Walking Tour of Islamic Cairo
Gates of Glory and Façades of Fame
Saturday, 30th of July 2016 at 04:00 p.m.
Places are limited, so registration is required.
For reservation: call or Whatsapp:+12132849569 a-1-eat-I-9-joy
Or email: ahmed.seddik@gmail.com
In this beautiful tour of words and deeds, history and architecture are elegantly braided together. Travel back in time to the splendid scents, sights and sounds of historic Cairo, the fabled bridge between ancient Egypt and modern Egypt. This is the story of the rise and fall of the Islamic Empire.
In this tour, I shall prove that there exists an architectural historian technique whereby history can be interpreted through architecture. Behold! Seddik technique is unique.
"Travel. Set out and head for pastures new. Life tastes richer when you've rode warm feet. No water that stagnates is fit to drink, for only that which flows is truly sweet ...." - Ibn Battuta
"behind gates of glory and façades of fame lie unique stories of rise and fall that teach us to never give in, in nothing great or small, in the march of history against the juggernaut of time. When domes dominate a relief of belief reveals the architecture of history in the history of architecture through abodes beyond the boundaries of death.
The minarets dot the I's and cross the T's of architecture, furnishing a Rosetta Stone to untangle the web of history. The palaces of startling elegance provide visual biographies highlighting the salience of sailing in the sea of history and granting us a passport to the past.
List of what we might or might not see during our tour:
Al Sioufiyya
Al Khiyamiyya
The Mosque of Salih Tala'i
Ahmed Maher
El-Darb El-Gadid
Bab Zeweila
Mosque of Almuayyad Sheikh
Wekalat Nafisa Albayda
Haret Al-Zahabi
Haret Al-Roum
Haret Al-Aqqadeya
Mosque of Alfakahany
Al-Kahkiyeen
Funerary Complex of Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri (a glimpse)
Al-Azhar Mosque
The Mosque of Muhammed Bek Abu El-Dahab
Al-Hussein Mosque
Khan Jarkas el-Khalili
Haret Al Sanadyqyah (Boxmakers)
Alhamzawi Al-Saghir
Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay Complex
Jawhar Al-Qaid (Commander of the Army)
Bayn al-Qasrayn (Palace Walk of Naguib Mahfouz)
Mosque and Sabil-Kuttab of Shaykh 'Ali al- Mutahhar
Al Maqases
Sekket Al-Badistan
Al Westani
Al Bab Al Thaleth
Haret Al Saleheya
Madrasa and Mausoleum of al-Malik al-Salih Najm al-Din Ayyub
Al-Zahir Beibars
The Qalawun complex
Bait El Kadi (House of the Judge)
Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qala'un Madrasa and Mausoleum
Sabil-Kuttab Mohamed Ali
Sultan al-Zahir Barquq Funerary Complex
Egyptian Textile Museum (just make a brief mention of)
Darb Kormoz
Al Khoronfesh
Al Qasabi
Sabil-Kuttab of Abdel-Rahman Katkhuda (Ottoman)
The Mosque of al-Aqmar
Haret Al Sananeeri
Haret Al-Darb al-Asfar
Bayt Al-Suhaymi in Al-Darb al-Asfar
Mosque-Sabil of Suleiman Agha el-Silahdar
Haret Bergewan
Amir Al Gyosh Al Goani
Al Dabeeba
Darb Al Waraka
Bayn Al-Sayareg
Haret Al-Morakeshi
Al-Hakim Bi-Amr-Allah Mosque
Sour Misr Al Qadima
Bab Al Fotouh (Gate of Conquests)
Albanhawy
Bab Al Nasr (Gate of Victory)
Gamaliyya
Wekalat Qaitbey
Haret Alotoof
El-Jashankir Mosque
Kasr Alshok
Al Mashhad Al Husseini
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5th of August at 08:00 am
We will be visiting:
The Odeon at Kom el-Dikka
The Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa
The Ancient Daughter Library at the so-called Pompey's Pillar
The Fort of the Circassian Mamluk Sultan Al Ashraf Seif El Deen Qaitbey
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina
=====================
Walking Tour of Petra, the Rose Red City
'Hide not your talents, they for use were made; what's a sundial in the shade?' —Benjamin Franklin
Egyptologist Ahmed Seddik on ABC News
http://abcnews.go.com/International/video/back-beginning-christiane-amanpour-moses-pharaoh-pharaoh-exodus-18086799
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Ahmed Seddik on Brazilian TV: Enigmas do Egito
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DaQT3RZC3w
“Egyptology runs in his veins”
Dr. Zahi Hawass
-----------------------------------------
In the lobby of the Egyptian Museum, Ahmed handed me his business card. Melek kelem, it read, in mirror-like Arabic script. This was no empty palindromic boast, I saw
as soon as he started the ten-minute "preview' tour we'd arranged. Ahmed was indeed a Master of Speech, a Word Lord, even -- to stretch the effect into English -- an
Emir of Rhyme. He had a dense and mesmerizing way of speaking, full of shifting rhythms and ridiculous puns. Ambling through the museum next to him felt more like
jogging, trying to keep up with his ancient-Egyptian etymologies, mnemonics for hieroglyphics, and archaeology gossip.
Zora O'Neill, Travel Author
------------------------------------
Witty and enthusiastic.
Arguto e pieno d'entusiasmo.
Lonely Planet
-----------------------------------------
In Ahmed we found not only an amazing producer, but a great resource for all things Egypt. His offhand knowledge of Egyptian history, of pharaohs and antiquities, of
hieroglyphics and pyramids is astounding. He can quote ancient Egyptian texts from memory. In many ways he was our tour guide and history professor on top of
everything else.
Erin Lyall George
Producer
The CBS Evening News
--------------------------
He is also particularly good at turning dry facts into fascinating anecdotes and was often able to entertain and educate us with interesting stories about Egypt’s
history. He is obviously passionate about the country, its history and culture.
Helena Merriman
Broadcast Journalist
BBC World Service
--------------------------
His language skills, especially his knowledge of English, are absolutely first class and he has an ability to express himself in a manner that many native English
speakers would find difficult to improve upon.
Michael Buchanan, Correspondent, BBC News
--------------------------
THE INDEFATIGABLE AND ELOQUENT AHMED SEDDIK MAKES EVEN THE HISTORY OF BILHARZIA SEEM FUN. FREQUENTLY BOOKED AS A TRANSLATOR/FIXER BY FOREIGN CORRESPONDENTS, THE 31-
YEAR-OLD FREELANCE GUIDE IS ALSO POPULAR WITH EXPATS AND EGYPTIAN PARENTS WHO LOVE HIS CHILD-FRIENDLY TOURS OF THE PYRAMIDS BY CAMEL. IN ADDITION TO WALKING TOURS IN
THE EGYPTIAN MUSEUM AND ISLAMIC CAIRO, SEDDIK ALSO DOES A TOUR OF POLITICAL CAIRO, REVISITING SCENES FROM THE REVOLUTION IN TAHRIR SQUARE
SUSAN HACK
Condé Nast Traveler Senior Correspondent
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Seeing you in action in these photos I can almost hear your voice and feel your energy!
Eric Sinkkonen
http://ericsinkkonen.com/
Scenic Designer
----------------------
“You are a student of the finer point of the English language.”
Hugh Sykes, BBC, the World at One
--------------------------
Un grand tour du Caire avec Ahmed en une journée fut une expérience exceptionnelle et inoubliable lors de notre séjour en Egypte !
Ahmed est venu nous chercher à 8h30 du matin, frais et déjà plein d'une joyeuse énergie qui allait s'avérer sans limite tout au long de notre longue marche… il faisait déjà très chaud à cette heure-ci, car nous étions en août 2015, à ce moment de la canicule, où même les égyptiens n'envisageaient pas de sortir de chez eux. Nous avons traversé le Caire moderne, en passant par la place Tahrir et nous avons finalement atteint le vieux Caire à pied au milieu de la journée. Toute cette première partie de la visite fût agrémentée de commentaires sur la situation politique de l'Egypte, au gré des palais et bâtiments publics qui se trouvaient sur notre chemin. Nous avons aussi eu droit à notre première leçon d'arabe, car Ahmed est un excellent pédagogue, et grâce à des jeux de mots associés à des mimiques comiques et des explications de linguiste pertinentes, certaines expressions sont gravées dans ma mémoire alors que je ne les utilise jamais… Laa Shai, rien, Talasha disparaître. Je le vois encore s'enfuir au loin ce « talashaaaa » !! Car Ahmed s'amuse autant que nous et partage avec une joie enfantine ses connaissances dans tous les domaines, amassées au gré d'une curiosité insatiable.
Mais c'est lorsque nous avons atteint le vieux Caire que nous avons été scotchés par l'érudition d'Ahmed en matière d'histoire. Nous avons voyagé avec lui à travers un passé lointain, qui, parce qu'il le connaît si bien, se dressait vivant devant nous avec évidence. Nous avons pu comprendre la fondation et la construction de la ville, sa position politique et stratégique au sein de l'Egypte au cour du temps, ses liens avec les autres peuples et civilisations.
La beauté des anciens palais et des petites maisons, des églises et des et des mosquées, l'architecture et le quadrillage des rues, tout ceci prenait soudain sens grâce au don d'Ahmed pour rendre réels les personnages et les événements que ces lieux avaient connus.
