After touring Cairo and Giza we were headed to Aswan. Our third full day in Egypt was a travel day.

We got up very, very early in order to check out of our room at the Guardian Guest House.  We were provided with packaged breakfasts.

We met our ride to the airport at 3 a.m. in front of the hotel.  We were on our way to Cairo Airport to catch a flight to Aswan.

When we arrived in Aswan we waited for our bags then went outside to meet our ride.  (A person was there with a name card but I couldn’t read it with the sun streaming through the back. I called the company, Aswan Individual, which answered promptly.  After a little Q and A we were united with our rep and driver.)

We dropped off the company representative in Aswan and continued on to Abu Simbel with our driver, Mr. Hanni.

Abu Simbel is a 3.5 hour drive from Aswan so we stopped about halfway for a bathroom break and some coffee.

Remember, we were up at 2 a.m. and now it’s about 9:30. (I have a separate post on Abu Simbel.)

After returning from Abu Simbel in the afternoon Mr. Hanni dropped us off at the Philae Hotel on the corniche.  Unfortunately our DELUXE room did NOT have a Nile view.  I give this hotel zero stars.  Charlie and I made the best of it for one night.

In the evening after Abu Simbel we wanted a little respite so we walked about half mile along the corniche to the Old Cataract Hotel (Sofitel) to have dinner.

We were greeted by the guards, the concierge, and the waiters like treasured guests.

We had a lovely table in the main hall where we enjoyed a delicious dinner.

We lingered because we truly did not want to leave.  However, we walked back to our hotel to spend the night.

The one bright spot at the Philae Hotel was breakfast the next morning and a very cheery waiter.

After breakfast we were picked up by our driver George who transferred us to our tour guide who would be with us for the net 3 days during our Nile cruise.  (More on that later. )

Jo

• Egypt – Preliminary Itinerary
• Egypt – Firming Up the Details
• Egypt — Getting There
• Egypt — Cairo 
• Egypt — Giza
• Egypt — A Camel Ride

Jo

I have a photo frame that belonged to my grandmother. (My sister and I were in the photo I removed.)

This plaster frame was tired but but very good shape.

I laid it outside on newspaper on a warmish fall day.

Since I planned to give it a dark finish I started by using some leftover matte green spray paint to base coat it.

I planned to give this frame with another one so I chose a finish color in the same general color group.

Limited by spray paint colors I selected a deep teal gloss spray paint by Rustoleum.  I sprayed about 3 good coats with about half an hour waiting time between each.

I’m sure the grandmother who receives these frames will be able to fill them with appropriate photos.

Jo

Our guide Sherine took us onto the western desert of the Giza plateau and introduced us to her favorite camel broker.

After a bit of negotiation we had hired 2 camels for a ride out into the desert with a young camel driver.

I mounted the camel while it’s sitting with its legs folded under it. The camel driver then touched its knees with a switch, and the camel rose first to its back legs, then to its front legs, all the while I was supposed to lean back to compensate for the motion.

A camel named Ali Baba was assigned to Charlie.

Once we were both on our camels the camel tender led us out into the desert so we could get some photos of the pyramids.

We followed along behind our camel herder.  I was in front with Charlie’s camel tethered to the back of my saddle.

Our camel driver took some photos of us against the pyramids in the far distance.

We were instructed to pose for various cliché shots.  We complied just for the fun of it.

These camels are so well-trained that our guide let us walk back to the herd on our own.

Our camel driver was there to help us alight.  He was rewarded with generous backsheesh from Charlie.

Number 1 on my Bucket List checked off.

• Egypt – Preliminary Itinerary
• Egypt – Firming Up the Details
• Egypt — Getting There
• Egypt — Cairo 
• Egypt — Giza

Jo

I bought 2 inexpensive holiday themed coir mats at Aldi.

Oddly (for me) they were green and red.

My other mats are shades of blue.

The blue had begun to fade and wear off.

I did a quick makeover with green paint (from the Adirondack chairs) and a roller.

I dried the mats completely in the sun before putting them in place.

Now both the side and front porches are welcoming. (I’m thinking the green will work for Saint Patrick’s Day, too.)

Jo

In Egypt the most famous pyramids and the Sphinx are in Giza, a suburb just south of Cairo.

For our first 3 nights we stayed near the Giza plateau with a spectacular view of the monuments from our guesthouse window.

On our second morning I looked out the window to the startling surprise of an empty plateau.  The fog had set in.

Our guide, Sherine Ramadan, picked us up in front of the hotel in her own car and took us around to the main entrance gate near the Mena House even though the other ticket booth was a few steps away from our accommodations.  Cars can only access the plateau from the main gate.

We toured around the pyramid area and were mesmerized by the monumental scale of everything both in number and size. The Great Pyramid of Giza built as a tomb by and for the pharaoh Khufu (Cheops in Greek) is estimated to contain 2.3 million stone blocks each weighing an average of 2.5 to 15 tons. The largest block weighs 70 tons.

