Egypt
Well, hello, my beautiful readers. I know, I know, I have been gone for way too long on this platform. However, I am back with an incredible story of my travels through Egypt. I contemplated if I should write about what I did this over the summer, but the universe was pulling my heart into stillness. I won’t always be super active on here writing about my day to day life ( because it’s pretty dull for the most part), but I do promise to fill you guys in on all of my travels because that’s where life gets exciting for me.
Now, Egypt had been on my radar for quite a while. I tried to make plans last year to visit, but the stars didn’t align for me to make it over there. Flights were high, and timing was just wrong. But low and behold, right when you’re not looking for something, it will appear like magic. A flight deal came through my email for Egypt at an excellent price, and the ticket was for an awesome time of year. It was like winning the travel jackpot. I booked the flight without even thinking, so I had plenty of time to plan because the trip wasn’t until October. But, if you’re anything like me, the excitement kicks in, and you start researching and planning right away. I would spend most of my evenings reading through fellow blogger’s recommendations and visiting Pinterest for major inspiration on what to do, see, and eat while there.
I finally decide to book with Lady Egypt Tours. This tour company came highly recommended by two very affluent bloggers who had used them before, and they both had amazing experiences with this company. I decided to book with a tour company to visit Egypt for various reasons, but the biggest reason being safety. I would be going over as a solo female traveler, and I didn’t want to take any risk. The US Department of State has a Level II travel warning for Egypt, and their only Embassy in the entire country is in Cairo. For me, that’s not a problem. No matter where you go, you always need to take safety precautions. And now, after being there, I can honestly say that I felt safe the entire time. Although I experienced Egypt with a tour company, I was still a solo female traveler. I was not apart of a group during any time of my trip. It was just me and my guides.
So here we are, today’s the day that I fly out to Egypt, and I can hardly believe the time has come. I flew with Etihad Airlines with a route from O’Hare to Abu Dhabi to Cairo. Words can’t express the agony of the long haul flight. I have flown many of long haul flights, but this one was 15 hours, and I wanted nothing more than to be in a drug-induced coma of some sort. The flight was jam-packed with every seat taken. There was no way to be comfortable on that aircraft. And in case you were wondering, yes, I flew economy. Most flight deals are economy class. I do collect miles with every major alliance as well have points through the Chase Sapphire Reserve, but I am saving those babies for something big coming up. I will say, Etihad is a great airline that offers excellent service if you should ever travel with them in the future, however, a long haul flight is a long haul flight; it never gets easier.
I arrive in Cairo in the predawn hours of the morning right before sunrise. I de-board my plane, and I’m quickly shown which direction passport control is. As I come down the long escalator, my guide greets me at the bottom with a sign with my name on it. I feel… weird. I immediately learned that I don’t like a lot of fuss or attention over me. But I am glad that he was there. It was comforting to have someone await my arrival in a place that I had never been before. He whisks me through passport control and helps me to collect my baggage, and before you know it, we’re off. As I walk through the doors of the airport, my senses are awakened with a familiar smell of the past. The air is thick and heavy with a mixture of burning trash, raw sewage, diesel fuel, cigarette smoke, and heavy cologne. Ahh, yes, I am back in the Middle East. I realize where I am and tell my driver yella, let’s go.
The sky is still dark with deep hues of golden orange fluttering in on the horizon. The hour is somewhere around 05:00 hours. As I sit in the back seat trying to listen to my guide brief me on my next few days, I am in awe of the first few sights I see out of my window. I am taking it all in like a kid in a candy store. I am not new to this region of the world, so I thought I knew what to expect, but this is unlike anything I have ever seen. Cairo is so in your face; it’s sensory overload from the moment you leave the airport. I knew this was just the start of something amazing. Through the morning sunlight, there is a thick haze that lingers over the city of Giza; everything is covered in dust and sand. Streets awaken with cars, buses, and taxis zipping in out of lanes laying on horns trying to shift their way through traffic. Vendors open up their stalls selling fresh hot bread. Both women and men walk through the bustling streets lining up at local vendor stalls to get the freshest bread and produce for the day. My guide alerts me that we are almost at the hotel and urges me to look to my left. I look over to my left and what do I see, The Pyramids of Giza are right there, not even 100 meters away from me. My eyes can’t believe what they are seeing. It’s as if I have been transported back into ancient times. I keep looking at them as if they would disappear if I blinked too slow.
Early morning haze over Giza, right before the hustle and bustle the day begins.
The huge gray building way in the back will be the new Egyptian museum opening in 2020.
