THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO

T H E ORIENTAL INSTITUTE
CHICAGO · ILLINOIS 60637
1155 EAST FIFTY-EIGHTH STREET
TELEPHONE: (773) 702-9514
FAX: (773) 702-9853

EGYPT AND THE EAST

Egypt’s Eastern Desert and the Sinai Peninsula
with an optional extension to Aqaba and Petra, Jordan

Escorted by Robert Ritner, Oriental Institute, University of Chicago

March 12 - 27, 2009

Robert K. Ritner is currently Professor of Egyptology at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago and was from
1991-1996 the first Marilyn M. Simpson Assistant Professor of Egyptology at Yale University. Dr. Ritner is the author of
The Mechanics of Ancient Egyptian Magical Practice, which has just sold out its third printing, and well over 100 publications
on Egyptian religion, magic, medicine, language and literature, as well as social and political history. He has lectured
extensively on each of these topics throughout the United States, Europe and Egypt, and he has led Oriental Institute
tours to Egypt regularly for over twenty years.

Thursday, March 12:

Depart Chicago in the evening.

Friday, March 13: CAIRO: Mena House Oberoi Hotel (D)

We arrive into Cairo in the afternoon and transfer to the Mena House Oberoi Hotel, situated on the Giza plateau. This evening
we will meet with Dr. Ritner for dinner.

Saturday, March 14: CAIRO: Mena House Oberoi Hotel (B/L/D)

We have obtained special permission to tour Abu Rawash, the northern most site of the Memphite Necropolis and the Fifth
Dynasty pyramid complexes at Abu Sir. We then proceed to Saqqara to visit the tomb of general and later pharaoh Horemheb
and new Imhotep Museum.

Sunday, March 15: CAIRO: Mena House Oberoi Hotel (B/L)

The monuments of Old Cairo including the Coptic Church of Abu Sarga, the Ben Ezra Synagogue and the Coptic Museum, will
be the focus of this morning’s touring. After lunch, we will visit Beit el-Sennari, the restored house, which was the first Egyptian
home of Egyptology. The remainder of the afternoon will be at leisure.

Monday, March 16: PORT SAID: Sonesta Port Said Hotel (B/L/D)
This morning we will travel into the Delta where we have obtained permission to visit Buto, a dual city known to the ancient
Egyptians Wadjet. The cobra goddess of Lower Egypt was worshiped in half of the city and the heron-god, Djbut, was worshiped
in the other half. After completing our visit, we continue to Port Said, where our hotel overlooks the Suez Canal.

Tuesday, March 17: PORT SAID: Sonesta Port Said Hotel (B/L/D)
We ferry across the Suez into northern Sinai and continue to Pelusium, the celebrated eastern Egyptian seaport, which was the
gateway to Western Asia and scene of numerous battles between the Egyptian army and Babylonian and Persian invaders from
601 to 343 BC. We will stop to visit the small museum in Qantara and return to Port Said.

Wednesday, March 18: ISMAILIYA: Mercure Forsan Island (B/L/D)

Touring begins at Tanis, Zoan of the Bible, which was the capital of Egypt during Dynasties XXI-XXII and served as the burial
place of some of the dynasties’ most important leaders. These Pharaohs brought decorated stones and monumental sculptures
from all over the Delta to embellish their temples. Today the site is an impressive outdoor museum. Touring continues at Tell ed-
Dabba, the site of the Hyksos capital, Avraris and Bubastis, home of the cat-goddess Bastet. The annual feast in her honor was
described by Herodotus as a grand event of thousands of pilgrims traveling from every part of Egypt. Great feasts, sacrifices and
processions were described. Our day ends in Ismailiya in time to visit the Ismailiya Museum. Our hotel for the next two nights,
Mercure Forsan Island, overlooks Lake Timsah (Crocodile Lake) on the Suez Canal.
Thursday, March 19: ISMAILIYA: Mercure Forsan Island (B/L/D)
This morning we drive to Sammanud, home of ancient Egyptian historian Manetho, to visit the site of the Temple of Onuris-Shu
El. We then continue to Mansura to visit the recently opened house where Louis IX was held during the failed crusade of AD
1249. We have obtained permission to visit several sites around Mansura beginning at Tell el-Ruba, site of ancient Mendes and
Thmuis, which replaced Mendes as nome capital in Graeco-Roman times. At Muqdam (ancient Taremu), a large settlement
which became the regional capital of the 11th Lower Egyptian nome during the Ptolemaic Period, we will see the Temple of
Mahes, stelae and a statuary dating toDynasty XVIII. Our final stop today will be the Coptic Church of St George, renown for its
annual moulid (festival) where specially trained priests perform exorcism.
Friday, March 20: RAS SUDR: Helnan Ras Sudr Hotel (B/L/D)
We turn south along the Red Sea to the beautifully restored Monastery of St. Anthony, the first and largest Coptic desert
monastery. Following a picnic lunch, we will proceed to the nearby Monastery of St. Paul, site of the cave of the first Egyptian
hermit. We return north and through the tunnel under the Suez Canal into the Sinai, arriving at our hotel for dinner.

