Ah Madam came over

Claire my sister came over to check out the Dam for the weekend & Yes, we did the bike thing.

A picture of the Weg ( A medieval grain weighing tower) now a really beautiful restaurant.

            Outside Dutch Flowers on the Singel - We only tea......Honest;-)

Monica in Amsterdam

Last week after all this time I had Monica (my little princess) visit me from Palermo. Usually, I travel to see her so it was really nice to show her my world even if briefly.

Well, the first thing she wanted was for me to hire a bike, oh yes & it had to be Pink! So off we went just by Centraal station MAC bike and it was really easy/cheap so if I have other visitors I now know the routine.

She loved it immediately it was great as Amsterdam has the separate bike paths which makes it safe & fun.






Then we did the Zoo (Artists) - before that I didn't even know it had one - Of course Madam had a set agenda of the animals we had to see - Tigers, Elephants oh yes & the Bear (which she likes most as it's just like Daddy!).




Monica looking very unsure of the Flamingo's!

On the last day we did the Nemo it's a science museum for kids and it was fantastic - we both really enjoyed it....pulling knobs and buttons, doing experiments, etc.






Yeah we had a really cool time!!!

And yeah I had a big, fat, huge, enormous smile on my face;-)

Of course Moni didn't come alone & brought Mummy with her so my most humble thanks to Giules.

Thinking of 2010

I sat under wintery northern skies no sun, the clouds were various colours of grey,

pondering on an unknown world full of different cultures, traditions & beliefs which if I wanted to see it for a while I had to leave behind everything familiar & comforting.

Saw skies so clearly blue gazed, sister moon & amillion brother stars, felt the warmth of the mighty Aten Father sun.

Wonderful enchanting sights and memories that fill me with laughter passed by things old & ancient, of beauty and mystical there was magic and it held something for me.

A faint murmur whispered “The path to personal transformation usually isn’t the simplest one, to truly step along the road of transformation, See everything on that journey that happens to you along the way as a clue & accept all the people that you meet along the journey as a teacher”.

I bow before the majestic splendour that is the Universe, sister moon rises, father sun sets.

Life is full of amillion adventures not yet begun.

Akenhaten - El Amarna

The Driver & Guide for my tour to El Amarna they looked after me for 2 days - very cool people & we had a few good days together. Ahmed had not been to El Amarna before so he was quite excited which for me was really nice as I had someone who was excited as me seeing it for the 1st time.

I had to have an armed escort to go through the desert - quite exciting driving thru cities & villages with everybody thinking I was some big VIP;-)

The Approach to El Amarna

The view from the ferry as you approach Akenhatens city of Amarna which is naturally fortified by cliffs at its rear & river @ the front.

A view from the back of the city on top the cliffs towards the Nile.

Temple of Aten

Temple of the heretic pharoah

The rays of the mighty Aton shine strong for those who are the seekers of light.

I am inspired.

In the hope of elevating my spirit
I humbly bowed before an incredibly powerful source of healing, hope, inspiration and so much more.
& I humbly thank the universe for allowing me this opportunity to embrace & enjoy this fantastic place we occupy for a unique moment in time.

http://www.templeofaten.org/what-is-atenism.php

A big, fat, huge, enormous smile on my face;-)

The Great hymn to the Aten - Bible Psalm 104

Great_Hymn_to_the_Aten

The Sun disk of the Aten shining on Akenhaten & Nefertiti

All that is left of the Sun Temple to Aten

Pictures of Amarna

A hand drawn in the style of the Amarna period

In the background you can see the cliff dips & theres a slight gap this is where the sun rose & would beam through on the Temple of Aten

A close up of one the pillars in the Temple....all thats left.

The Pyramids of Giza

The Pyramids of Giza

The 1st thing that strikes you about them is their huge, immense enormous size! it must have been a massive undertaking to build these things - I just cannot explain how big these things are. Then, on top of that you think when Julius Ceasar saw these they were already 2000 years old.

The Great Pyramid of Giza was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World - It is the only wonder to survive into modern times.

The Ancient Egyptians covered the faces of pyramids with polished white limestone, containing great quantities of fossilized seashells.

Many of the facing stones have fallen or have been removed and used to build the mosques of Cairo.

The Pyramid was locked and the entrance was hidden. In the 9th Century the 7th Abbasid Caliph, Al-Mamun (Umayyad Dynasty). Got his men to 

enter by force at the 7th level of masonry. (The actual entrance is on the 19th course). Having dug or blasted their way through approximately over 30 metres of masonry they broke through.