More Egyptian pyramids to open to the public

by Sean McLachlan on


Visitors to Egypt have always flocked to the pyramids of Giza and Saqqara. Many people don’t realize, however, that these are only the most famous of more than a hundred pyramids in the country. In fact, there’s a whole “pyramid field” to the west of Cairo that includes Giza, Saqqara, and numerous other groupings across a long swath of desert. Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities is now opening some of them to visitors for the first time.

At Dahshur, more than a dozen pyramids give an interesting lesson in pyramid construction. The largest of these were built in the Fourth Dynasty (c. 2613 to 2494 BC) just prior to those at Giza. The founder of this dynasty, the Pharaoh Sneferu, was quite the pyramid builder. His first attempt was at Meidum, 100 km (62 miles) south of Cairo. It collapsed, and he moved his workmen to Dahshur for his next try.

This was the famous Bent Pyramid, pictured above in a photo from Jon Bodsworth’s excellent collection at the Egypt Archive. Check out the gallery below for more of his work. The architects started building the pyramid at a 55 degree angle, but when the structure showed signs of weakness they chickened out and built the rest at a more stable angle of 43 degrees. This gives the pyramid unique appearance. The pyramid’s two interior passages will open for the first time to visitors in December. A third passage leads 25 meters (82 ft) to a nearby smaller pyramid of Sneferu’s queen so the two could have conjugal visits in the afterlife. His third try was the Red Pyramid, built at the safer 43 degree angle. It held up nicely and is the third largest pyramid in Egypt at 104 meters (345 ft) tall.

Other pyramids at Dahshur include smaller examples from later dynasties. They aren’t nearly as grandiose as the earlier ones, perhaps because later rulers couldn’t command as much authority or they simply had other things they needed to spend their money on. The Black Pyramid of Amenemhat III (c. 1860-1814 BC) makes for an odd photo. To save money, the architects only used stone on the outside, and when later generations stole it for other building projects, the mud brick interior was revealed. This has been weathering away for the last four thousand years and now looks a bit deflated, although it’s still impressive.

%Gallery-97617%Between Giza and Saqqara lies the royal necropolis of Abusir, home to 14 pyramids that will open to the public this month. The necropolis on the outskirts of modern-day Cairo was started in the fifth dynasty (c. 2494 to 2345 BC) after the previous dynasty had filled up Giza with pyramids and temples. Abusir’s pyramids are smaller than those at Giza, and some have all but disappeared after millennia of weathering, but the site is still worth visiting. Most are step pyramids like the famous one at Saqqara, not flat-sided “true” pyramids like those at Giza. Some have smaller pyramids next to them to house the pharaoh’s queens.

One pyramid, that of the pharaoh Neferefre, was never finished, and has given archaeologists a glimpse at the construction techniques that went into building these behemoths. Some people like to think the pyramids were built by aliens or people from Atlantis, but archaeological evidence and the Egyptians’ own written records prove they built the pyramids themselves.

These “new” pyramids are just a few of the large number of Egyptian attractions opening in the next three years. Several museums are under construction, and the area around the Pyramids of Giza has been cleaned up. This month the famous Avenue of Sphinxes between the temples of Luxor and Karnak is opening, with about 900 statues and a recently excavated Roman-era village nearby.

Note to budding Egyptologists: this article is way too short to cover all the various theories and discoveries at Abusir and Dahshur. You need a few books to cover all of them! A good start are the works of Miroslav Verner, including The Pyramids: The Mystery, Culture, and Science of Egypt´s Great Monuments and Abusir: The Realm of Osiris.

Travel writer Patricia Schultz and Nature Valley join forces to preserve the parks

by Kraig Becker on

Patricia Schultz, author of the best selling book 1000 Places to See Before You Die, and spokesperson for America’s national parks, has joined forces with Nature Valley in an effort to raise as much as $600,000 for the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA). This past April, Nature Valley launched the National Parks Project in an effort to fund three unique preservation projects in some of the most iconic parks in the system, and they’re asking consumers to help out in achieving their goals. Better yet, they’re also giving us an opportunity to win one of three trips to to a park later this summer.

Throughout 2010, the NCPA will continue its efforts to protect the national parks for future generations, but three projects are receiving special attention this year. Those projects include reestablishing plant life in the Grand Canyon, freeing Pronghorn migrations in Yellowstone, and rebuilding coral reefs in Biscayne National Park. Each of these projects hopes to reverse the adverse conditions brought on by a lack of proper funding in the past, increased pollution, and global climate change.