Saturday, March 21: RAS SUDR: Helnan Ras Sudr Hotel (B/L/D)
We transfer to 4-wheel-drive vehicles for a rough ride along desert track and through small oasis villages to Sarabit el-Khadim,
the most important Pharaonic site in Sinai and a meeting place between Egyptian expeditions and Canaanite tribesmen. A
natural fortified plateau surrounded by deep gorges, Sarabit el-Khadim was the camp of the ancient Egyptian turquoise mining
operations. Following a steep trail, we will find numerous commemorative stelae set up at a temple dedicated to the goddess
Hathor as the “Mistress of Turquoise.” As this is a difficult climb, it will be possible to remain at the hotel to enjoy a day at the
beach.

Sunday, March 22: WADI EL-DEIR: Wadi el-Raha Hotel (B/L/D)

Today we drive into the interior of the Sinai through vast landscapes of strange rock formations and rugged massifs of pink
granite banded with veins of green diorite and red porphyry, contrasting sharply with the dark hills of basalt. We will stop at the
churches in the oasis of Wadi Feiran, an ancient pilgrimage site, and spend the night at the foot of a mountain traditionally called
“Mt. Moses.”

Monday, March 23: HURGHADA: Sonesta Hurghada Hotel (B/L)

The intrepid among us might wake up early and climb the 750 steps to the summit of Mt Sinai. The view from the small chapel
built here in 1934 is spectacular. The full morning will be spent visiting the fortified Monastery of St. Catherine. Erected by
Emperor Justinian in 527, and spared from destruction by the Muslims, this monastery became the seat of the Greek Orthodox
archbishopric in Egypt. The interior is a picturesque jumble of terraces, flower-filled courtyards and vaulted galleries. Our tour
will include all of the areas accessible to the public on this day. After lunch, we continue across the Sinai to the Gulf of Aqaba,
turning south to Sharm el-Sheikh and the evening ferry across the Red Sea to Hurghada. We will spend the next three nights in
the luxurious Sonesta Hurghada Hotel.

Tuesday, March 24: HURGHADA: Sonesta Hurghada Hotel (B/L)

Today we will take a bumpy desert ride in 4-wheel-drive vehicles to Mons Claudianus, the source of the gigantic monolithic gray
granite (quartz diorite) columns also exported for use in many state buildings in Rome. We will see numerous columns strewn
about the sites, as well as the ruined village which housed the Romans brought here to work the quarries.

Wednesday, March 25: HURGHADA: Sonesta Hurghada Hotel (B/D)

Another desert excursion to visit Mons Porphyrites, the quarries where imperial porphyry was extracted for transport to Rome
and Constantinople. In addition to the stone works, we will find the remains of a temple built by Trajan and Hadrian. Returning
to Hurghada, there will be time for a swim in the Red Sea before our farewell dinner

Thursday, March 26: Cairo: Intercontinental Semiramia (B)

A morning flight returns us to Cairo. The remainder of the day will be at leisure.

Friday, March 27:

Transfer to the airport for our flights to Chicago.

COST OF TOUR: $8685

(includes internal Egypt Air flights only)

Single Supplement: $850

 OPTIONAL JORDAN EXTENSION

Thursday, March 26: AQABA: Mövenpick Resort & Residence Hotel (B/L/D)
A morning ferry returns us to Sharm el-Sheikh. We then drive to Nuweiba for the afternoon ferry to Aqaba. We will spend two
nights at the beachfront Mövenpick Resort & Residence Hotel.

Friday, March 27: AQABA: Mövenpick Resort & Residence Hotel (B/L)
Our full day of touring in Aqaba will highlight the Oriental Institute sites including the Islamic period town of Ayla and the
nearby Sherif Husein House, which displays finds from the site, Roman Aqaba, the Ottoman fort, Aqaba Museum and, time
permitting, Jezeret Pherone Island.

Saturday, March 28: PETRA: Crown Plaza Petra Hotel (B/L/D)

This morning we drive north to Wadi Rum. Our touring will include the Allat temple, the remains of what may have been a
palace or sacred bath and some of the numerous petroglyphs and Nabataean, Thamudic and Old South Arabic inscriptions,
which may have been written by traders coming from as far as present-day Yemen. We will arrive into Petra in the late afternoon.

Sunday, March 29: PETRA: Crown Plaza Petra Hotel (B/L)

The full day will be devoted to the exploration of this breathtakingly beautiful city, carved into rose-colored sandstone. Few
sights in the world rival one’s first glimpse of the Treasury viewed from the Siq. During our two-day stay here we will visit all of
the accessible monuments of the ancient city with some time free for those who wish to climb to some of the city’s less
accessible places.

Monday, March 30: AMMAN: Marriott Hotel (B/L)

This morning we will reenter Petra and climb to the High Place of Sacrifice. Here we will see altars and sacrificial pits cut into
the rock as well as the remains of buildings that probably housed the priests. The views out over the city are spectacular. After
lunch, we drive to Amman stopping at Madaba to view a unique 6th-century mosaic map depicting Byzantine Jerusalem before
the advent of Islam.

