but I am of opinion that
many of our ballets afford much greater cause of complaint. It may,
however, be that other dances are performed of which the general
public are not allowed to be spectators; but I only speak of what is
done openly. I would also by far prefer a popular festival in the
East to a fair in our highly-civilised states. The Oriental feasts
were to me a source of much enjoyment, for the people always behaved
most decorously. They certainly shouted, and pushed, and elbowed
each other like an European mob; but no drunken men were to be seen,
and it was very seldom that a serious quarrel occurred. The
commonest man, too, would never think of offering an insult to one
of the opposite sex. I should feel no compunction in sending a
young girl to this festival, though I should never think of letting
her go to the fair held at Vienna on St. Bridget's day.
The people were assembled in vast numbers, and the crowd was very
great, yet we could pass every where on our donkeys.
At about three o'clock my servant sought out an elevated place for
me, for the great spectacle was soon to come, and the crushing and
bustle had already reached their highest pitch. At length a portly
priest could be descried riding along on a splendid horse; before
him marched eight or ten dervishes with flags flying, and behind him
a number of men, among whom were also many dervishes. In the midst
of the square the procession halted; a few soldiers pushed their way
among the people, whom they forced to stand back and leave a road.
Whenever the spectators did not obey quickly, a stick was brought
into action, which soon established order in a most satisfactory
manner.
The procession now moved on once more, the standard-bearers and
dervishes making all kinds of frantic gestures, as though they had
just escaped from a madhouse. On reaching the place where the
spectators formed a lane, the dervishes and several other men threw
themselves down with their faces to the ground in a long row, with
their heads side by side. And then--oh horror!--the priest rode
over the backs of these miserable men as upon a bridge. Then they
all sprang up again as though nothing had happened, and rejoined the
advancing train with their former antics and grimaces. One man
stayed behind, writhing to and fro as if his back had been broken,
but in a few moments' time he went away as unconcernedly as his
comrades. Each of the actors in this scene considers himself
extremely fortunate in having attained to such a distinction, and
this feeling even extends to his relations and friends.
SHUBRA.
One afternoon I paid a visit to the beautiful garden and country-
house of the Viceroy of Egypt. A broad handsome street leads
between alleys of sycamores, and the journey occupies about an hour
and a half. Immediately upon my arrival I was conducted to an out-
building, in the yard belonging to which a fine large elephant was
to be shewn. I had already seen several of these creatures, but
never such a fine specimen as this. Its bulk was truly marvellous;
its body clean and smooth, and of a dark-brown colour.
The park is most lovely; and the rarest plants are here seen
flourishing in the open air, in the fulness of bloom and beauty,
beside those we are accustomed to see every day. On the whole,
however, I was better pleased with the garden at Rodda. The palace,
too, is very fine. The ceilings of the rooms are lofty, and richly
ornamented with gilding, paintings, and marble. The rooms
appropriated to the viceroy's consort are no less magnificent; the
ascent to them is by a broad staircase on each side. On the ground-
floor is situate the favourite apartment of the autocrat of Cairo,
furnished in the style of the reception-halls at Damascus. A
fountain of excellent water diffuses a delicious coolness around.
In the palace itself we find several large cages for parrots and
other beautiful birds. What pleased me most of all was, however,
the incomparable kiosk, lying in the garden at some distance from
the palace. It is 130 paces long and 100 broad, surrounded by
arcades of glorious pillars. This kiosk contains in its interior a
large and beautiful fountain; and at the four corners of the
building are terraces, from which the water falls in the form of
little cataracts, afterwards uniting with the fountain, and shooting
upwards in the shape of a mighty pillar. All things around us, the
pavilion and the pillars, the walls and the fountain, are alike
covered with beautiful marble of a white or light-brown colour; the
pavilion is even arranged so that it can be lighted with gas.
From this paradise of the living I rode to the abode of the dead,
the celebrated "world of graves," which is to be seen in the desert.