A view of The Pyramids of Giza in the early morning sunrise, right from my hotel room. Sunrises and sunsets are both magical in Egypt.
I get all checked into my room, and I am exhausted from the flight over. I tell myself that I will eat, shower, hydrate, and try to explore a little on my own. Nope, not happening, the exploring part on my own never happened. I crashed hard after showering and eating. I woke up only to eat dinner and went right back to sleep and slept until 5:00 a.m. the next morning, fresh and ready for day one of exploring.
I meet my guide Mahmoud downstairs in the lobby the next morning and set off to start our day by visiting the Pyramids and Sphinx. I could hardly believe that this was real life for me. I had always dreamed of coming to Egypt and seeing all these incredible sights. It’s another thing altogether when you finally arrive and are standing in places that you never imagined you’d be.
The Pyramids of Giza settled right in the heart of the city of Giza. It’s not all sand dunes and dessert landscape.
The Sphinx. The body of a lion and head of human, missing it’s nose.
A grand overview of the area where the Pyramids and Sphinx sit. Trust me, the photos will never be able to capture this masterpiece perfectly.
It was around 103 degrees Fahrenheit that day. I immediately felt the effects of the harsh sun. I wasn’t properly hydrated, and I was still extremely jet-lagged. I remember telling my guide, can we keep walking while you explain. It was at that moment where I felt like I was going to pass out. I pressed on and continued to look at the sights, not wanting to miss a thing. I knew that we had lunch coming up, so I thought it would be okay to wait until lunch to cool off and drink more water. Lunch came and went, and I was still feeling slightly light-headed and woozy, but again, I didn’t want to stop, I was so scared of missing out on something. I will stop right here and say that it is IMPERATIVE to listen to your body! Don’t overexert yourself in extreme heat because you will be a heat casualty.
Our next stop after lunch was the Egyptian Museum. As we were headed there, I could tell that I was feeling a little weird. I didn’t even make up the steps of the museum before almost passing out. The museum is not air-conditioned, and at that point, I had tears rolling down because I thought I was going to pass out. My guide, being the sweet man that he is, he took excellent care of me, he ran and got me three bottles of water and even one juice to rehydrate me. He also took extra precautions to make sure that I would be okay by stopping at a pharmacy to get me some electrolyte packets for the next day. We took it slow for the rest of the day. Mahmoud was a total gentleman; he saved the day.
The outside of the Egyptian Museum. I don’t have any photos of inside due to me being a heat casualty that day.
That night, I made sure to eat well and get some good sleep, but most importantly, drink fluids and hydrate. The next morning I woke up feeling so much better. I felt like I had my bearings about me and could seize the day quickly. This day was more laid back, not a lot of strenuous walking and being in the heat. The day had a nice flow to it. We started by driving about an hour away to visit Karanis, located in Kom Oshim, the ruin of an old city that dates back to the Roman, Coptic, and early Islamic times.
After the visit to Kom Oshim, we headed to a beautiful Tunisian Village in Fayom. We visited a fantastic local pottery spot where I learned that the entire village does pottery to help support their local economy. It was an absolute treat to be invited to see how the pottery is made and then baked and sold. The village is very lush and green with beautiful flowers throughout, almost like an oasis in the middle of dry land.
To end this day we headed for a bite to eat at a local restaurant for a special meal prepared for the guide and me, it was a beautiful seafood spread fit for a queen. The owner and his son went above and beyond to make us comfortable during our meal. I was genuinely touched by their warm and welcoming hospitality.
The owner and his son. Two very kind souls.
The local restaurant right off of the sea.
My time in Cairo had come to an end for the time being. The following day I flew out to Aswan through Egypt Air and met another guide to take me throughout the regions of Aswan and Luxor by way of a cruise down the Nile River. The flight over to Aswan was pretty much the craziest thing I have ever experienced in my entire life. About 25 minutes into the trip, my seatmate taps me on y shoulder and asks me if I smell cigarette smoke. I inhaled the air and low and behold you could smell strongly the aroma of a freshly lit cigarette. I couldn’t believe what I was smelling. Was someone indeed smoking on the aircraft mid-flight? You can tell the difference between the stench of a person who has the aroma of an old cigarette lingering on their clothing and the very sharp smell of smoke from a cigarette that’s just been lit. Either way, I was in shock and awe!
