So the Sunday after the tours posted below, we spent all day watching my super sweet sixteen on MTV arabia. We ordered in Fuddruckers and packed for our overnight train to Luxor. It was great.We were picked up around 7 and taken to our train - a sleeper car with two twin bunk beds. The coloring of the cabin was in browns and dark orange. We were served many packages of bread during our stay and given the request to bring our own TP (but I didnt have a chance to use the rest room - apparently you aren't supposed to flush when you are stopped at a station if that tells you anything).
In the morning it was great looking out at the scenery going down the nile valley. Tons of agriculture - mainly sugar and alfalfa we were told later.
Day 1 of the cruise:
Once we reached Luxor - a driver picked us up and took us to our cruise boat. We got a 5 day cruise down the nile to Aswan on Abercrombie and Kent - which I highly recommend!
Our first stop on the tour was the Temple of Karnak
 |
| Karnak |
Then the Temple of Luxor in the afternoon.
 |
| Luxor Temple |
Day 2 of the cruise:
We visited the Valley of the Kings in the morning, an alabaster factor and then sailed off to Edfu
we ended the night with a belly dancer and whirling dervish (chris has the video)
We visited the Valley of the Kings in the morning, an alabaster factor and then sailed off to Edfu
we ended the night with a belly dancer and whirling dervish (chris has the video)
 |
| valley of the kings |
Day 3:
Edfu, Esna and Kom- ombo Temples - and the Galabaya party (we'll need to scan these pictures)
Edfu, Esna and Kom- ombo Temples - and the Galabaya party (we'll need to scan these pictures)
 |
| edfu n esna 08 |
 |
| kom-ombo temple 08 |
Day 4:
High Dam, Temple of Philae, unfinished Obelisk, and faluka ride
High Dam, Temple of Philae, unfinished Obelisk, and faluka ride
 |
| Aswan & Philae 08 |
Day 5:
move on to Elephantine Island and the Movenpick hotel
move on to Elephantine Island and the Movenpick hotel
 |
| elephantin |
Saturday (Day 6):
We flew from Aswan to Cairo and then to Sharm el Sheik.
Then a driver picked us up to take us on to Dahab for some scuba fun time. The driver was a big scary burley man who kept yelling at other guys hustling us to ride in their cabs. This was already alarming but not as much as when our driver started trying to charge us money for the airport fee, taking us down a different rode, making a u-turn and telling us to get in the car with his brother. I swear I thought I heard the word bango (marijuana) when we were transferring cabs. My guess is that he had a bit on him and didnt want to risk going through the checkpoint.
So we made it into Dahab to the Penguin hostel. Interesting for sure - no blankets, stained sheets and pillows, and s
alt water in the taps. We changed hotels to another down the block - this one still with salt water in the taps but we thought we could survive this for a couple days.
Day 7-8:
Anyway we spent the next two days getting our advance open water certificates and diving up
a storm. We did 6 dives - drift, deep, buoyancy, naturalist, navigation, and a night dive. I am sorry I didn't rent a camera for this part but holy crap I wish I had - we saw TONS of fish and corals including an eel, starfish, nudibranchs, parrot fish, lion fish, trigger fish, an octopus, a pregnant seahorse, and sea cucumbers. (there were many more but I decided to stop myself)
We flew from Aswan to Cairo and then to Sharm el Sheik.
Then a driver picked us up to take us on to Dahab for some scuba fun time. The driver was a big scary burley man who kept yelling at other guys hustling us to ride in their cabs. This was already alarming but not as much as when our driver started trying to charge us money for the airport fee, taking us down a different rode, making a u-turn and telling us to get in the car with his brother. I swear I thought I heard the word bango (marijuana) when we were transferring cabs. My guess is that he had a bit on him and didnt want to risk going through the checkpoint.
So we made it into Dahab to the Penguin hostel. Interesting for sure - no blankets, stained sheets and pillows, and s
alt water in the taps. We changed hotels to another down the block - this one still with salt water in the taps but we thought we could survive this for a couple days.We came up with the barak obama water treatments - which included buying a case of baraka (egyptian bottled water), leaving it out in the sun all day, and dousing each other with it at night when we wanted to freshen up. It was actually quite effective - but I definately recommend having a partner for this treatment because the self dousing doesn't work as well.
 |
| dahab |
Day 7-8:
Anyway we spent the next two days getting our advance open water certificates and diving up
a storm. We did 6 dives - drift, deep, buoyancy, naturalist, navigation, and a night dive. I am sorry I didn't rent a camera for this part but holy crap I wish I had - we saw TONS of fish and corals including an eel, starfish, nudibranchs, parrot fish, lion fish, trigger fish, an octopus, a pregnant seahorse, and sea cucumbers. (there were many more but I decided to stop myself)Day 9 (Tuesday July 1st)
By the time we got back to Dahab around 12pm we were exhausted - we had just enough time to get money out of the atm to pay off our debts and pack up before our ride came to take us back to the airport and cairo.
We got back into Maadi aroung 10:30pm and passed out as soon as we hit the bed.
Day 10 -
By the way it's my mom's b-day today... so everyone send a Big Happy Birthday! to my mom - the firecracker.
We spent the morning recovering from our late night dive and writing a cover letter for an MPH funding thing at a coffee shop. Then I bought a necklace (coral and turquoise, i think - chris is going to get it checked out at Burneys rock shop when he gets back) and we took a nap before heading up to mount sinai and st. catherine's monestary (where the burning bush still lives). We started our hike at about 2am to watch the sunrise at the top. It normally takes about 2 hours up and down but we had a girl with a foot problem in our group who refused to take a camel up or down - so I am sure we took twice as long. The sun came up around 5:30-6am and then we headed back down to the monestary eventually leaving for Dahab around 10am.
 |
| sinai and st. catherine monestary |
By the time we got back to Dahab around 12pm we were exhausted - we had just enough time to get money out of the atm to pay off our debts and pack up before our ride came to take us back to the airport and cairo.
We got back into Maadi aroung 10:30pm and passed out as soon as we hit the bed.
Day 10 -
We slept in and took the metro down to Cairo for a quick bite to eat and walk around the city. Then it was time to say goodbye :( - the attempt to make Chris late for his flight didn't work - so now his butt is flying somewhere over New York on his way back to school while I am still in my PJ's typing away.
 |
| downtown cairo |
By the way it's my mom's b-day today... so everyone send a Big Happy Birthday! to my mom - the firecracker.
No comments:
Post a Comment