Here are to be found a number of ancient sepulchres, but most of
them resemble ruins, and to find out their boasted beauty is a thing
left to the imagination of every traveller. I only admired the
sepulchre of Mehemet Ali's two sons, in which the bones of his wife
also rest: this is a beautiful building of stone; five cupolas rise
above the magnificent chambers where the sarcophagi are deposited.
The petrified date-wood lies about eight miles distant from Cairo; I
rode out there, but did not find much to see, excepting here and
there some fragments of stems and a few petrifactions lying about.
It is said that the finest part of this "petrified wood" begins some
miles away; but I did not penetrate so far.
During my residence in Cairo the heat once reached 36 degrees
Reaumur, and yet I found it much more endurable than I had expected.
I was not annoyed at all by insects or vermin; but I was obliged to
be careful not to leave any provisions in my room throughout the
night. An immense swarm of minute ants would seize upon every kind
of eatable, particularly bread. One evening I left a roll upon the
table, and the next morning found it half eaten away, and covered
with ants within and without. It is here an universal custom to
place the feet of the tables in little dishes filled with water, to
keep off these insects.
EXCURSION TO SUEZ.
It had originally been my intention to stay at Cairo a week at the
furthest, and afterwards to return to Alexandria. But the more I
saw, the more my curiosity became excited, and I felt irresistibly
impelled to proceed. I had now travelled in almost every way, but I
had not yet tried an excursion on a camel. I therefore made inquiry
as to the distance, danger, and expense of a journey to Suez on the
Red Sea. The distance was a thirty-six hours' journey, the danger
was said to be nil, and the expense they estimated at about 250
piastres.
I therefore hired two strong camels, one for me, the other for my
servant and the camel-driver, and took nothing with me in the way of
provisions but bread, dates, a piece of roast meat, and hardboiled
eggs. Skins of water were hung at each side of the camels, for we
had to take a supply which would last us the journey and during our
return.
If we ride every day for twelve hours, this journey occupies six
days, there and back. But as I was unable to depart until the
afternoon of the 26th, and was obliged to be in Alexandria at latest
by the 30th, in order not to miss the steamer, I had only four days
and a half to accomplish it in. Thus this excursion was the most
fatiguing I had ever undertaken.
At four in the afternoon I rode through the town-gate, where the
camels were waiting for us; we mounted them and commenced our
journey.
The desert begins at the town-gates, but for the first few miles we
have a sight of some very fruitful country on the left, until at
length we leave town and trees behind us, and with them all the
verdure, and find ourselves surrounded on all sides by a sea of
sand.
For the first four or five hours I was not ill-pleased with this
mode of travelling. I had plenty of room on my camel, and could sit
farther back or forward as I chose, and had provisions and a bottle
of water at my side. Besides this, the heat was not oppressive; I
felt very comfortable, and could look down from my high throne
almost with a feeling of pride upon the passing caravans. Even the
swaying motion of the camel, which causes in some travellers a
feeling of sickness and nausea like that produced by a sea-voyage,
did not affect me. But after a few hours I began to feel the
fatigues and discomforts of a journey of this kind. The swinging
motion pained and fatigued me, as I had no support against which I
could lean. The desire to sleep also arose within me, and it can be
imagined how uncomfortable I felt. But I was resolved to go to
Suez; and if all my hardships had been far worse, I would not have
turned back. I summoned all my fortitude, and rode without halting
for fifteen hours, from four in the afternoon until seven the next
morning.
During the night we passed several trains of camels, some in motion,
some at rest, often consisting of more than a hundred. We were not
exposed to the least annoyance, although we had attached ourselves
to no caravan, but were pursuing our way alone.
From Cairo to Suez posts are established at every five or six hours'
journey, and at each of these posts there stands a little house of
two rooms for the convenience of travellers. These huts were built
by an English innkeeper established at Cairo; but they can only be
used by very rich people, as the prices charged are most exorbitant.
Thus, for instance, a bed for one night costs a hundred piastres, a
little chicken twenty, and a bottle of water two piastres. The
generality of travellers encamp before the house, and I followed the
same plan, lying down for an hour in the sand while the camels ate
their scanty meal. My health and bodily strength are, I am happy to
say, so excellent, that I am ready after a very short rest to
encounter new fatigues. After this hour of repose I once more
mounted my camel to continue my journey.
