SUDAN - A SURPRİSİNG, UNKNOWN COUNTRY WİTH MORE PYRAMİDS THAN EGYPT.

After having spent the whole summer in Turkey, come November my travelling bug started to pick at me. Where to go ? At that time, a friend of mine, who is an expert on Egyptian mythology, told me he was taking a group of 6 people to Sudan and asked me to be the seventh. Not an occasion to miss. And here I am on a plane to Khartoum on December 1st, 2018.

Sudan is not your typical holiday destination. Most people couldn't point it on a map, let alone tell you why you should go there. The general consensus , as usual, is that I am nuts, mostly because the mainstream media depicts Sudan as a dangerous and unsafe destination. It is true that the country's modern history is plagued with catastrophic events including famine, civil war, genocide and partition of the country itself. 

The early 1990's saw Sudan elevated to the position of pariah state due to its support of Saddam Hussein during the 1st Gulf War. Additionally Sudan offered sanctuary to Osama bin Laden and allowed him to set up Al-Qaeda training camps there. 

Then a civil war ensued. If you wonder why there was a civil war at all, look no further than the British. When the colonial map-makers divided up Africa, they included in Sudan the predominantly Muslim people of the North who share much of their history and culture with Egyptians and Arabs, and the largely Christian and animist Bantu people of the South who have more in common with the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa than with their northern neighbours. 


The civil war culminated in the displacement of over a million people and ultimately the genocide that occurred in the Darfur region between 2003 and 2008. Finally, in 2011, Africa's largest country was split into two : the Republic of Sudan (the North- from now on called here Sudan) and South Sudan. Prior to the separation, 80% of Sudan's GDP was from oil revenue. Upon separation, the majority of the oil fields fell within the boundaries of South Sudan. The Republic of Sudan now relies on gold production, hibiscus cultivation and is the world's largest producer of gum Arabic. 

Really, why go to Sudan ? What people do not realize is that before  the split, Sudan was the largest country in Africa. So while parts of the country (the Southern part and the Darfur region as well as the new South Sudan where a civil war is going on) are off limits, other parts are calm. And that is especially true for the Northern part of the country, towards Egypt. And that is where I am going. 

If like me you love the desert, empty spaces, remote, untouched ruins, adventure, history, and no tourism pollution , then you go to Sudan. 

We arrived in Kharthoum in the early hours of the morning and went directly to our hotel, the only 5-star in Sudan, the Corinthian. It was not always the Corinthian and is colloquially referred to as ''Khaddafi's Egg'' mainly due to its shape from outside as well as inside, but also because it was financed by Khaddafi money (and built by the Chinese). 
It is only the next morning, at breakfast on the 16th floor, that I saw the hotel was beautifully located on the White Nile. 

THAT REALLY İS AN EGG

THE ELEVATOR İS ON THE LEFT, THE ROOMS ON THE RİGHT, AND THE WHOLE İS AN EGG AGAİN. 

VİEW OF THE WHİTE NİLE FROM THE 16TH FLOOR. 

Wow... how exciting. I had seen the Blue Nile in Ethiopia. I had seen the Nile in Egypt. But I had never seen the White Nile, coming from Uganda, passing through Sudan and meeting the Blue Nile, here, in Khartoum. As a matter of fact, the raison d'etre for the foundation of Khartoum here in 1821, was the confluence of the Blue and White Nile. 
Let us go and see this confluence from near. How? By taking a boat , of course. 

WE ARE ON THE WHİTE NİLE

APPROACHİNG THE CONFLUENCE

THİS KİND OF LİNE UNDER THE BRİDGE İS EXACTLY WHERE THE BLUE AND WHİTE NİLE MEET. 

WHİTE NİLE ON THE LEFT AND BLUE NİLE ON THE RİGHT AND BOTH ARE BROWNİSH

WOW... I HAVE SEEN İT.  MY CULTURE OF THE NİLE İS NOW COMPLETE. 

Going up from the river we meet some happy and beautiful girls. 

We are now going to visit the Mahdi's tomb, very simple from the  outside as well as the inside. I had never heard of him, but he is a very important person in Sudan's history. 

The later part of the 19th century saw the rising influence across Sudan of the charismatic holy man Mohamed Ahmed ibn al-Sayyid (1844-1885). He was a very religious man,  totally against Sudan being a dependency of Egypt, itself a province of the Ottoman Empire. There also was quite a strong discontent  among the general population against taxes imposed. So Mohamed Ahmed managed to convert this diversified discontent into a unified movement that for a time would transcend tribalism and become an unconquerable military machine. 

In 1881, he decided that the whole administration was living in un-Islamic ways and revealed his divine mission: God had appointed him to purify Islam; he took the title of Al-Mahdi.

