Expedition Blog

Swan Song

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 14 days Since Expedition Conclusion.

Dear Diary, April 5, 2009; It has been two weeks, two Egyptian minutes, since I made my transatlantic flight departing Cairo. It is strange to be "home." I am of this world, but of another. I am neither here nor there. I have attemped to regain some semblance of my old routine to get back into the rythym of an existence I have outgrown.  Oh, I may seem the same on the outside, going through the motions and the how do you do's and how was Egypt?  But how can I fully relate this fantastic voyage to another?  After all I have been through and all the miles I have traveled, all the fears I have overcome, and the endless joys I have experienced through the camaraderie of my traveling companions and our soulful guide, how can I explain to anyone how much I miss them and our home away from home aboard the Hadeel, and all the smiling faces who took such wonderful care of us, and the river, and the desert, and the sites; how can I express to the uninitiated what I have seen, what I have heard, what I have felt in this lifetime that was two weeks in the heart of the world?  No one is really that interested, but more so than that, this neverending voyage is my own precious gift, my own secret, my own jewel of the Nile. This is between me and my Expedition logbooks. And it is high time I return to their wisdom and compassion.

I haven't been able to write in this diary since my return. There is far too much to reveal.  These are my growing pains. I would like to take the time to retrace my steps. To organize my Expedition to egypt, but not yet. I need a little more time in this in-between space.  Sort of a gathering of energy.  Part of me seems missing. Like she is in some inner land between lands discoursing with the gods and goddesses, making arrangements for my newfound expression and self ownership. I am awaiting instructions. I am like the cold water of the Nile. I put my toe in, then my foot. I couldn't get in. It took me forever to fully submerge. And when I did, I was completely numb. I was not freezing. I feel as if I am in the water, only I don't know I am in the water. As if I am telling myself to get in, just get in, but I think I cannot. I can't even see that I am all ready swimmming with tremendous strength and agility. That like expedition member Ota, I just walked right in, as if there was no water at all as if there was no cold no difficulty no barrier.  I think I am at the edge peering in. But listen to me, I dove in weeks ago. It will take more time to recognize and assimilate this.  

Perhaps I should be writing my Swan Song. After all, the journey is over.   It is time for a summary or some kind of epilogue. But destiny encourages me otherwise: I know my Egyptian journal, my Expedition logbook will never be finished because it is only just beginning. I have barely scratched the surface of the message of the sphinx or the mystery of the lynx contained within. There is so much more to excavate from the depths of my soul that found herself in the ancient sands of Egypt. Yes, I know where home is, but how to get there will take more uncovering. Once in a lifetime? I think not. I may go about my business; cook, eat, clean, wash clothes, unpack, wonder, yes, lots of wondering, but behind this calm and quiet exterior of a too small life that no longer fits who I am becoming, I am  all ready planning my return voyage to Egypt. I have to go back. Now I know why my great grandmother never left...

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

Mystery of the Lynx

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 8 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, March 3, 1922 - The last few days on board the dahabiyya have been wonderful.  Each day we sail upstream a few miles, and then it seems there is somewhere wonderful to moor for the afternoon and evening.  Sometimes we visit some ruins, or maybe just stop outside a village. 

The journey has taken on a life of its own, that precious feeling that this little world is all there is, and that the world outside has just paused for now.

I am getting to know some of the others on board.  They include Dr. Haroldson, an Egyptologist, who is an expert on hieroglyphics.  He has a theory that the Sphinx was not actually a lion, but a lynx, the keeper of secrets.  Another professor, Dr. Brown, has been making many astronomical observations with a small telescope.  There is a writer, named Clarissa, who has been collecting stories from many of the villagers we meet.  And another passenger, named Rose, who has traveled all over the world, and is studying the local dialects.   And several others, each bringing their own unique perspective to our travels and studies. 

I have been having many unusual dreams while I've been here, and sometimes feel a sense of deep inner knowledge, like the secrets of the Sphinx.  But then, just as I seem on the verge of some great understanding, I wake up and the knowing has slipped just beyond my grasp.  But I sketch and make notes of the dream time and the waking time, and try to recapture the knowing. 

