Item 06: Letters sent by Robert Christian Wilson to his family, 1918-April 1919 - Page 339
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[Page 339]
you came through in the train. Although the country is all cut up into little Chinaman's plots, which are each worked independently, it seems to be the dasteur to do certain things at certain times and as everybody does exactly the same, you would think the whole country was one big station, owned, and managed by the one man, it is all so exactly the same right through the whole journey.
In July when I came through, there was nothing but cotton and corn every where now all the fields are green with berseem, a sort of giant lucerne about 6 inches high; there is nothing to be seen of the cotton, but each man has picked up his corn stooks and stood them up in a heap on his land, to keep for thatching his house in the summer, and it makes the country look like one vast wheat field with stooks everywhere.
It seems to be a slack time for the people. The only ones working are the women carrying water in jars on their heads, and the children minding the sheep and cattle feeding along the banks of the Canal.
As you get near Cairo, you see palm trees everywhere, and away on the horizon the Pyramids stand out over everything, and you can understand why it is that artists, when they draw a picture of Egypt always put a pyramid and a palm tree in one corner to show what it is meant to be.
24th
Did not finish this before Father and now I am off to-night down to Luxor. Three other very decent chaps are coming with me and the Military have given us tickets to Assouan [also spelt Aswan] and return so the trip is costing us £5.10 each for 7 days with Hotels and all exes paid by Cook's seems reasonable to me. I went out to the 31st and saw Sister Davidson, she was looking very tired as she had been on night duty for three months, but is back back on day duty again now.
I also met Colin. He has been on leave here too, and is staying in this place, but is going back in a couple of days. Also saw Jim Ayre, he is staying at Rossmore House and Bill West, who is at the Cadet School.
Will have Christmas at Luxor to-morrow, with luck.
A merry Christmas to -
signed Robert C Wilson