By the time I landed in Aswan, I meet with the tour rep that transports me to my hotel. There, I meet up with my wonderful tour guide that I will be with for the next few days. The next order of the day was a felucca ride down the River Nile during sunset. That was the perfect way to end my day. The breeze coming off the Nile put me in a trance as the sails from the felucca gently swayed us softly down the river. I hadn’t felt that much peace in a long time. My soul needed that. I didn’t ever want the ride to end. They say that God will give you what you need the most right at the perfect time, and the timing couldn’t have been better. I also couldn’t help to stop thinking that I was in the same river that Moses was placed in by his mother to keep him safe from the Pharaoh.
Captured here are children on paddle boards trying to hang on to different feluccas sailing up and down the River Nile. They ere asking the tourist for candy and money. It is not recommended to entertain these children because it promotes panhandling when they should be in school.
My accommodations for the evening are at the Movenpick. The Mövenpick in Aswan is settled right on the River Nile, and you have to take a small ferry to get to it. When I stepped off the boat I was mesmerized by the views and how lush and clean the grounds were. It was very fancy, and I loved every minute of it. Even inside the hotel, the atmosphere is very tranquil and beautiful. You’re greeted with Hibiscus tea and escorted to your room promptly. The walls are filled with beautiful local Nubian art, and the rooms are spectacular, offering some of the most amazing views of the Nile River with a dessert back drop off in the distance. My only wish that I had stayed a little longer to enjoy the property, but there were things to do, places to see, and people to meet.
Grounds of the Mövenpick
Some of the beautiful Nubian art hanging throughout the hotels halls.
The most gorgeous view of the Nile River from my hotel room with lush expansive gardens and the dessert in the back drop.
The following morning comes way too fast. I check out of my hotel in the early hours of the morning, somewhere around 3:50 a.m. I hop on the ferry and go to the other side and meet my guide, Tamer, by the docks at 4:15 a.m. We head out for what will be a three-hour drive to Abu Simbel Temple. I try to catch some sleep while in the car, but the ride was bumpy, and of course, I couldn’t sleep. My thoughts were all over the place. But three hours had come and gone by with what seemed like no time. We finally arrived at Abu Simbel, and the sun was already high in the sky by 7:00 a.m. Luckily we were some of the first people to come, so we got to explore it and see everything without too many other tourists. Let me say this right here, and now, I DO NOT like massive crowds of tourists. I know that’s hugely hypocritical of me because I, too, am a tourist, but there’s nothing worse than being at a site and having massive busloads of tourists offload unto one particular place all at the same time. It takes away from the experience majorly. My guide was so excellent that he did all of his explainings in the first few minutes of arriving at a site and gave me the free time to go and explore and take pictures off on my own after that. That worked out for me perfectly as I love to wander off and explore the area or site we’re visiting.
The Temple of Abu Simbel was hands down my favorite of all of the temples we managed to visit throughout my time in Egypt. You arrive on-site and walk down a rather long path along Lake Nasser, and then as soon as you turn the curb, this massive structure of two different temples hits your eyesight and demands all of your attention. They are such a sight to behold. Again, and you will hear me say this numerous times throughout this blog. It’s mesmerizing. I couldn’t stop looking at it, even from different angles, it’s impressive. Abu Simbel has two temples carved into a mountainside that honors Ramses II and his queen Nefertari. This temple was rescued and freed from the waters of the River Nile. It took them around 26 years to move it, disassemble it and reassemble to where it sits now.
The photos below will show the temple that honors Ramses II.
The next series of photos show the temple for Ramses II wife, Nefertari.
Both temples are stunning on the inside. You can spend a lot of time in the two just wandering around and thinking of what it must have been like back during the times when the temples were being built.
After we wrapped up at Abu Simbel, we took the three-hour ride back through the dessert stopping at the High Dam of Aswan. The dam was built across the Nile River in Aswan and helped to control flooding as well as being a considerable generator of hydroelectricity. It’s massive to see. We didn’t spend much time there; we just stopped to have a quick look, and we got back on the road. Once we finally made it through the desert highway, we arrived at our cruise ship, where we would board for three nights until we reached our final destination of Luxor.
The cruise ships in Egypt aren’t considerable vessels in the likes of Carnival or Norwegian. These are much smaller vessels equipped with 42 suites, four decks, a dining area, two lounges, and a little “spa area” (I wouldn’t even call it that). My experience on the cruise boat wasn’t the best. I ended up getting terrible food poisoning from the food. The food also didn’t taste the best, but you have to understand that food varies from all over the world, and Egypt is still considered a third world country. I don’t think I ate for the next few days after getting sick. I only drank the bottled mineral water, and not once did I eat off the street, so in reality, who knows where exactly I got the bug from. One thing to keep in mind when visiting Egypt, the water is NOT SAFE to drink under any circumstances. I had a flirtation water bottle with me, and I still managed to get ill. My time after that was pretty rough for a few days. However, I didn’t let that stop me from pushing through and making the most of my time in Egypt. My guide took such good care of me. He brought me medicine, he checked in on me regularly and made sure I was okay for the day. My guides were amazing. They treated me like a queen!
