From Pyramids to Castles, Desert to Highlands

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If you didn't get my last email let me know.. I didn't receive any responses.. (If I don't get responses, I might not continue to do this 😉)

Day 16: Wednesday June 7: Cairo

I'm going to miss Crazy Cairo. The first day I got here, I wouldn't venture out more than a couple of blocks from the hotel, I didn't know how to cross the street!!.. Cars regularly make 3 or 4 lanes out of 2, and none of the traffic signals are operating.. A flow of traffic will travel, until there is the slightest break, and then the other direction will butt in.. Luckily most roads are one way, but that doesn't mean all the cars actually travel in that direction. Today, I can walk in the middle of the street without worry, weaving in and out of parked cars, moving cars and people. I can cross the street without looking (trust me, its better this way) and I can ride in a taxi without flinching..

In the morning, we were taken to "Garbage City", this is where the people collect the rubbish from all over the city and sort out the trash and recyclables, they recycle everything, and each family has their own little nitch. Most of the people are the christians that live here and the church is carved into the rock, much like Red Rocks in Colorado, but grander.

After we went to the Citadel and the Mosque of Mohammad Ali (not the boxer), a beautiful Mosque if I must say so myself, and we got a little lesson on some of the teachings of Islam.

For lunch, we headed to the largest Bazaar market in all of the Middle east, rows and rows and rows of shops.

I'm going to miss my tour group, Our leader Esam has been great, Pam and Dave, the Kiwis are the couple that you hope you become.. Sharon, the Aussie living in the UK but traveling for 6 months, engaged to the farm boy that has never left the country, is a brave and carefree girl, I stil don't know how she thinks shes going to settle down on a farm.. and Carmel and Sam, the mom and daughter Aussies travelling around for 2 months together, mostly loving to each other, have been a great addition to this group.

Our last dinner together, I have pretty much tried everything on a typical egyptian menu while I was here. Falafels, Tagen (kind of a tomato based stew with vegetables, chicken or beef), kofta (fried minced meat), shish kabob, shish tawook (chicken), liver (BLEH!!!), stuffed pigeon (you heard me right), bird tongue soup (its actually just little pasta noodles), goat, lamb, egyptian pie, and I'm sure much much more that I don't remember.

Although I've toned down the coca cola, I will be happy to have some kind of standard pub fare when I leave.

Day 17: Thursday June 8: Cairo to Edinburgh

Got up at good ol 5am this morning to catch my crazy taxi to the airport.. luckily there wasn't much traffic.. My flight to London, then to Edinburgh were uneventful, but long. Once I arrived I checked into the hostel and made my way into town. The weather was PERFECT (I think even the pilot was surprised when we landed) and I went up to Edinburgh castle, took the little tour and then headed down the royal mile to check out some of the other sites of Edinburgh.. Its kind of interesting because its amazing how old the building are compared to the US, but after being in Egypt for so long, they seem so young. I headed for bed kinda early, exhasted from getting up early and then walking around the city.

Day 18: Friday June 9: Edinburgh to Isle of Skye

Today I hopped on a backpackers bus to travel to Isle of Skye. Along the way we stopped at castles, battle fields, cairns (ancient berial grounds) and of course, the Lock Ness. I didn't see the monster today, but you never know. From there we headed to the Isle of Skye, where tomorrow we'll take a full days tour. The highlands are beautiful and the weather has been perfect once their version of "June Gloom" burned off.

I did get some pictures today, but I might not get any more.. My camera has been flaky since getting sand in it in Egypt. Once I get to London in a week, I'll have it checked out, and if it can't be fixed quickly, pick up some kind of cheap digital to get me through the rest of my trip. So I might not get much of Scotland/Ireland, but it just means I'll have to come back. (I should be able to get pictures from other backpackers).

Hope all is well with you back home.. Talk to ya soon!

~Dave

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