Ahmed nous a emporté dans ce monde avec une telle efficacité, que nous ne nous sommes rendus compte que nous n'avions ni bu ni mangé, qu'au moment ou une petite faiblesse se fit sentir chez les filles, vers 16h. Nous avons pris une glace et nous sommes allés au café Fishawy où l'écrivain Neguib Mahfouz avait l'habitude de prendre son thé.
Nous sommes également passé par les petits escaliers où se déroule l'histoire du roman Zuqâq al-midaqq.
Nous avons ensuite poursuivi notre marche jusqu'au jardin Al-Azhar qui formait un vif contraste de calme et de nature après cette plongée au beau milieu de la plus grande ville d'Afrique.
Nous avons pu contempler le Caire au soleil couchant grâce à une vue imprenable, et nous pouvions « voir » la ville, non pas comme une jolie carte postale mais avec compréhension. Le souvenir de telle ou telle anecdote associée à telle coupole nous rendait cette vue sympathique et touchante. Il était environ 19h lorsque nous nous sommes dit au revoir. Nous ne nous sentions pas fatigués, et nous pensions que c'était vraiment notre meilleure journée au Caire depuis notre arrivée.
Bab Zouche
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My aim was to take a break with a cultural and historic character. And having Egyptologist and tour guide Ahmed Seddik as my companion made my adventure
unforgettable.
Amira El-Naqeeb, Travel Writer
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The Digger Who Can Figure:
Mehri Khalil spoke with Ahmed Seddik (a rising figure in the field of Egyptology) about the all-important tourist economy in post-Revolutionary Egypt. Khalil met the
unusually poetic archaeologist and tour guide at the American University in Cairo, where he studied in several different departments, enabling him to perceive and
discuss history from multiple perspectives. Seddik has given tours all over the country; organized talks and debates in universities and cultural centers...Here, in
his undeniably unique style, Seddik discusses his journey and reveals his dreams for his beloved Egypt.
http://fnewsmagazine.com/2011/08/the-digger-who-can-figure/
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"His name is Ahmed Seddik and he is the most delightful, smart and funny person you can imagine. He loves languages and speaks incredible English. He talked
continuously without notes of any kind during our tours of the temples at Saqqara, the Pyramids and tombs in Giza, Islamic Cairo, and the City of the Dead--not just
providing fascinating and encyclopedic information, both historic and modern, but peppering his monologue with puns and alliteration."
Caroline Moore
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“Ahmed Seddik is the brightest Egyptian I have met since I came to Egypt. I have found his Egyptological knowledge prodigious.”
Professor Jerry Leach
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Ahmed Seddik worked with me as a discussant on the translation of Ahmad Faris al-Shidyaq’s monumental mid-nineteenth-century work al-Saq ‘ala l-saq (Leg over Leg)
during 2012 and 2013, a work widely considered among the most linguistically challenging of Arabic texts in view of its use of little-known words, word-play and puns,
and complex grammar. I reviewed and discussed in depth with Ahmed most of the cruxes of the text and benefited enormously from his in-put. His knowledge of Arabic
grammar, verse, and the Quran is encyclopedic and his ability to untangle the contortions imposed from time to time on the language of the book by the constraints of
verse and rhymed prose proved to be prodigious. Ahmed’s love of language in general and the Arabic language in particular made him the ideal partner in an enterprise
of such a daunting nature. I can recommend him unreservedly to anyone involved in scholarly work involving the Arabic language arts.
Dr. Humphrey Davies
-------------------------------------------
My wife and I heartily recommend the young Egyptologist and lecturer Ahmed Seddik, who recently provided us with an immensely informative and lively guided tour of
Saqqara. His encyclopedic knowledge of Egyptian history, including the beliefs and language of the ancient civilization of the Nile Valley, along with his tact, humor,
and treasure trove of anecdotes and stories, provided unusual texture and depth to his explanations. His familiarity with both literary and idiomatic English, combined
with his gifts at word-play and poetic device, further enlivened our exchanges. We spent an eminently pleasant and worthwhile several hours in his animated company.
Thomas G. Weiss
Presidential Professor of Political Science and Director
-------------------------------------------
Thank you for a truly remarkable Cairo experience. I don't think I've ever enjoyed excursions as much as I did this time. You have an absolutely fantastic way of
bringing history to life and make it relevant to the visitor. A huge Thank You and I feel truly privileged to have had you as a guide to the ancient wonders of Egypt.
Maria Kuhn
VP Public Relations, Kempinski Hotels
------------------------------------------
If you are wishing to source an Egyptologist, we would have no hesitation in recommending Ahmed. Our attention was kept by Ahmed the whole day, including our twelve year old! Ahmed is extremely professional, his knowledge and stories are outstanding and entertaining.
Carolanne Reissiger
Hotel Manager
-------------------------------------------
Ahmed has guided me around the pyramids, the national museum and Islamic Cairo. He is a font of information, full of enthusiasm and you will tire before he does! I can warmly recommend Ahmed as an expert guide for Cairo and surroundings.
Christopher McLaverty
Consultant to the Archbishop of Canterbury at Church of England
------------------------------------
I had the opportunity to work with Ahmed Seddik last summer in Cairo, where I was temporarily based as a correspondent for Time Magazine. Though he clearly was far too qualified for the task, he cheerfully served as my translator for a couple of stories. I found him to be a precise interpreter, providing me with excellent translations of what was said in interviews, often a rarity where the need for speed overrides the desire for colorful, exact phrasing.
He also demonstrated a willingness to work long hours, and at the last minute. If I have the opportunity to return to Cairo, I will be sure to use his translation services once again.
Regards,
Aryn Baker,
Associate Editor,
Time Magazine Asia
-------------------------------
Siamo stati al Cairo per un weekend lungo, purtroppo durante i disordini di
piazza di novembre, che ci hanno impedito di visitare il museo egizio a Piazza
Tahrir. Ma anche senza il museo, il viaggio è stato straordinario. Meravigliose
le piramidi e il plateau di Giza, bellissima la visita alle moschee e alle
strade del cairo islamico, entrambi posti che abbiamo visitato con la nostra
guida Ahmed Seddik, la cui mail era indicata sulla Lonely Planet e che abbiamo
contattato dall’Italia subito prima di partire. Ahmed ha fatto una grande
differenza: è affidabile, preparato, pieno di entusiasmo, appassionato di
storia, archeologia, letteratura, geroglifici e conosce i luoghi come le sue
tasche. Alle piramidi ci ha fatto vedere tombe delle quali non avremmo mai
capito neanche la presenza, ci ha portato a vedere un panorama strepitoso da un
posto un pò più lontano ma senza turisti, e ci ha pagato addirittura lui il
ritorno con il cammello come “regalo” di benvenuto. Con lui ci siamo
avventurati in posti dove non saremmo andati da soli, abbiamo capito tanto
della storia dell’egitto e delle piramidi e anche dell’orgoglio degli egiziani
di oggi. Insomma, posti meravigliosi, clima perfetto.. speriamo che la
situazione politica si tranquillizzi presto, perchè non vediamo l’ora di
tornarci e di portarci anche i nostri figli!
Silvia Cavallo
------------------------
I have the privilege to recommend to you Ahmed Seddik as an excellent guide and efficient informant. I am fortunate both to have known Ahmed as a fellow student at
the American University in Cairo and to have seen how he developed his college interests into his current profession. Although he makes guiding and lecturing his
profession, Ahmed is a veritable renaissance man due to his passion for learning. He delights in learning various subjects and can claim expertise in many. Ahmed has a
talent for drawing diverse connections from his numerous interests into any talk or tour. In addition to his tours, Ahmed makes good use of his talent in his frequent
lectures on diverse topics at the Sawy Culture Wheel, a famous cultural center and academic forum in Zamalek, and elsewhere.
In the tours I have attended, Ahmed was lively, engaging, and spontaneous. Both the tour to the City of the Dead and Islamic Cairo were chock‐full of information,
partly due to Ahmed’s vast memory for fact and stories. On his tours each monument has a story and every side street is another step back in time. The tours I attended
lasted about five hours each, although he has told me they can stretch longer or take less time depending on the audience. When I took the Islamic Cairo tour, we went
the full length of the Fatimid city from gate to gate in four hours. His tour of Islamic Cairo is especially nice because it takes place in the wee hours of the
morning. The streets of the Khan el‐Khalili are amazingly serene at that time, which makes for a stark contrast with the market’s usual chaos. If you should take the
tour make sure to see the inside of the mosque and madrasa of Barquq; Sultan Plum had an eye for beauty. On these tours, Ahmed is always thinking about ways to improve
and innovate. For example, while leading us through the streets of Islamic Cairo, Ahmed thanked the street cleaners and pondered organizing them to keep the roads
cleaner. Ahmed says he has never given the same tour twice. I believe it.
Ahmed’s style of guiding and touring is not like that found on any other tour. It has more artistry in it than the others. But the faint of heart beware, he is more
than half a poet. Emblazoned on his business card is the Arabic palindrome malik kalim, meaning “king of words.” And certifiably, he can claim to rule his words. Ahmed
is a possessor of a veritable treasury of terms and an arsenal of anecdotes. Don’t think it tedious if he recites a list of synonyms or lines of poetry. Listen
attentively. It is all part of the tour.
Bryan Kraemer
PhD. Candidate Egyptology
University of Chicago
-----------------------------------------
One of the best ways to hear and see Cairo's many stories!