In the safety of my cabin, I pull the golden cat from my satchel, and it watches over me as I write in my journal.  Almost as if it does the knowing for me.

Dear Diary, March 3, 2009:   I'm so very busy packing and making arrangements right now, it's hard to believe that I will be there in just over a week.  I wonder what mysteries are there for me to know.

(journal page by Jessica Herman Goodson, aka Jessie Starling)

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

Tongue Tied

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 9 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, March 2, 2009:   So much going on, so many last-minute things to take care of.  My life has been a whirlwind ever since the arrival of Jessica's letter.  My passport should be here any day.  I need to pack clothes and sketchbook and some pens and maybe brushes and a few paints.  I need a guidebook, but I might bring my great-grandmother's Baedeker's too.  

I'm trying to learn a few phrases of Arabic, but it's been kind of hard.  Can't read it, can't make some of the sounds, and it is sometimes frustrating, but I persist.  I certainly can't read ancient Egyptian either.  It will seem strange to visit a place where I can't understand people around me.

As for the lost scrolls of Feyla, I hear they may be written in an unknown language, unknown even to the ancient Egyptians.  Codes and clues and study and guessing.  I think I'll have to sharpen my powers of observation, be alert to sounds and symbols and letters and words, written and spoken.  Or maybe just drawn. "Words overheard by chance have been known to change lives", as Phil Cousineau has said.  I believe my life is about to change, too.

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

But What Are They Saying?

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 10 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, March 1, 2009:   Oh My Gosh!  I am really going to Egypt!! 

I have always dreamed of visiting there.  I have always been captivated by the Nile and the desert.  And the classic scenes of the Bedouins and the camels and the sand dunes.  I've often wondered what they are saying to each other when they meet in the desert.

And, now I'm going to learn for myself. 

I'm not going to miss this chance to visit Egypt and cruise the Nile, but I'm not sure I have the courage to seek the lost scrolls mentioned in the letter from my great grandmother's friend, Jessica.  But I can't think about all that now.  I have so much to do to get ready!

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

The Letter

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 11 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, February 28, 2009:   The letter has a faint aroma of perfume, that seems somehow familiar.

"My darling, it has been many years since I saw you as a baby in the arms of your mother.  Your great grandmother befriended me many years ago when I was just a young woman.  Despite her being so many years older than me, we became great friends and shared many travels together, including Greece, and Key West. 

I can't tell you too much, but while your great grandmother was in Egypt many years ago, she was caught up in a scheme surrounding the long-lost scrolls of Feyla that were said to have been re-discovered at that time.  She barely escaped with her life, along with her journals and a few other small items.   She passed them on to me, in the hope that I could go back some day and recover the lost scrolls.  There are many clues within her journal, but it is necessary to travel to the same locations and at the same time of year, because many of the clues lie in the alignment of the constellations.

There was never a chance to go back, always nearby active digs or poor political situation.  Time has passed, and I am unable to make the journey myself.  But now, it is an auspicious time, and there is an expedition forming right now to explore that same area.  You need to join this expedition, which begins on March 11 in Cairo, at the Mena House, and which will be traveling on the Nile on a modern dahabiyya, also known as Hadeel.  The timing is fortuitous for this quest.  There will be a full moon on your arrival, and you will be near the temple of Isis at Philae during the exact moment of the Spring Equinox. 

I have enclosed some money so that you can undertake this journey, and you must quickly make your preparations.  To be there on the 11th, you have to leave in just 10 days.  I look forward to seeing what you unearth!

--  With love, your friend, Jessica"

(artist money, letter, and envelope by Jessie Starling)

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

The Summons

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 12 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, February 27, 2009:   With a sense of expectancy, I open the case. 

"I see things, wonderful things!"  

Among the many things inside I find:  a book, some papyrus parchment, and another little treasure chest.  Inside the little leather chest are some unusual items:  a small pyramid, tiny finger cymbals, two blue scarab beads, and, most beautiful of all, a silver ankh pendant.  The ankh seems somehow familiar to me.

Very, very puzzling.  There is a small envelope addressed to me, and I open it to find an invitation to a cocktail party at the Mena House in Cairo on March 11. 

