#Avenue of the Sphinxes

[suetravelblog]

Karnak and Luxor Temple Complexes Egypt

[blueiscoool]

Sphinx of Hatshepsut New Kingdom. Dynasty 18. Ca. 1479–1458 B.C. Granite. H: 164 cm (64 9/16 in.); L: 343 cm (135 1/16 in.); Wt: 6758.6 kg (14900 lb.).

This colossal sphinx portrays the female pharaoh Hatshepsut with the body of a lion and a human head wearing a nemes–headcloth and false beard. The sculptor has carefully observed the powerful muscles of the lion as contrasted to the handsome, idealized face of the pharaoh. It was one of at least six granite sphinxes that stood in Hatshepsut's mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri.

The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 131.

[streamingthruamerica]

Luxor Temple after Dark

November, 2021 was a cause for celebration in Luxor, as the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities marked the formal reopening of the Avenue of Sphinxes with a parade attended by Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, president of Egypt.

[javelinbk]

Here it is, Beatle People! The official 'Insane Things Paul Has Said About John' list, as created by the people of tumblr. I hope this is a useful supplement to the original McLennon iceberg

Sources under the cut:

“He was a very cool boy” (@javelinbk)

"Whenever other people do that it always reminds me of John" (@javelinbk)

"We put our names next to each other in our school exercise books" (@beatlepaul4ever)

When was Lennon at his best? "When he was asleep." (@didwemeetsomewherebefore)

"A delicious broth of a boy" (@zilabee)

"A lovely little baby, John was" (@mallowedheart)

"Daddy's room" (@pauls1967moustache)

"We’re songwriting together even if we’re not together" (@midchelle)

"John seemed like some sort of emperor in control of it all" (@blondecasino)

"I'm trying to get my son to have a son and call him Lennon, and then he'll be Lennon McCartney" (@peaceloveandstarrs)

“John and I had millions of fabulous little experiences in Paris” (@divine-sphinx)

"We used to have wanking sessions" (@merseydreams)

"You can be heterosexual and be having a homosexual dream and wake up, and think, 'Shit, am I gay?'" (@skylikeaflame)

"It was a place called Menlove Avenue. [Pauses] Someone's going to read significance into that: Paul and John on Menlove Avenue. Come onnnnnnn" (@s-l-martin)

"I slept with him a million times" (@s-l-martin)

"A wild and woolly genius who it was my pleasure to work with, walk with, talk with, and occasionally sleep with." (@didwemeetsomewherebefore)

"In bed" (@i-am-the-oyster)

"Well, I’m sure Brian was in love with John, I’m sure that’s absolutely right. I mean, everyone was in love with John; John was lovable, John was a very lovable guy." (@whenyourbirdisbroken)

"Dear friend, throw the wine, I’m in love with a friend of mine." (@heartsinthebasement)

"We got very drunk and cried about how we loved each other" (@nikidontsurf)

“Then also we were like married, so you got the bitterness. It’s not a woman scorned this time, it’s two men scorned — probably even worse. And I had to make way for Yoko. My relationship with John could not have remained as it was and Yoko feel secure.” (@thefortunateisle)

"If I was a girl, maybe I could go out and…" (@alienoriana, @majinmelmo)

"You just don’t hang around with your ex-wife" (@javelinbk)

"No, I have a lot of dreams about John, and they're always good" (@notgrungybitchin, @skylikeaflame)

"This (painting) is John’s Room. It just looked to me like John, when he had his long hair and then his cloak or whatever this is. Then I just scratched in that, looked like one of those drawings John used to do. You know his funny little men. So then I called that John’s room … If I’m gonna see a face in a painting it’s highly likely to be his." (@foryouwereinmysong)

"I wish I had sat and just hugged John all the time when we were together.’ (…) I’d just sit around and hug him forever. That’s the depth of my feeling for him" (@theoldmixer)

“Here Today - a love song to John” (@javelinbk, @bluewater9)

