tobytobias' Blog

Two weeks sounds like a lot of time, but there is so much to do in Egypt that we just ran out of time.  It was a great trip.  My wife, her parents and my parents spent the whole two weeks in Egypt, but her brother and his wife were only able to come for the first week.  That means we had to see ALL of Cairo in one week!  It was a big task, but I think we saw as much as humanly possible.

The best thing about arriving in Egypt, for us, is being greeted by family at the airport.  There are always tons of people there and it is so cool to see a familiar face staring back at you and smiling.  Of course this trip was a little different (Tanya's parents had already spent 10 days in Egypt before we arrived)...we not only had Egyptians greeting us, but Americans as well.

Driving in Cairo is like nothing you will ever see in your life in the US.  The lines on the road and street signs don't mean anything.  If the road is 2 lanes wide, you will have 3 to 4 cars side by side.  It isn't too close unless the mirrors touch.  Honking is not an aggressive gesture there as it is here in the States.  They use their horn as an announcement of here I am and I'm not stopping.  Think of Cairo as a chaotic New York City.  The streets are packed, but it isn't a problem because the people here are the friendliest people you will ever meet in your life.

Traffic moves steadily because other drivers allow you to merge in...especially if you stick your arm out the window and gesture for them to let you in (it works every time).  The streets aren't well marked, but that is no problem because anyone will help you out with directions.  We were walking the streets of Maadi (a Cairo suburb) one day and had a map.  Tanya and I were disagreeing on which way to go and a car actually stopped to ask if we needed help finding our way.  Can you believe that?  If a car stopped in any city in the States I wouldn't stick around to find out what they wanted.

Ok, that was a bit of a tangent, back to arriving.  After experiencing the thrill that is Cairo driving and after traveling for about 24 hours there is nothing better than having a huge meal.  Well, Tanya's Aunt loves to cook almost everything she knows and we get to have that waiting for us at the apartment.  Rice rolled in grape leaves or cabbage, kufta, chicken, macaroni bake, and so many other things I can't even begin to describe make up our meal.  The only problem I have is that my stomach can't hold all the food I want to eat.

The first thing we did was go to Khan el Khalili (the bazaar).  We have a jeweler that we go to to have specialty items made.  He is a little hard to find for the average tourist, but he always gives us a great deal and rightfully so...we visit him every time we are in Egypt.  The reason this is first is that we like to order the stuff so that we can come back on another day and pick it up.  Khan el Khalili is amazing!  Anything a tourist could want is for sale...even some things now tourist needs.  One thing to keep in mind is that the shop owners and tourists are in a dance together.  They want your money and you want their product.  Don't ever feel bad about the price you pay, but don't ever pay the price they ask.  If they tell you it is 50 pounds, offer 15 pounds...if they tell you it is 100 pounds, offer 30 pounds.  Keep in mind that you should have a price in your head you are willing to pay and make sure it isn't based on the value for you back home.  If they are willing to sell it for that price then they are making money.  The best tactic is walking away.  My parents were able to purchase one item for about 1/4 of the original price because we left the shop.  The salesman followed us and kept lowering the price until he finally gave in and offered our asking price.  It is just a game...have fun.

We went to see the step pyramid at Saqqara.  It is said to be the oldest pyramid in the world and is a truly incredible site.  The weather wasn't agreeing with us that day.  The wind was blowing sand everywhere so the ladies purchased "authentic" head coverings that kept the sand out.  Of course us men were to cool to cover our heads, so we all ended up with sandy brown hair.  We were suppose to see the pyramids at Giza, but because of the weather we chose to go to the museum instead.  My advice to you...go with a guide.  I have been to the museum twice and it was much better the second time having someone take us to the major items and giving us the background.

The next day we went to the Harley Davidson shop in Cairo.  It was cool looking at the bikes, but all I could think of was trying to ride them in the Cairo traffic...you couldn't pay me enough.  After that we went to the Cairo Tower.  It costs about $10 to go to the top, but it gives you a great view of the city.  You can actually see the pyramids of Saqarra and Giza.  The locals say that the tower was built with money that the CIA gave to buy off Egypt.  A little intrigue and a great view is well worth $10.  That night we went to a new mall that opened in Cairo.  It looks like any major mall in the States.  The only difference is that the signage is in Arabic.  We actually ate at Fuddruckers!