Nature Valley has committed itself to helping the NPCA complete these worthy projects and is prepared to donate up to $600,000 to aid the cause. To that end, for every specially marked Nature Valley wrapper that consumers mail to the company between now and August 31st, the company will donate 10 cents to the NPCA. Additionally, we can also make direct donations to the cause as well. More information on both of these options can be found at PreserveTheParks.com.

The promotion doesn’t end there however, as Nature Valley is also giving away three trips to the Grand Canyon later this summer., Check back at PreserveTheParks.com and the company’s Facebook page for a chance to sign-up for the Nature Valley National Parks Project Sweepstakes, and you could win a trip to visit one of the greatest natural wonders on the planet.

When describing the parks Schultz says “In addition to being great vacation destinations, our national parks provide fun and adventurous educational experiences for travelers of all ages.” That’s why many of the parks are featured so prominently in her book, and that is also whey she has partnered with Nature Valley to work to preserve these majestic locations for future generations to visit too.

[Photo credit: Pescaiolo via WikiMedia Commons]

Las Vegas, off the beaten Strip

by Jeremy Kressmann on

The Las Vegas Neon Museum doesn’t announce itself with flashy lights; you have to find it in less obvious ways. Take a $20 dollar cab ride up to northern edge of Sin City, past the baking asphalt parking lots erupting with weeds and stout pawn shops eager with WE BUY GOLD placards, to the nondescript building the museum calls home. That’s when you’ll see it. Across the street, shimmering in the desert heat like a mirage: a gigantic, rusty-metal pool player. In one hand a cue, cocked, ready to fire, the player’s torso twisted in contrapposto like a billiard-playing colossus. Near this metallic giant lay dozens of gorgeously decorated neon signs – Stardust, Golden Nugget, Silver Slipper – artwork from a bygone era of Vegas history, out of sight and out of mind. Las Vegas is not a city that honors its past. Yet somehow fragments remain, ready to reveal their secrets to visitors who venture beyond the town’s glittering Strip.

Vegas is town forever stuck in the present; a city that appears to have neither a past nor a future: it simply is. It’s a fact borne out by the city’s relentless reinvention, renovation and recreation. On the famous “Strip,” outdated hotels are leveled to make way for the newest mega-resort. Even finding a clock inside a casino is a challenge. All of this suggests a town that ignores the passing of time in exchange for the pleasures of an ephemeral present. Except not all of the Old Vegas has disappeared; it’s simply been shoved to the margins. Venture ten minutes from ageless Las Vegas Boulevard and a different Vegas emerges; a destination of Atomic Era drinking dens, whimsical pinball parlors and a museum harboring a gallery of neon masterpieces.

If you’ve ever wondered what exists in Vegas beyond Roman Strip Malls and Eiffel Tower knock-offs, it’s time to dig beneath the surface. Let’s tour Las Vegas, off the beaten Strip. Keep reading below for more.A Neon Graveyard
If it’s possible for an Inert Gas to symbolize the magnificent highs and tumbling lows of Vegas history, then Neon is it. This strange element has been fueling the glowing signage of Las Vegas ever since mobster Bugsy Siegel dared to imagine this fantasy desert town as the world’s foremost gambling mecca. Though the casinos of Bugsy’s day long-ago met the wrecking ball, some of their signage lives on at the Neon Museum in northern Las Vegas.

For $15, visitors can explore “canyons” stacked with old Vegas neon signage, and imagine for a moment what once was: a place that hummed with a fiery visual energy, full of wildly exotic genie lamps, cocksure cowboys and colorful flamingos erupting like fireworks in the dark. It might not look like the Louvre or The Met, but this is one of the world’s great repositories of art, strokes of neon artistry left to rust and bake in the relentless desert sun.

Drinking in the Past
The Atomic Liquor Store is more than a bar: it’s a temple to long-lost Americana. Reportedly the “oldest bar” in Vegas, this drinking den got its name from the 1950’s nuclear tests that took place only 60 or so miles from its front door. Swanky Vegas cocktail lounge this is not. In addition to its location deep in the heart of seedy Fremont Street, visitors will need to be buzzed in the locked front doors.

But fear not, this historical oddity is worth the trip. From the minute you catch a glimpse of the sturdy decades-old neon sign out front, greeting you like an old friend, to the inflation-proof $1 cans of Busch Beer and molding pool tables, you’ll feel as though you’ve traveled back in time. The bar’s ramshackle decor, killer jukebox stocked with plenty of Springsteen and Mellencamp and a rotating cast of local Sin City characters is guaranteed to provide a memorable night out.