"So if you've got someone, you want to tell them you love them, just get it said, don't wait" (@lennon-gal)

And honourable mention for the following stories:

Stalking John all over Liverpool until Ivan officially got them introduced (@only-a-northern-soul)

‘He’s been telling himself and the whole world that nobody cared about writing songs and his music before he met John. He knew George Harrison.’ (@greatsaladavenue)

Quitting his job to commit to the band aka explicitly picking John over his father (@adriansfrombrooklyn)

Writing "Here, There, and Everywhere" by John's pool while waiting for him to wake up and write with him alone in his attic (@aint-that-kind-of-blog-bruv)

Taking the one photo of him and john from that night with the cursed pictures with jane and then blowing it up and hanging it in his office at apple (@pauls1967moustache)

Taking LSD so he could join John in his potentially bad trip (@scurator)

The time he vaulted over a table because another man was touching John and Paul had to physically intervene (@scurator)

[talonabraxas]

Re ∆.∆∆ Also known as: Atum-Re, Chnum-Re, Pra, Ra, Re-Atum Talon Abraxas

Re, in ancient Egyptian religion, god of the sun and creator god. He was believed to travel across the sky in his solar bark and, during the night, to make his passage in another bark through the underworld, where, in order to be born again for the new day, he had to vanquish the evil serpent Apopis (Apepi). As one of the creator gods, he rose from the ocean of chaos on the primeval hill, creating himself and then in turn engendering eight other gods.

Karnak: avenue of sphinxes

Avenue of sphinxes leading to the main temple precinct at the ruins of the Great Temple of Amon at Karnak, Egypt.

Originally most solar gods had falcon form and were assimilated to Horus. By the 4th dynasty (c. 2575–c. 2465 bce), however, Re had risen to his leading position. Many syncretisms were formed between Re and other gods, producing such names as Re-Harakhty, Amon-Re, Sebek-Re, and Khnum-Re. Aspects of other gods influenced Re himself; his falcon-headed appearance as Re-Harakhty originated through association with Horus. The influence of Re was spread from On (Heliopolis), which was the centre of his worship. From the 4th dynasty, kings held the title “Son of Re,” and “Re” later became part of the throne name they adopted at accession. As the father of Maat, Re was the ultimate source of right and justice in the cosmos.

[brooklynmuseum]

We began work on January 28, but the highlight of this week was the January 31 visit to the site by Anne Pasternak, the Brooklyn Museum Director, and members of the Museum’s Board of Governors. We were thrilled to be able to show them the site where Brooklyn has worked for the past 40+ years. We hope they enjoyed their visit.

As promised last week, here are the members of our team. Our foreman again this year is Abdel Aziz Farouk Sharid (left). He and our inspector, Haitham Mohamed Sa’ad el-Din are discussing the season’s work. The Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA) assigns an inspector to every expedition to act as liaison with the SCA and help facilitate the work. We are happy to have Haitham with us this season.

Besides Abdel Aziz, the Qufti who working with us this year are Abdel Aziz’s brother Ayman Farouk Sharid (center), the foreman for the Johns Hopkins University expedition who works with us when Hopkins isn’t in the field; and Mamdouh Kamil, who has worked with us for many seasons. All are from the village of Quft (ancient Coptos), which has a long tradition of archaeology going back to the late 19th century. Ayman and Abdel Aziz are the sons of one of the great Egyptian archaeologists, the late Farouk Sharid Mohamed, who was a beloved friend and treasured colleague. His sons are worthy successors to him.

You are looking northwest at the first court of Temple A, which stands northeast of the Mut Temple. We are working in two areas of the court this year. In 2019 we were able to confirm that that the row of limestone features on the court’s south side were sphinx bases. This season we want to see if there are remains of corresponding bases on the north side (right). We are also clearing the corridor between the south colonnade and the south wall of the court (left).

