Maadi's Adventures in Egypt

By Bill Wilke

“A low growl broke the quiet scene. My head spun to the left. My blood ran cold. Looking down, silhouetted on top of a large dune next to me, were three of the most ferocious, meanest- looking beasts that I had ever seen. The Dobermans! I consider myself pretty tough, but these guys were more than twice my size and I knew I was no match for one, much less the three of them together. I had forgotten to heed the send-off warnings of my colleagues, and I was in deep trouble, deep, deep trouble."

- - - Yes Maadi, you are indeed in deep trouble - again. - - -

In this spirited children’s novel, Maadi’s Adventures in Egypt, the land of the Pharaohs is vividly brought to life through the eyes of an adventurous, free-spirited dog, Maadi, who believes in learning and having fun, while at the same time leaving a little chaos behind. In this book she has the opportunity to visit and experience the antiquities, sights, and cultures of Egypt. As young readers join her in this remarkable and enjoyable journey, they will not only develop a knowledge and an appreciation for Egypt’s world famous antiquities, but also for the history, the people, the surroundings, and the local customs of this diverse country, presenting a unique cultural awareness.
The heart of this book is the premise that the four most important aspects for a novel for children should be that it -Educate - - Entertain - - Enrich - - Inspire-.

Educate: While visiting the antiquities and landmarks of Egypt, Maadi and the reader will discover the fascinating history of the Great Pyramids and Sphinx, the tombs of the Pharaohs, the Suez Canal, the Nile River, the treasures of the Egyptian Museum; and meet the people and canines of the land.

Entertain: While attaining the valuable information about these antiquities and landmarks, she has her own personal adventures: creating a chaotic scene at the Egyptian Museum; becoming the subject of a desperate rescue mission on the Nile River; joining forces with a befriended wild dog in a heroic act at the Valley of the Kings; observing a humorous and educational scene at the Pyramids; spending many hours alongside the Suez Canal running on the sand dunes, swimming in the canal, and interacting with some of the wild dogs passing through. She also adds to the venture by twice succumbing to her call-of-the-wild instinct leading to desperate situations, once in the bowels of downtown Cairo, and once on the sand dunes of the Suez Canal.

Enrich: The young reader will be enriched with the knowledge gained of the exotic sites, the antiquities, and an intriguing new culture.

Inspire: After viewing the photos of the sites and the people, young readers will not only be inspired to further explore the mystique of Egypt, but will also be inspired to discover the world.

Loaded with photographs, this book will whet the young adventurous appetite for Egypt, and the world. This delightful story provides the young reader with an appreciation of not only the antiquities, but the people, the history, the surroundings, and the local customs of this diverse country half way around the world.

Though Egypt Is going through rough times right now, the people are strong and through time, Egypt will recover.

(Warning - Grownups may also find this an entertaining and enjoyable read.)
Ages 10 to 14 Grades 4 to 8

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bill Wilke
• Release date: Apr 3, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301723713

Bill Wilke

Bill Wilke grew up in New Orleans, attended Louisiana State University, and is now retired in the Lake Tahoe, Nevada area. Between college and retirement, he spent nineteen years in the Middle East, eleven in Egypt, under the rule of President Mubarack, and four years in Libya, under the rule of Colonel Khadafy. This has enabled him to get to know this region's people, their mind-sets, customs, culture, and has afforded an exposure to ruthless dictatorships. This experience has provided the inspiration and the foundation for two novels that are anchored in the Middle Eastern culture, an action-packed, thought-provoking adventure novel entitled "Doublestar Implosion", and a delightful, educational children's novel, "Maadi's Adventures in Egypt". Please join him at Bill Wilke on Face Book, or contact him at [e-mail]. .

Book preview

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MAADI’S ADVENTURES IN EGYPT

by Bill Wilke

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Smashwords Edition

Copyright William F. Wilke 2003

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

ISBN: 9781301723713

Photo Acknowledgements:

Richard Deurer

Cover

Felucca;

Women washing dishes on river

Fisherman

Great Pyramids of Giza

Pyramid of Khafre

Sphinx & Pyramid

Sphinx

Map - Antiquity Sites

Cairo Museum

Statue - King Akhenaten

Statue – King Amenhopep III/Queen Titi

Statue – Memphite Triad

Mummy Room

King Tut’s Mask

Alex Tatchim / Navsource:

Suez Canal – Aircraft Carrier

Corbis Photos:

Interior of Tut’s Tomb

Map Resources:

World Map

Egypt Map

Thanks to Barbara, Janet, and Sandy for their tough-love editing.

Thanks to Sally for her support and patience.

And a special thanks to Maadi

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 2

CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 4

CHAPTER 5

CHAPTER 6

CHAPTER 7

CHAPTER 8

CHAPTER 9

CHAPTER 10

CHAPTER 11

CHAPTER 12

CHAPTER 13

CHAPTER 14

CHAPTER 15

CHAPTER 16

CHAPTER 17

CHAPTER 18

CHAPTER 19

GLOSSARY

The Author

The Author’s Dog

CHAPTER 1

The door whipped open. Noise exploded. Men entered the dark room. Items were carted out. I was picked up, hauled to the open door, plummeted over the side onto a conveyor belt, descended out of the airplane toward the ground, into more clamor. On the way down two men grabbed my cage. I was heaved up on top of the pile of suitcases and boxes resting on a tractor-pulled cart. The cage landed on the smooth surface of the top of a box. It scooted toward the other side. It was sliding off. I stared wild-eyed out the bars of the cage as the ground rushed upward on a violent collision course. The bottom of the cage caught the corner of a protruding suitcase. The abrupt stop propelled me hard; nose first into the front bars. The cage settled precariously on a lower tier of luggage.

