"Getting red by the Red Sea" a Sharm El Sheikh Travel Page by Minashka

Have you ever stepped off the plane and felt like this is it… I am finally gonna get some rest! Usually when I take a vacation and go somewhere I never get any rest. I am either jumping from one town to another trying to see as much as I can or I get up really early and go to bed really late spending the whole day sightseeing and mixing up with locals. Well, in Egypt I finally felt like I was on vacation. Of course there is a lot to do in Egypt, many historical sites to explore, many museums to visit but not when you’re in Sharm-El-Sheikh. There you can be lazy, spend all day at the beach or by the pool, go diving and in the evening either watch a musical show or check out one of the discos. Located gracefully on Sinai Peninsula, caressed by the waters of the Red Sea Sharm-El-Sheikh is the best resort town in Egypt. It has a great number of hotels and really nice beaches. As I was told by our tour guide, the town is divided into 3 parts – the area near airport, area near Old Market and Naama Bay. The latter is considered downtown - with many shops, discos and restaurants.

Egyptians are not like all the other Arabs I would say. In Sharm they’re very friendly and hospitable, whereas in Cairo I was followed by at least 2 men though I was not alone. Almost all the locals in Sharm speak English, Italian, French and maybe some German. But I had never seen so many Italians all in one place – not even in Italy ;-) No wonder all the locals are so good with the Italian language! No matter how friendly the people are though, they may become a bit annoying when they keep asking you for your name, they wanna know where you came from and even if you tell them the story of your life – there will be more questions to follow, you can be sure of that ;-) You can not blame them, instead appreciate the fact that they’re trying to earn money honestly and you just happen to be their target! Oh did I forget to mention that the men there really like to touch tourist women. So dear women, keep in mind that this is a Muslim country and do not smile to strangers like you would in a European country. This is especially bad in Cairo, where they will literally follow you should you make a mistake of smiling at a strange man. Many of them are gonna try to touch you, so don't be scared to tell them to leave you alone. Don't worry, you will not offend them in any way ;-)

So you are in Sharm-El-Sheikh… you have already got some sun, gone diving, eaten seafood and so it’s about time you should see some history! You’re just 5-6 hours away from the 1st wonder of the world – the Pyramids!!! Find out from your hotel or one of the travel agencies in Naama Bay how to get to Cairo and about different tours to Luxor or Alexandria. The buses are very safe and not too expensive – driving takes about 5-6 hours and if you take the plane, it will get you to Cairo in 45-50 minutes. One way ticket can cost around $120. The best and the safest thing is to go with one of the tours. From Sharm it’ll probably cost $60 per person to go to Cairo in the morning and come back the same night. The tour includes visiting the Sphinx, the 3 pyramids, a perfume factory, a papyrus factory, lunch on a boat on Nile River and couple of hours in the Cairo Museum. So use the opportunity and experience the magic in Egypt!