To avoid repeating myself as I think I have already told the tales of my journey one too many times leaving out parts to remember whom I told what to I have decided to post an online journal and slideshow of my journey to Egypt (Aug 23-31 2008).
The trip couldn’t have come at a more perfect time in my life. I left with no expectations or agenda (and for those of you that know me well that is quite an accomplishment). I must say it was the most liberating feeling and adrenaline rush I have felt in a very long time.
I boarded the plane with my one little suitcase on Thursday night (Aug 21st) and landed in JFK where I had a 10 hour lay over and camped out on the cold tile floor to take a nap at 6 in the morning since they wouldn’t let me check my bags until 6 hours prior to my flight. I don’t think I was ever so excited to see the clock turn 10:30 when I rushed over to Terminal 3 to check in and sit for yet another 6 hours. [For Em and Kayte: you will appreciate this….I was so uncomfortable sleeping I went and bought Smoosh a brother. I call him Squish]
2 Days later (Aug 23rd) I finally landed in Cairo to meet my group and start my exploration. As exhausted as one may be from 28 hours of traveling I had a renewed sense of energy as I met the first group of arrivals at the airport baggage claim picking up my luggage.
At the Airport I met Keith and Michele (who I actually met at JFK from an online forum where we were introduced. I also met Stacey (my soon to be roommate for the trip) and Liz and Radek.
Our drive to the hotel was quite interesting as there is really no sense of direction when driving in Cairo. If you have ever been there you know what I mean. Stacey put it best by calling it a “cluster fuck” (this phrase seemed to come quite handy for many of our activities and adventures while in Egypt).
We made it to the Oasis Hotel where we would spend our first night with our tour group (www.Contiki.com). Our group was made up of 38 people ranging from countries all over the world including: America, South Africa, England, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. Overall, it was a great group of people that really knew how to have a good time.
We started our travels bright and early the next morning where we departed the hotel and headed off to Egyptian Museum in Cairo. I wish I were able to take photos because what we saw inside was incredible and indescribable. It is amazing how close you can get to some historical pieces of art and sculptures with no guardrails or cases around them. They say not to touch them but really when you are that close you have to just touch one to say you have. We got some alone time to explore and a group of us bought tickets to go to the mummy exhibit to see all the preserved pharos and mummies from the past.
From the museum we headed off to visit the Pyramids of Giza, go on a camel ride and see the Sphinx. Again, words cannot describe the sheer mass of these monuments. I did climb inside the largest pyramid to see the chamber of tombs at the top (see pictures where crawling in the tunnel of the bricks, again another picture that we were not supposed to take but I snuck my camera in…we learned that Egyptian men are scared to frisk the women up and search their bodies so we stuck them in our back pockets knowing they won’t touch our butts). After a long hot and sweaty day we boarded the train in Cairo to head to Aswan.
The overnight train was quite an interesting adventure. It was set up with an old smoking/bar car in the middle where we all gathered at night to party, have drinks and dance. The food on the train was disgusting so we brought snacks (see picture of our 5 carb breakfast). As for our cabin attendant, he was a crack up and made the trip for Stacey and myself much more comical with his broken English that got lost in translation and awkward moments visiting us with awkward extended stays during our wake up call.
Our first day in Aswan we went to visit the unfinished obelisk which cracked as it was nearly finished and ready to be sent down the Nile. Imagine being one of the people back then going to work that morning. That day definitely would have been a day where Happy Hour is needed. In Aswan we also went to the Damn that was built to control the flooding of the Nile and went sailing down the Nile on a felucca. The view from the boat was gorgeous. Aswan was much more green and lush then Cairo, which was filled with trash and sand and was over populated. Sailing down the river we were able to see both the Sahara and the Arabian Desert at the same time, which I thought was pretty cool. We stopped at one point to hike a sand mountain (as this was no hill) so that we can roll down and go sand surfing. (see pictures and video it is quite a site not to miss). After getting filthy from sweat and sand we all jumped off the roof of the boat and swam in the Nile River, all praying not to swallow any water or come out with a 6-foot parasite.
This was the first night of our stay on the cruise boat where we would eat sleep and drink for the next 3 nights. The boat was amazing and a great relief after the train the night before.
The most memorable part of Aswan (and maybe the entire trip) was the optional excursion to the temple of Abu Simbel, which we had to take a small plane to get to. The temple is located just 20 miles from Sudan overlooking Lake Nasser. I have never seen such an incredible site that is so old and full of historical beauty and greatness. From the size and science of the placement in which it was built, to the fact that it was physically cut up into pieces to be moved to avoid destruction from flooding, down to the ancient artwork inside (which I was not able to take pictures of). Studying art in college, I really found it amazing how so many years ago they still had the same concepts and principles that hold true to creating a piece of art today. I saw some of the first animation ever created, the first plotted war strategy maps, depictions of displaying beauty in human characteristics etc…
After flying back from Abu Simbel, which was an adventure itself, we collected the rest of the group that stayed behind and went to visit some other ruins at Kom Ombo in Edfu.
Lastly, we finished off the night with visiting the Arabic Market, which was a site to be seen. Sharif (our guide) told the ladies we would need a husband to walk the streets to keep us from being harassed and hassled by the vendors. Man was he right! So Stacey and I took our husbands Charlie and Matt to the market where we were so overwhelmed we decided to forego the shopping and just walk around and visit a local corner store and smoke some seesha. It was great fun hanging out just the 4 of us as we really seemed to hit it off well and had a blast laughing and being ridiculous amongst the crazy Egyptians that shout at you and mimic American slang acting as parrots.
