Set sail on the legendary Nile River

Backgammon is one of the world’s oldest games dating back 5,000 years to Mesopotamia, now known as Iraq. The Egyptian form is believed to have originated from the ancient game of senet. Researchers estimate that senet dates to 3100 BC, based on their discovery of a hieroglyph that represented this game of moving pieces. Actual paintings of Egyptians playing senet appear on tomb walls from around 2500 BC, while intact boards have been unearthed from the Middle Kingdom (2055-1650 BC). The most spectacular, a lavishly decorated blue board inscribed to Amenhotep III, dates to the 14th century BC.

Playing games with the afterlife

During or before the New Kingdom (1550-1077 BC), senet took on a profound meaning. Archaeologists uncovered papyrus writing from this period that they called the “Great Game Text,” which suggested that the movement of pieces around the board came to represent the journey of the ka, or soul, into the afterlife. Religious-themed markings on the unearthed boards themselves supported this finding, as did the writings in Chapter XVII of the Book of the Dead, the ancient text written by priests to guide the deceased into the next world.

The longest game in history

Ancient trade routes allowed Egyptians to share senet with other cultures throughout the Levant and beyond. Its simplicity and the primitive pieces it required for play made it easy to replicate using crude or improvised boards. Senet proved so enduring that it branched off into many versions, including brädspel—a game recovered from the Viking warship Vasa—and backgammon.

Lucky rolls and strategic movement

In today’s world of board games, backgammon is classified as a “race game” in that its object is to move all your pieces off the playing board first. This is accomplished with a combination of lucky rolls of the dice and strategic movement of your pieces relative to your opponent. It is astonishing that it has remained so prevalent and beloved over millennia, captivating the attention of Egyptians and board gamers across the world.

Flavorful and generously seasoned with aromatic herbs and spices, Egyptian cuisine draws on thousands of years of tradition, as well as the plentiful ingredients cultivated along the Nile’s fertile banks. While many visitors are familiar with favorites like hummus and shawarma, here are three of Egypt’s most distinctive foods:

• Aish baladi (Egyptian flatbread)
  Should you find yourself strolling the bustling streets of Cairo during the early-morning hours, you may notice young men on bicycles carrying heaping trays of freshly baked aish baladi, or Egyptian flatbread. This local favorite is also a common sight in the city’s lively markets, emerging from scorching hot ovens bearing its trademark golden brown color and heavenly aroma. Aish baladi is often served with a sprinkling of cracked wheat on the top and eaten at any meal or occasion. Delicious on its own, it is also perfect for sopping up every drop of whatever tempting Egyptian dish happens to accompany it.
  
• Ta’ameya (Egyptian falafel)
  If you have ever sampled the popular Middle Eastern snack known as falafel, it was most likely prepared in the traditional manner using chickpeas. In Egypt, however, the locals insist that it is best made using fava beans instead. This singular spin on falafel, called ta’ameya, results in an exceptionally light, moist texture, while the liberal use of garlic, onion and herbs such as parsley and cilantro (or coriander) adds brilliant color and vibrant flavor. Ta’ameya is primarily considered a breakfast food, but ardent devotees are happy to partake of the beloved dish at any time of day.
  
• Ful medames (Egyptian fava beans)
  From the tombs of old to today’s street vendors, ful medames has remained a cornerstone of Egyptian cookery for thousands of years. Today, ful (as it is known to locals), is composed of slow-cooked fava beans and served with an array of toppings and seasonings, including vegetables (pickled onions or tomatoes), herbs (parsley or cilantro) and a variety of seasonings such as salt, cumin, lemon, garlic and olive oil. One of Egypt’s most popular dishes, ful medames is a seemingly simple favorite that offers much more than initially meets the eye.

Shopping the bustling bazaars of Egypt—also known as souks—provides an opportunity to discover a plethora of unique wares. Shops and stalls line winding alleyways and corridors, selling everything from trinkets to handmade textiles to fragrant spices and perfumes, and much more. Some of Egypt’s best outdoor marketplaces include Khan el-Khalili in Cairo and the vibrant souk in Aswan. Below are a few of the most distinctive mementos Egypt has to offer its visitors.

• Coffee
  In Egypt, there is a coffee shop, or kahwa, on nearly every corner. Coffeehouses serve as social gathering places, political and cultural centers, and places to make business deals. In bazaars and markets across the country, you may overhear traders meeting in the local kahwa to negotiate their terms. You can find a wide range of coffees for purchase, from light to dark beans, and regular ground coffee to a version mixed with flavorful spices, in coffee shops and market stalls.
  
  
• Papyrus
  Papyrus is a long-lasting, durable writing surface created by ancient Egyptians out of the papyrus plant, from the sedge family of marsh grasses. It was made into sheets, which were sometimes pressed together and formed into rolls. The earliest known roll of papyrus, which was blank, dates to around 2900 BC, and the first examples of papyrus documents date to around 2500 BC.
  