Lydia Smith, Watson Fellow at Thomas J. Watson Fellowship
-----------------------------
When you get the chance to visit historic places with Ahmed, expect to use all your senses during the tour, because Ahmed's detailed explanation expands your imagination beyond the architectural appreciation. By the end of the tour you would have learned about the life surrounding the visited place as it once unfolded--how people dressed, what they ate, notable events, unique social habits, and so on.
Hadeer EL Shafie
*************
Previous Tours:
Seton Hall Law Program, Faculty and Students
The American University in Cairo
Princeton University
Cambridge University
American Embassy
Time Magazine, Chief of the Middle East Bureau
Harvard University
Yale University
Cornell University
Rice University
AUC Faculty and Students
University of British Columbia
British Engineering Institutions - Egypt (BEIE)
Alexandria School of Theology (http://www.ast-eg.org/)
Dr. and Ms. William Vocke of Carnegie Endowment
Dr. George P. Fletcher of Columbia
Dr. Bernard Freaman of Seton Hall
James K. Galbraith, American Economist
James Balfour of Oxfam
Peter Blauner, Novelist (http://www.peterblauner.com/)
Dr. Jerry W. Leach
US Consul-General Roberto Powers
British Museum Curators
Sir Eldon Wylie Griffiths, former British Minister
Dr. Thomas G. Weiss, Presidential Professor of Political Science
Dr. Victor G. Vogel, Director of the Cancer Institute
Stanley F. Buchthal, an entrepreneur and producer
John Bohannon, Science Magazine Correspondent
“The City of the Dead "Informal Settlements and Development Strategies
Middle East Studies Program, the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities
Ian Davison, Managing Director of Earthmoves Ltd
Julia E. Marshall, Editor for the Oxford English Dictionary
Durham University
Rudy Wenk, Professor of Geology, University of California
University of Minnesota
Leiden University
Penguin Group
Judge Mary Davis
Dr. Richard D. Lewis, author of When Cultures Collide
University of South Alabama
San Francisco State University
University of Memphis
University of California, Berkeley
Temple University
The College of William & Mary
League of Arab States
United Nations
Helwan University
Cairo University
University of Massachusetts Boston
American International School in Egypt
Florida State University
University of Greenwich
University of Sydney
Western Michigan University
Northwestern University
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Arkansas
HSBC
Egypt Air Horus Magazine
University of Toronto
London School of Economics
University of Kentucky
United World College of the Atlantic
Rolex
Syracuse University
The University of Palermo
Nalco Company
Seattle Pacific University
University of Ulster
Griffith University
Mona Almaraghi, Presenter
New York University
Progress 2
Duke University
University of Pittsburgh
German University
British University in Cairo
Zora O'Neill, Lonely Planet
German Embassy
Estonian Embassy
The Netherlands Embassy
Center for Arabic Study Abroad (CASA)
Goldsmiths, University of London
The Spanish Embassy
Green Valley School
ARCE Fellows
Cairo Scholars
British Council
University of Maryland
University of Texas
University of Virginia
University of Michigan
American Councils for International Education
Conrad Hotel
Jim Holthouser, Hilton Worldwide Global Head
Maadi Wadi Runners
Supreme Council of Antiquities
ZIAD-HADDARA.COM
Middlebury's Middle East Arabic Program
Arabic Overseas Flagship Program
Australian Embassy
The French University in Egypt
www.semmel.de
Modern English School Cairo
Austrian Embassy in Cairo
Embassy of the Czech Republic
John Kavulich, NIAGARA HOBBY & CRAFT MART
The European Union Delegation
University of Houston
Red Cross
Irish Embassy
Indian Embassy
Kempinski Hotels
MEPI - Tomorrow's Leaders Scholarship Program
-------------------------------------------------------------
Lectures Given:
1. Give a Pharaoh Five, a joint lecture with Bill Barazzuol
2. The Divine Board, Pharaoh Amasis in Art and History, with Dr. Raymond Stock
3. The Battle of Kadesh
4. The Tale of Sinuhe, a Highly Informative Performative Narrative
5. Music in Ancient Egypt, a joint lecture with Dr. Khairy ElMalt
6. Behold How Howard Uncovered Tut
7. A Night of Hieroglyphics
8. Nefertiti
9. View from a Mashrabiyya: the Architecture of History in the History of Architecture
10. Feasting with the Pharaohs, Banqueting in Antiquity, with Bill Barazzuol
11. The HelleNilotic Melting Pot
12. Freezing Time: from Imhotep to Ahmed Zewail
13. Gates of Glory and Façades of Fame
14. Alexander: a King Akin to a God
15. Eratosthenes, from Cyrene to Syene
16. Pharaohs of Pharos
17. The Roman Aroma
18. A Crumb of Cruelty
19. A Taint of Atenism
20. The Art of the State in the State of the Art
21. The Hype in the Hypostyle
22. The Tale of an Ancient Egyptian Expat
23. Relief of Belief
24. When in Doubt, Hieroglyph it Out
25. Thieves from Thebes
26. Relief Beyond Belief
27. When Domes Dominate
28. From Khaemwas to Zahi Hawass
29. From Cubits to Units, a History of Measurement
30. Emulate an Amulet
31. Write Like an Egyptian & Hear it "From Pharaoh's Lips"
32. Sobek, Biology and Myth, a joint lecture with Dr. Jeffrey Dean Miller
33. Pinpointing Punt, a joint lecture with Nadia Mottalib
34. Ramsiscape, a joint lecture with Dr. Ann Shafer
35. From Haroun Al-Rashid to the Stone of Rashid
36. Lemon, Biography of a Fruit
37. Ahmed Shawqi with Howard Carter
38. Ahmed Shawqi with Tutankhamon
39. Albert Einstein, Father of the Atomic Age
40. PowerPoint to Empower Your Point
41. Digital Grammar
42. Networking That Works
43. Ahmed Shawqi in France
44. How Gibraltar Altered History
45. “Weaving the Web”
46. Ahmed Shawqi, a Children’s Poet
47. Umm Kulthum with Hafez Ibrahim and Ahmed Shawqi
48. Ahmed Shawqi, the Bard of Wisdom
49. Ahmed Shawqi, the Egyptologist Poet
50. From Karma to Karama
51. "Naguib Mahfouz as Imhotep and Manetho, a joint lecture with Dr. Raymond Stock
52. Romance in the Land of the Pharaohs
53. Ahmed Shawqi in Philae
54. “Champollion: The Linguist and the Emperor”
55. “100 Hieroglyphs: Think Like an Egyptian”
56. Conquering the City of Grammar
57. Law in Ancient Egypt
58. Color in Ancient Egypt, a joint lecture with Dr. Gamal Lamie
59. Ancient Egyptian Fauna
60. Ancient Egyptian Flora
61. Sailing in Ancient Egypt
62. Naguib Mahfouz: Reading from the Otherworld, with Dr. Raymond Stock
63. Imhotep, a Modern Mind in an Ancient Body
64. The Story of Influenza
65. The Two Doves
66. What Is Light?
67. Reshaping the Shipwrecked Sailor
68. Making Zoser Closer to Eternity
69. From Narmer to Nasser
70. Isis and Osiris
71. A Virtual Tour to the Egyptian Museum
72. The Hieroglyphic Nature of Art
73. Ancient Egyptian Proverbs
74. Body Language in Ancient Egypt
75. Sinuhe Insinuations
76. The Art of Guiding
77. Flood, Growth, Harvest
78. The Tooth That Told the Truth
79. Date Palm: Biography of a Tree
80. Let Stone Set the Tone
81. Ancient Egyptian Religion
82. The Third Dynasty is a Charm
83. Diplomacy in Ancient Egypt
84. The Art of Translation
85. Cleanliness in Ancient Egypt
86. The Ancient Egyptian House
87. Medicine in Ancient Egypt
Journey back in time and meet the leading medical practitioners in the wonderland of Egypt. Through ancient medical papyri and temple wall carvings we piece together
the world of medicine in ancient Egypt; diagnosis, prognosis, remedies, tools and techniques that at times surpass our state-of-the-art modern medicine.
