"Alex's travels." darchief's Profile

My housemate and I have recently returned from Egypt. I've always been interested in the Pyramids and Sphinx before we went. It truly was a holiday of a lifetime. To stand in Giza and touch a Pyramid.... Gave me shivers. We stayed in Sharm el Sheikh, but were able to book excursions to various other places. Sharm is alright, if you're just after the sun. For all the excursions my friend and I went on, we paid £550. And well worth it too! We arranged to do something every other day.

Our first trip was to Cairo. We left at 1:30am and arrived at 9am, and the coach drivers are all lunatics!!! And an armed security guard with us all the time. We went to Cairo Museum first. No cameras allowed, and you get searched before you can go in. They even questioned my MP3 player. You only get an hour and half there, because it's so busy. Our guide was fantastic. He said it would've taken 3 months to go around everything. But, he showed us what he thought we'd be most interested in. Apparently, they have over 10.000 mummies in there! Tut's death mask was unbelievable! We then went for a cruise on the Nile, with our guide insisting that it was drinkable, and proved it! Then, dinner by the Nile, before making our way to Giza. I had this vision that the Pyramids and Sphinx were somewhere in the middle of the desert. But, they're within a few miles of Cairo. Very strange! But, I have to say, they are majestic! To think they've been there for several thousand years. That being said, as we drove down to the Sphinx, I was deeply disappointed to find Burger King and Pizza Hut sat right in front of the Sphinx. We then went to a Perfume museum, followed by a papyrus museum, then back to Sharm. Sadly, the batteries ran out on the digital camera, and my SLR didn't like the heat. So, I've only one good picture of the Pyramids.

Our next trip was a jeep safari to Mount Sinai and St. Catharine's Monastery, the Coloured canyon and tea with some Bedouins. Again it was a full day's outing. And again, well worth it. Oddly enough, our guide was the same on we had when we went to Cairo, and the other 4 tourists, we'd dined with on the Nile, so we knew everyone, and had a fantastic time with them. In the monastery, they claim to house the Burning Bush, that Moses encountered (I've just uploaded a picture). Apparently, they have tried planting cuttings else where, but it won't grow. They also have a place just outside the monastery they call the Skull room. And it is just as it sounds, it's a room full of skulls and bones of the monks who have died there. We were then taken out into the desert with a Bedouin Guide, to the Coloured Canyon. What they don't tell you is, there is no easy way into the Canyon, except jumping down some steep dunes. Inside the Canyon is wonderful, the way the canyon walls have been eroded over the years makes it a must place to visit. There was no easy way out of the canyon either. You kind of got hoisted out by several guides. Not fun! We were then taken to, what seemed to be a random boulder in the middle of know where. It also appeared to have been eroded over the years, but if you look closely above and below the dark line, it has hieroglyphs (pic just uploaded). According to our guide, this is ancient graffiti. We then enjoyed (not)! a cup of tea with some Bedouins. It wasn't very nice. If you're a tea/coffee drinker, find something else to drink when you eventually get to Egypt. It's not very nice. Then, on the way back to the hotel, our cohorts sang show tunes. It was fantastic!

My house mate (the other guy in some of my pictures), was poorly for a few days. That's when you discover you should have packed some Imodium. And you also discover that most holiday resort shops, don't stock those sort of pills. They do have a clinic, where the Doc's can give you a jab, for £100 UK pounds. Of course, no trip to Egypt would be complete without the obligatory Camel ride!! You've got to try it at least once! Not the most comfortable animal to ride, and it will also give you a sore bum! We made the mistake of riding camels one day, and went quad biking the following day. And I can assure you, the sand is not soft!!! You feel like you're going over cobbles!

And then, we went to Luxor. Taking in the Valley of the Kings, Hatshepsuts temple, and Karnak temple. We flew to Luxor, it would have taken way too long by coach. It only took an hour, which wasn't too bad. We only 5 in our tour group, which we thought was good. Too many people, makes it too hard to hear the guide. Not sure what our guide's name was, but he was a professor in Luxor. Firstly we went to see the Statues of Memnon. They stand 19 or so feet tall. They stand just outside the Valley of the kings, in an area rich in Alabaster. A 10 minute drive later, we arrived in the valley of the kings, though our guide insisted that it should be the valley of the rulers, as there are several queens tomb's there. Tutankhamen's tomb was closed to the public, but the entry ticket entitles you to view 3 tombs. We went into the tombs of Rameses 1st, 3rd and 9th, as suggested by our guide. The colour of the tomb paintings was as if it had only just been painted. And I was surprised as to how hot it was inside. You would have thought if you were underground it would get cooler, but in fact it seemed to get hotter. It is defiantly another must place to see!! We were then take to Hatshepsuts Temple. Again, fantastic. Just the way it's carved into the side of a mountain. All along the road leading up to the temple are small tombs of the workers who built it. The thing you will notice is how hot it is. Just walking up the stairs, you'll burn the backs of your legs. The other thing you'll notice, is the locals. They are very persuasive when it comes to selling their goods.

We were then given the choice to either go shopping in Luxor, or have a ride around the city in a horse drawn carriage. We opted for the latter, much more fun! And a chance to see the city as it really is. We got to eat dinner next to the Nile again! We spent the last couple of hours just watching the sun going down. After that we returned to Sharm, just to relax for a few days before we returned to good old England.

My house mate and I have decided we are going back, but we don't know when. We've also decided we're going to stay somewhere more central, so that we can take in the likes of Abu Simbel, Aswan, Saqqara and Alexandria. It's dead cheap over there, £10 Egyptian pounds to £1 UK. They view smoking as a status symbol, it shows you have money. I find it amazing that in this day and age, that they are still finding tombs! We're seriously considering going to the conference that they are hosting at the Reading University in September. I do like all sorts of history. My house mate loves anything to do with Medieval England. Especially knights and Arthurian legends. We'd like to go to China as well, for the Great Wall and Terracotta Warriors. But, I think that's a long way off yet.

Alex