The next day we spent visiting family.  We went to a small village outside of Cairo where Tanya's father (Helmy) grew up.  This is the part most tourists don't get to see.  Every visit revolves around the same thing...FOOD.  We are served a lunch which is similar to the dinner we had upon arriving.  After that our hosts offer tangerines the size of oranges.  There is something about the fruit in Egypt.  I don't eat much fruit at home, but there I am constantly eating fruit.  After lunch, the men get together outside to talk politics.  My Arabic is at the level of a child just learning how to talk, so all I pick up every so often is "Bush - bad" over and over.  It is amazing to me that the people of Egypt love Americans, but hate our politics.  I guess that is one of the reasons I feel safe there...they don't link me with the politics of my country.  The roads of the village are not paved, so getting out was interesting...it had rained while we visited so we were sliding all over the place in the mud.

That night we went to a party given by Helmy's cousin in a suburb of Cairo.  They are a great group of people.  Again, a HUGE meal is served and is followed up with fruit.  Then there is dancing and a mock Egyptian wedding for Tamer and Rhianon (Tanya's brother and his wife).  If we didn't have an early day the next day we probably wouldn't have left there until 2 or 3 in the morning.  Egyptians do know how to party!

The pyramids of Giza are so amazing that words cannot describe the feeling of standing at their base and staring up to their peak.  The size of each stone is incredible and when you look at the number of stones used and how high the pyramid rises above the desert you are struck with the feeling that the ancient Egyptians were an amazing people.  To me, visiting the pyramids is like visiting the Grand Canyon...no matter how many times I go it still touches me the same as it did the first time.  Of course, one is natural and one is man made, but the enourmous size and beauty of each is awe inspiring.  A must do when you visit the pyramids is to ride a camel and so our group hopped onto camels and rode out into the desert for some great photographs.  They are different animals...not too friendly and they make weird sounds out of both ends.  After the camels we went down to see the Sphinx.  There is a debate going on as to the age of the Sphinx, but to me it doesn't matter if it is 4,000 or 10,000 years old...it is beautiful.

To continue with our long day we went to the Citadel.  This area was a fort built to defend Cairo from the Romans, but it was never used because the Egyptian Army went out to meet the Roman Army before they reached Cairo and were able to turn them around and save the city.  There is also a beautiful Mosque built for Mohammed Ali inside the walls of the Citadel.  This is a must see for anyone visiting Cairo.  Just down the road from the Citadel is Al Azhar park.  It was built on a garbage dump and was the governments attempt at beautifying the city.  It has worked, because this park is gorgeous.  It is a nice place to come and relax and get a great view of Cairo.  On a clear day you can see the pyramids in the Cairo skyline and that makes for a great picture.

Well, that was the end of week one and it was time to say goodbye to Tamer and Rhianon.  Our second week was taking us into unchartered territory.  Neither Tanya nor I had been to Upper Egypt (Southern Egypt) and we were about to board a train headed for Aswan.  The train was an overnight sleeper train that took about 12 hours to go from Cairo to Aswan.  That in itself was a great adventure.  The sleeping berths were about 4 feet by 6 feet (ok maybe 4.5 feet by 6.5 feet).  We had both dinner and breakfast on the train and there was a lounge car where we could have drinks.  This was my first, and only beer on the entire trip.  It had been cold in Cairo, so the heat we felt in Aswan was a bit of a shock.  There was probably about a 30 degree difference in temperature between the two cities.

If you have a few days to spend on a cruise I highly suggest taking one of the Nile cruises.  We were on the boat for meals, but were seeing all the ancient sites between Aswan and Luxor.  We saw Philae Temple, the Aswan Dam, Kom Ombo Temple, Edfu Temple, the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Queens, Al Deir Al Bahari Temple, Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple.  They were all truly amazing and there is no way I could describe each one in this blog without boring you to tears.  What I will say is that by far Karnak Temple was the most impressive of them all.  It is HUGE!  We were exhausted just walking around and we didn't even come close to seeing the entire temple.  This was another plus to having a tour guide.  He was able to take us to the major areas and give us interesting facts and interpretations of the artifacts.

The cruise was a lot of fun.  Tanya didn't like that they didn't serve authentic Egyptian food at every meal, but what they did was have a different theme for each meal.  They also did a great job making us feel welcome and did little things that made the stay that much better.  Each night they would make up our room and would arrange our towels in interesting characters...a crocodile, kissing swans, a scorpion and even a heart for valentines day.  This was a great way to travel and you'll have to check out my review of the cruise ship...when I finally get around to doing the review.

Of course all good things must come to an end and this trip was no different.  We flew back to Cairo and had one day to relax, do some final shopping and then pack before heading back to the States.  I truly believe that if it wasn't for Lucky (our dog) we may not have returned from this trip.  The people are so friendly and it is a much more relaxing way of life that it is very attractive.  Who knows, it could happen some day.  Until then I guess we'll just keep visiting.