August 27th.
It may easily be imagined that the whole scene by which we are here
surrounded has over it an air of profound and deathlike stillness.
The sea, where we behold nothing but water around us, presents more
of life to divert the mind. The very rushing and splash of the
wheels, the bounding waves, the bustle of bending or reefing sails,
and the crowding of people on the steamer, brings varied pictures to
temper the monotony around. Even the ride through the stony deserts
which I had traversed in Syria has not so much sameness, for there
we at least hear the tramp of the horse and the sound of many a
rolling stone; the traveller's attention is, besides, kept
continually on the stretch in guiding each step that his horse
takes, to avoid the risk of a fall. But all this is wanting in a
journey through a sandy desert. No bird hovers in the air, not a
butterfly is here to gladden the eye, not even an insect or a worm
crawls on the ground; not a living creature is, in fact, to be seen,
but the little vultures preying on the carcasses of fallen camels.
Even the tread of the heavy-footed camel is muffled by the deep
sand, and nothing is ever heard but the moaning of these poor
animals when their driver forces them to lie down to take off their
burden; most probably the exertion of stooping hurts them. The
driver beats the camel on the knee with a stick, and pulls its head
towards him by a rope fastened to it like a halter. During this
operation the rider must hold very fast in order not to fall off,
for suddenly the creature drops on its fore-knees, then on its hind
legs, and at length sits completely down on the ground. When you
mount the animal again, it becomes necessary to keep a vigilant eye
upon him, for as soon as he feels your foot on his neck he wishes to
rise.
As I have already said, we see nothing on this journey but many and
large companies of camels, which march one behind the other, while
their drivers shorten the way with dreary inharmonious songs. Half-
devoured carcasses of these "ships of the desert" lie every where,
with jackals and vultures gnawing at them. Even living camels are
sometimes seen staggering about, which have been left to starve by
their masters as unfit for further service. I shall never forget
the piteous look of one of these poor creatures which I saw dragging
itself to and fro in the desert, anxiously seeking for food and
drink. What a cruel being is man! Why could he not put an end to
the poor camel's pain by a blow with a knife? One would imagine
that the air in the vicinity of these fallen animals was poisoned;
but here this is less the case than it would be in more temperate
regions, for the pure air and the great heat of the desert rather
dry up than decompose corpses.
From the same cause our piece of roast beef was still good on the
fifth day. The hard-boiled eggs, which my servant packed so
clumsily that they got smashed in the very first hour, did not
become foul. Both meat and eggs were shrunk and dried up. On the
third day the white bread had become as hard as ship-biscuit, so
that we had to break it up and soak it in water. Our drinking water
became worse day by day, and smelt abominably of the leathern
receptacles in which we were compelled to keep it. Until we reached
Suez our poor camels got not a drop to drink, and their food
consisted of a scanty meal of bad provender once a day.
At eight in the morning we set off once more, and rode until about
five in the afternoon. At about four I suddenly descried the Red
Sea and its shores. This circumstance delighted me, for I felt
assured that we should reach the coast in the course of another
hour, and then our laborious journey to Suez would be accomplished.
I called to my servant, pointed out the sea to him, and expressed my
surprise that we had sighted it so soon. He maintained, however,
that what I beheld was not the sea, but a fata morgana. At first I
refused to believe him, because the thing seemed so real. But after
an hour had elapsed we were as far from the sea as ever, and at
length the mirage vanished; and I did not behold the real sea until
six o'clock on the following morning, when it appeared in exactly
the same way as the phantom of the previous evening.
At five in the afternoon we at length halted. I lay down on the
earth completely exhausted, and enjoyed a refreshing sleep for more
than three hours, when I was awakened by my servant, who informed me
that a caravan was just before us, which we should do well to join,
as the remainder of our road was far less safe than the portion we
had already traversed. I was at once ready to mount my camel, and
at eight o'clock we were again in motion.