88. The Art of Public Speaking
89. Etymological Stories
90. Magic in Ancient Egypt
91. Ancient Egyptian Architects
92. Dying to Live
93. The Art of Tutoring
94. Lily: Biography of a Flower
95. The Hoopoe or News from the Father of News
96. Quarrying the Quarantine
97. Health in Ancient Egypt
98. Drama Drawn from Ancient Egypt
99. Egyptian Mathematics
100. Ancient Egyptian Technology
101. Ancient Egyptian Palaces
102. Women in Ancient Egypt
103. The Queens of Ancient Egypt
104. Ancient Egypt in Film
105. The Hyksos of Evil
106. Kinship and Kingship
107. The Hype Style of the Hypostyle
108. The Plastic Bag of Antiquity
109. Sport in Ancient Egypt
110. For Whom the Sun Shines
111. The Spirit in Ancient Egypt
112. A Pause at the Paws of the Sphinx
113. Stele: Bulletin Boards of Ancient Egypt
114. The Bee in Ancient Egypt
115. Money: From Bricks to Clicks
116. Bread in Ancient Egypt
117. Friendship and Marriage in Ancient Egypt
118. Pensive Pencils
119. Zoser: From Imhotep to Lauer
120. An Abode Beyond the Boundaries of Death
121. Sound in Ancient Egypt
122. Google Your Life
123. Ahmed Shawqi: the Poet of Faith
124. The Locus of the Lost Lotus in Egyptian Art
125. The KaRaVans of Ra
126. Egypt: Magic and Tragic
127. From Sultan Barquq to King Tut
128. Saqqara Village: Passport to the Past
129. Cleanliness in Science, History and Art
130. From Bab Zewaila to Bab Zewail
131. When Nature Speaks, Art Listens
132. Don't Worry, We Have a Quarry, to Tell the Story
133. Sounding the Sands: Archeology Techniques
134. The Fourth Dynasty: Builders with Boulders
135. An Elapse Marking a Collapse
136. Carter: Purse and Curse
137. Strokes of Genius on Ostraca
138. Camels Were Late Comers
139. Symposium on the Nile, with Barazzuol, Alshafie and Professor Leach
140. In the Museum of the Atom
141. The Story of Garbage
142. Chorus with Horus
143. The Mother in Ancient Egypt
144. Nursing the Curse
145. Knowledge: a Boon from the Baboon
146. From Adoring the Sun to a Door in the Sun
147. Mirroring Mereruka’s Meridian
148. Wheel in, Camel out
149. Petrie: Inch by Inch
150. Ancient Egyptian Games
151. From the Nave to the Cave
152. Making El Fayoum Bloom
153. Restoring the Cosmic Chasm
154. The Rise of Monasticism
155. Ahmed Shawqi: from the Poet of the Prince to the Prince of Poets
156. The Egyptian Temple: from the Core Niche to the Corniche
157. Karnak: a Hub for Hubris
158. Tut: an Heir to an Era of Air
159. The Ottoman Style: More Flash for Less Cash
160. Lured by the Lucre
161. Museums: Creation and Curation
162. The Narcotic Nilotic Lotus
163. Egypt: the Dynastic Destiny
164. The Double Helix: The Inspiring Spiral
165. Wade in Wood, Hopes on Ropes
166. Ahmed Shawqi in School
167. The ABC of Electricity
168. Ibn Al-haytham: the Father of Optics
169. The Story of Numbers
170. Your Wasta to Waset
171. The Boy King Wanted His Plaything
172. How Laser Works
173. Anatomy of an Atom
174. The Trial of a Triad
175. The Library of Alexandria
176. Let the Fable Come to the Table
177. A Tale of Two Pyramids
178. Schistosomiasis and an Unparalleled Site of a Parasite, a joint lecture with Bill Barazzuol
179. Ahmed Zewail's Voyage through Time
180. The Magic of Marriage in Ancient Egypt
181. ABC Latin
182. Paremiology in Arabic, English and Latin
183. Zewail City for Science and Technology
184. The Subject and the Predicate
185. Ahmed Shawqi: the Revolutionist Poet
186. West Meets East: the Rise of Tourism
187. The First Tick in History: the Story of Measuring Time
188. A Tale of Three Apples
189. At First I Could See Nothing
190. Story of a Bridge
191. The Story of the Compass
192. The Egyptian Revolution through Western Eyes
193. The Story of Silence
194. The Circle
195. Ficus Benghalensis
196. Water
197. The Story of Olive
198. The Desert
199. Om Kolthoum, the Many Layers of Genius
200. Sustainability in Ancient Egypt
201. Amarna Letters: Egyptian Bricks of Diplomacy
202. Is the Nile Delta Going under Water? Joint lecture with Dr. Jerry Leach
203. Calcium: the Backbone of Eternity
204. Cairo Trees
205. Thomas Alva Edison
206. The Sycamore Fig
207. Forty Winks at the Sphinx
208. From Marble to Marvel
209. Tahrir: an Atmosphere of Utmost Fear
210. The Pharaoh's Four Curses
211. Poetry from Pottery
212. The Mermaid of the Mediterranean
213. A Chemist from Kemet
214. The Pharaoh in the Quran
215. Science in the Quran
216. Politics in the Quran
217. Shine from the Shrine, the City of the Dead
218. Coptic Cairo, the Babylon of Egypt
219. Alexandria, the Capital of Memory
220. Political Charisma in Egypt from BC to CC
221. An Anatomy of Medical Terminology
222. Conspiracy, Strikes and Revolutions in Ancient Egypt
223. Zoom in Man: Zoo in Man
224. An Arabic Arsenal in English: Arabic Ingredients for English Words
225. The Story of an Ancient Egyptian Abroad
226. All is Fair in the Pharaoh's Affair
227. Seddikism: Laconic, Iconic and Mnemonic
228. Trees of Ancient Egypt
229. Hair in Ancient Egypt
230. Fashion in Ancient Egypt
231. Family in Ancient Egypt
232. The Cat in Ancient Egypt
233. The Elephant in Ancient Egypt
234. Why is the Sky Blue?
235. In Pursuit of Hatshepsut
For over 3000 years, the memory of Queen Hatshepsut remained shrouded in secrecy -- even her mummy. But in 2007, Archaeologist Zahi Hawass found a molar tooth inside
a wooden box inscribed with the name of the Queen. That tooth fitted perfectly in the jaw of the mummy that Zahi assumed to be the Queen. That was the tooth that told
the truth, a dental identity. Now, travel back in time IN PURSUIT OF HATSHEPSUT to reveal the mystery of the great woman who ruled Egypt in the Golden Age for over
twenty years -- listen to her words!
Books Translated:
-The Illustrated Guide to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings by Dr. Kent R. Weeks
Published as the Official Portal for Luxor
-Co-translated and co-edited How the West Was Lost by Dambisa Moyo for the National Translation centre
Ahmed Seddik Spoke at:
Boston University
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Pomona College
University of Washington
Fashion Institute of Technology
Portland Community College
Millersville University of Pennsylvania
The American University in Cairo
The Egyptology Society
The Egyptology Academy
The Desert Development Center
The Sawy Culturewheel
The Seton Hall Law School - Cairo Summer Program
Euro-Mediterranean Innovation Marketplace
SOC 299: invited by Dr. Emad El-Din Aysha
South Dakota Delegation
Students from Ulsan University in Korea, invited by Dr. Cyrus Reed, Associate Provost
Performing and Visual Arts
The British International School
Course: ARIC-315: ARABIC DRAMA (invited by Dr. Birairi M)
CLASSICAL PURSUITS INC.
The House of the Poet in Al-Muez Street in the Palace City of Cairo
Famelab
Cairo Toastmasters Club
California Toastmasters Club
New York Toastmasters Club
Virginia Toastmasters Club
Hawaii Toastmasters Club
Oregon Toastmasters Club
Seattle Toastmasters Club
Greater New Haven Toastmasters Club
Yale Toastmasters
Nutty Scientists
Darb 1718
Egyptian Center for Culture & Art (Makan)
Mashrou3 Al Mareekh
Ahram Canadian University
Future University in Egypt
Al-Balsam Bookstore
Innoventures
The International School at Dundee
Produced/Translated and/or Reported for:
The New York Times
BBC World Service (Egypt and Libya)
BBC America
Financial Times
CBS Network (the Egyptian 25th Jan. Revolution)
Swedish Radio
CNN
Amanpour and Khaled Mashaal, Leader of Hamas:
http://amanpour.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/21/hamas-political-leader-speaks-to-amanpour/
Baboon Filmes
VRT
France 2
French 24
Stampa
Espresso
The Daily Mirror
Xinhua
GEO Magazine
Danish National Radio
South of Sweden News
Göteborgs-Posten
Platts
AUC Times
Tahrir Lounge
Der Spiegel
KPFA Radio
CSSProject for Integrative Mediation (in Cairo, Portsaid, Sinai)
Field Producer of a film about Bob Bradley: We Must Go
Bas Uterwijk Photography
Petra Ramsauer
Future Cities: Cairo
Helsingin Sanomat Newspaper
http://www.studiojensassur.com
Global TV
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com
http://www.parismatch.com
http://www.information.dk
http://www.cuatro.com/
http://danielhartleyallen.com
Painter Khaled Hafez
Photographer Eirik Bjørklund
Copper Pot Pictures
Show Time, Years of Living Dangerously
Andrew Hosken, Reporter, The Today program, BBC Radio 4
Ruptly TV
Tout.com
Roger Hercz
L'Opinion
VII Photo Agency, Laura Eltantawy
Lorenzo Meloni
Ulfisacson.com
NurPhoto
Nguni TV
Al-monitor
http://julianreidphoto.com/
Aftenposten
Circa
CTV National News, Daniele Hamamdjian
Nine Lives Media
Shine, a song with leejonesmedia.co.uk:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXxhapBbVgU
#Cairo #Egypt #Tour #Guide #Walking #Children #City_of_the_Dead #Garden #Green #Serene #Clean #Islamic #Art #Architecture #Photography #Trees #Flora #Seddik #Scholar #Scholarly #Storyteller
Gates of Glory and Façades of Fame
Saturday, 30th of July 2016 at 04:00 p.m.
Places are limited, so registration is required.
For reservation: call or Whatsapp:+12132849569 a-1-eat-I-9-joy
Or email: ahmed.seddik@gmail.com
In this beautiful tour of words and deeds, history and architecture are elegantly braided together. Travel back in time to the splendid scents, sights and sounds of historic Cairo, the fabled bridge between ancient Egypt and modern Egypt. This is the story of the rise and fall of the Islamic Empire.
