In 2008 was an undergraduate working on a dig at Karanis, an early Greco-Roman site about 50 miles outside of Cairo and Wadi Al-Hitan was one of the places where we made field trips out to study. It is, beyond measure, one of the most powerfully beautiful places that I have ever been to. The vast, echoing quiet and uniquely shaped landscapes were breathtaking. Trying to come to terms with the fact that 40 million years ago we would have been on the bottom of the ocean while in the middle of the Egyptian desert was both humbling and awe-inspiring. It is not a well-traveled site but is well looked after, and worth the side trip if at all possible.