The base of this pyramid covers 14 acres.

While entry to the inside of the pyramids was an additional paid ticket we had decided in advance not to attempt it. However Charlie climbed down a long shaft in another area that was included with the entrance fee.

Our guide took us to the western desert (by car) where we met her favorite camel wrangler.  I’ll be writing a separate post on the camel experience so for now I’ll just say it was spectacular.

After our camel ride we hopped in the car with our guide and were driven to a parking lot at the bottom of the hill loaded with buses.

Here we toured around the Great Sphinx of Giza, a limestone statue of a reclining mythical creature with the head of a human and the body of a lion built for the pharaoh Khafre about 4500 years ago.

After 4 hours we were dropped off at Khufu’s Restaurant where I had made reservations for lunch months ago.  They greeted us with pleasure and showed us to an outdoor table in the sun.

I had requested an indoor table knowing that I would need shade and air conditioning after a morning in the desert.  We sat inside.

We were each served multiple starters which we really enjoyed.

For the entrée I ordered the vegetarian mix while Charlie ordered the fish.

The view was stunning, the food was delicious, and the ambiance unrushed.

We ended the afternoon with a leisurely hike down the hill to our hotel.

• Egypt–Preliminary Itinerary
• Egypt–Firming Up the Details
• Egypt — Getting There
• Egypt — Cairo 

Jo

On our first day in Egypt we woke up to a spectacular view of the pyramids and sphinx.

This view is the reason I chose The Guardian Guest House as our first accommodation.  We woke up for an early breakfast even though we had not checked in until after one a.m. from a 20-hour trip.

We had breakfast at the Guest House buffet which was included in the room rate. Charlie and I sampled almost everything on the table.

He was especially delighted with freshly fried falafel made from fava beans in the Egyptian style.

Our tour guide, Sherine, picked us up in front of the hotel at 8:30 a.m.  on Friday.  (Friday is a day of rest in Egypt so schools and offices are not in session which meant lots of locals were out and about even at tourist locations.) This morning she had a driver, Eid, who navigated Cairo and waited while we viewed the various museums and sites.  We were awed by the traffic, winding streets, U-turns, and the vast number of people — locals and tourists.

We began at the mosque Mohammad Ali. Our guide gave explanation of the outbuildings then took us inside.

We came first to the mosque since it was Friday (the holy day) and at noon the building would close to tourists and be open for Muslim prayers and service only.

Our next stop was the old Egyptian Museum.  Until the new museum opens in Giza the most famous and valuable artefacts in Egypt can be found here.

Charlie was tired from our travels and took a rest in a corner until the time came to look at Tut’s gold sarcophagi and throne.

One tiny relic that should not be overlooked is the 3-inch tall ivory statuette of Khufu discovered in the desert in 1903. The museum is packed with beautiful, elegant, interesting objects — some monumental and some tiny.  The colors and brilliance of these very old items are stunning.

At long last the part of the day Charlie had been looking forward to had arrived — lunch.  Sherine guided us to an indoor/outdoor café where we could sample traditional Egyptian food that would be safe for us to eat without worry of getting ill.

I had a most delicious plate of koshary.

Charlie ordered lentil soup and 2 rounds of Turkish coffee for all of us.

After lunch we visited the Coptic area of Cairo.  We started at the Hanging Church.

It is called the Hanging Church because it was built on the southern gate of the Roman Fortress. Logs of palm trees and layers of stones were constructed above the ruins of the Roman fortress to be used as a foundation. The Hanging Church is a unique church and has a wooden roof in the shape of Noah’s ark.

We also visited Saint Sergius Coptic Church and the  ornately beautiful Ben Ezra Synagogue.

Back in Giza and on our own we walked around the streets.  I found a bank ATM to take out 1000 Egyptian pounds, $32.44 US.  Charlie got a pizza from Pizza Hut (of all places).  He said it wasn’t the best.

We watched a glorious sunset from the rooftop terrace of our hotel.

Then much to our surprise  we watched and listened to sound and light show from our hotel room.  We could see and hear it very, very clearly.  The show was about an hour in English, then repeated for a second hour in French.

We were really exhausted nevertheless we looked forward to our second day in Egypt.

• Egypt–Preliminary Itinerary
• Egypt–Firming Up the Details
• Egypt — Getting There

Jo

Charlie and I arrived at Baltimore airport on a Wednesday evening and checked our luggage through to Cairo, Egypt. We had no issue passing through TSA because our Global Entry classification includes pre-check.

We took off after 9 o’clock about half an hour late. We arrived at London’s Heathrow Airport a little after 9 a.m. the next morning. We knew we had a long 9-hour layover but we decided to stay in the airport area instead of trying to slip in an excursion into London. (We’d been there recently.)

We went through customs and had coffee at Caffe Nero in terminal 5.  We checked our Apple AirTags to make sure our luggage was in England with us.