In a short time we had overtaken the caravan, and our camels were
placed in the procession, each beast being tethered to the preceding
one by a rope. It was already quite dark, and I could barely
distinguish that the people sitting on the camels before me were an
Arab family. They travelled in boxes resembling hen-coops, about a
foot and a half in height, four feet in length, and as many broad.
In a box of this kind two or three men sat cross-legged; many had
even spread a light tent over their heads. Suddenly I heard my name
called by a female voice. I started, and thought I must be
mistaken, for whom in the world could I meet here who knew my
Christian name? But once more a voice cried very distinctly, "Ida!
Ida!" and a servant came up, and told me that some Arab women, who
had made the voyage from Atfe to Cairo in company with me, were
seated on the first camel. They sent to tell me that they were on
their way to Mecca, and rejoiced to meet me once more. I was indeed
surprised that I should have made such an impression on these good
people that they had not forgotten my name.
To-night I saw a glorious natural phenomenon, which so surprised me
that I could not refrain from uttering a slight scream. It may have
been about eleven o'clock, when suddenly the sky on my left was
lighted up, as though every thing were in flames; a great fiery ball
shot through the air with lightning speed, and disappeared on the
horizon, while at the same moment the gleam in the atmosphere
vanished, and darkness descended once more on all around. We
travelled on throughout the whole of this night.
August 28th.
At six o'clock this morning we came in sight of the Red Sea. The
mountain-chain of Mokattam can be discerned some time previously.
Some way from Suez we came upon a well of bad, brackish water.
Notwithstanding all drawbacks, the supply was eagerly hailed. Our
people shouted, scolded, and pushed each other to get the best
places; camels, horses, asses, and men rushed pell-mell towards the
well, and happy was he who could seize upon a little water. There
are barracks near this well, and soldiers are posted here to promote
peace--by means of the stick.
The little town of Suez lies spread out on the sea-shore, and can be
very distinctly seen from here. The unhappy inhabitants are
compelled to draw their supplies either from this well, or from one
on the sea-coast four miles below Suez. In the first case the water
is brought on camels, horses, or asses; in the second it is
transported by sea in boats or small ships.
The Red Sea is here rather narrow, and surrounded by sand of a
yellowish-brown hue; immediately beyond the isthmus is the
continuation of the great Libyan Desert. The mountain-range of
Mokattam skirts the plain on the right, from Cairo to the Red Sea.
We quite lose sight of this range until within the last ten or
twelve hours before reaching Suez. The mountains are of moderate
elevation and perfectly bare; but still the eye rests with pleasure
on the varied forms of the rocks.
[Illustration 8. Isthmus of Suez. ill8.jpg]
After an hour's rest beside the well, we were still unable to
procure water for our poor beasts, and hastened, therefore, to reach
the town. At nine in the morning we were already within its walls.
Of the town and its environs I can say nothing, excepting that they
both present a very melancholy appearance, as there is nowhere a
garden or a cluster of trees to be seen.
I paid my respects to the consul, and introduced myself to him as an
Austrian subject. He was kind enough to assign me a room in his own
house, and would on no account permit me to take up my quarters in
an inn. It was a pity that I could only converse with this
gentleman by means of a dragoman; he was a Greek by birth, and only
knew the Arabic language and his own. He is the richest merchant in
Suez (his wealth is estimated at 150,000 collonati), and only
discharges the functions of French and Austrian consul as an
honorary duty.
In the little town itself there is nothing remarkable to be seen.
On the sea-coast they shewed me the place where Moses led the
children of Israel through the Red Sea. The sinking of the tide at
its ebb is here so remarkable that whole islands are left bare, and
large caravans are able to march through the sea, as the water only
reaches to the girths of the camels, and the Arabs and Bedouins even
walk through. As it happened to be ebb-tide when I arrived, I rode
through also, for the glory of the thing. On these shores I found
several pretty shells; but the real treasures of this kind are
fished out of the deep at Ton, a few days' journey higher up. I saw
whole cargoes of mother-of-pearl shells carried away.