 By the end of 1883, Al-Mahdi's forces had annihilated three Egyptian armies, the last of which consisted of 8.000 men who were all butchered. Al-Mahdi was now ruling an armed theocracy. His crushing victory came in 1885 when he captured Khartoum who was resolutely defended by Major General George Gordon who himself was killed (remember the 1966 film ''Khartoum'' starring Charlton Heston as general Gordon). The British retreated. Al-Mahdi was now free to consolidate his religious empire based on the practises  of primitive Islam. But that did not last long. 6 months later, he was taken ill and died, probably of typhus. His successors continued the Islamic state until 1898 when the British came back and conquered Sudan for good.  

THE GUARDS

We then proceed to one of the main mosques of the city,Djami El-Kebir,  built during Ottoman times.

From here we are going to visit a market, Souk Al-Arabi,  but you will see no pictures of any market in Sudan in this blog since photography is strictly forbidden. It seems there are civil policemen going around the place just for controlling whether any local person has his/her picture taken by a foreigner. Why the obsession with market places, I did not understand.  

Before starting our visit of the National Museum, I believe a little chronological summary is necessary since ancient Sudan's history is intertwined with that of Egypt ; and Egyptian Dynasties and Sudanese Kingdoms tend to confuse the layman (I still am a little bit confused I have to admit). I also have to note that Ancient Sudan is often referred to as Kush or Nubia and the kingdom of Kush was first called Napata and then Meroe, from their capital cities. 
  
- 2660 to 2040 BC - Old Kingdom in Egypt - sent military expeditions into Sudan in search of gold and to procure slaves.  

- 2040 to 1552 BC - Middle Kingdom in Egypt . 

- 2500 to 1552 BC - Kingdom of Kerma in Sudan

- 1552 to 800 BC - Egyptian domination of Sudan. The Egyptians built many impressive temples to their gods. 

- 732 to approximately 650 BC - Sudan rules Egypt . That is the 25th Dynasty of the Black Pharaohs ruling from Memphis.

- 650 BC to 392 AD, these years are the Late and the Ptolemaic periods in Egypt under the influence of Rome. During the same period, there are the Kingdoms of Napata (860-300 BC) and Meroe (300 BC - 350 AD) ruling in Sudan. 

- In 392 AD Byzantium rules Egypt and two Christian kingdoms rise in Sudan (350-550 AD), the Nobadia and the Makuria Kingdoms, the latter having its capital at Old Dongola. 

- Islam conquers Egypt in in 639 AD but reaches Sudan much later, in the late 13th century, courtesy of the Mameluks of Egypt. 

- The last years of the 18th century see the arrival of the Ottomans in Sudan. 

- 1885 to 1898 - the Mahdiyah state in Sudan. 

- 1898 - Sudan becomes a British colony

- 1956 - Independence of Sudan.

Let us come back to the Sudan National Museum which is a repository for the artifacts found in different sites and coming from Sudan's ancient and medieval pasts. 

Undoubtedly, the highlights of the museum's collections are to be found in the gardens. Enclosed in protective glass structures are three Egyptian temples rescued from the flood waters of Lake Nasser when the Aswan Dam was built in the 1960's. They have been faithfully reconstructed here. The temples are dating to the reigns of Queen Hatshepsut, and the pharaohs Tuthmosis III and Amenophis II. 

What greets you first in the gardens are the columns of the Cathedral of Faras , from the Christian kingdom of Makuria, in old Dongola which was the capital of the kingdom. These columns withstood the attacks of time because they are made from granite coming from the cataracts, the only place in Sudan where you can find granite which is much more solid than the sandstone from which the temples of Nubia were built (and which explains why they are in such a state of ruin today). The frescoes of the cathedral are kept inside the museum but it was forbidden to take picture there, so what you see here are from the Internet. 

SAİNT ANNE, THE GRANDMOTHER OF JESUS

THE HEBREWS İN THE FIERY FURNACE (BOOK OF DANİEL)

THE NATİVİTY - VİRGİN MARY

THE NATİVİTY - THE CHİLD LAYS İN HİS CRİB AND THE BREATH OF THE ANİMALS WARM HİM UP.

The first shelter in the garden covers the remains of the temple of Aksha which has suffered too much from the floods of the Nile to save in its entirety. It was built by Ramses II ca. 1250 BC. and dedicated to Amon. 

THE PHARAOH WORSHİPPİNG AMON

THE CONQUERED NATİONS - EACH PEOPLE İS REPRESENTED HANDS TİED ON THEİR BACKS

BUT THE PHYSİCAL CHARACTERISTICS OF EACH PEOPLE İS CLEARLY REPRESENTED - HERE A NUBİAN
WİTH EMPHASİZED AFRİCAN FEATURES.