By the end of the week (February 2) the results in the north square were equivocal. Looking north, you can see an area of decayed limestone on the right side of the square that might be the remains of a sphinx base. On February 1, Mamdouh uncovered the round, dark feature to the left of the “sphinx base” that might be a tree hole. Sphinx avenues often had trees planted between the sculptures.

The work on the corridor was more productive. By the middle of the week Ayman had cleared a mass of broken stone and revealed the lowest course of the court’s south wall (left) and the footing of the temple’s 2nd Pylon. Both sit on a sand foundation that you can see below the blocks of stone. It was common to use sand in the foundations to level out uneven ground.

On February 1 our Dutch colleague, Jacobus (Jaap) van Dijk joined us for another season. First thing on the morning of February 2, Ayman called us over to show us an interesting find: a large relief-decorated block. Jaap immediately got down to have a look.

The block has a beautifully carved relief of Amun that clearly is Thutmoside in style, that is, from the reign of Hatshepsut and/or Thutmosis III, of the mid-15th century BC. What makes it particularly interesting is the small, shallowly carved graffito of a God’s Wife of Amun facing the Amun and dating stylistically to Dynasty 25 or 26, about 700 years after the god’s face was carved. God’s Wives of Amun were priestesses, usually the sisters or daughters of kings, who wielded great political power in the Third Intermediate Period and later.

Just west of the Amun block was smaller cube of stone with a sunk relief depiction of a man’s foot on base lines with the top of a cartouche and the “son of Re” title below. The style of the foot (very long) and the vertical element of the cartouche date it to the reign of Akhenaten. It probably came originally from his temple in East Karnak, built before the king moved the capital to Amarna. The artist paid attention to detail when painting the relief, painting the head of the goose (“son”) blue but its beak and eye red. The Brooklyn Museum has an interesting group of Amarna Period reliefs showing a pastoral scene.

By the end of the week Ayman and his crew had cleared the bases of the first 3 columns of the colonnade, working from west to east. The blocks of the bases are large: 70 cm by 125 cm and almost 100 cm thick.

We are also planning on restoring 2 fallen columns in the colonnaded porches in front of the Mut Temple. The one in the East Porch is shown here as it was found in 1979. Work hasn’t started on these yet; there will be more about the restoration next week.

One of our favorite birds is the tiny, bright bee eater, so called because it catches insects in mid-air. This is the first we’ve seen this season.

An unusual cloud formation seen at sunset one night. Angels? Extraterrestrials?

Posted by Richard Fazzini and Mary McKercher

[thebrickinbrick]

The Situation Becomes Aggravated, Part 1

The daylight was increasing rapidly. Not a window was opened, not a door stood ajar; it was the dawn but not the awaking. The end of the Rue de la Chanvrerie, opposite the barricade, had been evacuated by the troops, as we have stated, it seemed to be free, and presented itself to passers-by with a sinister tranquillity. The Rue Saint-Denis was as dumb as the avenue of Sphinxes at Thebes. Not a living being in the crossroads, which gleamed white in the light of the sun.

Nothing is so mournful as this light in deserted streets. Nothing was to be seen, but there was something to be heard. A mysterious movement was going on at a certain distance. It was evident that the critical moment was approaching. As on the previous evening, the sentinels had come in; but this time all had come.

The barricade was stronger than on the occasion of the first attack. Since the departure of the five, they had increased its height still further.

On the advice of the sentinel who had examined the region of the Halles, Enjolras, for fear of a surprise in the rear, came to a serious decision. He had the small gut of the Mondétour lane, which had been left open up to that time, barricaded. For this purpose, they tore up the pavement for the length of several houses more.

In this manner, the barricade, walled on three streets, in front on the Rue de la Chanvrerie, to the left on the Rues du Cygne and de la Petite Truanderie, to the right on the Rue Mondétour, was really almost impregnable; it is true that they were fatally hemmed in there. It had three fronts, but no exit.—“A fortress but a rat hole too,” said Courfeyrac with a laugh.

Enjolras had about thirty paving-stones “torn up in excess,” said Bossuet, piled up near the door of the wine-shop.