The next morning we took a ferry over to Philae Temple. On the short ride over to the island, there was a subtle, gentle breeze that broke the heat of the day. We slowly float by Nubian guest houses right off the banks of the Nile, and on the horizon, you can see the temple appearing closer and closer. The small boat pulls into the dock, and there are many other small boats like the one we’re on delivering tourists to see this beautiful site. I step off the boat and onto the dock, and there are vendors all lined up selling small trinkets and incense and handcrafted jewelry. My guide encourages me to keep walking and to ignore the vendors unless I see something that I like. I’m told that most of these items are from China! We walk a short distance, and before you know it, we have arrived. Philae temple was built in the late Ptolemaic to the early Roman era. It was made to honor the goddess Isis. You can see the Roman influence in the architecture of this temple heavily.
A view of the island form the boat ride over from the mainland. You can see the Philae Temple off in the distance.
Philae Temple
Beautiful columns
There were three guys who were in the temple that talked to these kittens and made them do cute little things on command. I only hope these kittens were being well taken care of.
We left the Philae Temple at a perfect time. As soon as we left, many tourists were offloading several little boats and making their way towards the temple. Now it was time to head back to the boat and get ready to set sail for the evening. I was happy for the boat to be finally sailing. Being that I was still battling a stomach bug, I decided to lay down and drink as much water as I could and check out the views while floating down the Nile.
I will never get tired of watching the beautiful felucca’s float down the Nile.
Ultra lush and fertile grounds.
A village off the banks of the Nile during sunset.
Chasing the sunset behind the palm trees.
Cruise evenings were always so beautiful because you could see a panoramic view of the top deck of the villages while floating down the river. The next morning our boat docked somewhere on the West Bank of the Nile. We took a horse and carriage ride to the Temple of Edfu. The front of Edfu temple kind of resembled the previous temple of Philae from the front. It was at this point t where I began to feel like was templed out, but there were still a few left to see, and they actually turned out to be pretty amazing. So, if you’re still reading at this point, bear with me. There are quite a bit more temples to see.
The temple of Edfu is dedicated to the falcon god Horus. It is known as one of the most well-preserved temples in Egypt. It was built during the Ptolemaic era, and you can see the infamous inscriptions on the front wall of the god smiting his enemies, a very similar scenario that you will see in the front entrance of many temples in Egypt.
Sacred boat in sanctuary of Horus Temple.
Some of the carvings on the walls are amazing. Beautifully preserved.
After a nice break, we completed the day in the evening in Luxor by visiting the Luxor and Karnak Temples. To attend one, you must visit the other because they are connected. We start at Karnak. The Karnak complex has four major parts, but only one is open for exploring. It is the second most visited place in Egypt after the Pyramids of Giza. My favorite part of this massive complex is Hypostyle Hall. There are large towering columns arranged in 16 rows. You could spend an extended length of time just wondering around and looking at the carvings on each column.
The beautiful Hypostle Hall.
Once you think that you’ve seen it all, there’s even more amazingness in the Luxor Temple Complex.
My guide was trying to explain that an avenue of the human head sphinx of about three kilometers once connected the temples of Karnak and Luxor. I don’t remember everything because we covered a lot of ground that day, but the experience was terrific.
Luxor Temple
The entrance was built by Ramesses II, known as the first pylon.
There should be another obelisk that matches the one in front, but it now sits in Paris.
Right as the sun was starting to set you could hear the Azan ( the Islamic call to worship) over the loud speaker right inside the temple. This mosque dates back to the 19th century.
The colorful preservation fo the carvings on the wall are said to maybe be a depiction of Jesus Christ’s 12 disciples.
The ending to a beautiful day.
I could have explored way longer in the Karnak and Luxor Temples, but the sun was setting, and it was getting dark out. Some evenings, there is a light and sound show at some of the temples. I decided to pass on it, only because I find these things to be quite cheesy, but if that’s your thing, there’s no shame in going to check it out. For now, it was time to head back to the boat and get ready for another massive day in the morning.
