We spent the last night together reminiscing our personal highlights as well as lowlights of Egypt when we finally returned to Cairo.
I know I've been purposely slack about the internet stuff but I've decided to go through my itinerary and make some comments about each place we visited.
It should be no surprise to those who know me that I hated Cairo! Too noisy, too dirty, Disorganised Kaos (is it possible to be more disorganised than Chaos?) Tourist traps and hawkers charging you more than triple what the locals pay. Every time we headed back to Cairo during our trip, I could feel the dread wash over me like molasses. Thick and sticky. It didn't help that the hotel we kept returning to was central but in a really horrible part of town even though it was close to the Nile. There were piles of loose garbage just sitting on the street rotting and we had to walk past it every day to go get some water or something to eat. No wonder I hardly ate anything or when I did, I could feel the rumbling tum start protesting at the abuse I was dishing out to it.
Giza's highlight was spotting the Sphynx through the bus window and I froze in that startled rabbit kind of way. Finally seeing something in the flesh that I had been wanting to visit for many years was a great moment for me and all the noises, smells and weariness seemed to disappear in a split second. It seemed that I was the only one there and we said a silent hello to each other. I wished I could re-create that moment when all the noise returned at a seemingly louder volume.
Camel rides are overrated. Talk about a sore bum, back and inner thighs after only 10 minutes ride from the look out to the third pyramid. Let's not mention the 5698 requests for a tip from my 15 y.o. camel herder in that short 10 minutes. Far out... I was constantly looking for the off switch on every Egyptian I met.
The overnight train to Aswan saw me on the upper bunk, freezing me face off (I was perfectly lined up with the air con vent that seemed to be set to Cryogenic). The new morning saw us eating breakfast in our private cabin. When I pulled the blinds open to find out why the train had stopped, I saw we were at a station. During mid chew of bread and marmalade (time stood still again but for all the wrong reasons), I watched a man on the opposite platform jump onto the tracks, pulled up his traditional dress and do a huge crap on the railway tracks. Dear readers, you do not know the meaning of a "dry reach" until you have mistakenly watched a man poohing whilst you are attempting to nourish yourself.
Aswan, hot as hell (if there is a hell) but stunning. Our hotel overlooked the Nile and I loved the greenery of the river bank. Our room was on the upper levels and I could see the Nile wind its way to the distant horizon.
We went to a Nubian village where we were greeted with traditional music and children dancing. The little buggers asked us for baksheesh (tips) for dancing with us. Damn cheek! The meal was delicious and after some shopping for home made traditional loose change bags and necklaces and Arabic scarves, we returned to our hotel.
Our free day saw some of us decide to go to Abu Simbel. So, we set our alarms for 3:15am to be ready by 4am. Our bus collected us at 4:15. Did I say bus? Once everyone was seated, it took on an appearance of humans trying to travel in an After Dinner Mints packet. Not a huge problem unless you are travelling 3 hours in the searing heat with your knees up around your larynx. Was it worth it? Abu Simbel was amazing, stunning, huge, beautiful but I would have said it was worth it if we were travelling on a real bus... not in a chocolate box.
We arrived back to Aswan around 2pm and I took the rest of the day off to reacquaint my legs back into the straight position.
End of Day 5. Yes, there are 10 more days of the trip left! God Help Me!
Thanks for tuning in
Chat soon
Tina x
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