In this tour, I shall prove that there exists an architectural historian technique whereby history can be interpreted through architecture. Behold! Seddik technique is unique.
"Travel. Set out and head for pastures new. Life tastes richer when you've rode warm feet. No water that stagnates is fit to drink, for only that which flows is truly sweet ...." - Ibn Battuta
"behind gates of glory and façades of fame lie unique stories of rise and fall that teach us to never give in, in nothing great or small, in the march of history against the juggernaut of time. When domes dominate a relief of belief reveals the architecture of history in the history of architecture through abodes beyond the boundaries of death.
The minarets dot the I's and cross the T's of architecture, furnishing a Rosetta Stone to untangle the web of history. The palaces of startling elegance provide visual biographies highlighting the salience of sailing in the sea of history and granting us a passport to the past.
List of what we might or might not see during our tour:
Al Sioufiyya
Al Khiyamiyya
The Mosque of Salih Tala'i
Ahmed Maher
El-Darb El-Gadid
Bab Zeweila
Mosque of Almuayyad Sheikh
Wekalat Nafisa Albayda
Haret Al-Zahabi
Haret Al-Roum
Haret Al-Aqqadeya
Mosque of Alfakahany
Al-Kahkiyeen
Funerary Complex of Sultan Qansuh al-Ghuri (a glimpse)
Al-Azhar Mosque
The Mosque of Muhammed Bek Abu El-Dahab
Al-Hussein Mosque
Khan Jarkas el-Khalili
Haret Al Sanadyqyah (Boxmakers)
Alhamzawi Al-Saghir
Sultan al-Ashraf Barsbay Complex
Jawhar Al-Qaid (Commander of the Army)
Bayn al-Qasrayn (Palace Walk of Naguib Mahfouz)
Mosque and Sabil-Kuttab of Shaykh 'Ali al- Mutahhar
Al Maqases
Sekket Al-Badistan
Al Westani
Al Bab Al Thaleth
Haret Al Saleheya
Madrasa and Mausoleum of al-Malik al-Salih Najm al-Din Ayyub
Al-Zahir Beibars
The Qalawun complex
Bait El Kadi (House of the Judge)
Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad ibn Qala'un Madrasa and Mausoleum
Sabil-Kuttab Mohamed Ali
Sultan al-Zahir Barquq Funerary Complex
Egyptian Textile Museum (just make a brief mention of)
Darb Kormoz
Al Khoronfesh
Al Qasabi
Sabil-Kuttab of Abdel-Rahman Katkhuda (Ottoman)
The Mosque of al-Aqmar
Haret Al Sananeeri
Haret Al-Darb al-Asfar
Bayt Al-Suhaymi in Al-Darb al-Asfar
Mosque-Sabil of Suleiman Agha el-Silahdar
Haret Bergewan
Amir Al Gyosh Al Goani
Al Dabeeba
Darb Al Waraka
Bayn Al-Sayareg
Haret Al-Morakeshi
Al-Hakim Bi-Amr-Allah Mosque
Sour Misr Al Qadima
Bab Al Fotouh (Gate of Conquests)
Albanhawy
Bab Al Nasr (Gate of Victory)
Gamaliyya
Wekalat Qaitbey
Haret Alotoof
El-Jashankir Mosque
Kasr Alshok
Al Mashhad Al Husseini
--------------------------------------
Tour of the City of Alexandria: the Capital of Memory
5th of August at 08:00 am
We will be visiting:
The Odeon at Kom el-Dikka
The Catacombs of Kom el Shoqafa
The Ancient Daughter Library at the so-called Pompey's Pillar
The Fort of the Circassian Mamluk Sultan Al Ashraf Seif El Deen Qaitbey
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina
=====================
Hieroglyphic Tour of the Giza Necropolis
Friday, 4th of November at 10:00 am
---------------------------------------------
Let Stone Set the Tone
Walking Tour of Saqqara Pyramids, Tombs and Temples
Saturday, 5th of November at 10:00 am
------------------------------------------------
Walking Tour of Petra, the Rose Red City
Tour of the 2000 years old city of Petra
Seddik walks you back in time to a 2000 years old city set in stone, a lost jewel in the bleak barren Arabian desert.
Explore the startling engineering genius behind the sophisticated structure of Al-Khazna!
www.SEDDIK.com
25 November
Testimonials:
********************'Hide not your talents, they for use were made; what's a sundial in the shade?' —Benjamin Franklin
Egyptologist Ahmed Seddik on ABC News
http://abcnews.go.com/International/video/back-beginning-christiane-amanpour-moses-pharaoh-pharaoh-exodus-18086799
-----------------------------------------
Ahmed Seddik on Brazilian TV: Enigmas do Egito
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DaQT3RZC3w
“Egyptology runs in his veins”
Dr. Zahi Hawass
-----------------------------------------
In the lobby of the Egyptian Museum, Ahmed handed me his business card. Melek kelem, it read, in mirror-like Arabic script. This was no empty palindromic boast, I saw
as soon as he started the ten-minute "preview' tour we'd arranged. Ahmed was indeed a Master of Speech, a Word Lord, even -- to stretch the effect into English -- an
Emir of Rhyme. He had a dense and mesmerizing way of speaking, full of shifting rhythms and ridiculous puns. Ambling through the museum next to him felt more like
jogging, trying to keep up with his ancient-Egyptian etymologies, mnemonics for hieroglyphics, and archaeology gossip.
Zora O'Neill, Travel Author
------------------------------------
Witty and enthusiastic.
Arguto e pieno d'entusiasmo.
Lonely Planet
-----------------------------------------
In Ahmed we found not only an amazing producer, but a great resource for all things Egypt. His offhand knowledge of Egyptian history, of pharaohs and antiquities, of
hieroglyphics and pyramids is astounding. He can quote ancient Egyptian texts from memory. In many ways he was our tour guide and history professor on top of
everything else.
Erin Lyall George
Producer
The CBS Evening News
--------------------------
He is also particularly good at turning dry facts into fascinating anecdotes and was often able to entertain and educate us with interesting stories about Egypt’s
history. He is obviously passionate about the country, its history and culture.
Helena Merriman
Broadcast Journalist
BBC World Service
--------------------------
His language skills, especially his knowledge of English, are absolutely first class and he has an ability to express himself in a manner that many native English
speakers would find difficult to improve upon.
Michael Buchanan, Correspondent, BBC News
--------------------------
THE INDEFATIGABLE AND ELOQUENT AHMED SEDDIK MAKES EVEN THE HISTORY OF BILHARZIA SEEM FUN. FREQUENTLY BOOKED AS A TRANSLATOR/FIXER BY FOREIGN CORRESPONDENTS, THE 31-
YEAR-OLD FREELANCE GUIDE IS ALSO POPULAR WITH EXPATS AND EGYPTIAN PARENTS WHO LOVE HIS CHILD-FRIENDLY TOURS OF THE PYRAMIDS BY CAMEL. IN ADDITION TO WALKING TOURS IN
THE EGYPTIAN MUSEUM AND ISLAMIC CAIRO, SEDDIK ALSO DOES A TOUR OF POLITICAL CAIRO, REVISITING SCENES FROM THE REVOLUTION IN TAHRIR SQUARE
SUSAN HACK
Condé Nast Traveler Senior Correspondent
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seeing you in action in these photos I can almost hear your voice and feel your energy!
Eric Sinkkonen
http://ericsinkkonen.com/
Scenic Designer
----------------------
“You are a student of the finer point of the English language.”
Hugh Sykes, BBC, the World at One
--------------------------
Un grand tour du Caire avec Ahmed en une journée fut une expérience exceptionnelle et inoubliable lors de notre séjour en Egypte !
Ahmed est venu nous chercher à 8h30 du matin, frais et déjà plein d'une joyeuse énergie qui allait s'avérer sans limite tout au long de notre longue marche… il faisait déjà très chaud à cette heure-ci, car nous étions en août 2015, à ce moment de la canicule, où même les égyptiens n'envisageaient pas de sortir de chez eux. Nous avons traversé le Caire moderne, en passant par la place Tahrir et nous avons finalement atteint le vieux Caire à pied au milieu de la journée. Toute cette première partie de la visite fût agrémentée de commentaires sur la situation politique de l'Egypte, au gré des palais et bâtiments publics qui se trouvaient sur notre chemin. Nous avons aussi eu droit à notre première leçon d'arabe, car Ahmed est un excellent pédagogue, et grâce à des jeux de mots associés à des mimiques comiques et des explications de linguiste pertinentes, certaines expressions sont gravées dans ma mémoire alors que je ne les utilise jamais… Laa Shai, rien, Talasha disparaître. Je le vois encore s'enfuir au loin ce « talashaaaa » !! Car Ahmed s'amuse autant que nous et partage avec une joie enfantine ses connaissances dans tous les domaines, amassées au gré d'une curiosité insatiable.
Mais c'est lorsque nous avons atteint le vieux Caire que nous avons été scotchés par l'érudition d'Ahmed en matière d'histoire. Nous avons voyagé avec lui à travers un passé lointain, qui, parce qu'il le connaît si bien, se dressait vivant devant nous avec évidence. Nous avons pu comprendre la fondation et la construction de la ville, sa position politique et stratégique au sein de l'Egypte au cour du temps, ses liens avec les autres peuples et civilisations.