The next day we had a relaxing and revitalizing day as the early mornings and heat were getting to everyone. Our guide Sharif told us we would spend the day cruising on the boat and relaxing until evening sites so we can recharge. A lot of people slept but a small group and I decided to spend the day in the sun, relax by the pool and take in the beautiful scenery on the top deck as we cruised north on the Nile.
That evening I went on another optional excursion where we explored a little Nubian village along the river. You got to pick 1 of 3 modes of transportation: Camel, Horse or Donkey. I chose to ride a donkey. His name was Ali Baba and the child helping walk my donkey was Achmed. I found this part of the trip very eye opening as I decided to play and talk with the kids and ask them questions to get to know them (the spoke pretty good English). It broke my heart to see them at age six working for a few dollars a day to provide their families with to put food on the table. Most of the kids had no concept of age or they just like getting a rise out of us by telling us they were much older then they really were. Achmed (which by the way seems to be the name of every 5th child in that village because two of his friends were named Achmed that he introduced me to as well) told me he was 18 and didn’t look a day older then 11 or 12. After we rode our donkeys we went to see a home of one of the families and how they look and run on the inside. A little boy named Sharif (yes another kid named the same name as our tour guide) showed us his house and how they go about their daily duties. He was the cutest thing and had the most precious voice and I wish I could pack him up to take him home with me. I was talking to him on the side and he was telling me how his mom promised to take him to Disneyland one day. He was so excited as he was telling me about it that his eyes sparkled. It made me tear up but I tried to not let him see it. For his sake I really hope that he does make it to Disneyland one day, but in reality, I am sure most of the children over there will never even make it to the states let alone Disneyland.
Ok, on to our last day on boat we ported in Luxor where we saw many temples and ruins including: the Temple of Hatshepsut, Karnac, The Temple of Luxor, The Valeey of the Kings that contained all the ancient tombs of the Pharos of Ramses III, Rameses IV, King Tut, and Ramses VI. All of which were really cool places to see and blazing hot so we made the best of it and Matt and Charlie kept us occupied with their crazy antics and sing alongs.
Oh I forgot to mention how our day started that morning….in a hot air balloon. I have never been in one before but it was amazing. They say it is the largest balloon in the world and can hold up to 35 people. It was so beautiful as we floated above the ancient land and ruins, watched the sunrise, and people sleeping on their roof tops, which is quite common due to the heat (see pictures, you can actually spot the people on the roofs if you look hard enough).
We concluded the day in Luxor with dinner on our own before heading to the train station to take us back up to Cairo. We stocked up knowing we weren’t going to touch the food on the train. Matt, Charlie, Stacey and I went to place on the main square where I finally got my Schwarma!!! Yum! After dinner we couldn’t resist and had to see what all the rave was about at the Arabian McDonalds where we all split the McArabia (see picture for proof). It was basically a meat patty in a flatbread that tasted like a mix of Taco Bell and McDonalds. We are not really sure what kind of meat it is. Sharif told us it was Camel joking around but I think it was just Beef or Kofta.
Back to the train for a night of fun and Pre-Birthday celebration for Matt where we partied with our cabin attendant “Egyptian Style” and Crowned Keith Bathroom Monitor. I think we partied with our attendant a bit too much as he forgot to wake us in the morning and we nearly missed our stop and had to rush off the train without breakfast or brushing our teeth and washing our faces. (Sharif was nice enough to let us stop at the local gas station to freshen up….and you would have thought he gave us a pot of gold).
Arriving in Cairo the next morning we finished our tour with going to the Sultan Hassan Mosque, the Citadel with the Mohammed Ali Mosque, and the Arabic Bizarre in old Cairo (much better then the Aswan Bizzare). Plus we got an authentic Falafel lunch there for 20 cents….who can eat lunch for 20 cents and be full. I bought a few small things and did some great bargaining. We also stayed to see everyone go to pray at the mosque as the call to prayer was announced (see video clip).
After a full day of sightseeing it was back to the Oasis Hotel to wash up, see the sound and light show in Giza and have last dinner and say our good-byes.
Overall, I had an amazing time and did not want my vacation to end. I made some amazing friends and people I will definitely keep in touch with and possibly travel with in the future. I ate great food, learned some Arabic phrases to add to my vocabulary, and came to the realization that any tourist in Egypt can be classified into 1 of 3 categories: Spice Girls, Rambo or Shakira (I think you will only understand if you go to visit…but hey that gives you all the reason now to plan a trip to Egypt right?!).
I am sure I missed a ton of details which I don’t want to bore you with as it probably is more exciting to me and those that were actually on the trip. But I hope this gives a good overview with what I did during my vacation to Egypt.
I highly recommend to everyone traveling to Egypt once in your life. There is nothing quite like it in the world. However, be prepared as it is not a glamorous country and it is quite sad to see how poor, filthy, and uncivilized such a historical place has been left behind. It really makes you think twice and be grateful for your freedom and what you.
*** I am having troubles with my photos and video clips at the moment so in the meantime please use the links in the above right hand corner labeled by albums to see my highlights until I can fix the blog site ***
1 comment:
cool steph
from dan grant
Post a Comment