Overall I loved this trip and think it was the best trip I've ever been on. My feelings about Egypt were that the natural beauty was breath taking and the amazing history was mind boggling. The cities were very dirty in my opinion. Lots of garbage in the streets and in Dahab there was lots of rubble on the sides of the road. In comparison Jordan was very clean which we didn't expect at all. We always felt welcome and had no issues with language barriers.
The issue of safety that I'm sure many of you wondered about. We never really felt unsafe. Sometimes it was frustrating that our drivers were delayed but we never felt like targets. Our blond hair and light skin was often stared at and we had requests for pictures once.
Otherwise we all had an amazing time and made lots of great memories.
We had some tummy issues once we returned to Germany but those resolved themselves and we are back to normal.
In summary... great trip!!
Monday, October 11, 2010
Friday, October 8, 2010
Egypt and Jordan Trip: Day 4, 5, 6, and 7
Day 4
We woke up and had breakfast sea side at the Penguin Restaurant which was AMAZING. For about 15 Egyptian Pounds we got pancakes(more like a crepe) eggs, toast, and fruit. After inhaling it all we got ready for the beach and our day exploring Dahab.
We set off in a Jeep that was older than almost all of us for the Blue Hole. We stopped to pick up the manager of the hotel, Emad, on his day off so that he could go with us for the day. We arrived at the Blue Hole and got our snorkeling gear. Mohammed and Emad were surprised to know that I am a scuba instructor so they told me where to go and let us go off on our own. Haley had never been snorkeling before and is terrified of sharks but she jumped right in and did great. We swam around for about 30 min and dried off before heading out on a 2 hour hike... in the sun... in Egypt...
We should have picked the camel option. We hiked next to the water with the sun beating down on us in flip flops for about 2 hours to get to the Abu Galum Protected Area. Once we arrived we had tea(surprise surprise!) and then found our hut. We went out for a snorkel just in front of our hut and then returned and had some lunch before chatting for a while about life in Germany and the US versus life in Egypt. It was an interesting afternoon.
We then went snorkeling again before packing up and getting a ride to the Bedouin camp area and the Lagoon with the sun setting in the distance. We had more tea and a quick photo opportunity before heading back to our hut and getting on camels to take us back to the Blue Hole under the stars. It was a beautiful night and an adventure! Kelly's previous camel experience made her a bit nervous, mine stood up and started walking away before everyone else was on their camel... it was a sight to see. For a minute or two the camels were walking in the water! We made it about 4/5ths of the way back but the last part was too dangerous for the camels to go in the dark so we walked by the light of the moon and a little flashlight. I ended up kicking a rock and scraping my toe which bled everywhere and making my foot slippery. (It's all healed now.) We then hung out and star gazed while we waited for our ride to come.
Day 5
After a very short night we awoke at about 3 am to get ready for our day trip to Luxor. Our ride arrived about 15 minutes late but we arrived at the Sharm el Sheik airport, got our tickets and boarded the plane for a quick 30ish minute flight. We met our tour guide for the day "John" and we were adopted into his "family" for the day.
We had an action packed day! From the Colossi of Memnon statues(the wind going through the rocks makes a "singing" noise) to the Valley of the Kings(no photos allowed) to Hatshepsut Temple and finishing at the Karnak Temple. We had stops for Alabaster shopping(and no dad we didn't buy anything!), lunch, and a ferry ride on the Nile River with a stop for some mini bananas and watermelon. After some more tea and a walk through some shops we headed back to the airport, got some dinner and boarded the plane for Sharm. Our driver was waiting for us when we arrived and we got back to the Penguin around 11pm. Back at the hotel we hung out on the upper level of the restaurant and had more tea. Mohamed and Haley danced for us. Haley was a it reluctant but shook her money maker!
Day 6
We got to sleep in finally to about 11am which was amazing. I think we would have started to get really cranky otherwise. We had breakfast at the hotel and then Kelly and I got fitted for our Scuba gear while Lisa and Haley got their snorkeling gear. We some how fit dive gear for 4 of us, snorkel gear for 2 plus 7 people in yet another old Jeep for the short drive to the Lighthouse Dive site access point. Kelly got her briefing and Mohamed and I set up our gear then we headed for the water! My first dive in the Red Sea! So excited for this.
Kelly did her skills and headed off with her instructor while Mohamed and I went to about 20 meters together. After about 45 minutes we surfaced again and took some pictures with the cheap little disposable waterproof camera before getting out and breaking down our gear. We loaded our stuff back in the Jeep but decided to take the trip back on foot which took about 15 minutes. After washing our gear we headed out for the afternoon to an area called the Lagoon where we relaxed while Mohamed and his "cousin" cooked us a feast. We took lots of pictures and enjoyed some music performed by Mohamed and his cousin before packing up and heading back to the hotel to wash up and pack up before our overnight van transfer back to Cairo. Mohamed heard us gush over the tea and how much we liked it and where could we get some that he went out and got us each a plastic shopping bag of the herbs! Thanks again Mohamed!
