Linda's Blog—Travel and Art

  • Egypt: What's New, What Different, Part 1

    Dervish performance at the Wikalet al-Ghouri Egypt: What New, What’s Different, Part 1 A Bit of Background: This November I returned to Egypt after 25 years. It was my fifth visit. I was both excited and anxious, giddy and hesitant. In addition to Egypt, I have been to Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan, and Palestine/Israel/the West Bank, so visiting a Middle Eastern/North African country was nothing strange to me. But visiting a country that I was last in 25 years ago, felt strange (I had the…

  • Sketching in the Streets and Alms for the Poor

    TRAVELING ALONE, Part 11— Continuing my story about travel and art in Egypt (finally!): Sketching in the Streets of Cairo: In 1990 I sketched in the Khan el Kahlili, the main bazaar in Cairo, which stretches along the main thoroughfare in the Fatimid section of the city (built about 1000 years ago). The section is also called Medieval Cairo. After I asked permission to lean against his wall, a shopkeeper gave me a bucket to sit on, which was very welcomed (I didn’t NEED to ask, but it was a g…

  • Sunrise Behind the Pyramids

    TRAVELING ALONG, Part 10— The first time I travelled to Egypt it was to meet up with my fiancé there, who was visiting family in Amman, Jordan. More about that later.; this is the story of a group of women traveling to Morocco, then Egypt. My second, third, and fourth trips to Egypt were in 1990, 1991, and 1993. Each trip had its own special story and flavor. 1990 and 1991 were especially good years. In Morocco The 1990 trip began with a visit to Morocco. We were in Marrakesh (which is where…