Morning dawned. We packed and checked out. We had not unpacked actually!! We had breakfast looking at the Red Sea though we could not go to it. We drove down to Suez to cross the Suez canal and enter the African continent. Yea, all this while, we were still in the Asian continent. There was some kind of checking at the crossing and we were not allowed cameras. It was a 3-mins drive through a tunnel that goes below the canal. Just as we were entering and leaving the canal, we could see ships crossing on top of us.
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| Entrance to Suez Canal from Asia |
We then drove through dry desert lands and soon our bus started to act a lil funny. It was only prayer power that helped us get to Cairo without losing much time. It was a 2.5 hr drive to Cairo city. We drove through the outskirts of Cairo and then entered the city. I felt that the place looked like India. The Nile flows through the city and is the main source of water for them. It was so exciting to see a portion of the longest river of the world. Dahlia continously enlightened us about the city. We saw Mubarak's office that was destroyed during the riots,got stuck in a good deal of traffic and finally reached Cairo museum. Absolutely nothing allowed inside the museum and so we left all our bags in the bus. This is behind Tahrir square where there were still some riots happening.
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| The Nile in Cairo |
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| The parliament office that was burned during protests against Mubarak |
We were all given a pouch with a transistor-like instrument and earphones.Dahlia would talk through a mike and each of us could hear it. Loud talks and explanations are not allowed in there. This is one of the largest and most ancient museums of the world with around 1,20,000 items on display and we saw only 0.5% of it.
King Tutankhamen's tomb was quite intact and a lot of items from there are displayed. Its interesting to see how much gold they used. There was even a mask of the king weighing about 13kg.
We spent nearly an hour there. After that we headed off to Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, to see the Pyramids. Its not very far from the heart of Cairo and we could see the Pyramids even before we actually got there. 1st the bus took us inside and right upto a place where we could see the 3 big pyramids and the 3 smaller ones from a distance. The whole place is like a desert and empty. We were told not to entertain people/vendors there cause we could be tricked easily. We then drove down and got closer to a pyramid. The 3 smaller ones were for the women. Among the 3 bigger ones, the one in the middle is called the Great Pyramids and thats the one we got to touch and a few of them climbed it too. It felt really cool. All the pyramids are empty and nobody knows the actual way into it. Those who stole their way in made openings in the stones. We also saw the famous Sphinx. It was close to the Pyramids but we did not get off to see it. It was under renovatin and so not very exciting.
Cairo is actually a poor city and looks all muddy and dry. A lot of area is still undeveloped. Dahlia told us that during Mubarak's reign, the middle class was almost wiped off. It was the very rich or the very poor.
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| The smaller pyramids |
Our lunch was at a restaurant near the Pyramids. Infact, I ate my meal looking at the pyramids. It was quite late by the time we were done. We tried to take pics of some women making bread at the restaurant and they tried to force us to pay them.
Our next stop was a perfume factory, rather a shop selling perfumes, jewels and other precious stuff. Before that we shopped at a cotton store. Egyptian cotton is known to be the best in the world. Since it was heavily priced, we got off the speed at which we got in. At the perfume factory, we were given an orientation about the different products they had and got samples to smell. They had bottles of different sizes and perfumes for different 'occassions'.
Finally it was time for our Cruise and dinner on the Nile. We had to bid Dahlia good bye as we were not going to meet her the next day. We headed off to Cairo and were dropped off the bus at the Memphis cruise. The ship was waiting for us and once we were all aboard, it took off. We went to the upper deck and breathed in the fresh cold air. We then had an entertainment programme on the middle deck. The first was a belly dance by a professional. I'm sure her costume would have scandalized a few and would have excited some others. Her performance was commendable though. I like the band that played different types of instruments and some lovely oriental music. Next was a Turkish dance that took our breath away. The dancer was going in circles for solid 15 mins. Our belly dancer and some others came over next and even invited a few of us to join them for some simple steps. It was fun 'trying' to dance like them and moving around. We were all seated around small tables for about 6. As soon as the programme was over, soup was served at the tables and a wide-spread buffet was spread. Some interesting desserts too, unlike what we got the previous days. Cause of all the excitement, I was not too hungry. After dinner, I went to upper deck and had some "me" time. Contemplated on the trip and the fact that it was actually drawing to an end.
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| Cairo at night |
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| On the deck of the Memphis |
We then took snaps and bid good bye to the crew and boarded the buses that were waiting for us at the same place we got off. The journey to the hotel (Zoser hotels) was a farewell session. The emotional side of me sprang up.People took turns giving their farewell speeches,vote of thanks,etc. This session was followed by instructions for the next day (day of departure). We reached the hotel and went to our respective rooms. The usual happened. Helping people with their rooms and luggages and finally a long chatting session. Had to pack for the flight.
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Wow! Finally you'v given this page back some life :)
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