The two rivers converge at Sudan’s capital Khartoum and empties into the Mediterranean Sea at the port of Alexandria. Named after the Egyptian Emperor Alexander the Great who invaded Egypt in 332 BC, there was no major battle for this takeover, as the Persians had overstayed their welcome in Egypt, with their oppressive regime. 

The descendants of Alexander ruled Egypt for the next three centuries. Queen Cleopatra VII, was the last of Alexander’s reign and the last of the pharaohs. Her status, her power and her love affairs shaped Egypt’s fate.

As the Roman Empire continued its advance into what we now recognize as Europe, Julius Caesar was looking enviously southwards at Egypt, to get a foothold in Africa. Cleopatra’s father had almost bankrupted the empire’s coffers and got a sizeable loan from Caesar. On her father’s death, she came to power, she had to raise funds for the country to survive. With a power struggle raging between her and her brother she had herself smuggled into Rome, for the sole purpose of meeting Julius Caesar. She charmed her way into his quarters, he became infatuated by her beauty, her voice and her personality. To seduce Caesar, was her main objective. Having achieved her goal the two became inseparable. He followed her to Alexandria and in time she gave birth to a son and named him Caesarean ‘small Caesar’. 

The Roman senate was perplexed, Caesar had no male heir and now an Egyptian was likely to take the throne in Rome. Brutus and his conspirators murdered Caesar on March 15th ‘The Ides of March’ as it’s referred to in William Shakespeare’s play. Mark Anthony now comes into the play with his oration at the death of Caesar “Friends Romans countrymen, lend me your ears”. Shakespeare’s words not Mark Anthony’s. Having fought with Caesar he believed he would become ruler of Rome, but he had a rival, Octavian. Julius Caesar’s nephew, Mark Anthony fled to Egypt seeking help from Cleopatra and her military might. He certainly got the help he needed. Captivated by her beauty the pair began a love affair that became the theme for many love stories, of novels and movies. Together they had three children. Octavian declared war on Egypt, in essence was a war on Cleopatra and Mark Anthony. This turned out to be the last civil war of the Roman Empire. The battle was fought at Actium, off the coast of Greece. It was a decisive victory for Octavian. Like true defeated generals in Roman times the act of throwing yourself on your sword didn’t go the way Mark Anthony had planned. Badly wounded, he returned to Cleopatra where having locked each other in an embrace she released a snake that bit them both. Death is recorded as suicide. Octavian returned to Rome victorious and declared himself Caesar Augustus the Roman Emperor.

The capital city of Egypt is Cairo. A thriving modern city, with a vibrant economy and a thoroughly diverse culture. When you look at the skyscrapers, the transportation and infrastructure it’s difficult to imagine that behind all this is the world’s oldest Islamic city. The mosques, temples, madrasas, and fountains, these and so many other attractions all carry us back to an age when Cairo was the envy of the known world. The Pyramids of Egypt and the Great Sphinx, the statue of Alabaster white stone, are outside the city of Cairo and are believed to be the most magnificent ever built. Of the seven ancient wonders of the world, only the Pyramids of Giza remain standing. There are guided tours of these beautiful Pyramids on offer every day. Cairo, clocking in at 22 million people it is the largest city in Africa and indeed the largest in the Arab world. Sampling the cuisine in Cairo is an amazing experience, the food courts are as if you were going through a Christmas market all day every day, the odours of spices, the array of ornaments, the colours of rugs, carpets, garments and the presentations, one thing is a must you have got to haggle, otherwise the traders will be disappointed with the lack of challenge in the sale. 

Cairo and the Nile. Flying south to Luxor and joining the Nile River cruise. Hearing the stories of the burial places in the Valleys of the Kings and Queens of Egypt. Reading about Egypt in school and studying about Egyptian Pharaohs I was fascinated by their powers, their daunting presence and the command they had over their people. Tutankhamun, now there’s a name, nicknamed the Boy King, was crowned Pharaoh at the age of nine years, a huge task for a boy so young. He was helped by others for a few years, Tutankhamun was responsible for a rebirth of Egypt in a cultural revolution, restoring temples and monuments. He also had relationships between nations restored. That was about it for King Tut as he’s remembered, by the age of nineteen he was dead. The Pharaohs of Egypt had a belief, that they had an afterlife and so when they were buried they prepared for this.

In 1922 a group of archaeologists from England discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun. The tomb had never been opened since the time it was built. The mummified remains of Tutankhamun were found in a solid gold coffin. Jewelry, bows and arrows, a chariot, food and clothing, in total over 5,000 pieces were discovered. Some of these artifacts are brought to museums worldwide now and then for exhibition purposes. 

Cruising on the Nile with visits to the cities of Edfu, Esna and Kom-Ombo, see the Temples, and gardens. Meet the local people, find out about their community, see the wealth that the river has brought to the region. When one gets to Aswan, one discovers why the river is venerated by the Egyptian religion. In the ancient calendar, the year began with the first month of flooding, the God Hapi was the deity of flooding and fertility. A dam was built in the early 1900s on the Nile for flood control. The Aswan Dam was built in the 1950s and what a wonderful exhibition of engineering genius this is. The river Nile is over 4,000 miles or 6,600 kilometres long, the Aswan dam is about two thirds of the distance from its source. The dam controls the water levels of the river basin, the amount of agricultural land that depends on the river is vital to the area. The dam acts as a reservoir for storing water in times of excess rainfalls, thereby reducing the risk of flooding, in times of drought the reservoir provides the capacity for irrigation systems to be used. The resulting feature of the dam is the decrease in food shortages and famine. 

The source of the river Nile has been a major topic of discussion and inquisitiveness for over a century and a half. The famous saying “Dr. Livingston, I presume” was issued by Henry Stanley upon locating Dr. David Livingston at Lake Tanganyika, in November 1871. 

David Livingston was a physician from Scotland, working in London, U.K. He was married to Mary Moffat, who was from a very prominent missionary family, in 18th century. David became involved in missionary work in Africa, while there his obsession to find the source of the Nile overwhelmed him. He had this belief that if he could solve this mystery he would achieve notoriety and people would respect his views on world affairs. David’s work was dedicated on ending the East African, Arab-Swahili slave trade. He had been sending back reports on his experiences and travels to newspapers in London that were very well received. Then for two years, nothing was heard from him, it was thought that he was dead. In 1871, Henry Stanley, an Englishman, working as a journalist and explorer in Africa had heard of a white man who was sick in a nearby village. Ironically he was being treated by Arab slave traders. Walking into the camp, Stanley with that savvy accent, didn’t just shout out “Hi David”, the term was “Dr Livingston I Presume”. Very British.

Dr Livingston named Lake Victoria after his sovereign Queen, Victoria of Great Britain. He died of malaria in Zambia in 1873. A statue was erected to remember the time he had spent there.