(February 12 - 21, 2021)
While Egypt is a place that needs no introduction, I didn't realize how much mystery and intrigue the country held until actually experiencing it in person. We spent 10 days crawling through ancient pharaonic crypts, meandering through bustling bazaars, visiting chaotic camel markets, floating down the river on a turn-of-the-20th-century sail-boat, and spending sunsets pondering the importance of the Nile river and its deep connection to Egypt's past present and future. We literally covered the country north to south and sight-by-sight, but what I was left with was the yearning to discover more about this fascinating, timeless country. We can't believe Egypt wasn't on the top of our bucket list before we went, and will certainly hope to be back in the future uncover more mysteries and adventures.
The amount of history and archeology in this part of the world is almost overwhelming - by the end of our trip we were laughing at how in the Egyptian Museum, items that we would pay big money to see at exhibits in the US or Europe were stacked on top of each other as if they were stored in the back of an old garage. This was purely due to the fact that there are so many artifacts, they don't have the physical capability to display them all.
We normally plan our trips ourselves; or I should say we normally follow the Lonely Travel book blindly off a cliff; however this time we used a travel company (Djed Travel) to help plan and organize the trip. It would have been impossible to do as much as we did without the help of the agency and the Arabic speaking guide.
*One piece of advice we wish we had better prepared for was tipping - everyone wants a tip and it's deeply ingrained in the Egyptian culture. Locals with the means as well as tourists are culturally expected to tip. I would recommend bringing a stack of small US $1 bills (ATM's in local currency give out larger bills). You can also have a lot of unique experiences unlocked by "baksheesh" - the Arabic word for tip.
Day 1: Arrived (late) in Cairo
We flew to Cairo from Amsterdam after work on a Thursday night. We stayed at the Marriott Mena House in Giza, and woke up to a view of the view of the Great Pyramids.
Day 2: Giza, Saqqara & the Serapeum Monuments We had breakfast at the hotel and left to see the sights (across the street) around 8 am. First, we visited the Great Pyramids, and the many monuments of the Giza necropolis including the Great Sphinx and the Valley temple. We climbed inside and up the 100-meter-long corridor into the royal burial chamber of the Great Pyramid of Khufu (also known as Cheops Pyramid in the West). Our tour guide encouraged us take a bunch of "cheesy tourist" pictures that I pretty much only agreed to because I felt like it would be rude to say "no" but am SO happy he did. I absolutely love the "jumping" and "kiss to sphinx" pictures we took. It was also a great and simple reminder to have fun and enjoy life.
Unfortunately a bit rushed but having a very busy day ahead of us, we left the pyramids by around 11:00 am and headed on to the necropolis of Saqqara to see some extraordinary Old kingdom monuments, including the famous 4,700 year old Step Pyramid of Djoser (the first pyramid the Egyptians built), and the vast underground galleries of the Serapeum of Saqqara. It is the largest (known) "animal necropolis" in Egypt - a burial catacomb for the sacred Apis bulls. We were entranced theorizing about how exactly the ancient Egyptians (approx 1350BC) were able to 1) tunnel the massive burial chamber and 2) get these massive, insanely heavy (weighing up to 70 tons each) sarcophagi into place underground.
Day 3: Fly to Luxor – Board Dahabiya Traditional Sailboat in Esna – Sail to El Kab In the morning, we flew from Cairo to Luxor & drove to Esna. We visited the Esna temple, where archeologists are in the process of cleaning it so you can see the beautiful colors of its ceiling. I don't think we would have been able to do this in other parts of the world but because we were the only ones there (and admittedly because they wanted a tip) - we were allowed to walk in the scaffolding to see the restoration work in-progress.