The best preserved temple is the Temple of Buhen, built by Queen Hatshepsut and dedicated to god Horus(ca. 1500 BC).

THE PHARAOH ON THE LEFT PAYİNG HİS RESPECTS TO A GOD ON THE RİGHT. WE KNOW THE GOD FROM
THE ANKH, SYMBOL OF LİFE, HE HOLDS İN HİS HAND. 

QUEEN HATSHEPSUT, ALWAYS DEPİCTED AS A PHARAOH AND NEVER A WOMAN, FACİNG HORUS
AND HANDİNG HİM A BOWL OF WİNE, THE MAİN OFFERİNG FROM THE PHARAOHS TO THE GODS. 

HORUS AND THE PHARAOH. 

We continue with the Temple of Semna built by Thutmosis III ca. 1450 BC. Not much remains except a few unreadable wall carvings. 

 The Temple of Kumma , dedicated to god Khnum, associated with the creation of the cataracts (ca. 1410 BC).

THUTMOSİS III RUNNİNG TO HATHOR

There are other things to see in the garden such as the Tabo Colossi. They are from the Meroe period, ca. 60 AD. We do not know who they are since the statues were unfinished and no inscription was found. 

SHOULD BE A PHARAOH

SİNCE HE İS ACCOMPANİED BY THE PHARAOH-TO-BE, WHO İS DEPİCTED LİKE EGYPTİAN PRİNCES
WİTH A SHAVED HEAD EXCEPT FOR A LONG BRAİD FALLİNG ON THE SHOULDER AND SUCKİNG HİS THUMB 

 The statues adorning Meroitic temples dedicated to Amon were imitated from the Egyptians. There is nevertheless one main difference : the king standing between the ram's forelegs wears a crown decorated with two standing cobras, not just one like Egyptian pharaohs. One of the cobras represents the power of Kush, the other the domination of Egypt by Kush.

 As soon as we enter the main building we are met by a 3 m high black and gold (no more gold left) statue of King Taharqa (690-664 BC) whose pyramid we are going to see in El-Nuri. 

He was a ruler of the 25th Egyptian Dynasty, i.e. a Black Pharaoh, a Sudanese ruler of Egypt. Taharqo is holding a kind of scroll in his hand, the ''mekes'' case, containing the papyrus with which Osiris bequeaths the power over Egypt to the pharaohs. It is, therefore, the title deed of Egypt he has in his hands. One can thus understand the fury of the pharaohs of the 26th Dynasty (real Egyptians) in seeing this statue . 

NEOLITHIC PERİOD - POTTERY FROM AROUND 5000-4000 BC

CERAMİC - A TYPİCAL AFRİCAN HUT - CA. 1600 BC

CERAMİC- MADE AFTER AN OSTRİCH - CA. 1600 BC

THE GODDESS BESET , A NAKED WOMAN WİTH EXACERBATED FEMİNİNE ATTRİBUTES,
GROTESQUE PROPORTİONS AND FACE - MOTHER OF BES .

BES, A FRİGHTENİNG BEARDED DWARF, WHOSE ROLE İS TO DRİVE BAD SPİRİTS
AWAY FROM PREGNANT WOMEN AND NEWBORNS, JUST LİKE HİS MOTHER. 

BRONZE STATUE OF AN UNKNOWN MEROİTİC KİNG. HE WEARS THE TRADİTİONAL
CROWN OF THE KİNGS OF KUSH, A CAP FLANKED BY TWO COBRAS AND THE NECKLACE
WİTH RAM HEADS ON BOTH ENDS (2ND HALF OF THE 3RD CENTURY BC). 

A JAR WHERE İNTERNAL ORGANS WERE PLACED AFTER MUMMIFICATION İN EGYPT.
THERE WAS NO MUMMIFICATION İN SUDAN .

BRONZE FİGURE OF OSİRİS

BRONZE FİGURE OF İSİS

THE FİRST GLASS VESSELS ARRİVE TO SUDAN LATE İN THE 1ST CENTURY BC
FROM THE MEDITERRANEAN REGİON

ALL THİS GLASSWARE WAS FOUND İNSİDE TOMBS OF PRİNCES AND NOBLEMEN (3RD CENTURY AD)

THE DECEASED ARE GLORİFİED BY THE SOLAR DİSK THEY WEAR ON THEİR HEAD. 

THE VENUS OF MEROE - A TYPİCALLY MEROİTİC TREATMENT OF VOLUMES
WİTH NOTABLY GENEROUS THİGHS AS OPPOSED TO EGYPTİAN SKİNNY FİGURES.
(1ST CENTURY BC).

