Luxor and Aswan- Tourism in Egypt

Shivalika Sarkar
Professor Ezzeldin
18 December 2016
Digital Media Assignment Narrative

            Many people are proud to call a certain country their home. Aspects such as food, culture, religion, clothing, language and even tourists/travel spots are some things that make a certain country home to someone. Other than bringing large amounts of revenue and popularity to a certain place, tourist spots also give the people from a certain country a sense of nationalism and ethnic pride. Some places of tourism also carry a very symbolic meaning and hold many significant memories to someone, whether they be from that specific place or not.

            Today, I have my good friend Fatma Abubaker who took the time to share something special about her home country which is Egypt. She was born in Cairo, Egypt and so were her parents and the rest of her siblings. Fatma is a junior at Rutgers University Business School. In my opinion, Fatma is one of the few people I know who is still so close to their home country and keeps in close contact with Egypt. For example, she loves visiting Cairo, Egypt and spending time with her siblings and family there. In the summer of 2016, she spent several months in Egypt, traveling and enjoying and celebrating her culture. She went on exciting adventures with her family and friends, visited many interesting tourist places, and ate many delicious Egyptian foods, exploring the beauty of Egypt. This is the main reason I chose to interview Fatma for my Digital Media Assignment because I know how familiar she is with Egypt and how much she loves her homeland.

            Out of all the topics she could talk about regarding Egypt as a country, Fatma made the decision to speak about tourism and travel in Egypt. As mentioned earlier, since she visited Egypt in the summer of 2016, she went to so many different places and made so many great memories at beautiful areas of Egypt. She chose to speak about a tourist spot called Luxor and Aswan. Out of all the places she visited in Egypt to tour, she enjoyed Luxor and Aswan the most. First, she took the cruise through the famous Nile River to sail to Luxor and Aswan. Fatma says that on her way to the places in the ship, she noticed beautiful sight- seeing worthy things such as interesting buildings, exotic houses, and people. They were all located along the Nile River. I personally have never been to the Nile River but I can only imagine what a breathtaking moment that must have been.

            After the cruise arrived its destination, there were even more breathtaking things to see. Luxor and Aswan is known for being extremely historic. It can tell a story about Egypt. That is exactly what Fatma took in during this trip. She slowly began learning about her own country as she walked through Luxor and Aswan. This tourist place is filled with Egypt’s history. It has old temples, architecture, and other types of buildings. Most of this place is all natural material- natural material as in humans today have not done much to modify and preserve this place. Fatma explains to me how she was personally bothered that no one seemed to feel the need to help preserve the temples and structures just because all these historical pieces are found so abundantly throughout Egypt.

However, Fatma began to explore the beauty of Luxor and Aswan as she went on a tour with her tour guide and began to understand the history for herself. Her tour guide walked her through several temples, old buildings, and even tombstones! Fatma tells me that there is a historical story about a king and queen were actually buried in a specific temple she visited and she was fascinated by that. She felt her sense of pride as an Egyptian grow as she became more familiar with what Luxor and Aswan had to offer. In addition to the historical pieces, Fatma and her family also saw plays and shows regarding Egypt’s history. Actors and actresses dressed up and put up a performance for tourists to give everyone a real-life feel by re-enacting a certain Egyptian historical event.

            Apart from learning about history and appreciating the beauty of the history of Luxor and Aswan, there were also several other aspects of this place that touched Fatma’s heart. For example, as she was touring in this area, she noticed many vendors. The local vendors there have small businesses that sell many items such as souvenirs. Fatma collected and stocked up on many exotic souvenirs, purchasing and especially supporting these local vendors. She bought some exotic jewelry such as necklaces, beads, and belly- dancing apparel. All these souvenirs made Fatma extremely happy because not only did she buy something for herself and her younger sister, but she was also able to support the businesses of local vendors who need tourist money to support a family back at home.

In conclusion, Fatma absolutely fell in love with Luxor and Aswan. She would certainly recommend anyone and everyone to visit this place as it is so beautiful yet so exotic. She would visit this place in a heartbeat. She thinks that her visit to Luxor and Aswan increased her sense of nationality as an Egyptian and made her love her home country more than ever before. And that is the best feeling in the world- to be proud of who you are and where you come from. 
Audio/ Video: https://youtu.be/0iTyln6NLOQ