After seeing the temple we walked back to the Nile to board our "Dahabiya" sailboat, named "The Orient", that would be our hotel the next 4 days. Aside from the two of us, there was only one other couple on the boat - who were "characters" and really enhanced the entire experience for us! The crew immediately set the sails to begin our cruise along the Nile between Esna and Aswan. Traveling on a boat from around 100 years ago by wind power as we overlooked the tranquil banks of the Nile was a truly magical experience. Taking in the Nile like this allowed us to reflect on the immense and mystical relationship the river has had with the people of Egypt for thousands of years. The Nile IS Egypt. While it only occupies a small sliver of the country's 1 million square kilometers, it's hard to underscore how important this tributary is to the life, economy, history, politics and international relations of Egypt. The river determined the life, religion and economy of ancient Egypt and its importance hasn't diminished to this day. This is underscored by the fact that 95 million of Egypts 100 million people live within 1 km of the Nile.
Day 4: Dahabiya Sailing to Edfu Temple
After a wonderful nights rest, we woke up to beautiful sunny weather and an unreal #viewfrombed of the Nile with the soft sound of the river lapping against the boat. Up on the deck, we enjoyed an amazing breakfast and cup of Egyptian coffee that gets you going for the day! (or in Nick's case - chomping on raw sugar cane with the boat crew).
We sailed for Edfu Temple and took a horse and carriage from the river banks through the town to visit the Temple of Horus, the best-preserved of all the temples in Egypt. Again, we had this spectacular sight almost to ourselves. On the way back to the boat we stopped in the local market for some fresh squeezed sugar cane juice, fresh dates, and salty "beans" (what we call peanuts).
We spent the afternoon sailing and reading our books then had a wonderful Egyptian dinner made by the chef on our boat.
There was limited electricity & internet on the boat (and admittedly throughout all of Egypt). This was a wonderful escape, however I'm very happy I decided (and would recommend) to bring an actual book on this trip (I usually read on an ipad). I usually try to pick a historical fiction book set in the location we are traveling in and decided to read Agatha Christie's book "Death on The Nile" on this trip. She wrote while staying in The Old Cataract Hotel in Aswan, where we stayed when disembarking the Dahabiya. The story takes place on a Nile river cruise along the same route we sailed and was written around the time our boat was built.. The book was everything you'd expect from an Agatha Christie book, a little more mystery than Egyptian history but a fun, quick, easy read! If I go again I'd like to read The Egyptian by Mika Waltari.
Day 5: Dahabiya Sailing to Gebel el Silsila, Kom Ombo & Maniha
In the morning we had breakfast and explored Gebel el Silsila the ancient sandstone quarries located just on the bank of the river. This is where the building material for Luxor's temples was mined in ancient Egypt. There are also dozens of rock-cut chapels in the quarry (we saw the chapels of Horemheb, Seti I, Ramesses II and Merenptah). This was another location where we were able to (with a small tip) hike slightly past the normal tourist route to see another on-going excavation of the workers village - heaping piles of two-thousand year old pots and ancient everyday life objects cluttering the ground around us.
After leaving the rock quarry we took a small swimming break in the Nile and then continued the journey upriver toward the double temple of Haroeris and Sobek in Kom Ombo. We popped in the the crocodile museum to see the remains of crocodile mummies given as offerings at the temple; the museum was more interesting than the signage and size suggest from the outside.
As we sailed away from Kom Ombo the sun began to set, and it was spectacular!
Day 6: Dahabiya Sailing to Daraw and El Koubania, Aswan
We disembarked the boat to take a walking tour through the village to visit the markets of Daraw. This was once the last stop on the famous 40- days desert road between Sudan and Egypt! After visiting the camel market, we stopped for a falafel being cooked on the side of the road and sat at a table to enjoy a strong cup of Egyptian coffee as tuk-tuks and market goers busied by.
After a delicious dinner made from groceries procured in the market, Nick and I stayed up too late laughing and regaling stories from the trip so far; about our travel companions and their interaction with each-other, the guides and crew, Nick speaking Chinese, and our adventure on the tugboat to get rather questionable ice for our travel companions' G&Ts.
