Found among the artifacts of Max Neil, the uncle of a close friend of min, this shot, taken sometime during World War II, features sightseeing GIs posed astride camels and attended by their guides. There is something fascinating about seeing GIs – during wartime – at their leisure. The fez-wearing soldier in the middle would, for example, serve admirably as a visual definition of the word, “jaunty.” I’m most intrigued, however, by the prospect of the existence of similar photos. The numbered card at the lower right (showing “10″ in this shot) indicates similar pictures were routinely taken of visitors to this scene.
Other soldiers must have availed themselves of the same opportunity to spend a portion of their down time seeing the pyramids and then commemorating the event such a photo.3 That means that across the country, ensconced in shoe boxes, albums, and envelopes stashed in closets and attics, are multitudes of my generation’s fathers and uncles perched on camels looking into a camera at us from the 1940s while taking a break from making the world safe for democracy.
That is somehow a comforting and heartening thought.
