Egypt, Egypt, Egypt, what a crazy, chaotic, incredible country. The buildings are run down and the city is dirty but Egypt definitely has its charm. It’s been on our list for a while and after tooooons of research, we decided to pull the trigger. Luckily, Andrea and Andy wanted to join us on this exciting adventure for our 6th trip together. And now, after spending 10 days in Egypt I can tell you that we absolutely loved it.
Cairo: We knew the moment we arrived that Egypt was going to be a crazy trip. The thirty minute drive from the airport to the hotel was insane. I had never seen driving like that before. The lanes meant nothing, the beeping was a language of its own and there were pedestrians constantly darting in and out of traffic. It was a sight to see! When we safely made it to our hotel, we checked in and reviewed our itinerary for the trip before bed. For our first full day in Cairo our local guide Ahmed picked us up and we headed straight for the pyramids. Along the way, our guide explained the culture, the city of Cairo and of course the Pyramids of Giza. And the pyramids did not disappoint. They were amazing! It was just hard to believe something that incredibly old (over 4,000 years old!) was not only still standing but in good condition. We were even able to climb on the bottom 1/3 of the ancient wonder. Next, it was time for our camel ride. There were a few things I didn’t realize: 1. How incredibly tall camels are. 2. How bumpy the rides are. And 3. How much fun it would be! It was such a cool experience riding these animals in the desert with beautiful views of the pyramids. Pictures couldn’t quite capture its beauty. We got off the camels and with instructions from our camel guide, we had a mini photoshoot. Then had to get back on the camels to finish our ride. After, we decided to see what the inside of a pyramids looks like. We were warned there wasn’t much to see but it’s not everyday you’re able to go inside one. After crouching down a flight of stairs and through a long, skinny hallway it opened up into a small room with a sarcophagus. Truth be told, there really wasn’t much to see. We left the same way we came in and headed in the direction of the sphinx. After hearing the history behind it, we took a few obligatory funny pictures in front if it then moved on. A quick but interesting stop at a papyrus shop before heading to an open air museum in Memphis, the ancient capital of Egypt before Cairo. Then after a fun outdoor lunch, we made our way to the oldest pyramid in the world, Djoser pyramid which was built 2630–2610 BC compared to Cheops pyramid (7th wonder of the world) 2580–2560 BC. Last shopping stop of the day was to a cartouche necklace shop where Andrea and I both bought one. We had dinner before heading back to the pyramids to watch the sound and light show. It was a long, exhausting but amazing day.
Our guide Ahmed pick us up again for another day in Cairo. We started with Mohamed Ali Alabaster mosque that was modeled after the Blue Mosque in Turkey. This was the first mosque we’ve ever been in and it was very impressive. After, we went to Khan El Khalili, the oldest bazaar in the Middle East. We haggled with a local shop owner for three souvenir pyramids which we ended up getting for a great price. Next, we headed to the hanging church in Coptic Cairo. This was a very interesting stop because under the church was a small room where The Holy Family had stayed during their pilgrimage through Egypt. They even had a small sign saying “Here Jesus Christ slept while he was a child.” Once we finished there, we had lunch then headed to the Museum of Antiquities. It was a massive building filled with everything from ancient art work and sculptures to mummies and sarcophaguses. The most impressive was the collection of treasures found in King Tutenkamun’s tomb including his death mask. After our fill of old artifacts, we headed back to the hotel where we had the evening to relax.
Luxor: An early morning wake up for our flight to Luxor for a 4 night/ 5 day cruise down the Nile. We were picked up in Luxor and headed to the M/S Mayfair, our boat for the week. We got checked in, met with our local guide Mohamed (who would be our guide for the time on the boat) then headed for our first temple of the trip, Karnak temple. A colossal structure consisting of huge pillars, a row of sphinxes and an obelisk, the tallest surviving ancient obelisk in the world. After a brief summary of the temple, we had time to take pictures and walk around. We walked counter-clockwise around a statue of a scarab for luck, marveled at the writing on the pillars and tried to wrap our minds around how they erected the obelisk (Mohamed said that even with current technology we wouldn’t be able to erect a single block monument like this). We then moved on to our next temple of the day. Luxor temple although much smaller than Karnak temple in my opinion just as impressive. These temples are completely decorated from top to bottom with pictures and hieroglyphics, all depicting different scenes of the ancient gods. Some even retained a bit of the color that used to adorn these temples. It was hard to believe that ancient Egyptians could build something so remarkable. After watching the sun go down behind the Luxor temple we headed back to the boat where we enjoyed an evening of delicious food and belly dancing.