GODDESS HATOR

Our day in Khartoum finishes by a dinner at a typical restaurant, Assaba Traditional Village, where the setting was nice, the food excellent and the waitress beautiful. 
After a good night's sleep, we will be  all set for the adventure that starts tomorrow. 

The next morning we leave Khartoum in three Toyota 4X4 Land Cruisers equipped with sand ramps, shovels and a spare fuel tank since it seems you cannot find fuel in gas stations where the waiting can take hours , but you can always buy fuel at several times the normal price on the black market . We are all equipped for our adventure in the desert. 

After several hours of driving through the relentless desert scenery , we reach the complex of temples at Naqa. It seems the exact purpose of this site is still unclear since this area has never been inhabited. 

We first stop at the Lion Temple, (1st century AD-Meroitic period), dedicated to the lion-headed god Apedemak. It is interesting to note here that Apedemak only exists in Kushian mythology but not in the Egyptian one, whereas all other gods are shared. 

This temple has really nice exterior carvings depicting the temple's creators, King Natakamani and his queen Amanitore. They are facing the gods. 

THE MONARCH İN TRİUMPHANT POSE REPRESENTING HİS VİCTORİES AGAİNST ENEMİES OF THE KUSH EMPİRE. 

THE KİNG AND THE QUEEN FACİNG THE GODS. 

AMON

HORUS

APEDEMAK

KİNG NATAKAMANİ

Next to the Lion Temple is a different structure dating to the same period and which has been named the Roman Kiosk due to its classical architectural structure of columns surmounted by Corinthian capitals and Roman style arched windows. 

A bit further away is the third temple of the complex, the Temple of Amon, also built by King Natakamani. İt is accessed by an alley of sculpted rams (the symbol of Amon) seated on pedestals. There are also relief carvings on the walls and columns. 

The ruins are great but for me the highlight of the day came just after - the Well- a well in the sand in the middle of nowhere. 

This well, like many others, is  a focal place for all the nomadic people of the desert who walk for miles and come with containers of all sorts to spend the day pulling water out of the well, filling their various containers and socializing.

We learn this well is called the Ottoman Well because it was opened by the Ottomans. It is 60 m deep and getting the water out is not an easy job since it is done mainly with manpower helped by some donkey-power. The water is pulled out in leather containers before being put into plastic ones. The rope holding the leather bag is pulled by men helped by two donkeys who walk quite a long distance accompanied by  someone on foot showing the way. And once the container is pulled out of the well, that same someone rides back on the donkey to the well to start the whole process again, again and again. 

THE LEATHER CONTAİNER

YOU FİRST WALK WİTH THE DONKEYS

AND THEN YOU RİDE BACK

Around the well, the camels are the most comfortable, since they are real desert animals carrying their water in their humps, whereas the poor sheep and donkeys almost fight with one another when they see the water. 

The nomadic people at the well are obviously very poor but at the same time very interesting. 

Lunch time has come but where are we going to have lunch under this blaring sun ? Trust our drivers to find the shadow. What surprised me though was that a table would be laid, camping chairs put around it and there would be everything, coffee included since hot water thermoses had been carried. And every time we had lunch in the desert, this same comfort would be provided. I have to admit I was not expecting this. 

After lunch, we continue driving on the sand to the temple complex of Musawwarat Es Sufra. Musawwarat Es Sufra consists of three major structures, the Lion Temple, the Elephant Temple and the Great Enclosure. 

We are first entering the Great Enclosure made by many construction and a boundary wall which surround a Meroitic temple built in the 1st century AD. Much bigger but less well preserved than the temples at Naga, the complex is believed to have been a cult center and pilgrimage site to the god Apedemak. Partially intact buildings, tumbled columns, delicate iconography and half buried block work make this complex highly evocative. 

THE GUARDİAN OF THE SİTE

INSİDE THE ELEPHANT TEMPLE

THE ELEPHANT - VERY RARE TO SEE THEM İN EGYPTİAN TEMPLES, BUT İN MEROİTİC TEMPLES YOU CAN

TYPİCALLY MEROİTİC WİTH THE FAT LEGS. 

İF YOU ARE A PHARAOH, YOU GO AROUND WİTH A LİON İN LEASH, NOT A MERE DOG. 

GOD APEDEMAK PROTECTİNG THE KİNG BY SİTTİNG UNDER HİS THRONE. 

The exterior walls are adorned too .

THE KİNG ON THE RİGHT, THE GODS ON THE LEFT.

THE KİNG

GOD APEDEMAK

THE KİNG ON ANOTHER WALL

HORUS AND İSİS

THE EGYPTİAN PHARAOH AND HİS NUBİAN SLAVE

TYPİCALLY NUBİAN, DARK AND WİTH CURLY HAİR. 

Beyond the big valley there is another temple dedicated to the lion-headed god Apedemak. 

