For the first time that I can remember since being back in Egypt, I am enjoying a relaxing weekend in Alexandria. My goal is to study Arabic a lot and to catch up on sleep (more on why I am currently sleep-deprived later). I also figured I would take some time to fill you in on our girls' trip to Upper Egypt.
Last week, Grace, Megan, Kristin and I took a trip to Upper Egypt (it's in the south, strange I know, but remember the Nile River runs north so the elevation in the south is higher; thus they call it Upper Egypt). The trip was a mixture of visiting really awesome old temples and being highly uncomfortable in cars.
The plan was to take a sleeper train overnight from Cairo to Aswan last Wednesday (April 20th), but due to some political issues in one of the cities along the railway, we were forced to take a van. The van was just for the four of us, and it was not so bad other than it was a 13 hour trip and we stopped only twice for restrooms- and I use this term very lightly, we stopped at the most horrendously smelling hole-in-the-ground excuses for bathrooms.
We got to Aswan and took a nap before heading out with a tour guide to see an unfinished obelisk, the Aswan Dam, and Philae Temple. That night we went shopping in a local market and tried to get to bed early because we had to be ready to get on a crowded tourist bus at 3am to head to Abu Simbel. This site was totally worth the really uncomfortable 6 hour car ride; check the pictures at the site below. These pictures are the temple with four huge seated pharaohs.
That afternoon we returned to Aswan where we boarded our Nile Cruise boat. It was sweet! Megan and I relaxed on the sundeck till dinner. The weather was perfect. Hot, but breezy. The next day we left port, cruising north towards Luxor. We stopped at a temple whose name I do not remember right now and then continued north. The next morning we stopped to see another temple, but Grace woke up sick so Megan and I went out to bring back medicine. This was a crazy adventure because it was 7 in the morning and no pharmacies, except one on the other side of town, were open. Oh, the real reason this was an adventure was because this little town had no taxis- just horse buggies. So we had to ride in a buggy across town. Then the pharmacist couldn't speak English; we resorted to charades to convey her ailments... Thankfully we obtained the correct meds and she felt better in a few hours.
That same afternoon (Sunday) we arrived to Luxor and visited Karnak and Luxor temple. This was Easter Sunday and we were all a little down that we weren't with our families, but Megan and Grace decorated eggs and hid them in the temple. It was definitely the most memorable egg hunt in my life!
Monday we woke to see the Valley of the Kings which was another one of my favorite places. It is so mind-blowing that in the mountain upon which I was standing was/is a complex system of tombs deep in the earth. We got to go in three, which at this point was plenty because all the hieroglyphics and Sun gods and scarabs were running together in my mind. Our last temple stop belonged to Hatsheput, one of the most powerful women in Pharaonic Egypt. She even had her temple build in the Valley of the Kings, not the Valley of the Queens.
Now for the part of the trip that left me sick for a few days. The trains were still not working on Monday, so we had to take a van back. No problem, it was only supposed to be between 7 and 8 hours back to Cairo. Well, after 9 hours we arrive to the city limits and then it takes us 5 hours to complete the remaining 30 miles. Traffic was a complete nightmare. Compiling to the problem, I was hungry, very hungry. And I had to use the restroom. It was bad. We finally got to a hostel 14 hours after leaving Luxor, and then Grace and I took a train to Alex the next day. That night I got sick at dinner from dehydration and it took me another day and a half to replenish.
Everything is great now, though. I have awesome pictures and a weekend to rest. Actually, I have Sunday off to because it is Labor Day. So, the plan for today is a nap, then homework, then gym, then leftovers for dinner. Last night, Grace and I hosted a (week late) Passover Seder followed by a birthday celebration for Eric. Grace's brisket was phenomenal and I cannot wait for round two!
I think that is all I have for now. Check out the pics when you get a chance/recover from such a long post.
https://picasaweb.google.com/mjaye42/DirtySouth
Last week, Grace, Megan, Kristin and I took a trip to Upper Egypt (it's in the south, strange I know, but remember the Nile River runs north so the elevation in the south is higher; thus they call it Upper Egypt). The trip was a mixture of visiting really awesome old temples and being highly uncomfortable in cars.
The plan was to take a sleeper train overnight from Cairo to Aswan last Wednesday (April 20th), but due to some political issues in one of the cities along the railway, we were forced to take a van. The van was just for the four of us, and it was not so bad other than it was a 13 hour trip and we stopped only twice for restrooms- and I use this term very lightly, we stopped at the most horrendously smelling hole-in-the-ground excuses for bathrooms.
We got to Aswan and took a nap before heading out with a tour guide to see an unfinished obelisk, the Aswan Dam, and Philae Temple. That night we went shopping in a local market and tried to get to bed early because we had to be ready to get on a crowded tourist bus at 3am to head to Abu Simbel. This site was totally worth the really uncomfortable 6 hour car ride; check the pictures at the site below. These pictures are the temple with four huge seated pharaohs.
That afternoon we returned to Aswan where we boarded our Nile Cruise boat. It was sweet! Megan and I relaxed on the sundeck till dinner. The weather was perfect. Hot, but breezy. The next day we left port, cruising north towards Luxor. We stopped at a temple whose name I do not remember right now and then continued north. The next morning we stopped to see another temple, but Grace woke up sick so Megan and I went out to bring back medicine. This was a crazy adventure because it was 7 in the morning and no pharmacies, except one on the other side of town, were open. Oh, the real reason this was an adventure was because this little town had no taxis- just horse buggies. So we had to ride in a buggy across town. Then the pharmacist couldn't speak English; we resorted to charades to convey her ailments... Thankfully we obtained the correct meds and she felt better in a few hours.
That same afternoon (Sunday) we arrived to Luxor and visited Karnak and Luxor temple. This was Easter Sunday and we were all a little down that we weren't with our families, but Megan and Grace decorated eggs and hid them in the temple. It was definitely the most memorable egg hunt in my life!
Monday we woke to see the Valley of the Kings which was another one of my favorite places. It is so mind-blowing that in the mountain upon which I was standing was/is a complex system of tombs deep in the earth. We got to go in three, which at this point was plenty because all the hieroglyphics and Sun gods and scarabs were running together in my mind. Our last temple stop belonged to Hatsheput, one of the most powerful women in Pharaonic Egypt. She even had her temple build in the Valley of the Kings, not the Valley of the Queens.
Now for the part of the trip that left me sick for a few days. The trains were still not working on Monday, so we had to take a van back. No problem, it was only supposed to be between 7 and 8 hours back to Cairo. Well, after 9 hours we arrive to the city limits and then it takes us 5 hours to complete the remaining 30 miles. Traffic was a complete nightmare. Compiling to the problem, I was hungry, very hungry. And I had to use the restroom. It was bad. We finally got to a hostel 14 hours after leaving Luxor, and then Grace and I took a train to Alex the next day. That night I got sick at dinner from dehydration and it took me another day and a half to replenish.
Everything is great now, though. I have awesome pictures and a weekend to rest. Actually, I have Sunday off to because it is Labor Day. So, the plan for today is a nap, then homework, then gym, then leftovers for dinner. Last night, Grace and I hosted a (week late) Passover Seder followed by a birthday celebration for Eric. Grace's brisket was phenomenal and I cannot wait for round two!
I think that is all I have for now. Check out the pics when you get a chance/recover from such a long post.
https://picasaweb.google.com/mjaye42/DirtySouth
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