Nothing is for free in Egypt

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These were the words of Hani our guide for the Intrepid tour in Egypt and we had already discovered this on our arrival at the airport. The flight was exciting in that we saw the Pyramids from the air but Cairo was a shock to the system. As soon as we arrived we were grabbed by a guy who said he would get us a taxi - some young guy loaded our bags onto a trolley and we followed him to the taxi. He put the bags in the car and then held out his hand - Baksheesh. I think if you were to ask someone the time here they would tell you and then expect to get paid for it - that's the Baksheesh. Cairo is a huge, noisy, dirty city and I would not recommend it to anyone - the only thing it has going for it are the pyramids. Our drive from the airport to the hotel was a real white knuckle affair with the driver whizzing along at 100km ev en though the limit is 60km. The 45 minute drive took us 20 mins I think. I had to close my eyes as he dodged through all the traffic. It seems everyone has their hand permanently on the horn so you can imagine how noisy it is. There is rubbish everywhere and none of the houses are finished - they almost look like they have been bombed. In fact it has something to do with the tax laws here - you don't start paying taxes until your house if finished - consequently the place is full of half finished houses. I would have thought the government would wake up to this fact and change the rules but what would I know.

The hotel was quite pleasant and we met our other Intrepid group up in the restaurant where Hani went through our itinerary. The group consisted of 2 poms, 2 americans, 1 new zealander and the rest Aussies. Ages ranged from 20 through to 70. The 70 yr old was Ruth from the States and she had her 70th birthday on the Felucca and handed out chocolates to everyone - it was rather fun - but I digress.

Our first trip in Cairo was to the pyramids which amazingly are only about 10 mins outside the city centre. They are quite amazing but in 45 degree heat it was difficult to take it all in. Of course every time you visit a tourist attraction there are 1 million sellers all hassling you to buy their goods and they don't seem to understand the word No in any language - they just keep hassling. Also, you have to bartter for everything otherwise you end up getting ripped off. I prefer to be told the price and pay it but it don't work like that here. After the pyramids it was off to the museum - we had a guide with us who told us all the history of Egypt and the Pharohs and mummification but it was next to impossible to concentrate in the museum as it was stifling hot - no air conditioning. Thomas, our young 20yr old from WA almost fainted with the heat - he was a little dehydrated and had not been drinking enough water. I must have drunk a river of water since arriving here and of course you have to buy the bottled stuff - if you drank the local tap water you would probably cark it pretty quickly.

No one in the group seemed to enjoy Cairo and we were all looking forward to getting out which we were able to do later in the day. We caught the overnight train to Aswan - no sleeper though only a seat which reclined. Train was an hour late but Lyn and I are getting used to that scenario - we were all in the same carriage and had a bit of fun before trying to get a bit of shut eye - not many were successful though.

Once at the hotel in Aswan we discovered that our rooms were not ready so we went for a quiet stroll around the markets. Well, that was the plan. The market stretched the full length of the street and every stall holder was out asking us to come into his shop for "hassle free" shopping. Turned out there was no such thing - sort of puts you off of buying anything. There were great sights and smells though with loads of spices out on the pavement and a dazzling array of colours.

We chose a different path to walk back - along the Nile - crowded with cruise boats although we were told the season had been very disappointing due to the economic downturn. That night we went on a boat tour of the Nile then by camel to a local Nubian village. The camel ride was a bit daunting and lasted half an hour. Joel almost fell off of his but managed to right himself at the last minute. Sun was setting as we arrived in the village and we were invited into a Nubian house where the Nubian women had cooked up a meal for us. We sat around on the floor eating delicious food and afterwards there were henna tattoos (I got one but Lyn declined) and the women brought out their hand made scarves and jewellery. Night ended with a knees up with everyone up dancing to the sound of the drums and tamborines - great fun. Then it was back to the hotel by boat for a good nights sleep before the Felucca ride the next day.

Next day was a shock to the system - 3am bus ride to Abu Simbel - we had to leave early because of the heat. Was fascinating to see but did I mention it was hot.......... The plan was to go on and visit some more sights in the afternoon but I opted for a sleep back at the hotel and left Lyn to see the rest of the sights. Following day we

Was only a few steps from the hotel to the Felucca - we had been told to pack a day pack with all our essentials in and that the backpacks would be stored under the boat. The Felucca was a large sailing boat with a huge mattress and pillows and a shade cloth over for the beating sun. We were all in good spirits and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves as we sailed back and forth across the Nile. The captain and his mate organised a lovely veggie lunch and we pulled up by the riverbank for a bit of a swim and a quick game of volleyball. It was great!