We opted for the sunrise hot air balloon ride over the Valley of the Kings which called for a super early wake up. We got there just in time to watch them blowing up the massive balloons. Apparently, these baskets are the biggest in the world each able to hold 32 people plus the pilot. Once ours was ready we climbed into our section of the basket just big enough for 4 people and started our assent. Our balloon operator throughout the hour flight explained what we were seeing. He pointed out the Valley of the Kings, Luxor Temple, Hatshepsut Temple, etc. Then we all watched the sun rise over the valley. It was so beautiful and really peaceful. On our descent, we floated right over Karnak Temple. From that perspective we were able to see just how big it actually is. We gently landed back on the ground happy to have had that amazing experience. We met back up with our small group and started with the Temple of Hatshepsut. We had a while to explore the only temple dedicated to a queen after our guide Mohamed explained the very interesting story behind her life. Next, it was time for a tour of the Valley of the Kings. As of right now, they have discovered 64 tombs and hoping to find more, especially ones like King Tuts – full of untouched treasures. Our ticket allowed us to visit three different tombs out of a handful open to the public. Mohamed gave us his opinion on the most impressive tombs so we went with the expert. These very large, deep tombs were all extremely well decorated with the entire interior covered in paintings and carvings with surprisingly, most of the color still remaining. Wanting to see more tombs, we bought the extra ticket to see Rameses V and VI. It was definitely worth it, they were even more impressive than the first three. We also decided to pay extra to see King Tutankhamen’s tomb and mummy. We noticed that his tomb wasn’t quite as big or as intricate as the others. We found out it’s because kings usually spend a lot of their lives decorating their own tombs so when they die they are exactly to their liking. Since King Tut died at age 18 it didn’t give them much time to decorate his tomb (only about 70 days – which is how long it takes to mummify a body). After that unforgettable stop, we headed back to the boat for an afternoon of cruising down the Nile. As we were enjoying the sunshine on the top deck of the boat, we hear someone yelling “hello!” We look over the edge and see that two men have attached their small paddle boat to our cruise boat and are trying to sell their products. They would throw up their dresses or scarves to people on the boat who would look at the product and decide if they wanted to buy it. If interested, they would negotiate a price and throw down money. If not, then they would throw the clothing back down to the men. It was a clever way to do business. We headed to our room to get ready for dinner and when I came out of the bathroom I see Alex and Andy with their heads out of the sliding doors, talking to someone. They had started negotiating with two different men on a rickety row-boat with the goal of buying two dresses for the galabaya party the following evening. The men threw up a white dress, A&A examined it but threw it back down when they decided they wanted a different color. The eager men below then tossed up a few more colors. Once they settled on a black dress, it was time to negotiate the price. Alex would yell out a number and the men would yell back until they landed on a deal (negotiating was easier this way because when A&A wanted to privately talk about the price, they would close the sliding glass doors). Alex then threw down money plus a few extras for the guys on the boat including hand lotion, Belgian cookies and the ever coveted pen. It was a fun way to negotiate.