I FOUND SOME SHADOW AND EVEN A BED - SO COMFY TO LİSTEN TO OUR GUİDE THİS WAY. 

We continue on to Meroe where we will spend two nights at a camp run by Italians. But who can resist a nice sunset facing the pyramids of Meroe? Not us anyway. 

EVEN THE COLOR OF THE SAND CHANGES AT SUNSET. 

THE MEROE PYRAMİDS FROM FAR AWAY

After a long day on the road, and an even longer, bone-shaking one off-road, we reach our camp. We will stay in very comfortable tents with a bathroom allocated to each tent but outside of it. Even if very near, you have to go out at night (with a flashlight since the generator is turned down at 11:00 pm) if you have to use the bathroom. And you are also warned to look around with the flashlight first in case there are small animals (meaning big insects) around. Don't forget to shake your boots in the morning in case a scorpion has nestled inside during the night !

The next morning I am greeted by a very nice view : the valley and the pyramids of Meroe as a backdrop. Really beautiful. 

More than 200 km from the Sudanese capital, the remains of an ancient city rise from the arid and inhospitable desert. Nestled between sand dunes, the secluded pyramids of Meroe (getting their name from the ancient city of Meroe, capital of the Kingdom of Kush ) seem to have been forgotten by the modern world.

Around 1000 BC, after the fall of the 24th Egyptian Dynasty, the Nubian Kingdom of Kush arose as the leading power in the middle Nile region. The Kushite kings took over and ruled much of Egypt from 712 to 657 BC ( the 25th Dynasty of the Black Pharaohs) . In 300 BC, the capital of the kingdom was in the Meroe region where the royal burial ground was set up and the pharaonic tradition of building pyramids to encapsulate the tomb of rulers continued here, almost for 800 years, after the tradition was abandoned in Egypt. 

More than 50 ancient pyramids rise out of the desert. They are the burial sites for more than 40 kings and queens of the Kush Kingdom. 

In the middle of the complex is a small modern pyramid which was restored in the 1980's in an effort to recreate the Kushite building techniques. 

Sudan's pyramids differ from those of Egypt in that they are smaller and pitched at a sharper angle. They also have a pylon gate in front which leads in to a small chapel. The burial tomb is cut into the rock beneath the pyramid, unlike in Egypt where the mortuary room is  situated in the body of the pyramid. 

İf the Meroe pyramids are to be at a sharp angle at the top, why are most of  them flat ? This is an unbelievable story. 

One notable destroyer of the Meroe pyramids was Guiseppe Ferlini, an Italian medic and amateur treasure-hunter who accompanied the Ottoman forces here in 1834. Ferlini, in his quest for gold,  evidently did not favor the front door route and used dynamite to blow holes in the tops of the pyramids to gain entrance and rob the dead inhabitants of their precious possessions. Thankfully, he did not desecrate the whole structure. 

THE ENTRANCE TO THE SMALL CHAPEL

AND İT İS REAL SMALL.

I had a very interesting conversation with some men at the entrance of the Meroe site. Most have only 1 wife and 3 children. Only one had 4 fives and 14 children, and the other men called him ''crazy''. I got the impression though that this difference was more of an economic nature than anything else. 

THİS GENTLEMAN ASKED ME VERY POLİTELY WHETHER I WOULD CONSİDER BECOMİNG HİS SECOND WİFE. 

We are now in the village of Bagrawiyah, the only settlement near Meroe. 

The village itself is pretty ugly. The men are photogenic and the women are non-existent. I have not seen a single one around. The women I can still understand. What is weirder is that I have not seen children either . In Africa, they usually come out of everywhere when they see a white woman/man. Here, no. Nobody. 

THE MAİN MEANS OF LOCOMOTİON HERE İS THE DONKEY CART.

VERY HANDSOME I HAVE TO ADMİT.

THE GROCERY STORE

THE RESTAURANT AND İTS CHEF.

In the afternoon we went to visit the Royal Capital of Meroe, said to contain temples, palaces, residences and royal baths. I am sure the city contained all of those at the time but what I saw today was kind of disappointing. I have a bad habit. When something is totally in ruins, I have difficulty visualising what it should have looked like at the time, and I end up not enjoying the place. That is exactly what happened here. 

WE ARE APPROACHİNG THE CİTY - WHERE THE HECK İS THE CİTY ?

YOU SEE A RAM SO THERE MUST HAVE BEEN AN AMON TEMPLE HERE - HARD TO VİSUALİZE

YEEEES, THERE WAS A TEMPLE AND HERE ARE THE COLUMNS !!!!!!!