Off we sailed again - Ruth, one of the american ladies announced it was her (70th) birthday and handed out chocolates to everyone. Some lay baking in the sun, others read their books whilst others caught up on lost sleep. Pulled in again in the evening and once again a delicious meal was cooked up. We all got off the boat - the boys decided on a footy game and some of the girls joined in. As the sunset we lit a fire and sat around chewing the fat. Then the sheesha came out and just about everyone had a try of it - it was pretty strong - apple flavour but it's still tobacco. Glad we tried it though. Then it was everyone back on the big mattress for a sleep - very relaxing with the lapping of the water by the side of the boat. Toilet was a hole in the ground with a toilet seat over the top - bit dicey in the dark especially as we were surrounded by wild dogs. They weren't dangerous but one of them did steal a pair of thongs in the night - we had a big bin where we had to put our shoes but Lauren had left her pink Havianas by the boat - next morning they were gone-buried somewhere by the Nile no doubt.

Next morning we had pancakes for brekkie then headed to Luxor which was our next stop. Booked into our hotel and then we had a tour in the afternoon of the Karnak temples with a tour guide who once again gave us a history lesson and once again it was about 40 degrees in the shade so it didn't really sink in but fascinating all the same.

Next day it was off to Valley of the Kings which is where there are many tombs one of them Tutankhamens - Lyn went in for a squizz but I chose just to have my photo taken in front of it. We had already visited three other tombs - once you've seen one, you've seen them all. It was incredible to think how old all this stuff was and those pyramids - how did they build them?????

Next day it was into the bus early and off to the oases and desert. Stopped for lunch at a place called Farafra then it was four wheel drive into the White Desert. We had two four wheel drives and the drivers had fun chasing each other over the sand dunes - much to the consternation of the American contingent. We were all getting thrown around and of course, no seatbelts. It was fun though. That night it was sleeping at the million stars hotel in the middle of the desert. Once again, our drivers cooked up an amazing meal and we were joined at sunset by some desert foxes looking for food scraps. That was a b it scary as they hung around all night - they even stole Thomas's socks and Emmas thongs but they did get them back next morning.

We stayed at Baharaia oasis and Siwa oasis - both very interesting. At Siwa the women were totally covered - not even slits for their eyes - you could not see any of them at all. Women were rarely seen out anyway and when they were out they were fully covered. We were asked to cover up a little more in the oases because of this and that worked out OK.

At Siwa we hired bicycles for the morning and took in a few local temples etc then rode out to Cleopatras pool - a natural spring just out of Siwa. Unfortunately for us the local egyptian men were frolicking in the pool so us women had to wait - the boys were able to get straight in but we had to wait for the egyptians to go. The pool itself was actually a bit scungy so we got in for a while just to cool off then decided we were better off lying in the shade on the hammocks at the cafe - were a bit worried about what we might catch in the pool.

From Siwa we headed to Alexandria - the arrival was a little disappointing as we had followed the coast all the way and the water was a beautiful turquoise blue and there were modern resorts everywhere. Alex was like a mini Cairo and the hotel was probably one of the worst we had stayed in. We were all exhausted and I think most people were looking forward to the end of the trip. Walking down the corniche in Alex was like being on another planet. We got followed by groups of guys all trying to take photos with their mobiles. The beach was full of egyptians on holidays and it was strewn with rubbish as was the water. Needless to say none of us were interested in going in for a swim. One amazing thing in Alex was the library - absolutely huge and all the books were available on the internet. We did a tour in there and it was well worth it - they have a website - I suggest if you are interested that you google it.

First night there we ate at the fish market which was recommended - very good, fresh fish - you chose the one you wanted and paid by weight. Our second night in Alex was the last night for the tour - some had had enough of egyptian food and were hanging out for western food. Hence we had a bit of a split for the final meal with some going to the Sofitel for western food, some to the local egyptian restaurant and the American contingent returned to the Fish Market.

Next morning yet another early start and train to Cairo - 3 hrs. Hani was unable to get us seats all together so Gavin and Vereva ended up in another carriage. No one was looking forward to being back in Cairo and I think most were over Egypt - just about everyone in the tour had tummy troubles at one stage or another and I think more than a few found the attitude of the Egyptian men a little hard to cope with - understandable as the culture is so different from ours.

All in all I did enjoy Egypt especially the dinner with Nubians, the Felucca ride and the four wheel driving and sleeping out in the desert. Not keen on the big cities or the culture and having been there, done that I doubt that I would return.

Tomorrow we fly out to Rome but our plan is to catch a train straight to Sorrento. We are both a little exhausted and not 100% - need to recharge our batteries ready for the next few months.

Ciao for now

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Photos

Pyramids...
what pyramids? They're behind you!!

Big banana...
...no, it's the big sphinx

Giddy up
Looking forward to the Nubian feast

Yummy
in my tummy

Fun on the Nile
getting cosy on the felucca

This sheesha
is making me dizzy

Whoosh
They sure have big statues out here

Desert foxes
Gavin hand feeds the foxes in white desert

Doing the chicken dance
at chicken rock in White desert

Alexandria
at the old fort

Comments

[Willy]

Great Blog
Fantastic description of the trip Carol - you could be a travel writer. Now that would be a perfect next occupation. I'll ceck out Seek.com and the adevertiser to see if there are any jobs for you. No but seriously well told. :-)