Shady Alleys and Cheesy Sound & Light Shows

Friday, November 5th. Today is the official end of the Egypt and The Nile tour although I'll be spending an extra day in Egypt (The Alexandria trip in the next blog!). The day was rather uneventful and not much happened on this last day.

The day started off with a loud knock on the door at 4:20am, our "wake up knock". Lisa and I got dressed and waited for the "here's your breakfast tray knock". Breakfast was very similar to the first breakfast I had on the Cairo to Aswan train except this time around I had four different types of breads instead of three. Egyptians really, really love their breads and I was thinking that next time I come to Egypt I'm bringing a jar of peanut butter. Not that the breads were bad but since we had to stay away from the butter and the little thing of jam was not enough to cover half a bread, I figured a jar of peanut butter will be a great thing to accompany the breads. We finally rolled into Cairo at around 5:10am and the looks on the faces of my tour mates was priceless; you can tell that many were exhausted and just ready to go home. We got off the train, climbed a few flights of stairs, and boarded the bus to the Victoria Hotel. I was looking forward to getting to the hotel and taking a nice hot shower because I was feeling a bit gross. We get to the hotel and Lisa and I are assigned to room 104. The wait for the elevator was a bit long because apparently only one of the two was working. When we finally get to the room and it is shower time for me I about had a heart attack...no hot water!! I had to take a shower in what can be best described as ice cubes. It is 5:30am so the last thing I wanted to deal with was having to brave such a cold shower. That of course put me in a rather bad mood so after my shower I put absolutely zero effort into looking presentable; I just went through my luggage, grabbed the cleanest things I can find, and walked out the door. Let's just say, I was looking rather rough! I go to the lobby and I was comforted by the thought that I was in the company of many tour mates that looked as rough, if not rougher, than I did. I think that after a week of very late nights accompanied by early morning wake up calls one is not going to look runway ready!

We hop on the bus for one final day of sightseeing as a group even though a tour mate or two stayed behind at the hotel catching up on sleep. Our first stop was the Citadel, home to Egypt's rulers for almost 700 years. The structure is divided into mosques, museums, and battlements and its size is quite impressive. After arriving at the Citadel, we walk towards the Mosque of the Profit Mohammed Ali (no not the boxer!). While looking at the mosque, the Turkish influence is clearly evident from the minarets to the domes to the crescent with a star above the main dome. Before entering the mosque, we had to remove our shoes and those that were not dressed "conservatively" were given a white robe to wear over their clothes. I was a tad worried that I would be given said robe since my shirt was a bit tight but in the end I had no problems. Those that were given robes were the girls that were wearing leggings, dresses, or shorts. When we entered the mosque, Sherif guided us towards the area where Muslims wash their hands, mouth, nose, face, and arms (in that order) to physically prepare for prayers. It was very interesting hearing him explain how Muslims prepared for prayer and the phrases they repeated throughout the process. Afterwards, he guided us into the mosque where he demonstrated how Muslims pray: the process, the prayers recited, the reasons why they pray the way they do, etc. I found this part of the trip to be very interesting and it was actually one of my favorite lessons. I came to Egypt not just for the pyramids and temples but to get a better understanding of the culture, the people, and the religions. I learned a lot during the visit to the mosque and I felt I got a lot out of that experience. After leaving the mosque, we walked around the Citadel where we had a great view of the Cairo skyline.

The next thing on our list of sites to see was Saqqara! Saqqara (also spelled Sakkara) is a massive necropolis pertaining to the Ancient Egyptian capital of Memphis which consists of the famous Step Pyramid and numerous other tombs and temples. Unfortunately, our visit to Saqqara was rather rushed. Sherif gave us a 20 minute tour and we got about 5 minutes of free time which consisted of me trying to take as many pictures as possible and filling up a water bottle with Saharan sand. We did get to visit one of the structures in the complex but it was so rushed I really didn't get to see much; just walk on through and run out. Why this visit was so rushed beats me because all we did the remainder of the day is eat lunch at a local restaurant and visit the Khan Al-Khalili bazaar in Cairo (and that took about 1 hour). I did take a few pictures of the Step Pyramid which belonged to Djoser, a 3rd dynasty pharaoh during the Old Kingdom, and is considered to be the first pyramid in Ancient Egypt. The first "true pyramid" is found in Dashur south of Saqqara. The Step Pyramid is obviously a lot smaller than the pyramids at Giza and unfortunately, one of the sides was covered in scaffolding. I'm hoping that on my return trip the scaffolding will be gone so I could take some great pictures!