I remained at Suez until four in the afternoon, and recruited my
energies perfectly with an excellent dinner, at which tolerably good
water was not wanting. The consul kindly gave me a bottle, as
provision for my journey. He has it fetched from a distance of
twelve miles, as all the water that can be procured in the
neighbourhood tastes brackish and salt. In the inn a bottle of
water costs two piastres.
The first night of my homeward journey was passed partly in a
Bedouin encampment and partly on the road, in the company of
different caravans. I found the Bedouins to be very good, obliging
people, among whom I might wander as I pleased, without being
exposed to injury. On the contrary, while I was in their encampment
they brought me a straw-mat and a chest, in order that I might have
a comfortable seat.
The homeward journey was just as monotonous and wearisome as that to
Suez, with the additional fact that I had a quarrel with my people
the day before its termination. Feeling exceedingly fatigued by a
lengthened ride, I ordered my servant to stop the camels, as I
wished to sleep for a few hours. The rascals refused to obey,
alleging that the road was not safe, and that we should endeavour to
overtake a caravan. This was, however, nothing but an excuse to get
home as quickly as possible. But I was not to be frightened, and
insisted that my desire should be complied with, telling them
moreover that I had inquired of the consul at Suez concerning the
safety of the roads, and had once more heard that there was nothing
to fear. Notwithstanding all this they would not obey, but
continued to advance. I now became angry, and desired the servant
once more to stop my camel, as I was fully determined not to proceed
another step.
I told him I had hired both camels and men, and had therefore a
right to be mistress; if he did not choose to obey me, he might go
his way with the camel-driver, and I would join the first caravan I
met, and bring him to justice, let it cost me what it would. The
fellow now stopped my camel, and went away with the other and the
camel-driver. He probably expected to frighten me by this
demonstration, and to compel me to follow; but he was vastly
mistaken. I remained standing where I was, and as often as he
turned to look at me, made signs that he might go his way, but that
I should stay. When he saw how fearless and determined I was, he
turned back, came to me, made my camel kneel down, and after helping
me to alight, prepared me a resting-place on a heap of sand, where I
slept delightfully for five hours; then I ordered my things to be
packed up, mounted my camel, and continued my journey.
My conduct astonished my followers to such a degree, that they
afterwards asked me every few hours if I wished to rest. On our
arrival at Cairo the camel-driver had not even the heart to make the
customary demand for backsheesh, and my servant begged pardon for
his conduct, and hoped that I would not mention the difference we
had had to the consul.
The maximum temperature during this journey was 43 degrees Reaumur,
and when it was perfectly calm I really felt as if I should be
stifled.
This journey from Cairo to Suez can, however, be accomplished in a
carriage in the space of twenty hours. The English innkeeper
established at Cairo has had a very light carriage, with seats for
four, built expressly for this purpose; but a place in this vehicle
costs five pounds for the journey there, and the same sum for the
return.
On the following day I once more embarked on board an Arabian vessel
for Alexandria. Before my departure I had a terrible quarrel with
the donkey-driver whom I usually employed. These men, as in fact
all fellahs, are accustomed to cheat strangers in every possible
way, but particularly with coins. They usually carry bad money
about with them, which they can substitute for the good at the
moment when they are paid, with the dexterity of jugglers. My
donkey-driver endeavoured to play me this trick when I rode to the
ship; he saw that I should not require his services any more, and
therefore wished to cheat me as a parting mark of attention. This
attempt disgusted me so much that I could not refrain from
brandishing my whip at him in a very threatening manner, although I
was alone among a number of his class. My gesture had the desired
effect; the driver instantly retreated, and I remained victor.
My reader would do me a great wrong by the supposition that I
mention these circumstances to make a vaunt of my courage; I am sure
that the fact of my having undertaken this journey alone will be
sufficient to clear me from the imputation of cowardice. I wish
merely to give future travellers a hint as to the best method of
dealing with these people. Their respect can only be secured by the
display of a firm will; and I am sure that in my case they were the
more intimidated as they had never expected to find so much
determination in a woman.