THAT İS THE GRANDİOSE (!) AMON TEMPLE

THESE ARE THE ROYAL BATHS AND THAT İS ALL THAT REMAİNS DESPİTE THE FACT THAT
 THEY HAVE BEEN RESTORED 

THAT İS A PALACE. 

THE PEOPLE AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE SİTE ARE FAR MORE REAL.

THERE ARE  EVEN CHİLDREN HERE

LOOK AT THOSE EYES. 

The day ends with a sunset at the Meroe pyramids. 

The next morning we leave our camp at Meroe and drive towards the Nile since we are going to cross it on a ferry-boat . You first go off-road in sand and little by little, as you approach the Nile, you end up in the middle of planted fields and greenery. It is as if a line divides the two areas. 

On the ferry there are our three  4X4 Toyota cars  and the local mode of  transport, the inevitable donkey. It makes a nice contrast.

GET İN LİNE - WE ARE WAİTİNG TOO.

OUR FERRY

THE NİLE İS VERY LARGE HERE

OUR MODE OF TRANSPORT TAKES MUCH MORE SPACE THAN THEİRS.

Now we venture off road in the Bayuda desert. It is a seemingly endless journey across a barren stone covered desert where you wonder how people live and survive , especially that temperatures in the summer can reach close to 50 degrees Centigrade. The landscape is a desolate dust bowl where almost nothing grows.

 And the worst is when the wind starts to pick up and the sand starts whirling all around you justifying the phrase ''Damn sand gets into everything''. We see a camel herd blurred in the flying sand. We did take pictures but believe me it was hard to keep the camera from dying in this sand. 

Luckily enough the wind died down as quickly as it had started when we reached a nomad settlement in the middle of the desert. It really is amazing to witness how in such a harsh environment, you can find a family living in perfect contentment with the little they have.  

These nomads, who live as extended families, raise cattle which they then sell to buy food. They settle in one place for sometimes up to two years and more and move when their herd does not find anything anymore to eat. 

They live in small huts (brick houses when they settle for a longer period of time) bound together with rope and rags with the goat and sheep living in a separate hut not far from the family. 

THE İNTERİOR OF THE BRİCK HOUSE: PRETTY MİSERABLE CONDİTİONS. 

Miserable or not, those nomads are the kindest people I have met for quite some time. They took us in, insisted we have tea with them, which we did. And they kindly allowed us to take their pictures. 

WHO ARE THOSE PEOPLE İN MY HOUSE ?

THE NEW BRİDE

THE GRANDMOTHER.

PREPARİNG TEA FOR US. 

OLD AGE AND YOUTH. 

Picnicking under a tree , we were surrounded by the children from a nearby village. I like it since we cannot eat everything and they end up with a lot of food. 

GİRLS GOİNG TO SCHOOL. I REALLY WONDER WHERE THE SCHOOL İS. 

A BABY DEFİNİTELY AFRAİD OF THE WHİTE WOMAN WİTH DARK GLASSES.
I TOOK OFF MY GLASSES BUT TO NO AVAİL. 

Continuing in the Bayuda desert, we stopped at another nomad camp, this one even poorer than the first one, but still with extremely welcoming people. 

WHAT A BEAUTİFUL SMİLE

I SUDDENLY REALIZED THAT IN SUDAN THE CHİLDREN DO NOT RUN TOWARDS THE WHİTE WOMAN BECAUSE THEY ARE AFRAİD OF YOU. 

On the way to Karima where we will spend the night, let us visit the El-Nuri necropolis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2003. This site was used from 664 BC to 310 BC as a royal graveyard with 22 king pyramids and 59 pyramids belonging to the higher echelons of the state. But one dominates all others and meets you at the entrance : it is the biggest pyramid in Sudan and belongs to Taharqa, the famous Black Pharaoh of the Egytian 25th Dynasty. He ruled from Memphis but wanted to be buried in Nubia so had his tomb built here not on the Kush model but on the model of the great pyramids of Egypt, so that his tomb would be befitting his pomp as a ruler of Egypt. Around him grew a Valley of the Kings.  

Unfortunately, the pyramids at El-Nuri are in a dilapidated state and in urgent need of repair. Built of soft sandstone, they are crumbling and seem to be weather-beaten by the desert in front of our  eyes. 

THE PYRAMİD OF TAHARQA-İT WAS AS BİG AS THE EGYPTİAN ONES BEFORE İT CRUMBLED. 

Evening has come ; we have reached Karima and today sunset is at El-Kurru West Necropolis. 

We will be staying at the Nubian Guest House in Karima. It is a hotel run by Italians but I was not expecting something so nice. You have all the comforts in a very Nubian style. 

THE MAİN ENTRANCE TO THE GUEST HOUSE

JUST BEHİND THE MAİN DOOR A PATİO WELCOMES YOU. 