The next morning I woke up at a very early 3 a.m. to head out on one of the most magical adventures of my entire life. A hot air balloon ride! Usually, heights make me quite anxious, but I was all in for this adventure. I couldn’t let the opportunity pass to experience this once in a lifetime greatness. Now, I’m here to tell you that once we got off the bus and it was time to board the hot air balloon, I was freaking out. The balloons are GIGANTIC, and there is fire being blown out of a blowtorch device up into the balloon to help you float upward. I was shook! I kept hearing the sound of the blow torch go off, and I immediately went into the fields to throw up. I was in full on panic. It was my turn to board the balloon with a group of others. As soon I felt the heat from the torch, I jerked back and said, “Noooo, I can’t do it.” Then the guide spun me around and said, “Don’t worry, you can do this.” An older foreign lady who had to have been in her 60’s looked at me with these summoning eyes and said, “Get in, you’ll regret it if not. You can do it, and it’ll be fine”. Something about that lady’s look on her face instantly made me calm enough to get into the ballon, and boy was I glad that I did. I would have missed out on one of the most unbelievably magical experiences of my entire life. Nothing can beat that; I don’t think.
Amazed at how big the balloons are in real life.
This was taken before I decided to throw my guts up over in those fields behind me.
Starting to go up
Floating over the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut
Coming down
You guys, this is one of those experiences where words and pictures are simply not enough to describe it. I highly recommend this if you ever find yourself visiting Luxor while in Egypt. The landing coming down was really smooth. Our pilot was amazing. They offload you one at a time to make sure the balloon doesn’t float away; it is a very meticulous process.
After the hot air balloon experience, the rep from the company linked me back up with my guide, Tamer. We meet at the Colossi of Memnon. It wasn’t much to see, just two statues with a lot of birds on them. We only spent three minutes max there, as it was on the way to the Valley of The Kings.
Amenhotep III
As we head to the Valley of the Kings, you can still see some of the balloons lingering in the morning sky. That is a view that can never get old. When we arrive at the Valley of the Kings, we get our tickets and hop on the tram that takes us up a winding path where all of the tombs are buried right into a desert mountainside. What lies here is a massive collection of tombs for past Kings. The inside of the tombs displays incredible preparation work for the next life. The Pharaohs didn’t believe that death was final; they thought that life would always be a continuance of passing from one life to the next. The tombs were to have everything that one might need for the next life. If your tomb wasn’t complete before death, no-one was able to come along and finish it for you. You would be buried in an incomplete tomb. There are around 63 tombs in total, but I only visited three. A lot of the graves are closed off to the public. Many of them have been completely robbed over the years, leaving them bare. Almost a few days later, after my visit, there was another great discovery of more tombs, and the mummification of the bodies was still preserved wonderfully. This only means that I will have return to Egypt again in the future.
These tombs are amongst some of the most preserved inside; you can see a lot of the original colors.
The first set of pictures are from King Merenptah’s tomb.
The path down is very steep and very hot.
The next few photos will be from Iside of Ramses IX tomb.
The final set of tomb pictures are from Ramesses IV, also known as KV 2. The coloration inside is some of the best I’ve seen.
There are stories to be told inside these tombs. I, unfortunately, do not have all of the knowledge or facts, but my guide did an outstanding job explaining a lot of it. My visit was very brief, and because of that, I do not remember all of the details. I highly encourage you to do a little research if you would like to know more about any of what I have shown you. There’s a treasure trove of information out there.
To wrap up my time in Luxor, we visited the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut. This temple is one of a kind, beautiful piece of architecture dedicated to a Queen that ruled over ancient Egypt as a King. However, in a tale as old as time, there was a lot of hatred brewing amongst her from her stepson Thutmose III. After her death, he tried to erase her from the history of Egypt forever by destroying statues and removing her names from the cartouches. However, his efforts were in vain, and her legacy still lives on to this day.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end. The hardest part of this day was saying goodbye to my incredible guide. Tamer had a wealth of knowledge, and he was very patient and kind the entire time. I would have been lost without his expertise. He is the guy that you want around if you ever want to explore Egypt. For now, I was off to Hurghada for some rest and relaxation on the coast of the Red Sea.
The drive to the seaside resort was about four hours long. We drove through what seemed like a never-ending wasteland of aired dessert and huge mountains. We finally arrive somewhere around the early evening. I check into the Hilton Hurghada Resort, and the next few days were easy living. The resort was an all-inclusive, meaning all food and beverages were free, as well as some water activities. I tried my best to relax and catch up on much-needed sleep. My stomach was still not right at this pint, and honestly, I had stopped eating much of anything. I was drinking water, but not eating much, so I was super tired a lot. It can be pretty draining when you’ve picked up a bug and are out every day in extreme heat and getting little rest. This was the perfect time to relax, and relax is what I did.
