OK, my turn:

I was ten years old when taken to the Field Museum in Chicago.  The elephant in the lobby was unforgettable --  but more than that was coming.  I noticed the Egyptian exhibit and ran ahead of the family and into the exhibit hall.  Turning around to see if they were behind me (they
weren't), I saw the terrifying display of mummies and mummy cases arranged on both sides of the entrance. I would not pass that way again.  I knew that there was another entrance on the other end of the hall and rushed to escape.  There was no escape. That entrance, too, was
surrounded by mummies and mummy cases (as we called them then).  Trapped!  Well, I stayed there in the Egyptian hall and waited for the others.

Years later I still remember many of the items on display.  The mummy Harwa, with all the amulets hanging in their proper locations.  The huge stone "bathtub" with a drain hole the same size as they are today. I had to pull myself up to see into it. And all the little models of
bakery shops, etc.

So, after a lifelong interest, fascination, and obsession with all things Egyptian,  I was given the opportunity to go, to experience, to be there. I was later assigned as a tour leader, and now have made the trip many times.  Believe me, there is nothing that can prepare you for
the pyramids.  To see them for the first time is an absolutely awesome experience.

My next tour is November 26 - December 9, 2000 with the added feature of several rarely visited sites.  It is an educational tour, not just the usual "touristy" tour.  With our new book Hieroglyphs for Travelers, our groups actually learn (in a few minutes) to read and understand
the names of kings, queens, nobles, and gods. They also understand many of the sign groups usually found with these names.  Our groups read the glyphs while the other groups only stand in awe and wonder what those little pictures mean.   Interesting, that my co-tour leader is
Egyptologist Tom Mudloff who teaches Egyptology at the Field Museum.  He also and consults for the Discovery Channel and teaches at Northwestern University.

Anyone interested in our November tour may E-mail me their S-mail address and I'll send the itinerary by return.  The book is provided free to our groups.

Ron Fellows, CM, Editor, The Glyph
Executive Vice President,
Archaeological Institute of America, San Diego
International Association of Egyptologists

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