The silence was now so profound in the quarter whence the attack must needs come, that Enjolras had each man resume his post of battle.

An allowance of brandy was doled out to each.

Nothing is more curious than a barricade preparing for an assault. Each man selects his place as though at the theatre. They jostle, and elbow and crowd each other. There are some who make stalls of paving-stones. Here is a corner of the wall which is in the way, it is removed; here is a redan which may afford protection, they take shelter behind it. Left-handed men are precious; they take the places that are inconvenient to the rest. Many arrange to fight in a sitting posture. They wish to be at ease to kill, and to die comfortably. In the sad war of June, 1848, an insurgent who was a formidable marksman, and who was firing from the top of a terrace upon a roof, had a reclining-chair brought there for his use; a charge of grape-shot found him out there.

As soon as the leader has given the order to clear the decks for action, all disorderly movements cease; there is no more pulling from one another; there are no more coteries; no more asides, there is no more holding aloof; everything in their spirits converges in, and changes into, a waiting for the assailants. A barricade before the arrival of danger is chaos; in danger, it is discipline itself. Peril produces order.

As soon as Enjolras had seized his double-barrelled rifle, and had placed himself in a sort of embrasure which he had reserved for himself, all the rest held their peace. A series of faint, sharp noises resounded confusedly along the wall of paving-stones. It was the men cocking their guns.

Moreover, their attitudes were prouder, more confident than ever; the excess of sacrifice strengthens; they no longer cherished any hope, but they had despair, despair,—the last weapon, which sometimes gives victory; Virgil has said so. Supreme resources spring from extreme resolutions. To embark in death is sometimes the means of escaping a shipwreck; and the lid of the coffin becomes a plank of safety.

As on the preceding evening, the attention of all was directed, we might almost say leaned upon, the end of the street, now lighted up and visible.

They had not long to wait. A stir began distinctly in the Saint-Leu quarter, but it did not resemble the movement of the first attack. A clashing of chains, the uneasy jolting of a mass, the click of brass skipping along the pavement, a sort of solemn uproar, announced that some sinister construction of iron was approaching. There arose a tremor in the bosoms of these peaceful old streets, pierced and built for the fertile circulation of interests and ideas, and which are not made for the horrible rumble of the wheels of war.

The fixity of eye in all the combatants upon the extremity of the street became ferocious.

A cannon made its appearance.

Artillery-men were pushing the piece; it was in firing trim; the fore-carriage had been detached; two upheld the gun-carriage, four were at the wheels; others followed with the caisson. They could see the smoke of the burning lint-stock.

“Fire!” shouted Enjolras.

The whole barricade fired, the report was terrible; an avalanche of smoke covered and effaced both cannon and men; after a few seconds, the cloud dispersed, and the cannon and men reappeared; the gun-crew had just finished rolling it slowly, correctly, without haste, into position facing the barricade. Not one of them had been struck. Then the captain of the piece, bearing down upon the breech in order to raise the muzzle, began to point the cannon with the gravity of an astronomer levelling a telescope.

“Bravo for the cannoneers!” cried Bossuet.

And the whole barricade clapped their hands.

A moment later, squarely planted in the very middle of the street, astride of the gutter, the piece was ready for action. A formidable pair of jaws yawned on the barricade.

[blackrainbowblade]

The Avenue of Sphinxes, connecting Karnak and Luxor temples. It’s about a kilometre long, and would have been used for festival processions in ancient times.

[underafullmoon3]

The Avenue of Sphinxes or The King's Festivities Road, also known as Rams Road is a 2.7 km (1.7 mi) long avenue which connects Karnak Temple with Luxor Temple in the ancient city of Thebes (modern Luxor), with sphinxes and ram-headed statues lined up on both flanks

[old-glory]

The Sphinx Realty Company building, located at 537 North Fairfax Avenue in Los Angeles, California, built in 1926. Photo taken sometime in the 1940′s.

