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[Page 14]
quarters only a few streets away, into the brilliantly lighted shops and fine buildings, whilst the horses flashing to and fro are simply superb. We did not go into many of the native streets leaving them for another time. A very amusing incident occurred during the day. They had a store tent near our hut with a guard placed round it, and they removed the tent but the guards are still seen marching round and round the empty space.
Thursday 27/1/16. To-day we had a thorough kit inspection and in the evening Tad and I played billiards in the camp saloon – Miers went to the hospital to-day with mumps.
Friday 28/1/16 – Usual routine – Went shopping in Cairo in the evening and bought guide books to Pyramids Cairo.
Saturday 29/1/16. – We had leave this afternoon and Tad and I went to the Citadel, but were not allowed to enter owing to not having a special pass from our C.C. However we secured a guide and went to see some Mosques in the native quarter. On our way we passed through a native cemetery and could see the graves of the common people, like a stone shelf, called Mustabas, which stands for the shelf natives usually build outside their homes. The graves of the richer people are shafts sunk in the solid rock and over this they build a solid house about 14' x 10' in which the worshippers are supposed to offer up their prayers and look after the needs of the spirit. These rooms or houses are very quaint and in most cases quite dilapidated, being I suppose hundreds of years old. The whole cemetery looked very quaint being absolutely bare of colour, just the little mustabas all alike as two peas, made of sand on a sandy ground, whilst the dilapidated and old burial houses only made it look more monotonous. After passing through several streets of the native quarter we came to the Blue Mosque and obtained slippers at the door, for every one must either put them on or remove their boots as the natives do.
The Mosque is called after Abraham Allah and was built 700 years ago, and derived its name from the fact that the walls of many of its rooms are lined with blue tiles. Here we saw scholars repeating their lessons, all the time swaying backwards and forwards, which is supposed to be an aid to their memory. The next Mosque we visited was 1000 years old and the stairs leading to the liwan or