Cairo?  As in Egypt?  Someone is playing a joke, but I allow myself a second or two to enjoy it, and pretend that I am somehow going.  Ah, wouldn't that be just in time for the full moon?  I hear you can see the Pyramids from that famous historic hotel.  Imagine seeing them by the light of a full moon!

But wait, underneath all these other things, there is a letter .......

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

Mysterious Case

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 13 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, February 26, 2009:   I wake up late after the intoxicating dancing of yesterday, and the rhythms of the Taqasim.  I had some strange dreams, felt as if I was hearing voices near the door, footsteps on the porch, and then the sounds of a car speeding away.

When I finally awake, I feel a strong energy pulling me toward the door, where I find a strange case has been left just outside.  It feels as if something magical has arrived.  Entirely unexpected, except I have somehow been expecting it all along.

I am anxious to open it right away, there is a compelling energy emanating from it.  And yet, I know it is something that must not be rushed.  To just open it, without preparation or ceremony, would be almost as unseemly as grave-robbing.  Ripping into the interior to satiate my curiosity and greed, without regard for the spirit that must be contained within.

Ah.....  I breathe in and I breathe out ... I bring the precious container inside, to my private studio, and place it next to my journal and sketchbooks.  I feel the need to light a candle, and dim the lights first.  Then I begin to ever-so-carefully crack open the mysterious case to see the treasure contained within.

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

Dancing to Taqasim

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 14 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, February 25, 2009:   I didn't actually read any of great-grandmother's diary today.  I was too busy, and anyway, I assume she was having a wonderful and uneventful day on the Nile with the professor and other passengers. Instead, I listened to a recording of Arabic music that I had found at the music store.

I loved the captivating, unusual rhythms and the graceful swirling melodies, and listening to those masters of the improvisational style known as Taqasim.  I have been dancing around my living room the rest of the day.  The exotic kaleidoscope of sounds was so intriguing, with its haunting rhythms and intense emotions.  I should love to hear this music in its native setting someday.

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

Hieroglyphs and Forgotten Languages

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 15 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, February 24, 1922;  I am settling into life on the Dahabiyya, which has been mostly uneventful.  Well, except for the minor collision with the bridge.  Three bridge officials leaped on board,and there was much discussion between them and the master, and Professor Burton.  Finally, after many cups of coffee and endless cigarettes, the matter seemed to be settled, and the officials departed. 

We rested last night under a lovely grove of palms, and dined by the light of the moon.  In the morning, we watched the women of the village carrying their huge jars to the river to fill.  There is a light breeze, and we are making steady progress up the Nile.

The other travelers on board the Dahabiyya are a varied lot, some seem to be archaeologists of some stature, whereas others seem of a very uncertain background.  I begin to study the strange hieroglyphic symbol, of which I meant to ask the Professor's opinion.  But suddenly there is a knock on my cabin door, and I hide it away in my satchel before answering.

Dear Diary, February 24, 2009: Oh, how I long to go on an exciting journey such as hers! Deep inside, this yearning is so compelling that I can't even describe it, I can't find the words.  I go to my sketchbook, and try to capture them on the page.  Yet all I can manage are some strange symbols, and hieroglyphs, which I'm not sure even I can translate.  It is the language of the heart.  I can't stop to decipher it.  First I must get it on to the page.

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009

Nile Sails

Expedition Log - Coles & Granger Ltd. Expeditions - The Lost Letters from Egypt - 16 days before Expedition Launch.

Dear Diary, February 23, 1922 - Today we set forth on our grand journey up the Nile, toward the source.  We have escaped the crowded confines of Cairo, to travel up the ancient river, the river of knowing.  I believe that the river changes all who sail upon it, and that nothing will ever be quite the same now that this journey has begun.

Dear Diary, February 23, 2009 - I look at the old pictures and postcards, wondering how much has changed and how much has stayed the same.   I'm feeling a certain restlessness, while reading my great-grandmother's journal.  I feel something is about to change in my rather ordinary life.

www.destinyvoyages.com/Egypt2009/

Egypt & The Nile with Juliana Coles March 11-22, 2009