We had many more van-mates this time so we were even more uncomfortable and we had the same random stop in the middle of the night for the driver to eat breakfast...
Day 7
We arrived in Cairo at about 7 am. Checked in and checked my bag with our perfume packed inside. We had some breakfast and explored the airport while we waited for our flight. The flight home was uneventful and we were all exhausted. Lisa's boyfriend Hannes picked us up at the airport and drive us home.
We woke up and had breakfast sea side at the Penguin Restaurant which was AMAZING. For about 15 Egyptian Pounds we got pancakes(more like a crepe) eggs, toast, and fruit. After inhaling it all we got ready for the beach and our day exploring Dahab.
We set off in a Jeep that was older than almost all of us for the Blue Hole. We stopped to pick up the manager of the hotel, Emad, on his day off so that he could go with us for the day. We arrived at the Blue Hole and got our snorkeling gear. Mohammed and Emad were surprised to know that I am a scuba instructor so they told me where to go and let us go off on our own. Haley had never been snorkeling before and is terrified of sharks but she jumped right in and did great. We swam around for about 30 min and dried off before heading out on a 2 hour hike... in the sun... in Egypt...
We should have picked the camel option. We hiked next to the water with the sun beating down on us in flip flops for about 2 hours to get to the Abu Galum Protected Area. Once we arrived we had tea(surprise surprise!) and then found our hut. We went out for a snorkel just in front of our hut and then returned and had some lunch before chatting for a while about life in Germany and the US versus life in Egypt. It was an interesting afternoon.
We then went snorkeling again before packing up and getting a ride to the Bedouin camp area and the Lagoon with the sun setting in the distance. We had more tea and a quick photo opportunity before heading back to our hut and getting on camels to take us back to the Blue Hole under the stars. It was a beautiful night and an adventure! Kelly's previous camel experience made her a bit nervous, mine stood up and started walking away before everyone else was on their camel... it was a sight to see. For a minute or two the camels were walking in the water! We made it about 4/5ths of the way back but the last part was too dangerous for the camels to go in the dark so we walked by the light of the moon and a little flashlight. I ended up kicking a rock and scraping my toe which bled everywhere and making my foot slippery. (It's all healed now.) We then hung out and star gazed while we waited for our ride to come.
Day 5
After a very short night we awoke at about 3 am to get ready for our day trip to Luxor. Our ride arrived about 15 minutes late but we arrived at the Sharm el Sheik airport, got our tickets and boarded the plane for a quick 30ish minute flight. We met our tour guide for the day "John" and we were adopted into his "family" for the day.
We had an action packed day! From the Colossi of Memnon statues(the wind going through the rocks makes a "singing" noise) to the Valley of the Kings(no photos allowed) to Hatshepsut Temple and finishing at the Karnak Temple. We had stops for Alabaster shopping(and no dad we didn't buy anything!), lunch, and a ferry ride on the Nile River with a stop for some mini bananas and watermelon. After some more tea and a walk through some shops we headed back to the airport, got some dinner and boarded the plane for Sharm. Our driver was waiting for us when we arrived and we got back to the Penguin around 11pm. Back at the hotel we hung out on the upper level of the restaurant and had more tea. Mohamed and Haley danced for us. Haley was a it reluctant but shook her money maker!
Day 6
We got to sleep in finally to about 11am which was amazing. I think we would have started to get really cranky otherwise. We had breakfast at the hotel and then Kelly and I got fitted for our Scuba gear while Lisa and Haley got their snorkeling gear. We some how fit dive gear for 4 of us, snorkel gear for 2 plus 7 people in yet another old Jeep for the short drive to the Lighthouse Dive site access point. Kelly got her briefing and Mohamed and I set up our gear then we headed for the water! My first dive in the Red Sea! So excited for this.
Kelly did her skills and headed off with her instructor while Mohamed and I went to about 20 meters together. After about 45 minutes we surfaced again and took some pictures with the cheap little disposable waterproof camera before getting out and breaking down our gear. We loaded our stuff back in the Jeep but decided to take the trip back on foot which took about 15 minutes. After washing our gear we headed out for the afternoon to an area called the Lagoon where we relaxed while Mohamed and his "cousin" cooked us a feast. We took lots of pictures and enjoyed some music performed by Mohamed and his cousin before packing up and heading back to the hotel to wash up and pack up before our overnight van transfer back to Cairo. Mohamed heard us gush over the tea and how much we liked it and where could we get some that he went out and got us each a plastic shopping bag of the herbs! Thanks again Mohamed!
We had many more van-mates this time so we were even more uncomfortable and we had the same random stop in the middle of the night for the driver to eat breakfast...
Day 7
We arrived in Cairo at about 7 am. Checked in and checked my bag with our perfume packed inside. We had some breakfast and explored the airport while we waited for our flight. The flight home was uneventful and we were all exhausted. Lisa's boyfriend Hannes picked us up at the airport and drive us home.
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