The next morning was a very interesting stop. Even though Mohamed had given us a warning beforehand we still didn’t know what we were getting into. We stepped off our calm, quiet boat into utter chaos. Apparently, the only way to get to the temple is by horse and carriage. While we were waiting for ours (2 people per carriage), numerous people kept coming up to us and trying to sell waters or souvenirs. They would stand there for an uncomfortable amount of time hoping to get a response. I was pretty good at completely ignoring them but since it’s in our nature to be nice and say “no, thank you” (which only encouraged them more) it took others a bit longer…but we all eventually got the hang of it. Our carriage driver picked us up and we headed towards the temple which was about a 15 minute ride. Along the way we saw an even more run down town than we’ve seen before. People would be darting in and out of traffic, carriages coming from all different directions with the drivers yelling at each other and kids trying to jump onto carriages. It was really a crazy scene. Once we got close, our driver being an older man decided that he didn’t want to wait in the long carriage line to get into the temple so he just bypassed everybody. He was being yelled at left and right but that didn’t stop him from squeezing his carriage through the entrance gate. He made someone coming from the opposite direction back up for us to pass and another person ended up hitting us. It was absolute chaos. The benefit was getting off that carriage before the others in our group. We waited about five minutes for the rest to catch up and we headed into the temple. We left the commotion of the street and walked into a quiet, peaceful temple. Almost entirely intact, the Temple of Edfu was dedicated to Horus, the falcon headed god of war. As with most of the temples, it had been almost completely buried by sand and mud from the Nile, which was later rediscovered and unearthed. We walked around this beautiful temple, admiring the artwork and drawings of the ancient gods. After we exited the temple, we were bombarded with men trying to sell us things. Normally, I would just completely ignore them but today, Andrea and I needed dresses for the party. We quickly found what we wanted, and started negotiating with the owner. He gave us a ridiculous price and Alex stood firm with our bottom line (Alex is really good at negotiating). We were fully prepared to walk if he didn’t agree, which we had to do three times before he finally caved. Happy with our purchase, we got back on our carriage and safely to the boat slightly grateful to be out of that crazy town. Since we were sailing for the afternoon we sat upstairs playing cards and enjoying the scenery and beautiful weather. Around dusk, we stopped in Kom Ombo for a visit to the Kom Ombo Temple, a double temple dedicated to the crocodile god Sobek and the falcon god Horus. We then returned to the boat to sail to Aswan. After a traditional Egyptian dinner, we got dressed up for our galabeya party. We put on our dresses (that we worked hard for) and joined the party. They had games and dancing and at the end they asked for 6 couples to participate in a game. We volunteered Alex and Andy. They were given 10 minutes to wrap their partner like a mummy and then we all voted at the end. I was laughing so hard especially when Andy had to make a nose hole for Alex for breath. They got second place.
Aswan: The next morning we woke up early for our 5am pick up time. We got to the airport and after finding our names, the man behind the counter said “you’re early.” We all looked at each other like “uh oh.” Our guide thought our flight was at 7:30am but it ended up being at 9:30am. We headed back to the boat, ate breakfast, then did the same thing all over again. We then flew 45 minutes to Abu Simbel where we were greeted by our driver and taken to the temples. While we walked, our guide gave us information on what we would be soon be seeing. With the creation of Lake Nasser in 1958-1970, these two temples were threatened with flooding. So in 1964 UNESCO took over the efforts to save the temples by cutting them into hundreds of thousands of pieces and moving them to a nearby artificial hill. Their efforts were completely worth it because these temples were absolutely amazing! The first, a monument to Rameses II was my favorite temple. Four huge statues made up the outside of the facade while smaller statues lined the inside which was, of course intricately decorated. The second temple was a monument to Rameses II’s favorite wife, Queen Nefertari. It was much smaller but still very impressive. Once we finished with the tour, we drove back to the airport and flew right back to Aswan. Unfortunately, because of a short flight delay, we missed a group tour to a nearby Nubian village. Luckily, our guide called around and found us a private guide to take us to the village. Our guide Mohamed (so many a Mohamed’s!) picked us up and hired us a small boat to get to the village. It was a 45 minute ride and the most beautiful stretch of the Nile. We noticed two small boys sitting on a board in the middle of the river. As we got closer to them, they grabbed on to our boat and started singing. They held on for a while, singing songs until we gave them a small tip. They let go and moved on to the next boat. It was a clever way for them to make some money. We knew immediately that we had arrived at the Nubian village because of all the beautifully colored houses. We got off the boat and walked straight into one of those houses. We were greeted by the owner who asked if we wanted to hold one of his pet crocodiles (they are a sign of luck in Egyptian culture) so we did. Then we were able to walk around the house and see how the Nubians live. We sampled some delicious Egyptian tea while taking in the view of the village. Once we finished, we took the long way around the village moving out of the way of passing camels until we reached our boat. We sailed back to the MS Mayfair where they were having a Nubian party. It was our last night on the cruise so we enjoyed a few beers while watching the entertainment.