[live-the-fangirl-life]

i would love if you'd shared everything that might be in aelin's list in a world away, all the dream places she wants to go or already went 🤧🥺

First of all - I am so sorry it’s taken me so long to answer this ask 😭

Second - this list is in no way complete. I could probably double it if I gave it some more time (and maybe I’ll edit this post and add some later) but I wanted to answer this ask.

Third - some things listed are cities, some are attractions, some are landmarks or monuments…it’s really a mix of everything. And some major landmarks that cover more than one country are only listed once.

A World Away

So, without further ado, please enjoy

Aelin’s Incomplete and Ever-Adapting World Travel List ✈️

Antarctica

Argentina

Iguazú Falls // Patagonia // Rainbow Mountains // Buenos Aires

Australia

Melbourne // Sydney // Gold Coast // Great Barrier Reef // Adelaide

Austria

Vienna // Salzburg // Hallstatt

the Bahamas

Belgium

Bruges // Brussels

Belize

the Great Blue Hole

Bhutan

the Himalayas

Bolivia

Salar de Uyuni

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Stari Most Bridge // Mostar

Brazil

Rio de Janeiro // Christ the Redeemer // Amazon Rainforest // Lençóis Maranhenses National Park // Sao Paolo

Bulgaria

Cambodia

Angkor Wat

Canada

Niagra Falls // Vancouver // Banff // Toronto

Chile

Easter Island // Torres del Paine National Park // Marble Caves

China

Great Wall of China // Beijing // Shanghai // the Summer Palace // Potala Palace // Tianmen Mountain // Reed Flute Caves // Zhanye Danxia

Costa Rica

San Jose

Croatia

Dalmatian Coast // Diocletian's Palace // Krka waterfall park // Plitvice Lakes // Zagreb

Cuba

Havana

Czech Republic

Prague

Denmark

Copenhagan

Dominican Republic

Ecuador

Quito // Galapagos Islands

Egypt

Cairo // The Great Pyramids & Sphinx // Nile River // Valley of the Kings // Luxor // Aswan

England

London // Thames River // Stonehenge

Estonia

Tallinn

Fiji

Finland

Helsinki

France

Mont-Saint-Michel // Louvre // Eiffel Tower // Alsace Lorraine // Paris // Notre Dame // Sacre Coeur // Versailles // Nice

French Polynesia

Bora Bora // Tahiti

Germany

Munich // Berlin // Black Forest // Oktoberfest // Neuschwanstein Castle

Greece

Santorini // Athens // Parthenon // Roman Agora // Acropolis // Mykonos // Oia // Fira // Corfu // Meteora

Greenland

Hong Kong

Tsim Sha Tsui

Hungary

Budapest // Capitol Hill // Bath Houses

Iceland

Reykjavik // Northern Lights // Egilsstaðir //Ring Road // Blue Lagoon // Vatnajökull National Park // Kirkjufell // Húsavík // Akureyri // Thingvellir National Park

Italy

Roman Colosseum // Amalfi Coast // Florence Duomo // Venice at Carnival // Piazzale Michelangelo // Cinque Terre // Pisa // Venice // Pompeii // Milan

India

Taj Mahal // Varanasi & Ganges River // Golden Temple // Agra // Mumbai // New Delhi

Indonesia

Bali // Komodo Island // Blue Flames at Ijen Volcano // Jarkarta

Iran

Hall of Diamonds

Ireland & Northern Ireland

Cliffs of Moher // Giants Causeway // Galway // Blarney Stone // Trinity College // O'Neills // Belfast // Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge // Cobh