A worker started up the tractor. The cart lurched forward. I pitched backward. The unsettling noise continued: people yelled, horns blasted, surrounding airplane engines roared. Several soldiers, rifles menacingly slung over their shoulders, watched intently as we passed. The cart screeched to a brusque stop. The cage catapulted forward. I dug my toenails into the floor mat. The mat slid forward on the hard and slick surface under it. I again slammed headlong into the front of the cage. The cage inched forward, teetering and tottering, almost falling to the ground a second time.

Two men reached up, seized the cage, and roughly hurled it on to another conveyor belt. I bounced a half-dozen times before settling down for the ride. As the conveyor belt carried me through a wall opening, I looked back at the two guys who had thrown me on the belt. I let out my frustration. I gave them an earful.

With both body and nerves bruised and battered, suddenly there I was, in the baggage area of an airport. Mayhem imploded all around me.

Get me out of here! I howled at the top of my canine voice. Boy, did I get some dirty looks.

The conveyer curved around several times in the baggage area before it headed back through an opening in the rear wall . . . . I was going back outside! I panicked. My owners, Bob and Kathy, said they would be waiting for me. They weren’t. I was being sent back out to the plane. No! I just couldn’t go back into that dark cavern in that airplane again! I lost it. Howling and barking at the top of my lungs, the conveyor carried me a short distance along the back of the wall.

I was approaching the spot where I had started. The same two men were still there throwing suitcases and boxes on the conveyor. They both shouted for me to shut up. One of them threw a small suitcase at my cage. It just missed. My cage returned through the same opening to the chaotic baggage room again.

Maadi, I thought, if your owners aren’t there this time, you’re in big trouble. Yes, Maadi is my name. My father, Wolf, is a Siberian husky, and my mother, Sonia, a black lab. My combination of husky and black lab results in confusion between the husky call of the wild, and the obedient black lab genes. I was named after a suburb of Cairo, Maadi, which is pronounced Maudy. .

Maadi

My trip started at the San Francisco Airport and after enduring many horrible hours in the luggage compartment of two different airplanes, including bouncing through several bad sieges of air turbulence and putting up with a couple of obnoxious fellow traveling companions, I was now in the Cairo Airport, or at least that was where I hoped I was. If not, I was in even more trouble than I thought.

Here is a map of the world to show where the United States and Egypt are.’

World: Showing United States and Egypt

And a map to show where Cairo is in Egypt.

Egypt: Showing Cairo

Meanwhile, there I was, continuing my journey around the baggage room. Not a familiar face in sight. The new smells and noises, the people talking to me and touching my cage. How much more did I have to endure? My nerves were about to detonate.

Then! There, hurrying through the crowd --- Bob and Kathy! I couldn’t believe it. They looked like they were almost as excited and relieved as I was. They opened my cage, reached in, pulled me forward, and gave me a big hug. Tears streamed down all three of our faces. Well, dogs don’t really have tears, but if dogs did, it would have been all three.

I was in their arms. I pushed to get out of the cage. Their hands stopped me and pushed me back. I was going to have to wait until we were out of the airport. I continued pressing hard against their hands. No luck. Against my protest, the door was forced closed, smashing my nose. I collapsed in total frustration and exhaustion upon the floor of the cage.

After collecting our luggage, Bob pushed our loaded handcart, with my cage majestically sitting on top, up to the customs checkpoint. Two uniformed men, with piercing eyes, looked me over. Then they turned their attention to Bob and Kathy. They checked all passports and papers. Finally, the headman turned and waved us all . . . into Egypt!

CHAPTER 2

Friday, is the day of worship in Muslim countries. And on the first Friday that we were in Egypt, we were off to visit the Sphinx and the Great Pyramids of Giza. These pyramids are the most famous and largest of the Egyptian pyramids, and possibly the most famous structures in the world. But they are not the only pyramids in Egypt. There are actually over 100 pyramids in the country, many of which are relatively unknown. And new smaller pyramids still are being discovered every few years when the ever-drifting desert sands shift and uncover them. The pyramids we were going to visit were on the west side of the Nile in an area called, yep you guessed it, Giza. I wasn’t sure what a pyramid looked like, but as excited as Bob and Kathy were about them, I figured that they must be something very special..

We left our hotel and crossed over the Nile River and drove down a busy street lined with buildings. Suddenly, we popped out of the populated area, and three of the largest structures I had ever seen towered above us. All three had four sides that started wide at the bottom, and then soared a long way up, each side narrowing, until they merged together at the top forming a sharp point, producing a pyramid. Aha, that was where they got their name.

They are wonders, truly. So it’s not surprising that they are considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World .

We parked the car. Bob attached my leash, and we headed toward the structures. From all directions, hoards of people wearing the native galabeya (a one-piece outfit, similar to a long dress) swarmed upon us. From the left someone tried to sell us