Off the Beaten Track

You work in London for 30 years, make it as a consultant psychiatrist and a professor of psychology at Kings College University, and you know you could retire in the Greek islands, buy a house in sunny Spain, take up golfing — or you might just invest it all in a remote area in Upper Egypt and try to revive the cultural heritage of the place through a non-profit eco-village manned by you and you alone. Mervat Nasser opted for the later. Fast-forward 10 years later — not to mention thousands of hours and millions of pounds later — Nasser finally saw her dream project The New Hermopolis coming true; a self-sustainable community development cultural village for tourists. For the past five years, Nasser has not only financed the project single-handedly, she has also been living there trying to get the place up and running while attempting to gain the locals’ trust and cooperation — which wasn’t exactly a walk in the park. So while we all panicked over thugs during the January 25 events, Nasser was living in the middle of the desert, investing every last penny in a dream she strongly believes in. “If something happens to me tomorrow I might not have enough money to support myself, but I know there’s a need for what I am doing,” says Nasser. “I know people want to go somewhere different that is off the beaten track.” Nasser has had a standing interest in Egyptology and is an avid enthusiast and scholar versed in the philosophical and psychological heritage of ancient Egyptians. She's written various books on the subject, including a 40-part illustrated series for children on ancient Egypt, in an attempt to revive Egyptians’ interest in their heritage, especially the much-ignored rich intellectual heritage left by the ancient Egyptians. Nasser wants to go beyond the Pyramids and the tombs and dig deeper into their ideologies and philosophies. A Beacon of Light But 10 years ago, she decided it wasn’t enough to just write about it; so she placed all her eggs in one basket and literally put in all her funds into financing an eco cultural village in Minya. Situated 340 kilometers south of Cairo, The New Hermopolis is strategically located three kilometers away from Tuna Al-Gebel, which is home to antiquities from almost all historical eras, and built with limestone to reflect the heritage of the place. It is a 16-room eco-lodge — each room named after a Hermopolis thinker or writer — built to house 52 guests and it is designed to preserve water and energy and runs on solar energy. But this isn’t your average eco-lodge in a no man’s land. Nasser is hoping the place will be “a beacon of light” for the surrounding community to rekindle Egyptians’ love for their heritage and promote the concept of responsible tourism for many sites to come. All profits from the resort will be regenerated into developing the surrounding community through human development projects, empowering local residents and reviving and promoting the old city of Hermopolis’ rich intellectual heritage. “It is to create a suitable environment to nurture young talents because creativity is the best way to combat any ideas of extremism or fundamentalism and get the best out of people,” says Nasser. “It offers an alternative form of tourism because we’re using heritage as a means for development as all proceedings will go for the developing of the community.” Hermopolis, located between Ashmonin and Tuna Al-Gebel, was the capital of the 15th Nome of Upper Egypt and is considered a cradle of knowledge in ancient Egypt. It was named after the lord of time, inventor of writing and guardian of thought to reflect the sciences and knowledge that were constantly born there. The area was once known for promoting concepts of tolerance, harmony and acceptance, and Nasser is attempting to revive this spirit through The New Hermopolis. But what was once a beacon of light for intellects and scholars is now ridden with poverty, religious tension and overall neglect. This is where Nasser is stepping in. Aside from a public library open to all, there is a dedicated space to holding lectures, offering training courses to locals, organizing intercultural events and workshops as well as offering a hub for dialogue. “There will be courses in human development, soft skills, artistic crafts — the idea is to make this place self-sustainable, with or without me, I am hoping the place can eventually fund itself,” says Nasser. It is more important for Nasser to employ not the unemployed but the unemployable and develop them into skilled labor. “What happens now is that there’s a great number of the youth who are timed bombs if they nobody helps them,” she explains. This is why one of the priorities is developing tourism and hospitality skills within the surrounding community. She adds that it is crucial to promote to the community that the place’s heritage, and theirs, is their livelihood and it isn’t just about digging up an artifact to smuggle it out of Egypt or sell it. “They need to feel re-integrated in the community and feel that this artifact is precious and important to them and they should know how to promote and market it well,” says Nasser. “There should be an increased awareness in all ages and protection toward this place and what it used to be, to re-own this heritage.” So instead of nagging and grabbing on tourists to sell them an artifact or two, Nasser hopes she can help the residents to develop more sustainable strategies to ensure tourists will come back. “There are a lot of funds going into Upper Egypt and Minya, but very little of them go toward sustainable projects,” explains Nasser. “The minute the funds stop, so will the projects.” Nasser hopes to introduce spiritual and intellectual tourism to the area and stir people away from going to Egypt to simply see the Pyramids and never coming back for more, while sustainably developing the surrounding community. Big tours and five-stars resorts aren’t what she’s after, she’s hoping she can show tourists a truly authentic feel of the place to immerse themselves in the society while providing a better life for the residents. She wants to show the locals as well as foreigners the diverse heritage an off-the-beaten-track spot like this has to offer.