Isreal

Dead Sea // Jerusalem

Jamaica

Japan

Tokyo // Mount Fuji // Wisteria Gardens // Osaka // Kyoto

Jordan

Petra // Amman

Kazakhstan

Kenya

Maasai Mara National Park // Lake Victoria

Kyrgyzstan

Luxembourg

Madagascar

Avenue of the Baobabs

Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur // Batu Caves

the Maldives

Male

Malta

Valletta

Mexico

Cabo // Teotihuacán // Chichen Itza // Cabo // Yucatan Peninsula // Mexico City

Mongolia

Gobi Desert

Morocco

Casablanca // Hassan II Mosque // Marrakesh // Chefchaouen // Sahara Desert

Myanmar

Bagan's Temples

Namibia

Nepal

Mount Everest // Kathmandu

the Netherlands

Amsterdam // Van Gogh Museum // Tulip Festival

New Zealand

Auckland // Queenstown // Kawarau Suspension Bridge // Milford Sound // Tongariro National Park // Hobbitton // Dark Sky Sanctuary // Waitomo Caves

Nigeria

Lagos

Norway

Oslo

Panama

Panama City

Peru

Machu Picchu & Huayna Picchu // Lima // Aguas Calientes // Andes Mountains // Huacachina

Philippines

Palawan // Manila

Poland

Krakow

Portugal

Lisbon

Romania

Russia

Moscow // St Petersburg

Rwanda

Volcanoes National Park

Saint Lucia

Samoa

Saudi Arabia

Al-Masjid an-Nabawi

Scotland

Edinburgh // Loch Ness // Inverness // Glasgow // Scottish Highlands

Singapore

Marian Bay Sands

Slovenia

Lake Bled

South Africa

Capetown // Johanessburg // Isle of Elephants

South Korea

Seoul // Jeju Island

Spain

Barcelona // Madrid // Sagrada Familia // Mosque of Cordoba

Sweden

Stockholm // Sweddish Lapland

Switzerland

the Alps // Bern // St Moritz

Tanzania

Mount Kilimanjaro // Serengeti

Thailand

Bangkok // the Grand Palace // Phuket

republic of Türkiye 

Cappadocia // Istanbul // Hagia Sophia // Pamukkale

Turkmenistan

Darvaza gas crater

Turks & Caicos

United Arab Emirates

Dubai // Burj Khalifa

United States

Grand Canyon // San Fransisco // Honolulu // Kauai // New Orleans // New York City // Seattle // Portland // Los Angeles // Antelope Canyon // MOMA // Las Vegas

Vanuatu

the Vatican

St. Peter's Basilica // The Vatican Museum // Sistine Chapel

Vietnam

Ha Long Bay // Hoi An // Hanoi

Zambia

Victoria Falls

[suetravelblog]

Cairo and Luxor Egypt

Colossi of Memnon – Egypt Tours Portal I temporarily lost my sense of humor in Cairo. It was a challenging cultural change. Although I’ve acclimated and grown accustomed to other Muslim countries, like Turkey, Cairo was tough. The Adhan (Muslim call to prayer) is especially prominent in Cairo. It wakes you up in the morning, and is broadcast throughout the day, even inside restaurants and…

[providencepeakrp]

GRAND OPENING of the HISTORY OF EGYPT WING

                  “Man fears time, but time fears the pyramids.”

The city of Providence Peak and all neighboring towns are invited to attend the Pharaoh Tutankhamun Centennial Banquet, which is to celebrate the anniversary since the discovery of the boy-king’s in-tact tomb and the grand opening of the new History of Egypt wing at Providence Peak’s History Museum. The new wing features two separate exhibits, one for Ancient Egypt and the other for Modern Egypt with each having three floors, an indoor play area for children ages 4-12 and a daycare area for ages 0-4 with both matching the Ancient Egypt theme, a café serving both cuisine found in ancient and modern Egypt times, a gift shop catering to the new wing entirely, and a new IMAX theater located in-between the two exhibits that will show a variety of documentaries on Egypt.

All costumes are created by Maya Lee in partnership with the creative team behind the Pharaoh’s Golden Parade and the Avenue of the Sphinxes Grand Opening. All performers, singers, the choir, and the live band were all a part of the parade that took place in Cairo-Giza and the grand opening in Luxor, and have all graciously traveled from Egypt to Providence Peak for the banquet.