La beauté des anciens palais et des petites maisons, des églises et des et des mosquées, l'architecture et le quadrillage des rues, tout ceci prenait soudain sens grâce au don d'Ahmed pour rendre réels les personnages et les événements que ces lieux avaient connus.
Ahmed nous a emporté dans ce monde avec une telle efficacité, que nous ne nous sommes rendus compte que nous n'avions ni bu ni mangé, qu'au moment ou une petite faiblesse se fit sentir chez les filles, vers 16h. Nous avons pris une glace et nous sommes allés au café Fishawy où l'écrivain Neguib Mahfouz avait l'habitude de prendre son thé.
Nous sommes également passé par les petits escaliers où se déroule l'histoire du roman Zuqâq al-midaqq.
Nous avons ensuite poursuivi notre marche jusqu'au jardin Al-Azhar qui formait un vif contraste de calme et de nature après cette plongée au beau milieu de la plus grande ville d'Afrique.
Nous avons pu contempler le Caire au soleil couchant grâce à une vue imprenable, et nous pouvions « voir » la ville, non pas comme une jolie carte postale mais avec compréhension. Le souvenir de telle ou telle anecdote associée à telle coupole nous rendait cette vue sympathique et touchante. Il était environ 19h lorsque nous nous sommes dit au revoir. Nous ne nous sentions pas fatigués, et nous pensions que c'était vraiment notre meilleure journée au Caire depuis notre arrivée.
Bab Zouche
------------
My aim was to take a break with a cultural and historic character. And having Egyptologist and tour guide Ahmed Seddik as my companion made my adventure
unforgettable.
Amira El-Naqeeb, Travel Writer
-------------------------------
The Digger Who Can Figure:
Mehri Khalil spoke with Ahmed Seddik (a rising figure in the field of Egyptology) about the all-important tourist economy in post-Revolutionary Egypt. Khalil met the
unusually poetic archaeologist and tour guide at the American University in Cairo, where he studied in several different departments, enabling him to perceive and
discuss history from multiple perspectives. Seddik has given tours all over the country; organized talks and debates in universities and cultural centers...Here, in
his undeniably unique style, Seddik discusses his journey and reveals his dreams for his beloved Egypt.
http://fnewsmagazine.com/2011/08/the-digger-who-can-figure/
-------------------------------
"His name is Ahmed Seddik and he is the most delightful, smart and funny person you can imagine. He loves languages and speaks incredible English. He talked
continuously without notes of any kind during our tours of the temples at Saqqara, the Pyramids and tombs in Giza, Islamic Cairo, and the City of the Dead--not just
providing fascinating and encyclopedic information, both historic and modern, but peppering his monologue with puns and alliteration."
Caroline Moore
-------------------------------------------
“Ahmed Seddik is the brightest Egyptian I have met since I came to Egypt. I have found his Egyptological knowledge prodigious.”
Professor Jerry Leach
-------------------------------------------
Ahmed Seddik worked with me as a discussant on the translation of Ahmad Faris al-Shidyaq’s monumental mid-nineteenth-century work al-Saq ‘ala l-saq (Leg over Leg)
during 2012 and 2013, a work widely considered among the most linguistically challenging of Arabic texts in view of its use of little-known words, word-play and puns,
and complex grammar. I reviewed and discussed in depth with Ahmed most of the cruxes of the text and benefited enormously from his in-put. His knowledge of Arabic
grammar, verse, and the Quran is encyclopedic and his ability to untangle the contortions imposed from time to time on the language of the book by the constraints of
verse and rhymed prose proved to be prodigious. Ahmed’s love of language in general and the Arabic language in particular made him the ideal partner in an enterprise
of such a daunting nature. I can recommend him unreservedly to anyone involved in scholarly work involving the Arabic language arts.
Dr. Humphrey Davies
-------------------------------------------
My wife and I heartily recommend the young Egyptologist and lecturer Ahmed Seddik, who recently provided us with an immensely informative and lively guided tour of
Saqqara. His encyclopedic knowledge of Egyptian history, including the beliefs and language of the ancient civilization of the Nile Valley, along with his tact, humor,
and treasure trove of anecdotes and stories, provided unusual texture and depth to his explanations. His familiarity with both literary and idiomatic English, combined
with his gifts at word-play and poetic device, further enlivened our exchanges. We spent an eminently pleasant and worthwhile several hours in his animated company.
Thomas G. Weiss
Presidential Professor of Political Science and Director
-------------------------------------------
Thank you for a truly remarkable Cairo experience. I don't think I've ever enjoyed excursions as much as I did this time. You have an absolutely fantastic way of
bringing history to life and make it relevant to the visitor. A huge Thank You and I feel truly privileged to have had you as a guide to the ancient wonders of Egypt.
Maria Kuhn
VP Public Relations, Kempinski Hotels
------------------------------------------
If you are wishing to source an Egyptologist, we would have no hesitation in recommending Ahmed. Our attention was kept by Ahmed the whole day, including our twelve year old! Ahmed is extremely professional, his knowledge and stories are outstanding and entertaining.
Carolanne Reissiger
Hotel Manager
-------------------------------------------
Ahmed has guided me around the pyramids, the national museum and Islamic Cairo. He is a font of information, full of enthusiasm and you will tire before he does! I can warmly recommend Ahmed as an expert guide for Cairo and surroundings.
Christopher McLaverty
Consultant to the Archbishop of Canterbury at Church of England
------------------------------------
I had the opportunity to work with Ahmed Seddik last summer in Cairo, where I was temporarily based as a correspondent for Time Magazine. Though he clearly was far too qualified for the task, he cheerfully served as my translator for a couple of stories. I found him to be a precise interpreter, providing me with excellent translations of what was said in interviews, often a rarity where the need for speed overrides the desire for colorful, exact phrasing.
He also demonstrated a willingness to work long hours, and at the last minute. If I have the opportunity to return to Cairo, I will be sure to use his translation services once again.
Regards,
Aryn Baker,
Associate Editor,
Time Magazine Asia
-------------------------------
Siamo stati al Cairo per un weekend lungo, purtroppo durante i disordini di
piazza di novembre, che ci hanno impedito di visitare il museo egizio a Piazza
Tahrir. Ma anche senza il museo, il viaggio è stato straordinario. Meravigliose
le piramidi e il plateau di Giza, bellissima la visita alle moschee e alle
strade del cairo islamico, entrambi posti che abbiamo visitato con la nostra
guida Ahmed Seddik, la cui mail era indicata sulla Lonely Planet e che abbiamo
contattato dall’Italia subito prima di partire. Ahmed ha fatto una grande
differenza: è affidabile, preparato, pieno di entusiasmo, appassionato di
storia, archeologia, letteratura, geroglifici e conosce i luoghi come le sue
tasche. Alle piramidi ci ha fatto vedere tombe delle quali non avremmo mai
capito neanche la presenza, ci ha portato a vedere un panorama strepitoso da un
posto un pò più lontano ma senza turisti, e ci ha pagato addirittura lui il
ritorno con il cammello come “regalo” di benvenuto. Con lui ci siamo
avventurati in posti dove non saremmo andati da soli, abbiamo capito tanto
della storia dell’egitto e delle piramidi e anche dell’orgoglio degli egiziani
di oggi. Insomma, posti meravigliosi, clima perfetto.. speriamo che la
situazione politica si tranquillizzi presto, perchè non vediamo l’ora di
tornarci e di portarci anche i nostri figli!
Silvia Cavallo
------------------------
I have the privilege to recommend to you Ahmed Seddik as an excellent guide and efficient informant. I am fortunate both to have known Ahmed as a fellow student at
the American University in Cairo and to have seen how he developed his college interests into his current profession. Although he makes guiding and lecturing his
profession, Ahmed is a veritable renaissance man due to his passion for learning. He delights in learning various subjects and can claim expertise in many. Ahmed has a
talent for drawing diverse connections from his numerous interests into any talk or tour. In addition to his tours, Ahmed makes good use of his talent in his frequent
lectures on diverse topics at the Sawy Culture Wheel, a famous cultural center and academic forum in Zamalek, and elsewhere.
In the tours I have attended, Ahmed was lively, engaging, and spontaneous. Both the tour to the City of the Dead and Islamic Cairo were chock‐full of information,
partly due to Ahmed’s vast memory for fact and stories. On his tours each monument has a story and every side street is another step back in time. The tours I attended
lasted about five hours each, although he has told me they can stretch longer or take less time depending on the audience. When I took the Islamic Cairo tour, we went
the full length of the Fatimid city from gate to gate in four hours. His tour of Islamic Cairo is especially nice because it takes place in the wee hours of the
morning. The streets of the Khan el‐Khalili are amazingly serene at that time, which makes for a stark contrast with the market’s usual chaos. If you should take the
tour make sure to see the inside of the mosque and madrasa of Barquq; Sultan Plum had an eye for beauty. On these tours, Ahmed is always thinking about ways to improve
and innovate. For example, while leading us through the streets of Islamic Cairo, Ahmed thanked the street cleaners and pondered organizing them to keep the roads
cleaner. Ahmed says he has never given the same tour twice. I believe it.
