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Luis Malanco
Luis Malanco was in the political circles of Vicente Riva Palacio and Ignacio Altamirano during the 1870-1890 period. Malanco became the first official Mexican visitor to Egypt - that is, to that other country with great pyramids. Malanco's book about his 1882 trip to Egypt is filled with tributes to the accomplishments of the ancient Egyptians.
Malanco's excitement over Egypt was displayed in the description of his arrival at the port of Alexandria. He wrote, "A meditation overcame me, enthused, my head swirling reverently, I shouted out, Alexandria: Place of rescue, sublime city, queen of the ancient world, muse of letters, goddess of sciences. A son of Mexico comes on pilgrimage to visit you; a son of Mexico calls at your ports with love and respect... Open your doors, city of the Sultans, loved by the wise, by the heroes, by kings: I bring you a gift of power, Aztec flowers that are rare for their beauty and for their aroma; I bring you the heart and soul of Mexico, and that is a divine narcotic... Oh, if only I could express in verses of poetry the admiration in my country that your greatness inspires."
Malanco found Egypt noteworthy for its racial tolerance, which he felt proved the old Arab saying about Cairo, that "the Egyptian capital was the mother of nations and of the whole world." The one major drawback to the country was its treatment of women, about which Malanco said that the legal prostitution and the practice of polygamy were but two sides of the same coin.