I had sussed out that the hotel attached to Terminal 5 by a walking bridge served a proper English tea at the Tea 5 Café.

We opted to head there for a bite to eat.

We ordered afternoon tea for one which was plenty for both of us.

Finally we boarded our flight to Cairo.

We filled out the arrival card on the airplane before landing. We arrived that same evening about midnight.

First order of business was to stand in line for a Visa on Arrival.

This was a easy task: we queued up, presented our passports and a crisp $100 US bill to pay the $25 visa fee.  We were given change in Egyptian pounds so we would not need to visit an airport ATM in the wee hours of the morning.

We needed both our passport and arrival card to pass through immigration control.

Next we stopped by the Orange cell phone kiosk located near the luggage belts (not the arrival hall) and I had an Egyptian sim card placed in my old iPhone. The sim card was less that $10 US and easily lasted our 2 weeks in Egypt. I carried 2 phones for the duration of the trip.

One more customs officer to pass through after we picked up our luggage.  Taking photos through secure areas was forbidden so we progressed to the next area without photo documentation.

We went out  the terminal’s main exit door where we were supposed to meet our driver holding a yellow Guardian Travel sign.  Actually it was a man in a yellow t-shirt holding a sign with my name on it among at least 50 other drivers . He took us on a 45-minute ride to the Guardian Guest House in Giza where we waited another 45 minutes while the night manager found the key to our room.  Then we fell into bed and slept until breakfast the next morning.

• Egypt–Preliminary Itinerary
• Egypt–Firming Up the Details

Jo

Even as I post this list Charlie and I are still in Egypt probably sailing down the Nile (which is actually heading from south to north). I can’t wait to write detailed accounts of every place we went and everything we saw.

In addition to seeing the pyramids, the Sphynx, and other fabulous ancient sites, I

• framed 4 pieces of art I had collected on previous travels.
  

  The palm tree is now hanging in the Treetops room.

• bought a new espresso machine and stocked up on coffee pods for the Verismo machine.
  

  We have a new espresso machine on which I have been practicing my barista technique.

• cleaned out my car’s glove box.  Years of trash and papers have been disposed of. One tiny task toward completing #29 on my 101 in 1001 list: clean out my car.
•  started working out with a weekly tap dancing class.
  

  My old tap shoes worked for a once-a-week class.

•  continued practicing tai chi twice a week with a local group.
  

  Tai chi students

• learned to play bocce.
  

  Bocce may be just my speed.

• foraged some prized maitake which I sautéed and topped my chicken wrap.
  

  I also bought some secondhand cheery yellow and white dishes.

• attended a friend’s “Build Your Own Chili Bowl” party — the perfect fall get together.
• went on a police ride-along.  We searched for an indecent exposure suspect,  answered a domestic disturbance call, filled out reports at the station, set up a speed trap, and combed the area for a reported concealed weapon suspect.
  

  I rode in the front seat of a police cruiser on patrol.

Now for my numbered list:

1.  Travel to Egypt.  We have visited the pyramids in Giza to start our tour.
   

   The pyramids and sphinx at Giza viewed from the roof terrace at our hotel.

2. Watch a movie. —  Watched Wonder which I checked out of the library.  I highly recommend this movie — made me laugh, made me cry — good acting, poignant story.  I’m looking forward to the prequel, White Bird.
3. Read a book:  I read The Last Camel Died at Noon, another Elizabeth Peters mystery that takes place mostly in Egypt.  I also read Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile (saw the movie February, 2022).
   

   Hoping our planned cruise on the Nile is without incident.

   I’ve been reading Egyptian fiction and nonfiction for about the last year so I would have a few names and places under my belt before we depart for Cairo.  I was prepared with an understanding of backsheesh (tips/bribes) from the books I read.

4. List items for sale on FB Marketplace.
   

   Ahoy, me matey.  SOLD!!

   I listed children’s Halloween costumes and some old silver military jewelry.    The jewelry went very quickly.

5. Go to a concert — Celebrations by the Columbia Orchestra.  I attended a pre-concert gathering to meet the maestro where we were given our own conductor’s baton and a quick class in leading the orchestra.
6. Clean out and clear off my dressing table.
   

   My dressing table is in the master bathroom.

   Seriously I was displaying things I hardly ever use so I cleaned out the drawers and stashed mostly everything from the top.

   

   Ooooooo!

   The empty (almost) horizontal space is very pleasing.

7. I repacked and labeled my fish collection.  Fragile shells and fish have been carefully wrapped and stored in a box in the attic.
   

   The fish/dolphin/coral collection.

   

   The entire collection packed in a flat box, topped with more bubble wrap, and labeled “extremely fragile”.

8. Worked on the frame collection.
   

   Frames are carefully packed.

   I packed it up more carefully and returned it to the attic minus a few pieces I’ll be handing out as gifts.

9. Pick a word to focus on for the month. My word: EXECUTE .
10.  Write a goal list for November, 2023.

Getting things done and making dreams come true.

Jo