Day 7: Temples of Abu Simbel We ended the Dahabiya journey in Aswan and woke up early to drive through the desert to Abu Simbel (280 km south – approximately three hour’s drive). The drive through the expansive desert was spectacular. Our guide for the day was a native Nubian (Southern Egyptian) and the conversation around the history of the area, the Nubian people, the Aswan dam, Mohammed Ali and general Egyptian politics was absolutely fascinating. The conversation unraveled as we passed massive "villages" that looked abandoned, but had in fact never inhabited to begin with. These bizarre "satellite towns" were government projects, built to house the Nubian people who were displaced by the construction of the Aswan dam in 1960. The problem was they were built quite literally in the middle of the desert, away from everything: water, food, jobs, transportation; making them uninhabitable. Our guide's family lived through this experience first-hand. Once established date farmers, with property, income, and status in their community; when the dam was built they were displaced from their home and sent to a desert camp to be treated like refugees. Our guide was a child at the time and remembers that the camp they were sent to had one source of water: a man made cement pool, that was occasionally filled by truck and had to be shared with the animals.
Driving through this striking landscape to ancient ruins we had traveled so far to see, I was engrossed by the complex reality of "modern" Egypt. Having focused most of my thoughts and curiosity during this trip on the ancient past , I didn't realize how much of the present I was missing. It was seemingly unintended by our guide, but by sharing his opinions and the stories of his youth I was transfixed by the life of the Egyptian people from then till now. The ability to connect and empathize with the current Egyptian people and understand more about modern politics served as an incredible foil for the 4,000 year old history we had come to see. (Maybe it's because I am American and our buildings are only a few hundred years old and our history is impossible to track back thousands of years, but this "reality" check truly stunned me)
When we arrived at the world-famous temples of Ramesses II and Queen Nefertari in Abu Simbel, overlooking Lake Nasser there was no doubt in our minds that it was worth the 3 hours each way drive to see! The size alone is impossible to convey in pictures, but it's truly spell-bounding!
Moved when Lake Nasser was made in order to protect it, the temple has been beautifully preserved and restored so you are able to walk in it and relish in its splendor.
Built by Ramesses II, whose temples and monuments are some of the largest and most prevalent around Egypt. He reigned from 1279–1213 BC and built vast monuments all around Egypt. Other than the obvious impressiveness of the temples and the incomprehensible fact that they were built before modern technology, what also added to the fascination was that they were mostly ancient propaganda. Our guide explained that the widely held belief that Ramses was one of history's greatest generals – is completely wrong. Ramessess II re-inscribed monuments built dedicated to others – so that it appeared they were celebrating his achievements and prowess as a warrior, but were mostly just "fake news." This was another concept that connected the ancient world to the modern world for me and how much politics and propaganda may be part of "human nature" prevalent throughout all history.
None of this makes it any less magnificent to see today!
After a few hours at the temple we began our drive back to Aswan and discussed more about geography, politics and how all the Nile's crocodiles now live in Lake Nasser and get to eat all the "good" fish. We were dropped off at the historic beautiful and historic Old Cataract Hotel and got to enjoy a surprisingly chilly but beautiful sunset overlooking Elephantine Island with felucca boats sailing by below.
Day 8: Philae & Drive to Luxor – Karnak & Luxor Temples
In the morning we drove to the romantic island temple of Isis at Philae, and took a small motorboat to the small island of Agilika - where the Philae temple was moved to in order to protect it when the small dam was built. There are actually some beautiful old photos of tourists seeing the temple on row boats in the 1920s! After exploring the temple, we stopped at an essential oil shop - be careful Egyptians are expert salesmen. After promising me the key to beautiful collagen-filled skin, we were putty in their hands. I excitedly left with a bag full of oils that Nick later had to say were "for his religion" to get past airport security in Cairo!
