Pyramids and overnight to Aswan

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We have just arrived in Aswan, having got the sleeper train from Cairo. Aside from the radio station on the train only playing Celine Dion, and the lounge car being kitted in brown decor and hazy with cigarette smoke like a 1970s film, it was a relatively comfortable journey. It took 12 hours from Cairo and we slept sporadically in a 2 berth cabin as the train jerked and jolted. The Nile in Aswan is gorgeous - blue and pristine. We're about to head out to explore the town and souk.
On Thursday we visited Coptic Cairo, which is much less frenetic than other parts we'd seen. We found a little stall selling photos of old Cairo and bought a few, as well as some retro postcards of the pyramids and sphinx. We then met up with our Intrepid tour and everyone is lovely. There's a mix of Aussies, Kiwis, Americans and British.
Yesterday we visited the pyramids. Unlike bygone eras when people sailed feluccas and rode camels, we got the metro and a bus! Hardly romantic, but practical. The pyramids surpass all superlatives, and I doubt I can add anything to the plethora of travel literature singing their praises. Nonetheless, their legendary and iconic status is justified. Dan went into the Pyramid of Khefu (spelling?) but I thought it would be too claustrophobic, so stayed outside for some sneaky pics with my new zoom lens. Dan said it was like a sauna inside the pyramid but very worthwhile, 'you can't come to Egypt and not go inside a pyramid'. I had lots of opportunity to talk to camel touts and take photos of them when they weren't watching.
Following the pyramids, we went to the Egyptian Museum. The exhbits of mummies and coffins and funerary artefacts and the treasures of Tutankhamen's tomb were incredible. The museum itself is like stepping back in time, with all the exhibits being very dusty and musty with typewritten descriptions.
Dan, Kylie and I stocked up on baklava and croissants for the train journey from a little bakery that was packed with locals. Our treats paid off and the tour group were very happy with us sharing the baklava. Surely better than the unidentifiable food that was served on the train!
Today we go sailing on The Nile and for a camel ride!

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Comments

[Sam]

Sounds lovely! The public transport in Cairo is probably more reliable than the district line over here lately.