Tuesday, March 31: AMMAN: Marriott Hotel (B/L)

Our day begins at the National Museum, which houses artifacts recovered from recent excavations, including unique
anthropomorphic statues from ‘Ain Ghazal and a magnificent late Bronze Age carved ivory-paneled casket found at Pella. The
hilltop ruins of the Temple of Hercules, a 6th-century Byzantine Church and Omayyad Palace complete the touring on the city’s
citadel. Just one hour north of Amman on the banks of Wadi Jerash are the glorious ruins of ancient Gerasa. The city we see
today gained international fame after the annexation of the Nabataean kingdom by Trajan and its subsequent connection to the
road between Bosra and the Red Sea. The city continued to grow until the Persian invasion, conquest of Islam and finally a
terrible earthquake in 749 reduced it to ruins. We will see remains of this great ancient city, including its Triumphal Arch of
Hadrian, immense colonnade, three theaters, temples as well as some of the 15 churches built during the rule of Justinian. We
return to Amman to rest before our early morning flight home.

Wednesday, April 1:
Our flight to Chicago departs early this morning.

COST OF JORDAN EXTENSION: $2935

Single Supplement: $345

Based a minimum of 10 tour participants

TOUR RATE INCLUDES:
Transportation: Internal flights via Egypt Air. Surface travel by motor coach as detailed in the itinerary.
Hotels: In twin-bedded rooms with private bath as listed or similar.
Meals: Meals are included table d’hôte as listed. B - Breakfast L - Lunch D - Dinner
Tips: All tips to tour escort, guides, drivers and porters are included.
Contribution: A $400 contribution to The Oriental Institute.
Baggage allowance: A maximum of one checked bag per person plus one carry-on bag that will fit under the bus seat.
Within Egypt, luggage must not exceed 44 pounds.

Not included in the tour rate: Passport fees, visa fees, airport departure taxes, excess baggage charges, insurance and items of
a personal nature such as laundry, beverages, transfers for passengers arriving and departing independently and items not on
menus.
A note about single rooms: For those traveling alone but who prefer to share with another, we will endeavor to work out
congenial rooming arrangements. If impossible, and if a single room must be assigned due to the roommate’s canceling or
incompatibility or for any other reason, even if at the last moment or while on tour, the single room supplement or prorate
thereof must be collected.
TOUR MEMBER RESPONSIBILITY: This tour should be considered strenuous. These tours require a great deal of walking
over sandy or rocky terrain and some long driving days by 4 X 4 vehicles over very rough road or sand. All participants are
expected to be physically active, able to walk independently throughout our full touring days, enjoy traveling as part of a group
and to be ready to experience cultural differences. Only those willing to accept these conditions should consider taking this tour.
If you have any questions about your ability to participate, we suggest that you visit your personal physician and discuss whether
or not this program is appropriate for you. Travel operators and tour leaders reserve the right to deny access to sites and
excursions if there are concerns about passenger safety.
TARIFFS: Tour rates are based on a minimum of 15 participants and rates in effect August 2008 and subject to change. The
Jordan option is based on a minimum of 10 participants.
DEPOSITS & PAYMENTS: A deposit of $800 per person is required at the time of booking. The final payment is due sixteen
weeks before departure.
INSURANCE: Insurance is available to cover these penalties and is recommended. By purchasing your trip cancellation
insurance within fourteen days of your initial deposit, Travel Insured International will waive the usual exclusion for preexisting
medical conditions.
CANCELLATIONS: In the event of cancellation, refund in full will be made until sixteen weeks before departure, less a $300
handling fee. Between sixteen and twelve weeks before departure, the cancellation penalty will be $800, and between twelve
weeks and four weeks before departure, the penalty will be $5,585. After that time the penalty could be as high as 100%. The
Jordan extension requires additional penalties. There will be no refund for cancellations within seven days of departure or for
unused services once the tour departs.
RESPONSIBILITY: ARCHAEOLOGICAL TOURS, a division of LINDSTIONE TRAVEL INC., and THE ORIENTAL INSTITUTE in accepting bookings
for the tour, clearly stipulates that it is not liable for the faults or defaults of other companies and persons that may be used in the carrying out of the tour
services; also for accidents, baggage losses, delays, strikes, political unrest, riots, and acts of God and war. In the event it becomes necessary or advisable
for the comfort or well-being of the passengers, or for any reason whatsoever, to alter the itinerary or arrangements, such alterations may be made without
penalty to the operator. Additional expenses, if any, shall be borne by the passengers. The right is also reserved to withdraw this tour; also to decline to
accept or retain any persons as members of the tour. No refunds can be made for absence from the tour unless arrangements are made at the time of
booking. IATA carriers concerned are not to be held responsible for acts, omissions, or events during the time passengers are not on board. The passage
contract in use by the companies concerned shall constitute the sole contract between the company and the purchaser of these tours and/or passengers.

FOR INFORMATION & RESERVATIONS:

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Oriental Institute Membership Office

Sarah Sapperstein, Membership Coordinator
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Chicago, IL 60637
Tel: (773) 834-9777 E-mail: oi-membership@uchicago.edu