A HUGE GREEN FİELD İN THE MİDDLE SURROUNDED BY SMALL BUİLDİNGS HOUSİNG THE ROOMS

THE VERANDA İN FRONT OF EACH ROOM. 

THE BEDROOM

A DECORATİON AND THE CEİLİNG. 

THE BATHROOM. 

After a good night's sleep we are ready to explore Jebel Barkal and the adjacent historical sites. 

The great red sandstone monolith of Jebel Barkal , just opposite our hotel, dominates the surrounding area . This flat-topped hill was regarded by the ancient Egyptians and the Kushites to be the abode of the god Amon, making it a holy mountain. 

When ancient Egyptians conquered the region, they identified Jebel Barkal as the residence of god Amon who was believed to help renew life each year when the Nile flooded. They carved a temple at its base. When the ancient Nubians regained control, they converted the holy mountain into a place for royal coronations. 

OUR GUEST HOUSE AT THE BACK

JEBEL BARKAL AT THE FRONT

YOU ONLY HAVE TO WALK THİS DİSTANCE

JEBEL BARKAL

At the base of the mountain is the Temple of Amon, constructed by the Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmosis III in the 15th century BC and heavily extended by Taharqa around 680 BC.

The entire temple area is hive of activity as archaeologists are in the process of excavating the site. This is an Italian team financed by Qatar money. 

Gradually being uncovered from the desert sand, the temple ground plan has so far revealed two large colonnaded halls leading to a sanctuary at the base of the mountain. The problem is that sand has covered this site for thousands of years and every winter, when the archaeological team comes back , they have to start again cleaning the same places as the year before since quite a bit of the previous year's work has been covered by sand again during the summer months. A slow process indeed. 

THE TEMPLE OF AMON OR WHAT REMAİNS OF İT. 

RAMS ARE SEEN SO AMON İS NEAR

MAİN ENTRANCE TO THE TEMPLE BETWEEN TWO ROWS OF RAMS

THE COLONNADED HALLS

A short distance away is the temple of Mut, dedicated to the Egyptian sky goddess, the bride of Amon. It was built during the 25th Dynasty by Taharqa. 

This structure too is a major ruin with only two imposing columns remaining. Their capital is carved with the image of the goddess Hator. 

The Mut temple being half built , half rock-cut, excavations within the cave have unearthed walls paintings which still retain their colors. No electricity being put in the cave, it is pitch dark and you can only see around with a flashlight which does not help photography. 

HATOR

İNSİDE THE CAVE. 

Just next to Jebel Barkal, you can see some pyramids of the El-Kurru West Necropolis .

WE ARE SO NEAR THE NİLE

IT İS THE NİLE THAT ALLOWS ALL THESE VEGETABLES TO BE FOUND İN SUDAN. 

We are now going to visit El-Kurru East Necropolis, just another of the Kushite royal necropolises, in use between 795 and 315 BC.

 There are here 10 royal pyramids and 14 queen's pyramids here but most have faded away to virtually nothing or the entrances have been buried under tons of sand. The first king of the 25th Dynasty, Piye rests here while his son and successor Taharqa is at El-Nuri as we have previously seen. Another important king of the same dynasty is Tanutamun (664-656 BC), and his tomb has a highly decorated burial chamber that we are going to visit. 

Sorry, I spoke too soon. There is no way I can go into a dark, steep passage with steps carved into the rock,  with no air and no light. I am a bit claustrophobic , you see. So the pictures below are all from the Internet. 

What you see is King Tanumatun being helped into the afterlife by gods and goddesses of the Egyptian pantheon. 

NO WAY I AM GOİNG İN THERE.

THE CEİLİNG İS PAİNTED AS A SKY FULL OF STARS. 

WHAT MAKES THİS TYPİCALLY NUBİAN İS THAT BOTH THE GODS AND THE KİNGS ARE DARK-SKİNNED
AND THE KİNG HAS TWO COBRAS ON HİS CROWN.

A very long journey awaits us in our last day in Sudan. We leave Karima very early in the morning to go further North and visit Old Dongola. The first part of our trip is very very off-road , among sand dunes. 

On the way, we pass by a village and visit the a house whose walls are painted by the girls of the extended family living in it. 

There is the mother, her two unmarried daughters (two are married and have left home), and her 4 sons. The husband was away on business. They offered us an excellent coffee, nice conversation and beautiful pictures. 

THE OUTSİDE WALL

ONE OF THE BOYS

THE İNSİDE WALL

ONE OF THE GİRLS

THE OTHER GİRL PREPARİNG COFFEE FOR US

TWO OF THE BOYS

THE MOTHER - SHE LOOKS SO YOUNG

We reach Old Dongola ( the new town being some 80 km away). How did this Christian Kingdom arise ? 

