el-Sisi is watching, intently

April 3, 2021 3:07 PM

The The Pharaohs Royal Golden Parade happened in Egypt yesterday.
posted by eotvos (11 comments total)

oh man, I watched most of this today! I thought about posting it at the time, but it was going on and on and on, and I didn't know when the actual parading started. It starts about here on this video. Just before that is some lovely choral and orchestral music, and before that, many speeches and songs.

The parade itself does not disappoint. It's full of theatrics and stunning dances. I would have loved to see it so much as a kid, especially. The whole thing has a slightly sinister air when you see Sisi watching in the center of the gathering, not moving a muscle, and then walking down a specially built corridor to the museum.
posted by Countess Elena at 3:17 PM on April 3, 2021 [6 favorites]

Where the pharaohs are going, incidentally, is the brand new National Museum of Egyptian Civilization.
posted by Countess Elena at 3:19 PM on April 3, 2021 [1 favorite]

Very impressive.

It's amazing to think that each of those sarcophagi is transporting the remains of a King or Queen of Egypt who lived and ruled thousands of years ago.
posted by darkstar at 4:43 PM on April 3, 2021

Oh wow! I read about the mummies being moved, but I didn't know Egypt was making it such a celebration. I would have missed out on the parade, the music, the amazing costuming, and dance numbers set at different locations around Egypt. This was breathtakingly awesome. Thanks for posting this.

I even liked the solid minutes-long shots of Egyptian President Al-Sisi walking through hallways and corridors or cuts of him staring intently at a screen while motionless. What an odd choice. Did they fly in David Lynch to consult on that or something? People can skip over those parts without missing anything, but I think it adds something fun to the presentation.
posted by Avelwood at 4:53 PM on April 3, 2021 [1 favorite]

I hope this is enough to propitiate any restless spirits. The last thirteen months have been quite enough already.
posted by ivanthenotsoterrible at 5:03 PM on April 3, 2021 [5 favorites]

Thank you for posting! I loved the presentation, costumes, and dancing. How long do you think it took to train the charioteers?
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 5:29 PM on April 3, 2021

Is this like Eurovision for ancient civilizations?
posted by StickyCarpet at 6:10 PM on April 3, 2021 [2 favorites]

Is there a non-RT video of this?
posted by Don.Kinsayder at 2:52 PM on April 4, 2021

Don.Kinsayder, I watched this stream on YouTube, much of which is either translated or captioned in English: https://youtu.be/bnlXW7KZl0c
posted by Atrahasis at 5:09 PM on April 4, 2021 [2 favorites]

The Pharoahs are classy as is, I felt like the sons et lumieres cheapened it, made it something out of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous... "And now, King Tutankhamen rides in a laser guided Mercedes Benz.. of solid gold!"
posted by Meatbomb at 5:10 AM on April 5, 2021

It was a nice parade I guess, but would it have killed them to have added at least one balloon float? A giant helium filled Sphinx or something? A parade without a falloon feels kinda empty.
posted by gusottertrout at 5:19 AM on April 5, 2021