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[Page 15]
sacred part of the church are beautifully decorated with inlaid white and ebony wood. The pulpit from which the Koran is read is made of solid stone raised about 10 feet from the ground by twelve solid stone pillars. In the courtyard is the usual fountain used by the Moslems for ablutions. On our way back to the tram we passed the gate of "Bab-Wala" which our guide said was the first gate built in Egypt and over 3,000 years old. This ended our sight-seeing for to-day.
Sunday 30/1/16. – We had church parade in the morning and no sooner had we been dismissed than we were formed up again and told to get one full marching kit ready and be in a position to fall in on the sound of the alarm. As far as rumours go there was a disturbance in Cairo, and when the order was cancelled and leave granted it was too late to go any trip so I had a good sleep instead.
Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday 1-3/2/16. We had the usual route marches and a little drill, and on Wednesday were enoculated again, making the 5th time for me and the sixth for many others. This (Wed) evening I went over to the sight of some excavation in the native cemetery and met Jones & Bondie we crawled down into the underground chambers and got some curios.
Thursday [dates are incorrect here] 4/2/16 – Route march this morning, along the railway line, where we saw a large head of camels being entrained, we also passed through the Arab camel camp and saw the camels watering. The herd certainly make a great sight.
Friday 5/2/16 – This morning we made a route march to the Ostrich farm and spent a very interesting morning seeing birds of all ages. From the building here we had a splendid panorama view of the surrounding district, including the camp and all the troops training on the desert. On early morning parade we saw a fine sunrise on the desert, making a sight I will never forget. The sun rose majestically over the eastern hills as one great fiery ball making one almost understand why the susceptable natives worship it.