Dig days: Back to Philadelphia I was 33 years old and an Inspector of Antiquities. After years of working at several sites throughout Egypt, I finally became the chief inspector at the Giza Pyramids. I decided to continue my studies in Egyptology in the United States. At first, I did not want to receive a fellowship from an American university. However, I saw a newspaper advertisement to the effect that the Fulbright Commission in Cairo was offering a fellowship for two years to study in the field of science or humanities. I applied, writing a proposal that stated that it was important for an Egyptian to receive good training in the US, and then to return to Egypt and help protect Egypt's heritage by improving sites and museums and training young people, as well as establishing rules and regulations to protect the monuments and modernise the facilities. I further suggested they needed to give this fellowship to someone who would use it to benefit Egypt. The committee was chosen to select the most deserving applicant. The candidates were from Egypt and America. I was awarded the Fulbright scholarship to continue my studies, and applied to a few universities in US. After much thought I decided to attend the University of Pennsylvania for my doctorate studies, since they have an excellent archaeology programme. I lived in Pennsylvania for seven years and studied very hard. My study programme was very important to me, and helped me build my career as an Egyptologist. I lived near the university in west Philadelphia in a dirty, rundown area. However, Philadelphia is a wonderful city, rich in history. It was the first capital of the US and the home of the Liberty Bell, which announced the independence of America. When I obtained my doctorate I came back to Egypt and worked as the director of the Pyramids. Recently I returned to Philadelphia to give a lecture at the university museum. When I arrived, I went directly to see the rundown area where I had lived. I was amazed by the change in the area. It is now very clean and beautiful and the housing in this area has become extremely expensive. Near my old house they had built a gorgeous mosque. Randal, the mayor of the town, had made all these changes and is now the governor of Pennsylvania. He has changed the city for the better. The city tour is still arranged by Bastawi, a Nubian who came to work for the carriage company and became the owner of the firm which takes tourists to all the historical sites. I was surprised to learn that Bastawi had been accused of maltreating the horses and keeping them in an unclean environment. I stopped in many places and relived my memories. I even noticed the university museum was much more active, and they were bringing people back to the museum. The new director, Richard Lathradle, who became the director after working at UCLA (University College of Los Angeles), is doing excellent work. The auditorium was full for my lecture and I was able to see the faces of many friends that I have not seen in years. I saw Bonnie, the museum receptionist, who always had a good heart towards everyone. She helped every student and became a good friend to all the Arabs. But not everyone that came brought back a good memory. I will never forget the devilish woman who did her best to rape Egypt. She was the most cunning, fiendish lady I have ever seen. She moved to Egypt and sold her soul to many people. No one ever liked her because inside she was ugly. She talked behind the backs of everyone and I believe she will be remembered as someone who sabotaged history. I was able to see David O'Connor, my kind professor who taught me a great deal. He is one of the most honest people in the field of Egyptology. He left the museum and became a professor at New York University. David Silverman is now the head of the Egyptian section and is doing his best to improve the museum. I left Philadelphia with my classmate Jill Ervais, who took me to many places to remember the good old days. We even ate at my favourite Chinese restaurant. I will always remember my speech at the museum before I left Philadelphia in 1987. I said, "I came to Philadelphia with two Egyptian kids and I will return to Egypt with two American kids. I came here with black hair and I am returning with white hair."