Hilton Hurghada Resort
Swimming in the Red Sea
Views from the glass boat ride
My two days in Hurghada were terrific. I was able to be in my element by the sea and relax just enough before going back to Cairo to return home. The Red Sea is the second saltiest sea after the Dead Sea. The water is at least 100 shades of aqua blue. Some of the prettiest waters you’ll feast your eyes upon. I managed to take a glass boat tour as well as get some snorkeling in a while out in the waters of the Dead Sea. I had a blast. If I am ever in this region of the world again, I will be sure to return.
On my flight back to Cairo, I managed to capture some stunning aerial shots of the water and the mountains from the window seat of the plane.
The coastal city of Hurghada from above
How beautiful are these mountain views from the sky
I land back in Cairo from Hurghada in the evening and take it easy for the rest of the day. Tomorrow is my last full day in Cairo, and I have saved the best for last. I am going to explore Coptic Cairo, the Cairo Citadel of Saladin, and the Khan El Khalili Bazar all before my flight later on that night. This trip to Egypt has been non-stop the entire time with new adventures each day.
The next morning comes, and to my surprise, I am being linked up with one of my guides from when I was in Cairo earlier. It was a treat to see Mahmoud again. We set out to explore Coptic Cairo first. We arrive at Saint Virgin Mary’s Coptic Orthodox Church, also known as the Hanging Church. The church is on top of a gatehouse of Babylon Fortress. The grounds are lovely and serene. You walk in, and there is a courtyard with colorful imagery from scenes the Bible on the walls and steps that lead you up into the church. Again, there is a ton of historical information out there on this church. I highly encourage you guys to read up on it if you have free time.
The entrance to the church
After we spent some time in the Hanging Church, my guide had a small surprise for me and took me to a cool place called Church of St Sergius and Bacchus. It is said to have been built on the spot where Jesus, Mary, and Joseph rested when they fled to Egypt. It was an excellent way to end the tour of Coptic Cairo.
The entrance of the Church of St. Sergius and Bacchus.
The first image is from the well that the Holy Family drank from.
The second two images below are the small space down in the crypt below the church. This space is said to be the place where the Holy family rested.
We head out and take a drive to The Cairo Citadel of Saladin. This place is a UNESCO world heritage site that was built between 1176-1183 AD. It’s known for the beautiful Mosque of Mohammed Ali. With tons of Ottoman influence in the architecture, it bears a lot of resemblance to the Hagia Sofia in Istanbul. The views of Cairo from up top are incredible, not to be missed.
This citadel was said to be built to protect from the Crusaders.
The Alabaster Mosque of Mohamed Ali Pesha.
The courtyard
The entrance
I tried to capture as much of the ceiling as I possibly could. The intricate details are beautiful.
The back entrance leading into the mosque.
Views from up-top the Citadel
Finally, the very last place we go before it’s time for me to freshen up and get ready for my flight home, we stroll the streets of the Khan El Khalili Bazar. The bazar puts you in the mind of a scene straight out of Aladdin when they are chasing him through the market. Throughout the narrow winding alleyways are vendors of all kinds asking you to look at their products. “For you, I have a special price,” yells one of the vendors. The young adult crowd is the majority of the population that you see roaming about. The fragrant smell of different incense wafts through the air demanding the attention of your senses. Whatever you’re looking for, you can find and buy at the Khan El Khalili Bazar. The hustle and buzz of the bazaar seem only to amplify once the sun sets. That’s when the place truly comes alive.
And that, my friends, is a perfect ending to one of the most amazing trips I have taken in my life. I know that I say all of my trips are good, but Egypt was AMAZING!!!! There is so much rich history in this place, and it’s hard to believe that I stood and walked on the same ground as ancient Pharaohs of the past as well as gods and goddesses and even The Holy Family. It indeed will be an experience that I will never forget. I HIGHLY recommend that you put EGYPT on the top of your travel list; it will not disappoint.
Thank you guys so much for sticking with me through this incredibly lengthy blog. I tried not to leave anything out. My goal is always to provide you guys with the full experience so you can feel like you were right there with me. I hope that you guys enjoyed reading this as much I enjoyed sharing. Until my next adventure, much love and peace.
P.S. My next adventure will be in SE Asia…. get excited!!!!!!