We drove back to Luxor along the banks of the Nile. This was a 210km, ~3 hour drive and wonderful glimpse into the day to day life of the Egyptian people. We had the sweetest drivers who shared their packed lunch of bread and cheese and stopped to get us a taste of sugar cane juice in Kom Ombo. The sugar cane plant built by Mohammend Ali was easily recognized by the endless line of trucks and farmers with mountains of crops pilled high on horse drawn wagons. We waved and made silly faces to a group of kids playing whose smiles and giggles were contagious.
Immediately upon arriving in Luxor we picked up our tour guide, Hamdi, and began trying to see all we could in the short time we would be there. We headed straight to Karnak temple on the east bank of Luxor. We entered through an avenue of ram-headed sphinxes into the great hypostyle hall where 134 vast columns soar implausibly high into the sky. Karnak is considered the most impressive temple complex in Egypt: for me because it dates back to 2000 BC and for Nick because it is prominently featured in the James Bond film "The Spy Who Loved Me."
Around sunset, we headed over to the Luxor temple. Recommend to visit at this particular time of day, the temple is beautifully illuminated with a wonderful light installation.
Day 9: Valley of the Kings, Deir el Bahari, Nobles Tombs & Medinet Habu
Hamdi found out that Nick was happiest when fed authentic local food; and had us meet him in the morning for breakfast at local spot he frequents often on the west bank. Hamdi was raised in the area and is an expert Egyptologist. He began telling us about the history and current culture of the valley over a delicious meal of fuul with eggs, pickles, Aish Baladi (Egyptian flatbread), & orange juice with sugarcane. After eating more than our fair share we drove to the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut at Deir el Bahari,
This temple has been beautifully restored and is the only terraced temple in Egypt. It is set in a natural amphitheater in the cliffs and rises out of the desert plain.
Queen Hatshepsut has a fascinating history that I would love to learn more about. She was the second (confirmed) female pharaoh of Egypt, and one of the first accomplished woman in history whom we have documentation about. She was the daughter of a pharaoh, as well as married to one, and the sister of one, but being a woman she had to prove her power and competency as well as promote it in order to become a pharaoh. She is generally regarded by Egyptologists as one of the most successful pharaohs, reigning longer than any other woman of an indigenous Egyptian dynasty, establishing a vast a trade route network, building construction projects, and economic stability.
After leaving the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut we went to the Valley of The Nobles where we saw a demonstration of how light was reflected into the tombs using broken mirrors to direct the sun's rays to illuminate the rooms in the way they were originally lighted for the craftsmen.
Our next stop was possibly my favorite of the trip - a visit to The Valley of the Kings. After seeing the Great Pyramids of Giza and other tombs looted and vandalized, the pharaohs of the "New Kingdom" (16th -11th cen. BC) decided to move their tombs to a hidden valley where they cut their tombs deep into the rock underground, where they could be sealed for eternity. Hidden from view above ground but rumored to exist by the hundreds of people who worked on them, these tombs unfortunately were not immune to looting over the centuries. The area has become a focus of archaeological exploration since the end of the eighteenth century, and unsurprisingly continues to stimulate modern interest. The most famous "modern" discovery was the tomb of King Tutankamun; discovered in 1922 in a nearly intact state (there was still the original rope sealing the door!) It was protected from discovery for so long because it was found underneath another prominent tomb, and King Tut died young so the tomb is quite smaller than many of the others and rather unfinished. There is an amazing picture of the tomb when they found it and you can see how the objects appear to have been put in somewhat rushed and haphazardly. We couldn't help but be reminded of modern American storage units LOL
The standard ticket comes with admittance to 3 tombs of your choice, they rotate which tombs are open for visitors in order to help preserve them. We paid extra for a separate ticket to see the tomb of King Seti I. We deliberated briefly but upon realizing we would pay more to see King Tut's mummy when it came on tour to America we didn't want to pass up the chance and it was well worth it! Located VERY deep underground you begin your decent into the tomb whose walls are covered in beautifully preserved and colored drawing and end up in multiple impressive offering chambers as well as a grand burial room. This was as close as they come to a real life Indiana Jones moment!
