Five million years ago, 2 streams originating from Ethiopia and Uganda, the Blue Nile and White Nile began to flow northwards to the great sea that geologists call the Tethys (today's Mediterranean Sea). The streams converged at Khartoun in the Sudan and continued to flow northwards as a single river. From Khartoum the Nile is interrupted by a series of rapids. These cataracts continue over 1,800 km to Aswan in Southern Egypt where the river enters the Nile Valley.

The Nile hollowed out its bed in the immense plateau of desert limestone and sandstone. Then over the course of thousands of years, it deposited alluvium at the bottom of the narrow valley, forming arable ground.

Five million years ago,



  my two halves descended

  

    from the heavens to bring 



      life to the void below. I set 



        out alone to pave the way for



          one of the greatest civilizations



            that would walk this planet. Unlike 



              the rest, I would head upwards,



                and I forged my own path despite 



                  the rock placed in my way~~~~~ 



                    I move in rhythm.  Contrary to most 



                      I am at my prime when the lands



                      are the hottest.  I come forth in 



                    full force, bursting forth on the



                  dry land bringing life and fertility.  



                The people would come to me 



              and worship me--for without 



            me there would be nothing...  



          They  would  study  my 



        behavior and look to the

		

      skys to learn of my ways. I

	  

    would be their lifeblood, their

	

  supreme protector~~~~~~~~



But beware my wrath.  As easily 



as I bring forth life, I can take it



  away.  Upset my rhythm and you 



    upset more than just me.  For my



      actions go beyond me, they touch 



        the land and all its beings. Through- 



          out the ages, I will continue to flow 



            to my rhythm, always headed up, 



          and bring life and life's challenges 



      to all who come to seek refuge by my side



  ~~For I am the Nile and Egypt is my child.~~

The Nile's behavior was carefully studied and the celestial signs accompanying its annual flood were observed and recorded. The sacred river has always incited admiration by the breadth and contemplative majesty of its flow, and records find it inextricably linked with mythology. The ancient Egyptians worshiped the annual flood of the Nile as the god Hapy who symbolized abundance and fertility. Its periodic rise and fall are associated with the myth of Osiris who is the god of the underworld and fertility. Osiris represents the divine principle of perpetual return, of death and rebirth, as symbolized by the annual cycle of vegetation that the Nile brings.

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Egypt is the work of the Nile. It can be a lush oasis during its flood or a barren wasteland if it fails to rise; causing much hardship and great famine. Historians have found references to famine in Upper Egypt around the time of the collapse of the Sixth Dynasty, which was apparently linked to low levels of the Nile. But the Nile's wrath is unpredictable, ancient graffiti at Semna which dates from the Middle Kingdom records several years in which there were abnormally high Nile flood levels. The Temple of Amun at Karnak has reference to its flooding as well. This erratic behavior has had a profound effect on the stability and self-sufficiency of Egypt throughout the ages. It permeates every aspect of Egypt's existence from its food production to weather to transportation and communication.

We're excited to be here in Egypt and to be learning about the longest river on this planet (4266 miles!). It's longer than the longest section of the US, from the East Coast to the West Coast! Throughout our next six weeks here we will be following the path of the Nile, tracing the ancient civilizations that had established huge kingdoms and temples up and down its shores. Stay tuned to learn more about the mysteries of this great river.