Ahmed’s style of guiding and touring is not like that found on any other tour. It has more artistry in it than the others. But the faint of heart beware, he is more
than half a poet. Emblazoned on his business card is the Arabic palindrome malik kalim, meaning “king of words.” And certifiably, he can claim to rule his words. Ahmed
is a possessor of a veritable treasury of terms and an arsenal of anecdotes. Don’t think it tedious if he recites a list of synonyms or lines of poetry. Listen
attentively. It is all part of the tour.
Bryan Kraemer
PhD. Candidate Egyptology
University of Chicago
-----------------------------------------
One of the best ways to hear and see Cairo's many stories!
Lydia Smith, Watson Fellow at Thomas J. Watson Fellowship
-----------------------------
When you get the chance to visit historic places with Ahmed, expect to use all your senses during the tour, because Ahmed's detailed explanation expands your imagination beyond the architectural appreciation. By the end of the tour you would have learned about the life surrounding the visited place as it once unfolded--how people dressed, what they ate, notable events, unique social habits, and so on.
Hadeer EL Shafie
*************
Previous Tours:
Seton Hall Law Program, Faculty and Students
The American University in Cairo
Princeton University
Cambridge University
American Embassy
Time Magazine, Chief of the Middle East Bureau
Harvard University
Yale University
Cornell University
Rice University
AUC Faculty and Students
University of British Columbia
British Engineering Institutions - Egypt (BEIE)
Alexandria School of Theology (http://www.ast-eg.org/)
Dr. and Ms. William Vocke of Carnegie Endowment
Dr. George P. Fletcher of Columbia
Dr. Bernard Freaman of Seton Hall
James K. Galbraith, American Economist
James Balfour of Oxfam
Peter Blauner, Novelist (http://www.peterblauner.com/)
Dr. Jerry W. Leach
US Consul-General Roberto Powers
British Museum Curators
Sir Eldon Wylie Griffiths, former British Minister
Dr. Thomas G. Weiss, Presidential Professor of Political Science
Dr. Victor G. Vogel, Director of the Cancer Institute
Stanley F. Buchthal, an entrepreneur and producer
John Bohannon, Science Magazine Correspondent
“The City of the Dead "Informal Settlements and Development Strategies
Middle East Studies Program, the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities
Ian Davison, Managing Director of Earthmoves Ltd
Julia E. Marshall, Editor for the Oxford English Dictionary
Durham University
Rudy Wenk, Professor of Geology, University of California
University of Minnesota
Leiden University
Penguin Group
Judge Mary Davis
Dr. Richard D. Lewis, author of When Cultures Collide
University of South Alabama
San Francisco State University
University of Memphis
University of California, Berkeley
Temple University
The College of William & Mary
League of Arab States
United Nations
Helwan University
Cairo University
University of Massachusetts Boston
American International School in Egypt
Florida State University
University of Greenwich
University of Sydney
Western Michigan University
Northwestern University
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Arkansas
HSBC
Egypt Air Horus Magazine
University of Toronto
London School of Economics
University of Kentucky
United World College of the Atlantic
Rolex
Syracuse University
The University of Palermo
Nalco Company
Seattle Pacific University
University of Ulster
Griffith University
Mona Almaraghi, Presenter
New York University
Progress 2
Duke University
University of Pittsburgh
German University
British University in Cairo
Zora O'Neill, Lonely Planet
German Embassy
Estonian Embassy
The Netherlands Embassy
Center for Arabic Study Abroad (CASA)
Goldsmiths, University of London
The Spanish Embassy
Green Valley School
ARCE Fellows
Cairo Scholars
British Council
University of Maryland
University of Texas
University of Virginia
University of Michigan
American Councils for International Education
Conrad Hotel
Jim Holthouser, Hilton Worldwide Global Head
Maadi Wadi Runners
Supreme Council of Antiquities
ZIAD-HADDARA.COM
Middlebury's Middle East Arabic Program
Arabic Overseas Flagship Program
Australian Embassy
The French University in Egypt
www.semmel.de
Modern English School Cairo
Austrian Embassy in Cairo
Embassy of the Czech Republic
John Kavulich, NIAGARA HOBBY & CRAFT MART
The European Union Delegation
University of Houston
Red Cross
Irish Embassy
Indian Embassy
Kempinski Hotels
MEPI - Tomorrow's Leaders Scholarship Program
-------------------------------------------------------------
Lectures Given:
1. Give a Pharaoh Five, a joint lecture with Bill Barazzuol
2. The Divine Board, Pharaoh Amasis in Art and History, with Dr. Raymond Stock
3. The Battle of Kadesh
4. The Tale of Sinuhe, a Highly Informative Performative Narrative
5. Music in Ancient Egypt, a joint lecture with Dr. Khairy ElMalt
6. Behold How Howard Uncovered Tut
7. A Night of Hieroglyphics
8. Nefertiti
9. View from a Mashrabiyya: the Architecture of History in the History of Architecture
10. Feasting with the Pharaohs, Banqueting in Antiquity, with Bill Barazzuol
11. The HelleNilotic Melting Pot
12. Freezing Time: from Imhotep to Ahmed Zewail
13. Gates of Glory and Façades of Fame
14. Alexander: a King Akin to a God
15. Eratosthenes, from Cyrene to Syene
16. Pharaohs of Pharos
17. The Roman Aroma
18. A Crumb of Cruelty
19. A Taint of Atenism
20. The Art of the State in the State of the Art
21. The Hype in the Hypostyle
22. The Tale of an Ancient Egyptian Expat
23. Relief of Belief
24. When in Doubt, Hieroglyph it Out
25. Thieves from Thebes
26. Relief Beyond Belief
27. When Domes Dominate
28. From Khaemwas to Zahi Hawass
29. From Cubits to Units, a History of Measurement
30. Emulate an Amulet
31. Write Like an Egyptian & Hear it "From Pharaoh's Lips"
32. Sobek, Biology and Myth, a joint lecture with Dr. Jeffrey Dean Miller
33. Pinpointing Punt, a joint lecture with Nadia Mottalib
34. Ramsiscape, a joint lecture with Dr. Ann Shafer
35. From Haroun Al-Rashid to the Stone of Rashid
36. Lemon, Biography of a Fruit
37. Ahmed Shawqi with Howard Carter
38. Ahmed Shawqi with Tutankhamon
39. Albert Einstein, Father of the Atomic Age
40. PowerPoint to Empower Your Point
41. Digital Grammar
42. Networking That Works
43. Ahmed Shawqi in France
44. How Gibraltar Altered History
45. “Weaving the Web”
46. Ahmed Shawqi, a Children’s Poet
47. Umm Kulthum with Hafez Ibrahim and Ahmed Shawqi
48. Ahmed Shawqi, the Bard of Wisdom
49. Ahmed Shawqi, the Egyptologist Poet
50. From Karma to Karama
51. "Naguib Mahfouz as Imhotep and Manetho, a joint lecture with Dr. Raymond Stock
52. Romance in the Land of the Pharaohs
53. Ahmed Shawqi in Philae
54. “Champollion: The Linguist and the Emperor”
55. “100 Hieroglyphs: Think Like an Egyptian”
56. Conquering the City of Grammar
57. Law in Ancient Egypt
58. Color in Ancient Egypt, a joint lecture with Dr. Gamal Lamie
59. Ancient Egyptian Fauna
60. Ancient Egyptian Flora
61. Sailing in Ancient Egypt
62. Naguib Mahfouz: Reading from the Otherworld, with Dr. Raymond Stock
63. Imhotep, a Modern Mind in an Ancient Body
64. The Story of Influenza
65. The Two Doves
66. What Is Light?
67. Reshaping the Shipwrecked Sailor
68. Making Zoser Closer to Eternity
69. From Narmer to Nasser
70. Isis and Osiris
71. A Virtual Tour to the Egyptian Museum
72. The Hieroglyphic Nature of Art
73. Ancient Egyptian Proverbs
74. Body Language in Ancient Egypt
75. Sinuhe Insinuations
76. The Art of Guiding
77. Flood, Growth, Harvest
78. The Tooth That Told the Truth
79. Date Palm: Biography of a Tree
80. Let Stone Set the Tone
81. Ancient Egyptian Religion
82. The Third Dynasty is a Charm
83. Diplomacy in Ancient Egypt
84. The Art of Translation
85. Cleanliness in Ancient Egypt
86. The Ancient Egyptian House
87. Medicine in Ancient Egypt
Journey back in time and meet the leading medical practitioners in the wonderland of Egypt. Through ancient medical papyri and temple wall carvings we piece together
the world of medicine in ancient Egypt; diagnosis, prognosis, remedies, tools and techniques that at times surpass our state-of-the-art modern medicine.
