Egypt (a very long, long recap)
As you’ll see to the left, there’s a huge album of Egypt pictures with captions to take you through our trip. Our trip to Egypt exceeded our expectations – it was wonderful. It is truly a journey I recommend everyone should take at least once in their lives. The sand of the Sahara covered most of the Temples of Egypt, preserving them for thousands of years. As a result, the hieroglyphics and statues often look just as they had thousands of years ago. The tombs of the Pharaohs were filled with vibrant colors and images – and almost all were accessible to the public. Seeing the treasures of King Tut’s tomb up close was astounding – the jewels, boxes and statues of his resting place were so detailed and massive. Strangely, we even visited the pharaohs who built the pyramids and temples we visited, as they were all chilling/decomposing in glass boxes of the mummy room of the Cairo museum. Quite disturbing, but worth seeing!
While we expected the pyramids to be awe-inspiring, we had no idea how much we’d be moved by the site of the ancient temples, such as the massive temple of Abu Simbel, which almost brought me to tears as we watched the sun rise over it. In fact, the sunsets and sunrises of Egypt were the most beautiful I had ever seen. I’ll never forget watching the sunset on the Nile in a little felucca while a 12-year-old boy sang us Nubian songs and forced us to get up and dance. Or staring out the balcony of our cruise cabin as fishermen used ancient methods to gather the last catch of the day as the sun set.
While Egypt has so much beauty – the color of the sky against the green lush surrounding the Nile was a sight I’ll never forget – her people also live in vast poverty. We were struck by the overwhelming poverty of a country that boasts an ancient civilization that had created some of the most complex and intricate wonders of the world. Most apartments in Cairo looked as if a strong gust of wind would topple them over. An article in an Egyptian newspaper talked of a recent apartment collapse in Alexandria and stated that 95% of the country’s buildings were on the verge of collapse due to poor construction standards, poverty and overall corruption in housing departments. Cairo was heavily polluted, overcrowded and filled with cars that probably were produced in the early 70s. I fear for the lungs of the Egyptians. Nevertheless, Egypt’s people seem quite spiritual, strong and hopeful.
We began our journey on Dec. 21, arriving at 4:30 am in Cairo’s tiny and dusty airport. Having just visited Romania (more on that later), we’d already gotten a crash-course in the tiny airports of developing nations. Think long and crowded queues, tiny waiting areas and pushing and shoving to get to the front of the line. Thankfully, a friendly rep from the tour company, Egypt Uncovered, was there to help us obtain a Visa and drive us to the hotel. We’d never traveled in an organized tour before but considering we don’t speak Arabic and didn’t want the hassle of traveling through Egypt on our own, we thought traveling in a group would be a good idea. I must say though that I was a little bit nervous in booking with this company, as I could only find one brief review online. Will kept asking whether we’d end up at the airport without a ride and learning we’d been scammed. I think he even asked me whether a Nigerian prince had told me about the company via email. Something about sending $5000 American dollars to help him get $3 billion in locked funds from Switzerland, in exchange for a free tour of Egypt and 20% of the proceeds from the Swiss account. However, the tour exceeded our expectations and I’d recommend the company to others.
Egypt Uncovered is a British company that promised small group tours (there were 16 of us in total), no big tour buses, and most importantly, one Egyptologist to guide us through the country. I found that the tour prices of this company were significantly less than American ones of similar quality, yet this tour company also guaranteed group sizes of 20 or less compared with 40-50 for the American tours. Once we arrived, we were introduced to our tour leader, an energetic man who seemed to advocate for his clients from day 1 (he literally screamed at those who didn’t treat his clients well). He didn’t just explain Egyptian history, but the story of his religion (Islam), Egyptian politics, rules between the sexes and his views on marriage. Will and I appreciated that, as we were afraid participating in a group tour would isolate us from everyday Egyptians. It was also helpful to learn about what we were seeing! He told us about the Egyptian Gods and Goddesses, taught us some hieroglyphics and pointed out the best features of every site. If you go on a tour, I would suggest bringing a guidebook and reading about the site before you visit. You’ll be overwhelmed with information – I mean, there were so many Gods, Pharaohs, Temples, etc… - and a book can help you put different stories in perspective.