Playing for Keeps
Games are the de facto language of gambling. In Las Vegas, wherever you move you’re sure to encounter these games, the constant gaze of a slot machine or the hypnotic spinning eye of a roulette wheel beckoning you to try your luck. But a very different type of game competes for your attention at the Las Vegas Pinball Hall of Fame. Except instead of one-armed bandits you’ll find 10,000 square feet of vintage pinball and arcade games from the 1950’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, waiting for you to give them a play.

Whether you’re a fan of Captain Fantastic or Guns ‘n Roses, Waterworld or Pac-man, there’s a childhood memory begging you to relive the past. Drop in a quarter, and a real-life time machine springs back to life. Bells clink. 8-bit explosions foam in your eardrums. A flickering orange glow of enjoyment fills your view. But too soon, your pinball disappears from view and the machine again falls silent; a teasing vision of a Vegas that once was, but is no more.

Europe’s relaxed attitude toward nudity makes American travelers uncomfortable

by Laurel Miller on

While the image of a naked Rick Steves getting a rubdown in a Turkish bathhouse might be a bit TMI for many of us, the seasoned traveler, guidebook author, and travel show host makes some excellent points in a recent CNN article on Europe’s cultural tolerance for nudity.

According to Steves, who starts the piece with a flashback from a 1978 trip, “if you can leave your inhibitions at home, you can better appreciate some of the amazing experiences Europe has to offer.” Like, perhaps, ogling soapy boobies on a Belgian billboard, or admiring “sunbathing grandmothers [with] no tan lines,” in southern France. Or visiting museums.

Actually, Steves himself admits to being “uncomfortable” when confronted with all the nekkidness Europe has to offer, but he’s quick to point out that the trend is often rooted in a historical, sociological context. Turkish baths, for instance, were partly designed as a gathering place, where Muslim women could socialize, celebrate the birth of a child, or search for a suitable bride for their sons (and you think your mother-in-law is bad). And, he adds, he likes “a continent where the human body is considered a divine work of art worth admiring openly.” Cheers to that.

[Via Tribune Media Services]
[Photo credit: Flickr uses historic.brussels]

Gin class makes a splash at Food & Wine Classic in Aspen

by Laurel Miller on

I haven’t always enjoyed gin. A high school encounter with Tanqueray ensured that, for the next 15 years, the mere aroma of juniper left me retching. Then, a few years ago, I discovered a couple of small-batch distilleries that showed me gin can be delicate and floral. Suddenly, I found myself sipping G & T’s, and feeling rather decadent. There’s something about gin-with it’s Dutch, British Colonial, and speakeasy heritage-that makes it more sexy and intriguing than that other clear spirit, vodka. It’s a drink for adventurers, the legendary “Dutch Courage”
that fueled British troops during the Thirty Year War.

So it was with great interest that I attended mixologist Tony Abou-Ganim’s recent “Gin Alley: Lost Cocktails from a Bygone Era” seminar at last month’s Food & Wine Classic in Aspen. This weekend of decadence just celebrated its 28th year; the fact that it takes place in an outdoor paradise seals the deal, for me.

If you think Aspen is out of your budget, there are affordable accommodations in town, including my favorite, the St. Moritz Lodge. There even are also some great campgrounds on Maroon Creek Road-although there’s a logistical challenge after a late night. The same goes for staying in less-pricey, but inconvienient Snowmass.

If you’re attending Food & Wine, with its dozens of seminars, demos, and Grand Tastings, try to arrive a day early to acclimate; Aspen’s base is 8,000 feet, and drinking at altitude can leave you feeling like you were hit by a pile driver. You’ll want to acclimatize anyway: summer in Aspen means spectacular hiking (don’t miss the Maroon Bells; catch a bus to the trailhead from town), fly-fishing, mountain biking, climbing, riding, whitewater rafting, kayaking, and backcountry.

Getting back to gin, I’ve attended Tony’s seminars in the past, and he never disappoints, thanks in part to his down-to-earth demeanor, and engaging personality. He’s the winner of the 2007 Iron Chef America competition with Mario Batali; he also developed the bar programs at Harry Denton’s Starlight Room in San Francisco, and the Bellagio in Las Vegas. He currently runs his own consulting firm, and is the author of a new book, The Modern Mixologist: Contemporary Classic Cocktails, that draws from his love of classic, pre-Prohibition cocktails.