We left the Valley of the Kings and headed to the mortuary temple of Ramesses III at Medinet Habu. It is considered the best- preserved temple in Thebes. We timed it right to miss any crowd and had the place to ourselves. This was a beautiful spot to take in the late afternoon light. After that we ended the day’s visits at the Colossi of Memnon, which provides an amazing panoramic view of the latest excavation work at the Temple of Amenhotep III.
After a full day of sightseeing we had an amazing tagine dinner on the bank of the river at "Freedom" (Another local spot Hamdi showed us) before heading to the airport for our evening flight back to Cairo. It was a long day but I was so thankful we crammed as much as we could into our day and a half trip to Luxor. I would love to go back and do a hot air ballon tour.
Day 10: The Egyptian Museum & Medieval Cairo After a late arrival and room upgrade, we got to enjoy a late start and the amazing view of Cairo from our balcony before heading to the Egyptian Museum. The museum is home to more than 120,000 artifacts including countless mummies and the solid gold mask and coffin of King Tut. Some of the artifacts will be moved to the new Grand Egyptian Museum set to open in 2022.
We walked through El-Tahrir Square to lunch at Abu Tarek - a famous koshary place. This is Egyptian "fast food" consisting of chickpeas, noodles, and rice; then seasoned with hot sauce and vinegar to your personal preference. This was featured in Anthony Bourdaine's show "No Reservations" in Egypt. We watched this on Netflix a few weeks before going on our trip to get us excited and it definitely did the trick!
After carb-ing up to run a marathon, we spent the afternoon exploring Islamic Cairo. This included a walking tour of Cairo’s narrow medieval streets and visiting some of the the superb mosques, among them the 14th-century Sultan Hassan Mosque and Al-Rifa'i Mosque next door. We went inside the grounds of Cairo's Citadel to see the Mosque of Muhammad Ali Pasha and the old palace.
We then drove over to the "old city" of Cairo and entered through Bab Zuweila (the southern gate), one of the three remaining gates in the walls of the old city. The gate has twin towers (minarets), which (per Lonely Planet's star recommendation) Nick had us climb to the top of, and delivered spectacular views of the city.
After descending the minaret we crossed the walls into old Cairo and onto the Al-Muizz market street. We walked by mosques, mausoleums, ancient palaces, and antique shops, taking in the amazing sounds and smells in the narrow alleyways leading to the Khan el-Khalili souks. We stopped at Cairo’s oldest coffeehouse El Fishawy. I had a glass of fresh mint tea (Egyptian style with sugar) their house speciality since 1737; while Nick tried "Halabessa," a spicy chickpea drink the old locals sitting next to us were having. Often filled with tourists Covid provided a rare chance for locals to sit and enjoy the coffeehouse in relative relaxation, all the more enhancing the experience for us. The street of Al Muizz is a pedestrian street that stretches from Bab Zuweila to Bab Al-Futuh; the "Conquest Gate" facing north finished in the year 1087. Here our driver picked us up to take us to the airport.
In conclusion, this was an absolutely fantastic and spellbinding trip! The only thing I would like to add is that we felt completely safe. Egypt's "safety" reputation is understandable but also out of date. While there, we gained more understanding about the revolution of 2011 and the terrorist attacks targeting tourist throughout the Egyptian crisis. Tourism is a very important industry in the Egyptian economy and as a way to diminish the political party in power extremist groups targeted tourists. With the revolution over, the current government as well as the people understand and depend on the importance of tourists to fuel their economy. Consequently, they are warm and welcoming and have gone to great lengths to make it safe for travelers. Tourists have been visiting Egypt for thousands of years; Alexander the Great and Napoleon promoted visiting Egypt as tourists and we fully understand why and second their sentiments!
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