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Posing with our bus security guard, who seemed to be keen on hanging out with us. Alexandria Highlights….
It was a nice leisurely morning as we did not have to meet until 8:30am. Our tour was among the first to leave port and enter the city of Alexandria. We took a drive through the streets viewing the beautiful architecture, albeit run down and imagining what these beautiful buildings would have looked like had they been maintained. We passed by the equestrian bronze statue of Mohammad Ali, not the famous boxer, but the founder of modern Egypt. Further on, we passed the elegant marble edifice, dedicated to the unknown soldier. Our first stop was the replica of the ancient bridge of Alexandria, where we took many photographs including a wonderful view of King Farouk’s palace. From there, we took a scenic drive on the boardwalk of Alexandria, and eventually arrived at the former palace of the late ex-king of Farouk (who was not an Egyptian, but rather a Turk, who only spoke Turkish). This palace was guarded and we were not allowed to enter. Next we went to the Alexandria National Museum, which was beautifully maintained; a stark contrast to the surrounding area. We saw some incredible statues and artifacts. There is an ongoing project to salvage artifacts from the sunken palace of Cleopatra. En route to this museum, you pass by the magnificent modern Alexandria library (designed by a Norwegian architect. The design represents an incomplete circle which represents the quest for never-ending knowledge. A large pool of water located on the site represented the vast ocean of knowledge.
Following this, we had one last stop, the catacombs of Shawqafa, a 3-level funerary complex dating from the second century AD. We were told there were 90 steps down a narrow circular staircase and that some areas were very dark and small. Mom said that there was no way she could do it as her knees were bothering her and she was worried about severe claustrophobia as she had experienced at the Sakkara cemetery. So I left mom on the bus with a few others that were struggling with similar issues and went down the 90 steps with the group and hung next to a tall 50-something Englishman (whose name I didn’t catch). The 90 steps were only 1-inch deep each. It was narrow and as we went down, the smell got a bit musty. But it was a very cool place. The catacombs were built out of sandstone with a thin coating of limestone overtop. However, the limestone was almost completely eroded. They did not allow anyone with a camera down there as they were worried about flash, which many people had brought down there in the past. We headed down to the very bottom where we were shown how bodies were dragged , mummified and stored. Me and my English friend went through some very narrow and short tunnels where you walked on old wooden planks. As we walked suddenly all the lights went out. Literally, all the lights went out and it was completely black for about 30 seconds. I did not panic, so I thought, but it was a strange sensation. The thought of not getting out occurred to me for a moment. Then the lights flickered and went back on. As I headed out of that area and went up a small set of stairs, I could feel the beat of my heart. My chest felt heavy and I realized that I was a bit freaked out, even though I logically knew that everything was fine. Fortunately it only affected me for a few minutes and all was well. How fascinating it was to see the ancient sarcophaguses and realizing what a macabre job it was to mummify bodies. Pulling out the intestines, the brains, etc. is a lot of work too!
We got back on board our bus and headed to the terminal, where all the Egyptian tourist shops were open and bustling with tourists from the ships, not just ours but also the Holland American Rotterdam. You could not even get inside as some of them were so packed. The good thing about this was that the shopkeepers were so busy that they had little time to harass you. I was able to shop leisurely at my own pace and pick out the things that I wanted. Both mom and I picked up some stuff, but not too much as much of it was very very cheap (in quality) and just wasn’t worth the bother. The vendors even looked a little tired as we headed towards the ship. What a contrast from when we first arrived.
Back on the ship we headed to our room, dropped off our stuff and walked to the Garden Café. We were shocked to find out that we could not serve ourselves. Apparently there were a couple of people on board that got the flu (or something) and the ship was taking every measure to avoid an alleged outbreak by making certain that all food was served by personnel with gloves on. What a crock of sh**. They already make passengers sanitize their hands when getting on board, when going into the dining room or when entering any new eating area. It is rather ridiculous. Oh, how strange that a person got sick. Stick a bunch of people together and you’re bound to find a sick person in the group. It’s silly. I find that it is putting a damper on the joy of the cruise. You feel as though you are being accused of being contaminated. It’s really stupid and I will be making my remarks to the cruise line afterwards.
However, to summarize our experience in Egypt, we have to say that it was fantastic, from the weather to the fabulous tour guide Rania. What a trip!
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