88. The Art of Public Speaking
89. Etymological Stories
90. Magic in Ancient Egypt
91. Ancient Egyptian Architects
92. Dying to Live
93. The Art of Tutoring
94. Lily: Biography of a Flower
95. The Hoopoe or News from the Father of News
96. Quarrying the Quarantine
97. Health in Ancient Egypt
98. Drama Drawn from Ancient Egypt
99. Egyptian Mathematics
100. Ancient Egyptian Technology
101. Ancient Egyptian Palaces
102. Women in Ancient Egypt
103. The Queens of Ancient Egypt
104. Ancient Egypt in Film
105. The Hyksos of Evil
106. Kinship and Kingship
107. The Hype Style of the Hypostyle
108. The Plastic Bag of Antiquity
109. Sport in Ancient Egypt
110. For Whom the Sun Shines
111. The Spirit in Ancient Egypt
112. A Pause at the Paws of the Sphinx
113. Stele: Bulletin Boards of Ancient Egypt
114. The Bee in Ancient Egypt
115. Money: From Bricks to Clicks
116. Bread in Ancient Egypt
117. Friendship and Marriage in Ancient Egypt
118. Pensive Pencils
119. Zoser: From Imhotep to Lauer
120. An Abode Beyond the Boundaries of Death
121. Sound in Ancient Egypt
122. Google Your Life
123. Ahmed Shawqi: the Poet of Faith
124. The Locus of the Lost Lotus in Egyptian Art
125. The KaRaVans of Ra
126. Egypt: Magic and Tragic
127. From Sultan Barquq to King Tut
128. Saqqara Village: Passport to the Past
129. Cleanliness in Science, History and Art
130. From Bab Zewaila to Bab Zewail
131. When Nature Speaks, Art Listens
132. Don't Worry, We Have a Quarry, to Tell the Story
133. Sounding the Sands: Archeology Techniques
134. The Fourth Dynasty: Builders with Boulders
135. An Elapse Marking a Collapse
136. Carter: Purse and Curse
137. Strokes of Genius on Ostraca
138. Camels Were Late Comers
139. Symposium on the Nile, with Barazzuol, Alshafie and Professor Leach
140. In the Museum of the Atom
141. The Story of Garbage
142. Chorus with Horus
143. The Mother in Ancient Egypt
144. Nursing the Curse
145. Knowledge: a Boon from the Baboon
146. From Adoring the Sun to a Door in the Sun
147. Mirroring Mereruka’s Meridian
148. Wheel in, Camel out
149. Petrie: Inch by Inch
150. Ancient Egyptian Games
151. From the Nave to the Cave
152. Making El Fayoum Bloom
153. Restoring the Cosmic Chasm
154. The Rise of Monasticism
155. Ahmed Shawqi: from the Poet of the Prince to the Prince of Poets
156. The Egyptian Temple: from the Core Niche to the Corniche
157. Karnak: a Hub for Hubris
158. Tut: an Heir to an Era of Air
159. The Ottoman Style: More Flash for Less Cash
160. Lured by the Lucre
161. Museums: Creation and Curation
162. The Narcotic Nilotic Lotus
163. Egypt: the Dynastic Destiny
164. The Double Helix: The Inspiring Spiral
165. Wade in Wood, Hopes on Ropes
166. Ahmed Shawqi in School
167. The ABC of Electricity
168. Ibn Al-haytham: the Father of Optics
169. The Story of Numbers
170. Your Wasta to Waset
171. The Boy King Wanted His Plaything
172. How Laser Works
173. Anatomy of an Atom
174. The Trial of a Triad
175. The Library of Alexandria
176. Let the Fable Come to the Table
177. A Tale of Two Pyramids
178. Schistosomiasis and an Unparalleled Site of a Parasite, a joint lecture with Bill Barazzuol
179. Ahmed Zewail's Voyage through Time
180. The Magic of Marriage in Ancient Egypt
181. ABC Latin
182. Paremiology in Arabic, English and Latin
183. Zewail City for Science and Technology
184. The Subject and the Predicate
185. Ahmed Shawqi: the Revolutionist Poet
186. West Meets East: the Rise of Tourism
187. The First Tick in History: the Story of Measuring Time
188. A Tale of Three Apples
189. At First I Could See Nothing
190. Story of a Bridge
191. The Story of the Compass
192. The Egyptian Revolution through Western Eyes
193. The Story of Silence
194. The Circle
195. Ficus Benghalensis
196. Water
197. The Story of Olive
198. The Desert
199. Om Kolthoum, the Many Layers of Genius
200. Sustainability in Ancient Egypt
201. Amarna Letters: Egyptian Bricks of Diplomacy
202. Is the Nile Delta Going under Water? Joint lecture with Dr. Jerry Leach
203. Calcium: the Backbone of Eternity
204. Cairo Trees
205. Thomas Alva Edison
206. The Sycamore Fig
207. Forty Winks at the Sphinx
208. From Marble to Marvel
209. Tahrir: an Atmosphere of Utmost Fear
210. The Pharaoh's Four Curses
211. Poetry from Pottery
212. The Mermaid of the Mediterranean
213. A Chemist from Kemet
214. The Pharaoh in the Quran
215. Science in the Quran
216. Politics in the Quran
217. Shine from the Shrine, the City of the Dead
218. Coptic Cairo, the Babylon of Egypt
219. Alexandria, the Capital of Memory
220. Political Charisma in Egypt from BC to CC
221. An Anatomy of Medical Terminology
222. Conspiracy, Strikes and Revolutions in Ancient Egypt
223. Zoom in Man: Zoo in Man
224. An Arabic Arsenal in English: Arabic Ingredients for English Words
225. The Story of an Ancient Egyptian Abroad
226. All is Fair in the Pharaoh's Affair
227. Seddikism: Laconic, Iconic and Mnemonic
228. Trees of Ancient Egypt
229. Hair in Ancient Egypt
230. Fashion in Ancient Egypt
231. Family in Ancient Egypt
232. The Cat in Ancient Egypt
233. The Elephant in Ancient Egypt
234. Why is the Sky Blue?
235. In Pursuit of Hatshepsut
For over 3000 years, the memory of Queen Hatshepsut remained shrouded in secrecy -- even her mummy. But in 2007, Archaeologist Zahi Hawass found a molar tooth inside
a wooden box inscribed with the name of the Queen. That tooth fitted perfectly in the jaw of the mummy that Zahi assumed to be the Queen. That was the tooth that told
the truth, a dental identity. Now, travel back in time IN PURSUIT OF HATSHEPSUT to reveal the mystery of the great woman who ruled Egypt in the Golden Age for over
twenty years -- listen to her words!
Books Translated:
-The Illustrated Guide to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings by Dr. Kent R. Weeks
Published as the Official Portal for Luxor
-Co-translated and co-edited How the West Was Lost by Dambisa Moyo for the National Translation centre
Ahmed Seddik Spoke at:
Boston University
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Pomona College
University of Washington
Fashion Institute of Technology
Portland Community College
Millersville University of Pennsylvania
The American University in Cairo
The Egyptology Society
The Egyptology Academy
The Desert Development Center
The Sawy Culturewheel
The Seton Hall Law School - Cairo Summer Program
Euro-Mediterranean Innovation Marketplace
SOC 299: invited by Dr. Emad El-Din Aysha
South Dakota Delegation
Students from Ulsan University in Korea, invited by Dr. Cyrus Reed, Associate Provost
Performing and Visual Arts
The British International School
Course: ARIC-315: ARABIC DRAMA (invited by Dr. Birairi M)
CLASSICAL PURSUITS INC.
The House of the Poet in Al-Muez Street in the Palace City of Cairo
Famelab
Cairo Toastmasters Club
California Toastmasters Club
New York Toastmasters Club
Virginia Toastmasters Club
Hawaii Toastmasters Club
Oregon Toastmasters Club
Seattle Toastmasters Club
Greater New Haven Toastmasters Club
Yale Toastmasters
Nutty Scientists
Darb 1718
Egyptian Center for Culture & Art (Makan)
Mashrou3 Al Mareekh
Ahram Canadian University
Future University in Egypt
Al-Balsam Bookstore
Innoventures
The International School at Dundee
Produced/Translated and/or Reported for:
The New York Times
BBC World Service (Egypt and Libya)
BBC America
Financial Times
CBS Network (the Egyptian 25th Jan. Revolution)
Swedish Radio
CNN
Amanpour and Khaled Mashaal, Leader of Hamas:
http://amanpour.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/21/hamas-political-leader-speaks-to-amanpour/
Baboon Filmes
VRT
France 2
French 24
Stampa
Espresso
The Daily Mirror
Xinhua
GEO Magazine
Danish National Radio
South of Sweden News
Göteborgs-Posten
Platts
AUC Times
Tahrir Lounge
Der Spiegel
KPFA Radio
CSSProject for Integrative Mediation (in Cairo, Portsaid, Sinai)
Field Producer of a film about Bob Bradley: We Must Go
Bas Uterwijk Photography
Petra Ramsauer
Future Cities: Cairo
Helsingin Sanomat Newspaper
http://www.studiojensassur.com
Global TV
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com
http://www.parismatch.com
http://www.information.dk
http://www.cuatro.com/
http://danielhartleyallen.com
Painter Khaled Hafez
Photographer Eirik Bjørklund
Copper Pot Pictures
Show Time, Years of Living Dangerously
Andrew Hosken, Reporter, The Today program, BBC Radio 4
Ruptly TV
Tout.com
Roger Hercz
L'Opinion
VII Photo Agency, Laura Eltantawy
Lorenzo Meloni
Ulfisacson.com
NurPhoto
Nguni TV
Al-monitor
http://julianreidphoto.com/
Aftenposten
Circa
CTV National News, Daniele Hamamdjian
Nine Lives Media
Shine, a song with leejonesmedia.co.uk:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXxhapBbVgU
#Cairo #Egypt #Tour #Guide #Walking #Children #City_of_the_Dead #Garden #Green #Serene #Clean #Islamic #Art #Architecture #Photography #Trees #Flora #Seddik #Scholar #Scholarly #Storyteller
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