  A popular memento, papyrus artwork can be found everywhere, though the quality will vary. Make sure when you are shopping that you have your eye on the real thing, and that it has been hand-painted. Banana leaves have become a popular (albeit brittle) imitation.
  
  
• Rugs and Textiles
  The earliest known tapestry weaving was done by ancient Egyptians between 1483 and 1411 BC. The dry desert climate preserved fragments of three linen tapestries that were found in the tomb of Thutmose IV. King Tutankhamen’s tomb (c. 1323 BC) also contained a tapestry-woven robe and glove.
  
  Egypt is well known for its textiles, ranging from linens and scarves to rugs and tapestries. Some fabrics are richly colored but unadorned, while others are covered in elaborate appliqué work. Handmade rugs come in a variety of materials and styles, including silk knotted rugs, wool knotted rugs and loom-woven kilims. Near the Great Pyramid of Giza, you can visit Harrania, a district known for its high-quality carpets, whimsical tapestries and well-known weaving workshops.

The modern world owes a debt of gratitude to the thinkers of ancient Egypt. These brilliant minds developed inventions and ironed out key concepts in math and science that went on to form the basis for many of the innovations we now hold dear.

Ancient Egyptians’ prodigious engineering skills might be most visible in the awe-inspiring Great Pyramids of Giza. Each piece of stone was set at an almost perfect right angle, an impressive feat in itself, while the stones were cut with finite precision. The pyramids’ cornerstones benefitted from a ball-and-socket design, which allowed the structures to adapt to changes in the area’s climate, while their sides were oriented to the four cardinal points on a compass—a tool that had not yet been invented when the pyramids were completed.

Research has shown that some of the stone blocks used to construct the pyramids were manufactured from an early form of concrete. To aid their construction projects, Egyptians also used simple machines and invented both ramps and levers.

Resourceful and imaginative, the Egyptians also experimented with glassmaking, became master shipbuilders, pioneered mining in the Sinai Peninsula and mass-produced pottery for export.

Their intellectual achievements were no less great. Produced around 3000 BC, Egyptian papyrus is the distant cousin of modern-day paper. Today’s alphabets are indebted to Egyptian hieroglyphics, and Egyptians also used the first-known decimal system. The Egyptian astronomical calendar, invented around 2400 BC, was used for centuries after its creation.

The discovery of 12 papyrus documents—the so-called “medical papyri”—offer details of scientific treatments and remedies used in ancient Egypt. Previously thought to be “irrational” and non-scientific, the medical practices outlined in the documents show that the methods used were not only rational, but far ahead of their time in their attempt to resolve a medical problem through careful observation and thoughtful intervention.

Ahead of their time

A key document was the Edwin Smith papyrus, a guide to diagnosing and treating 48 wounds. The oldest known surgical book in the world, it dates to 1600 BC and chronicles the treatment of head and torso injuries, leading some to propose that it may have been written for the battlefield. Additionally, it’s in this guide that the human brain, pulse, role of the heart in circulation and the role of the brain in voluntary movement were mentioned for the first time.

An ancient apothecary

The 12 medical papyri also opened doors to the ancient Egyptian apothecary. Some conditions were treated with prescribed medicines made from local plants and ingredients brought from the Near East, Africa and the Mediterranean. About 2,000 remedies, preparations and applications are covered in its pages. Remarkably, half of the ingredients listed are still in use today, though some are synthesized.

What mummies tell us

Recovered papyrus is not the only source of information we have about medicine in ancient Egypt. Mummified remains provide a more intimate glimpse of treatments. The healed fractures and amputation sites of preserved skeletons, for instance, reveal that practitioners had the tools, skills and knowledge to perform surgery successfully. In another case, researchers examined artificial toes found on preserved mummies, uncovering history’s first known prostheses.

When researchers discovered three small ceramic jars of cheese in the tomb of a noblewoman at Sakkara, they were astonished. Previously, almost nothing had been known about the consumption of cheese in ancient Egypt. Buried around 3000 BC, the cheese resembled Çökelek and Lor cheeses produced in present day Turkey. This incredible discovery, along with artwork of milking cattle and bags of milk products, indicates that cheese making was an important component of ancient Egyptian agriculture.

A feast fit for a pharaoh

Nobility brought many foods, including meat, into the afterlife. Like bodies of the deceased, meats were preserved through a process of slow drying with salt, bandaging and coating with a resin. King Tutankhamen’s tomb contained forty-eight wooden boxes of dried meats stored beneath a ritual cow-shaped couch. Finely woven baskets in the boy king’s tomb held wheat and barley, bread loaves, figs, dates, melons and grapes, while jars contained the residues of honey and wine.

Delicious Egyptian cuisine for this life

Today, Egyptians are consummate hosts who love to share their cuisine. Visitors to the country might sample meloukhia, a favorite thick green soup of leafy vegetables served with chicken, faseekh (salted and dried fish), freshly baked pita bread or mint tea.