Traveling in a smaller group also meant a little bit more flexibility. We generally had enough free time and guided time at the sights. The tour company put adults in one tour and families with young children in another, which helped us keep a relatively fast pace. Our guide would give us an introduction, point out a few things and would give us time to explore on our own or ask questions of him. The downside of traveling in a group was that you miss out on small or romantic restaurants (eating in a group generally results in places that are quick and can accommodate large groups at a time) and don’t set the itinerary. And there always seemed to be a long and drawn out issue with ensuring all bags got on the bus. However, that for us was trumped by the conveniences of having someone else coordinate our transportation while ensuring we don’t get ripped off. Plus, you must have a guide at the sights – otherwise you’ll have no idea what you’re looking at. There aren’t any descriptions at the temples, and even in museums you’ll find inaccurate, mislabeled or pieces without any kind of description.
Our guide also explained to us the concept of Baksheesh, or tipping. You are expected to tip for all services in Egypt, including the use of a public or hotel bathrooms or accepting a meal on train. It’s very similar to the practices in other countries it’s just that it isn’t necessarily a choice: regardless of the conditions of bathrooms or service, you are EXPECTED to pay the attendant. The base pay for many jobs is so low that tipping often accounts for a huge part of one’s salary. If you’re traveling to Egypt on a tour or on your own, it’s important to estimate this cost, probably about $150-200 pp for about 10 days. Our guide organized a tipping kitty which helped us avoid the hassle. One thing that makes this difficult however is the fact that Egyptian small notes are really hard to come by. It’s easy to get a 20 pound note (about $4), but really hard to get anything less. Sometimes, though, tipping with a large note may be important. Without small change, I had to use a 10 pound note to use a bathroom in a public area, which actually got me first class service. The attendant mopped about an inch and a half of standing, fetid water from the floor of a stall for me!
The folks on our tour were quite nice, a mix of people mostly living in London. In fact, we rarely encountered other Americans traveling in Egypt. Although we traveled during the busy high season – the weather in December is perfect for traveling the desert and most people have vacation for the holidays – we mostly encountered other Brits, some French and Russians. According to an article in an Egyptian newspaper, Russians visit Egypt the most, followed by the British, the French and Germans. This was reinforced by a friendly silversmith who claimed to have sold Barbara Bush a piece of jewelry several years ago (he actually showed us the receipt!). He was so excited when he learned we were Americans, then said “us Egyptians don’t care about politics. We care about having food to eat. Since Sept. 11, Americans don’t visit us.” That broke my heart, as we ALWAYS felt safe (but really hassled as Middle Eastern markets can be frustrating in terms of bargaining) and welcome. We stuck out for obvious reasons (I don’t wear a headscarf and Will certainly doesn’t look Egyptian) and occasionally experienced some stares, but in general, the people we met were wonderful.
Speaking of shopping, it was one of the most interesting and yet frustrating parts of visiting Egypt. At every temple and in front of every hotel were droves of individuals trying to sell $1 plastic replicas of Egyptian artifacts, postcards or pieces of jewelry. We did buy a lot of beautiful pieces – throw blankets, silver pendants, books, Nubian jewelry, etc. at excellent prices - but the hassle involved was incredible. Once you express interest in an item, the seller quotes you a price – usually double what you should pay for it. You then must appear disinterested and perhaps walk away, which then lowers the price. You then negotiate back and forth until settled upon a price. If you enter a store and don’t want to buy anything good luck getting out!
Anyway, this is probably much more info than you need. However, many people have been asking me about this trip to help in planning their own, so I hope this is somewhat helpful. If you have any questions or need further info, please let me know!
