Cairo Aug 30 Darling Father. Here I am and at Shepheard's Hotel and wishing very much that you were in a room next door. We had an extraordinarily good and uneventful passage, but Lord! how dull. The fact is I never ought to journey on a ship without you - it's always amusing (or as amusing as it can be) when you're there. Monde inconnu as the fashion correspondent at Bucarest [Bucuresti] used to say of any evening at the theatre when we were in the box - he had a grudge against Aunt Mary, I forget why. The only person I knew on board - or at least he knew me - was a Colonel of an Indian regiment who had been in 'Iraq where he had met me once. He had married since and introduced his wife to me. Quite dull, both of them. I sat at the Captain's table but between him and me was the Ship's Minx (I contrived not to make her acquaintance) and opposite me some terrible people. My best convive was the wall on my other side. However it was only four days and I had a cabin to myself.
We got in at 4 a.m. on Wed., yesterday, and I caught a train to Cairo at 8. It was perhaps indicative of the new regimen in Egypt that the native official scrutinized the first page of my passport upside down and returned it to me solemnly with the assurance that it was perfectly correct. I got a compartment to myself thanks to 10 of your piastres - they were very useful, your piastres; it's such a comfort to have some change when one lands. I felt very sad when we passed Kantara and I recognized the seat where you and I had sat with Mr and Mrs What's their name waiting for our train and was only partially consoled when at Benha I bought some excellent mangoes. I was also hungry for I had had a very meagre breakfast at 5.30 and didn't lunch till I got to Cairo at 1. And what a good lunch after the horrid food of the ship! I really think the feeding on the P & O is a disgrace - the worst sort of English cooking and when you take refuge in cold meats they all taste the same - mutton or galantine or fowl, they're all alike.

I knew I couldn't get at AHQ (Middle East is its official title here) because they would have left the office, so I went comfortably to sleep and then telephoned the news of my arrival and learnt that I should be given marching orders next day. I went out and bought a book and some chocolate to eat in the aeroplane (at Graffis[?] where I also had an iced drink) dined in the hotel and slept peacefully for 10 hours.

It's not a bit hot - I feel quite sure they never know in Cairo what real heat is like; we can't live without electric fans at this time of year in Baghdad. Sir Henry sent a kind telegram which I enclose, but as I know that Mr Thomson has told my servants that I'm coming I replied with much gratitude that I would go to my own house. It would be very inconvenient not to be there as I feel certain that all the Ministers and people will troop in to call on me.

This morning I heard from the Middle East that they are sending a car for me at 4.15 a.m. tomorrow. It's half an hour to the aerodrome and we leave at 5. If they get to Ziza [Jiza] by 10 we shall go straight through, but usually they pass the night there and go on at dawn next day.

That settled, I went to the Museum and spent a delightful hour with dear Mr QuiBell. We had a useful talk about the 'Iraq Dept of Antiquities and of how I should frame the Law of Antiquities and generally the lines I ought to go on. Mr QuiBell's long experience makes his advice most valuable. After which we went to see the Tutankh Amen things - there are a few already on exhibition, one of the boxes, two thrones, some alabaster jars and one or two small objects - among them the famous mannequin on which they tried the Pharao's clothes; from the look of it I didn't think they would fit him for it was more perfectly "frontal" than you can think, i.e. quite flat back and sides. Mr Q. was very interesting about it all. There's nothing that they haven't got from other tombs, nothing in the furniture and trappings of which we heard ad nauseam, only they've never got so much, so complete a collection from any one tomb. One of the much described gold and enamel thrones is no better than a previously acquired specimen, though it's in better condition, in quite splendid condition in fact. Another, a much simpler piece of work, wood and gold, is really lovely. Mr Q. said he thought it the best bit of furniture in the tomb and I thought it the best thing of its kind I had ever seen. The alabaster jars were frankly hideous, extraordinarily elaborate so far as workmanship in a single bit of stone went, but far too elaborate for beauty - heavy feet much adorned with scrolls and clumsy jars with contorted handles. They had lost by that time their great sense of line, the Egyptians. Mr Q. said that Mr Carter is going to do his utmost to ward off the newspaper people this year, but doesn't think he'll succeed. As you may imagine they're a horrid nuisance, but it pays to give one paper carte blanche (the Times has it) so as it may help to bar out a multitude of others. Lady Carnarvon is paying for the completion of the work on the tomb which will cost her a pretty penny. There are 3 chambers full of things none of which have yet been touched, including the great shrine which they think contains the mummy. There are, you know, probably 5 shrines one inside the other - they've only opened the outermost one - with a coffin in the centre. A stone sarcophagus they think it will be, and they expect to find it untouched, in which case they ought to find some splendid jewel on its breast. In another little room there's the shrine which contains the Canopic vases and here are the four guardian figures of girls which Professor Breasted told me were masterpieces of art. I asked Mr Q. who said they were certainly very fine but marred by their thick covering of gold leaf. How like Kings and Courtiers, isn't it, to think that gilding improves the lily.

I'm in hopes that Mr QuiBell might fly over next spring if I've got my museum started, to give us his advice about it. Wouldn't that be nice.

I'm being so long winded because I'm keeping watch over a gentleman who is sitting in my room - in all honour - engaged in re-stringing my long row of pearls which broke on the ship. I don't like travelling with them unless I can wear them. But I wish he would make haste because I wish to go and lunch.

- I left this open till the evening in case I had anything to tell you, but everyone is away and I'm glad I'm leaving Cairo tomorrow.

Goodbye dearest; my dear love to Mother and kisses to Elsa, and her family. I hope Maurice's shoot ended well. I've a telegram of farewell from Sir Percy, dear old thing, and I've written to him today. Ever your devoted daughter Gertrude