Following the collapse of the Kingdom of Kush during the 4th century BC, a political vacuum was left in the region it controlled. This void was filled by the emergence of a number of smaller Nubian kingdoms. The most well known of those was the Kingdom of Dongola, or Makuria, which had its capital in the city of Old Dongola.

One of the most distinctive features of this kingdom was that it was a Christian kingdom. It is recorded that Christianity was propagated by Byzantine missionaries in the Nile Valley from Aswan all the way south to the confluence of the Blue and White Nile ( i.e. Khartoum). 

One of the effects of the conversion to Christianity was the construction of numerous churches in the area, replacing pagan temples. The ''Church of Granite Columns '' was the largest church constructed in medieval Nubia and may have served as the city's cathedral. 

WE ARE VERY NEAR THE NİLE NOW. 

THE PALACE OF THE KİNG (RECENTLY RESTORED). 

REMAİNS OF A CHURCH 

THE CİTY WALLS

COLUMNS OF THE CHURCH OF THE GRANİTE COLUMNS

Apart from  churches, monasteries were also established in the Kingdom of Old Dongola. 

THE HOUSES OF THE MONKS

MAİN CHURCH OF THE MONASTERY AND THE CRYPT

 A little further away ,we see some conical pyramid-like structures which are not pyramids at all. Old Dongola is dotted with ''Qubbas'' which are unique conical tombs marking the resting place of revered Muslim Sufi saints. Unfortunately, not much is known about these tombs except that Sufism was introduced to Sudan in the 16th century AD. But the view is very impressive. 

We now have a long drive back to Khartoum. The first part will be off-road in the desert, then we will reach an asphalted road in the middle of the desert which is much less bumpy. 

BYE BYE DESERT

THE ASPHALTED ROAD MORE OR LESS FOLLOWS THE NİLE 

After a long drive we are finally in Khartoum but we have a last stop in Omdurman (part of the capital city). 

The two largest Sufi orders in Sudan are the Kadiriya and the Burhani brotherhoods; and members of the Kadiriya order, in their hundreds, meet every Friday, late in the afternoon, at the tomb of their former leader, the 19th century Sufi leader Sheikh Hamed el-Nil. This ceremony is now the largest regularly held Sufi event in Sudan. 

Here those Sufi devotees come together to engage in a sacred ritual called ''zhikr'', i.e. praying and dancing together, since Sufis aspire to achieve perfection of worship through music, dance and meditative exercises. 

THE TOMB İS İN THE MİDDLE OF A CEMETARY 

THE MOSQUE ON THE RİGHT AND THE TOMB ON THE LEFT

MUSİCİANS PREPARİNG

PEOPLE ARE READY

SOME MUSİC İS ALREADY MADE

The ceremony cannot begin until the actual Sheikh of the Kadriya order arrives. All of a sudden, there is a commotion, people draw aside to leave way, and the Sheikh makes his appearance.

THE SHEİKH HİMSELF. 

At around the same time, the Sufi dervishes have made their entrances to the cemetery dressed in colorful patchwork robes decorated with feathers and bright beads around their necks. To me , they look more African then Muslim . I believe, this is where old African traditions meet Muslim Sufi ones.

The crowd is watching, the women in a separate place from the men. 

Then the ceremony really starts : the dervishes whirl around in the middle while the devotees surround them and work themselves into a frenzy reciting Allah's name. 
I have to admit I do not believe anyone could reach any trance in this mess, but I would not know for sure.I am sure for the believer, this is a way to reach Allah. But to a tourist like me, this is nice African folklore

Another journey is thus over. We flew back to Istanbul very early the next morning. 

My impressions ? I ended up much more impressed with Sudan than I expected.
I discovered a country with a rich history, even if most of it is buried under the sand. 
I saw beautiful ruins in peace and calm, since even to say that tourism is in its infancy could be an overstatement. 
I had happy moments in the desert since it offers a wondrous sight : miles and miles of desert and sand dunes stretching as far as the eye can see , interspersed with wandering camels and goat herds. What a sense of freedom. 

I loved the Sudanese . Strong, tall and beautiful , they are very hospitable and kind. 
But at the same time I felt a kind of sadness, the first time I feel such a thing in a country. The people, seem to look at you in resignation. They seem to have sadness in their eyes. And I felt I could understand them since they were given so little. Miles and miles of arid desert with only the area around the Nile which helps them survive. A great history, mostly in ruin or buried under the sand. Civil war, genocide, displacement from home having been part of their lives for so long. But still able to smile at you.

In conclusion, I am very happy to have visited Sudan and I would advise it to anybody who loves the unexpected, a little adventure, a long history whose remnants are waiting for you to discover , a place untainted by hordes of tourists and a great people.