What’s the difference between bartending and mixology? Explains Tony, “I tend bar; we’re all bartenders in this line of work, and being a mixologist doesn’t make you a better bartender. What makes me a mixologist is my understanding and proficiency in the art and history of the cocktail. It’s not supposed to be pretentious-you want your customers to just enjoy themselves.”

Gin has a long and “checkered past,” says Tony. Bathtub gin was popular during Prohibition (because it was easy to make), and was used in anti-malarial sundowners in tropical British Colonies (it masked the taste of the quinine in the tonic water). Yet gin has been produced since the 1600’s, when the Dutch began distilling a juniper-derived medicinal spirit known as jenever (or genever). It made its way to England, where it was embraced, in part because Dutch Republic ruler William of Orange ascended the British throne during the Glorious Revolution. The resulting “Gin Craze” eventually led to general mayhem and social ills, and exorbitant tariffs were placed on gin. In the U.S., the spirt made its mark following the repeal of the Volstead Act. Says Tony, “All of the true, classic cocktails calling for a white spirit are gin-based. The earliest record I can find of a vodka-based drink is from the 1930’s.”

“Gin Alley” was held at Aspen’s super groovy, ’70’s ski-chalet-style Sky Hotel. As we were seated, we were each handed a milky, frothy Ramos Fizz. Tony’s version is slightly sweet, with a pronounced vanilla essence, and a good head of foam from the egg white. His gin preferences are Beefeater, which has a masculine, spicy profile that cuts the softness of the drink, or Bombay Sapphre. While Tony explained the history of the drink (created in New Orleans, in 1888, by Henry C. Ramos), he broke down its remaining ingredients, which include orange flower water, heavy cream, simple syrup, fresh lemon and lime juice, and a float of seltzer.

Each subsequent cocktail used another style of gin. “There are many different types of gin,” explained Tony. “There’s Dutch genever, Plymouth Gin, London Dry.” Each classification has it’s own characteristics-be it a pronounced juniper flavor; augmentation with spices and citrus, or a more feminine, subtle, flowery style. Tony’s current favorite boutique producers include Bluecoat, and Junipero.

“Think about the style of cocktail you’re making,” he advises. “I love the Negroni, but feel that a strong, junipery gin overpowers it. You want balance. That said, it’s all about your personal taste. Discovering what you like is part of the fun.” For his Corpse Reviver #2, a “hair of the dog, pick-me-up” spiked with absinthe, Lillet, and Cointreau, Tony prefers to use Tanqueray 10. This fresh, citrusy gin derives its name from the 10 different botanicals used in its production.

Tony’s favorite way to convert non-gin drinkers is with the classic Casino Cocktail, itself an adaption of the classic Aviation (it omits difficult-to-find creme de Violette). This refreshing, syrupy concoction is made with Luxardo, a dry, floral Maraschino cherry liqueur, as well as Plymouth gin, lemon juice, and orange bitters. Serve up in a coupe or martini glass, garnished with brandied Maraschino cherries (not the flourescent formaldehyde bombs).

Of course, no gin seminar would be complete without a martini. Tony shared his Iron Chef version, which uses a 4:1 ratio. Add 2 1/2 oz. of gin (whatever your preference) and 3/4 oz. of Noilly-Prat dry vermouth to a large mixing glass, with one large cube of ice. As for shaken, not stirred? “If a drink contains spirit only, stir gently until ice cold. It should be like liquid satin, not frothy.” Strain into a chilled cocktail glass, and garnish with a large Spanish olive, stuffed with Maytag Blue Cheese.

Don’t overlook the importance of ice. Says Tony, “Twenty-four-percent of a finished drink is water from diluted ice-nothing will screw up a drink faster than bad ice.” Boil bottled water, and freeze it in clean ice cube trays (the bigger, the better) free of eau de freezer funk. If you want to do your part for the environment, substitute good tap water if it’s available.

For travel, I suggest a three-piece cocktail set, which is a nifty little shaker that includes a
built-in strainer, with a removable cap that doubles as a jigger. At your destination, see if there’s a regional distillery, or shop the local farmers market for some fresh produce to add to your cocktail (think muddled basil, mint, citrus, cherries, or berries). Add ice back at your room or campsite: instant gratification.

If you want to catch Tony shaking things up, he does four seminars a year on Crystal Cruises Experiences of Discovery food and wine trips, or check his site for upcoming events. Tony is currently filming a gin documentary for IFC. Shot on location in Holland, England, Italy, and the U.S., the film will tell the story of gin’s history, ingredients, and production process, including its place in the resurgence of the classic cocktail. Release slated for later this year.