Countries of the world, list of countries

Egypt is a tourist destination. Religious devotees have also made this a place of pilgrimage; during the reigns of the Greek Ptolemaic Pharoahs (including queen Cleopatra), the Mysteries of Isis became a very popular cult throughout the Roman empire, continuing at the temple of Philae near Aswan until 550AD. In later years, ascetic Christian monks such as Anthony attracted large numbers of equally fervent followers to their desert retreats. And Muslim pilgrims still travel to shrines such as the one in the mosque of Sayyidna al-Hussein in Cairo, which reputedly contains the head of Ibn al-Hussein, grandson of the prophet Mohammed. The timeline of Egyptian  history is very long and very full, packed with things both familiar and unfamiliar. 

Modern travelers are attracted here by many of the same things which brought earlier visitors, but of course tourists are less likely to be inspired by religious awe than by the idea of seeing the large and very ancient edifices for which Egypt is famous. Some tourists don't even share these interests, instead coming here to worship the venerable Egyptian god Ra - the sun disc. Mostly this is done by prostrating themselves in a semi naked state on one of the Red Sea beaches until golden brown (or perhaps bright red). Yet another group takes their activities a step further by diving under the surface to view the spectacular coral reefs and their inhabitants, many of which are found only here.