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Blogs from Egypt, Africa
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May 16th 2013
The driver of the taxi doesn’t know where the Pyramids are one of the wonders of the world Cairo’s no. 1 attraction, so he’s stopped for directions and he asks this guy and this guy tells him where to go. More car horns dust fumes. He stops outside the Hotel Pyramisa and he turns and he says to us Here? No. He calls over another driver. This other driver, he asks us where we want to go and we say the Pyramids. Ahhhh. He dispenses more instructions. At a busy intersection. A man jumps in the passenger seat. You’re going to the Pyramids? Mind if I ride with you? I’m on my way to work there. Sure. ... You want horse ride? Camel ride? Very cheap, very cheap. No thanks. Very cheap, very cheap. No thanks. ... read more
May 12th 2013
Friday May 10, 2013. Alexandria, Egypt Hugging the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, Alexandria is Egypt's largest seaport and second largest city. Known as the 'Pearl of the Mediterranean', Alexandria was originally founded as a small town by Alexander the Great in 331 BC. It was Egypt's capital for almost 1000 years until the Muslim conquest of Egypt in 641 AD. Modern Alexandria is divided into 6 districts. We had previously arranged to meet our (Ex-English now Ozzie) pals from Perth called Alan and Karen at 9.30 by the gangway. We actually bumped into them earlier in the Lido where we breakfasted. We left the port and met up with another couple from Melbourne called Margaret and Alan who were looking to share a taxi for 6. The four of us agreed to join them. We ... read more
May 11th 2013
Saturday May 11, 2013. At sea sailing from Alexandria, Egypt to Rhodes, Greece. Another much needed relaxing day at sea. We had a posh breakfast and spent the day reading on deck by the covered pool (which was uncovered) and watching movies. We went to see the show which was called Livewire which was a duo performing Celtic music with an electric guitar and electric fiddle. We weren't expecting much but they really were very good. M had suffered bad sunburn (after only 1 hr on deck). Tonight was a formal night so we donned our glad rags for dinner. We were joined by Karen and Alan and a good meal was had by all.... read more
May 9th 2013
Thursday May 9, 2013. Port Said, Egypt Port Said is the main port city at the northern gateway to the Suez Canal. It was established in 1859 during the construction of the canal and has since become a thriving duty-free port and a popular resort destination for Egyptians during the summer. Port Said is twinned with the city of Port Fuad on the eastern bank of the canal and the two cities are connected by ferries that run throughout the day. The Suez Canal, west of the Sinai peninsula, is a 101 mile (163 kilometre) maritime canal in Egypt between Suez on the Red Sea and Port Said on The Mediterranean Sea.The Canal allows north south transits for vessels travelling from Europe to Asia and vice-versa - avoiding the necessity to circumnavigate Africa. Most of the ... read more
Sailing across the Mediterranean towards Port Said, Egypt
Published: May 9th 2013Africa » Egypt » MediterraneanMay 8th 2013
Wednesday 8 May, 2013. Sailing across the Mediterranean towards Port Said, Egypt We had a very lazy day today (and we needed it!). D had an early breakfast up on the Lido while M stayed in bed for a lie in. We went to the restaurant for lunch for the first time all trip. M went to the craft group and made some wine charms. These are so you can tell whose glass of wine belongs to who at a party. Four charms were provided (in 4 colours). Some of the dozey women in the group decided that their charms would be much prettier if they mixed the colours up! We wouldn't want to be a guest at their party and trying to work out whose glass was whose! We sat on deck in the afternoon ... read more
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May 2nd 2013
Egypt was fascinating. We were unsure even the night before if we were going to call. Other ships had cancelled, but we we so happy with HAL for not doing so. I'm sure they were checking security, as there had been a breach of the American Embassy wall several days prior and embassy murders in Libya. A Cruise Critic group of 20 of us did an overnight tour with Ramses Tours, which for we singles was less than 1/3 the price of the HAL tour (same hotel), in a mini-bus. 3 hours from Alexandria to Giza the first day was a long trip, but there was a pleasant roadside stop. Our guide gave us lira to use the toilets (common in the middle east). Our destination was the pyramids at Giza. When we came around the ... read more
April 30th 2013
After our relaxing days at the Red Sea we had to say good bye to our Egyptian tour guide and make our way via ferry to Jordan. We were dropped off at the port and with the help of a security guard got through customs without any incidents. (We entered in one building, put our bags through an xray machine that no one paid any attention to and then had to go to another building to wait.) We were ushered into one corner of a large hall where all of the ferry passengers were waiting. The passengers were mostly local, and the other tourists were from the middle east. They were also mostly male. The fact that you never see women just out and around baffles me. That combined with all of the staring definitely makes ... read more
Relaxation on the Red Sea and more signs of the revolution
Published: April 26th 2013Africa » Egypt » Red Sea
April 26th 2013
After Cairo we were supposed to head to Mt. Saint Catherines and then on to the Red Sea. However, since there had been some tourist kidnappings in that region we were not allowed to go there. In fact we had to take a massive detour that added almost six hours onto our journey across the peninsula. We had a lot of quality time in vans in Egypt. Crossing the mountain range was a bit surprising for me. When I think of mountains I think of the Rockies. Snow on top, vegetation of some sort, trees, that sort of thing. These mountains are red first of all, and they lack any real plant life. They're very barren! The rock is the prominent feature. They're also very small. They're short mountains. That isn't to say they weren't gorgeous, ... read more
April 25th 2013
Getting into Cairo the second time around was quite a bit more chaotic than the first time we arrived. A hired van met us at the train station and took us to the Citadel, but being daytime the traffic was insane! I have to say, I would never want to drive in Egypt. It takes forever to get anywhere because every three feet someone is blocking the way. There are lanes painted on the roads, and I did see a couple of traffic lights..but nobody pays any attention to that sort of thing. At one intersection there was actually a traffic cop standing in the middle of the chaos trying to direct people where to go. That's a brave guy and I don't envy his job. Eventually we made it to the Citadel and our guide ... read more
April 23rd 2013
After the rush of our first couple of days in Egypt we slowed it down a bit and spent some time floating down the Nile on a felucca. The weather was perfect for it! Not too hot with a bit of a breeze and bright sunshine in a deep blue sky. We cheated a bit and had a second boat with some facilities meet us as designated spots for lunch and supper. It was a luxury that we all appreciated! The boat ride was a good opportunity for us to chat and get to know each other better, and to just sit back and watch the scenery go by. Or nap. Whichever. I can't say that a lot happened on the boat, but it was nice. Feluccas aren't allowed to sail after dark, so in the ... read more