On behalf of Doctor Fahri-Bailey and the museum, in partnership with the country of Egypt and the Egyptian Tourism Authority, we welcome you to dress up to the nines in your best formal suit or gown and come join us for this spectacular event!

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

While the café won’t open officially until the 5th at 11AM, when the wing is opened to the public, all guests to the banquet are allowed and encouraged to bring their children so that they may get a sneak peak at the playground and a special performance to watch The Prince of Egypt at 7PM in the IMAX theater, which adults are also invited to watch as well. There will also be a special showing of The Mummy and The Mummy Returns in the IMAX theater as well, what with The Mummy showing at 9PM and The Mummy Returns showing at 11:30 PM. The gift shop will be open from 7PM until 11PM, in case guests would like to purchase any items before the general public.

Once the wing’s curator, Doctor Aslihan Fahri-Bailey, gives her opening speech, our guests are invited to walk through the new exhibits and get a very first sneak peak before the wing is opened to the general public. Guests are also invited to enjoy an Ancient Egyptian-inspired buffet catered by the Silk Road Restaurant, where performances shall be made by dancers and live entertainment. A live band will also be playing and dancing shall commenced from 7PM until 3AM.

OOC EVENT DETAILS

This event will be kicking off November 10th at 12 PM EST and end on November 16th, 2022 at midnight EST.

Previous threads do not have to be paused, but we encourage everyone to participate.

Activity checks and acceptances will be held as usual.

This event is a formal black tie affair and suits and gowns are expected.

Have fun and be sure to relax and enjoy this event! Please tag all event related posts with providence.event and be sure to check the starter blog for open event starters.

[philosophika]

My life is so completely implausible if I ever try to tell someone about it, I’m always met with polite suspicion and disbelief. And I don’t blame them! I wouldn’t believe me. One story? Fine. You grew up in a pyramid shaped house? Ok, kind of sus, but fine. Oh but then you also nearly died in the amazon rainforest? And were rescued by a native child your same age on the outskirts of her village? The little arrow on the sus meter is going right into the red zone. And you were pulled out of poverty by your aloof, famous and wealthy great-uncle? One week you were sleeping on the floor in a room with three other people and the next you were slumbering on an antique bed framed by sphinxes on Fifth Avenue? Look, it’s got to be bullshit. It’s all got to be bullshit. And that’s just the flashy shit. I haven’t even begun on the small, random, unbelievable everyday stuff - like the man hiding in my shower on Christmas or the fact that lightning hit our house (despite there being a lightning rod on the property) several times. Look, I haven��t even begun on the tragedies. 

[whitepolaris]

Cosmic Thrills at Rosicrucian Park

The brochure reads, “The Rosicrucian Order is a worldwide philosophical and initiatic tradition that offers time-tested techniques for re-discovering the wisdom, compassion, strength, and inner peace that already reside within each human being.”

That all sounds good, but the message would seem a lot more serious if there wasn’t a statue of a saggy breasted hippopotamus in a pharaoh’s hat outside the doorway to this establishment of enlightenment in San Jose. 

One does not need to be searching for mystical, spiritual, or scientific answers to enjoy the serenity of the Rosicrucian Park, though the Rosicrucian Order does claim it can help you on those quests. The park takes up a full city block, and the combination of Egyptian and Moorish architecture and landscaping is undeniably both mysterious and striking. 

Sphinxes, pyramids, planetariums, and grand temples all seen strangely out of place on Naglee Avenue, but once you are inside the grounds of Rosicrucian Park, modern San Jose suddenly feels out of place. 

In 1915, businessman and occultist Harve Spencer Lewis announced to the world that Pharaoh Akhenaton’s secret society was now taking applications. The society was known as the Ancient and Mystical Order Rosae Crucis (AMORC), or the Rosicrucians. Lewis was its imperator, or head. 