Cairo: Our first stop of the day was to an unfinished obelisk. The obelisk was found in one of the granite quarries that was still in use until the discovery. And what a great discovery it was because it showed exactly how the ancient Egyptians cut, moved and transported their obelisks. Had this one been completed, it would have been the tallest obelisk ever constructed but unfortunately, it cracked while cutting. Our next stop was to our last temple of the trip. Temple of Philae, dedicated to the goddess Isis. It was the last temple built in the classical Egyptian style. This temple having been completely submerged for thousands of years was also cut into pieces and moved mere feet to higher grounds. Luckily for us they decided to move it because once again, it was incredible to see. All of the details put into these temples is just unbelievable. After seeing so many still standing temples, we questioned why we were just seeing the temples and not palaces where the kings and queens lived. The reason was because the ancient Egyptians believed in the afterlife so they constructed their temples out of hard stone and their homes out of less permanent mud brick so unfortunately, none of them survived. Our last stop of the day was to the high dam, the newest built structure we saw. The dam has helped to minimize flooding of the Nile during the flood season. Then it was time to board our flight back to Cairo. Once we arrived we had the evening free to do what we wanted. We decided to venture out a bit. We walked around Cairo for a while then, needing a change in food, we stopped into Pizza Hut for a cheap meal. Once it started to get dark we headed back to the hotel.
Alexandria: Alexandria was a 3 hour drive away so we again headed out early. Ahmed our same guide from the first two days joined us for the trip. Once we arrived in Alexandria, the feel was a bit different from Cairo. It was smaller (still with a population of 8 million!) and the buildings felt more compact and the people were a little less conservative. We started first at the catacombs that were originally made for a single family of four but once they were long gone, the undertaker decided to make some extra money by expanding it and adding more and more tombs. We than made a quick stop at Pompeys pillar, a roman column before heading to the Library of Alexandria. We were hoping to see a lot of old books but since the library was virtually all destroyed by a fire hundreds of years ago, it was completely modern and held mostly newer collections. Afterwards, we had a delicious lunch overlooking the Mediterranean Sea then had the rest of the afternoon free. We checked into our hotel and sat on our balcony facing the sea watching the people below trying to cross the street (not an easy task for foreigners in Egypt). We also ventured out for a bit (having to cross that same street) before returning to the hotel for a good nights sleep.
We had a few things left to see in Alexandria before we headed back to Cairo. Our first stop was to Montazah’s palace which was right across from our hotel. It was built in a French style architecture with beautiful gardens overlooking the sea. We walked the grounds a bit and then made our way to Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi mosque. We had been to a mosque in Cairo but this time Andrea and I were required to cover our heads. Not only that but we had to enter the mosque through a side door and only allowed in a smaller women’s section as to “not distract the men” from prayer. But since prayer wasn’t for a couple of hours we were eventually allowed into the men’s section. It was very interesting to learn a little bit about their religious customs. We took a few pictures and then moved onto our last stop in Alexandria. We went to the Citadel of Qaitbay a defense fortress where one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world had once stood, the Lighthouse of Alexandria. The ancient lighthouse was badly damaged by three earthquakes and the last of the remaining stones were used to build the citadel. It was an impressive structure with a great view of the sea and a nice last stop of our trip. We made our way back to Cairo but not before stopping for a traditional Bedouin lunch. We had sides of hummus, baba ghanoush, salad, rice, potatoes, bread etc. Plus, lamb, camel (none for me, thanks) and chicken. It was delicious and filling. Once we got back to Cairo, we headed up to the rooftop bar to have a drink overlooking the city. Then for dinner we walked to a nearby restaurant and since no one was really very hungry, we had a light dinner of hummus and garlic dip. Andrea and Andy had a 2am flight out of Cairo so they left soon after we got back.
Egypt marked our 30th country and was nothing short of amazing. The sights, the people, the food, it really felt like we were in another world. It was hard to even wrap our mind around how old everything was. This is one trip we will never forget. Again, Andrea and Andy thank you so much for coming with us. You all made this trip unforgettable. Thanks Pharaohs!
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That trip looked Amazing! Especially interested in the Nile River cruise. What an adventure you all had!
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This gets a double wow!!! Sounds absolutely incredible!! Love all the pics, even the goofy ones 😀Sunny, excellent job narrating this trip of a lifetime!
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