AMORC claimed to have been founded by the ancient Egyptian ruler Akhenaton, generally credited as the first monotheistic sovereign. From there, it worked through Western history in 108-year cycles of public and private activity, making an especially strong splash in the Renaissance, when the followers of the legendary Christian Rosenkreuz antagonized the Catholic Church with their faith in reason, personal enlightenment, and a coming new age. Many great men in history have allegedly been members of the secret society. With the twentieth century under way, the group had apparently decided it was once again time to resurface. 

There were already several Rosicrucian groups in existence in 1915, and many of them disputed Lewis’s group’s claims to antiquity and authenticity. AMORC did well, nevertheless, dispensing its “ages-old wisdom” by mail to dues-paying members. Their ads still appear in countless magazines, promising the secrets of “cosmic consciousness” to sincere seekers. 

AMORC’s international headquarters occupies the city-block-size compound in San Jose. All the buildings have been designed to look like Old Kingdom shrines and temples, reflecting the Rosicrucian love of things ancient Egyptian. The park’s elaborate fountains, tiled walkaways, gardens, and statues also faithfully evoke the Land of the Pharaohs. Not surprisingly, the park’s biggest attraction is the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, the largest collection of ancient Egyptian relics in the western United States. The museum displays relics, mummies, and a life-size replica of a rock tomb, along with several multimedia exhibits depicting daily life in ancient Egypt. 

Next door the planetarium presents AMORC’s vision of the universe and the future. It contains a “star projector” that can project over 2,100 stars, plants, and other extraterrestrial wonders. It has the ability to modify the sky forward or backward in time 13,000 years. There is also a Foucault Pendulum inside, and everyone loves a Foucault Pendulum, Especially Foucault. 

Closed to public eyes, there are other grand Egyptian-style buildings. There’s the Research Library, which houses thousands of rare books on mysticism. Rose-Croix University is here as well, along with the massive, secretive Supreme Temple. 

The Rosicrucians do not claim to be a religion, but rather a mystical association. If that sounds to you like they sell literature and accept a “small fee” from students, then you are already well on the path to metaphysical oneness. (A sophisticated Web portal at www.amorc.org points to Internet surfers to Rosicrucian readings, activities, and merchandise.) But don’t let the hint of commercialism prevent you from enjoying the park. It really is an interesting and peaceful place. 

[sphinxluvduvwuv]

Here’s another moody music thing I made a while back lol. This one is actually the first one I made. I really love Helium by Glass Animals. This song honestly fits Sphinx and Alexa’s relationship so well. This constant back and forth, not knowing if they should even be together. These are the lyrics that really reminded me of Sphinx and Alexa’s relationship: “Broad daylight But we're sunflowers in the rain My momma said their used to be white pyramids They float above the sand they're slowly sinking in Are our foundations destined to keep crumbling Just 'cause we started this with zero innocence? I just can't build on something that begins like this It's a blood diamond, flawless but for that one thing” I guess I should explain a little about Broken Destiny and what it’s about huh? I do plan to post stuff here when it’s done. Honestly it’s kinda why i’m glad the whole twitter thing happened when it did. Sphinx is the hero, he was destined for greatness. A prophecy was made long before he existed saying that he would defeat the evil god Set and would bring peace to the world, and in the events of the game... we see exactly that.

Alexa is the villain, her destiny is to destroy Sphinx and bring chaos. A prophecy also existed before her birth about how she would be destined to kill Sphinx. Both of them were childhood best friends and had crushes on eachother as tweens even though both of them were too dumb to figure it out. After a tragedy that happened in another country while Alexa was visiting, Sphinx thought she was dead. Alexa had actually survived but was “taken in” by the evil god Set... He knew exactly who she was and what she was destined to become and he made sure she would be exactly what he needed her to be.

Neither Sphinx nor Alexa were born evil. It’s the roles that others impose on them that made them into who they later become. Eventually Alexa tries to get away but that’s after she does some really horrific stuff. She never realized that there was even an avenue to try and escape her destiny. Even still it brings strain on their relationship as friends. That’s basically a short explination only using bits and pieces from the story i’m working on. I’m not going to spoil to much as I do want to bring it to all of you in future.