After Saqqara, we headed out to a local eatery to enjoy our last meal as a group. The restaurant was large but it seems like it caters mostly to tour groups; the tables were the large banquet style tables that sit more than 10 people and there were no locals present, just another tour group. By this lunch, I was feeling well enough that I was able to finally eat some food!!! I devoured with much gusto some pita bread, veggies, fries, falafel, and a few other items. Another item I tried was guava (guayaba); being Cuban I grew up eating guava all the time but the Egyptian variety is not as sweet as the type I have at home. I actually liked the Egyptian variety a tad better. All of the food I tried in Egypt was amazing and I can't wait to go back so I can enjoy more of it especially the falafel!!

Now it was time to visit the Khan Al-Khalili bazaar in Cairo and this experience turned into my most bizarre (and scary) moment in Egypt. When we arrived at the market, Sherif told us where to go and in what areas to stay in. As Angele had visited the market before since she arrived to Egypt a day early, she took Shane, Thomas, and I to the area where the locals not the tourists shop. It was all real interesting until Shane made a wrong turn into an alley we were definitely not suppose to be in!!!! For ten very long minutes, we were walking through this dark, shady alley with a bunch of locals just staring at us. It was obvious tourists don't frequent this area (probably because one shouldn't be there) and there was no sign of the tourist police, undercover (well not all are truly undercover) cops that are found at each major tourist site and at times accompany groups in the tour buses. Since we didn't want to be there, we were just power walking as fast as we could trying to find a street that connected to the main market. Angele and Shane were in the front, I was in the middle trying to catch up to them, and Thomas was behind me looking not too worried. Angele and Shane kept walking faster and faster and I was having quite the time trying to catch up. Last thing I wanted was to be left behind in that alley! After finally finding our way to the main market, we didn't have time to do some shopping so we headed over to Fishawi's, a coffee shop that has been open for over 200 years. I ordered some Turkish coffee which has to be the strongest coffee I have ever drank; stronger than Cuban coffee. We sat in the coffee shop for a few minutes catching our breath and watching the locals go by. Erik the Norwegian, Matt, and Kim joined us and we all got a good laugh at the vendors that kept stopping by asking Erik if he wanted his shoes polished. On the bus ride to the hotel, Sherif asked me why I hadn't purchased anything at the market and I shared the story of our lovely experience. He could not believe it that we winded up in such an alley and said that was the reason why he told us to stick to the tourist part of the market. All I know is that I know have something to add to my "what not to do" list when I visit Egypt the next time!

Upon arriving at the hotel, we all met in the lobby for our final group meeting! Sherif said some last words and handed out comment cards for us to fill out. Unfortunately, the comment card did not provide much space so I had to leave out a lot of the feedback I wished to give. While I was writing away, people were going up to Sherif to give him a farewell hug, take a final picture, and give him some tip. The tip was completely optional and it obviously depended on your experience throughout the trip. I believe everyone gave him some sort of tip because Sherif definitely deserved it; he is what made this trip so incredible! He was extremely knowledgeable and always went out of his way to make sure everyone was enjoying their trip. After I filled out my comment card, I gave Sherif his tip but no farewell hug. I had learned earlier that day that Sherif was headed to Alexandria with a few of my tour mates and myself the following day!

Next up was the optional Sound & Light Show in Giza. The majority of my group went and while no one regretted going, it is something I'll probably not do again on my return trip. The light portion of the show was great and it was wonderful seeing the pyramids and the Sphinx all lit up against the pitch black night sky. What killed the moment was the horribly cheesy narration that sounded like it was created in the 1960s. Between the pharaohs and the Sphinx "talking" and the stupid X-File like alien sound effects, those around me and myself could not stop laughing. Overall, it was a great way to end my journey to "Old Egypt" and I was having a hard time believing that just a week ago I was in Giza for the first time touring the pyramids.

When we returned to the hotel, I said farewell to the tour mates that were leaving that evening and the following day. I was still in shock that the week had flown by so quickly and it was then that I started getting a tad emotional. I went upstairs to spend some time with my roommate since her airport transfer was at around 2am! Lisa was the best roommate one can ask for and I really was going to miss her lots!! After a while, Rosie and Sarah stopped by to chat and to say farewell. We shared stories about the trip and our lives and then at around 11:30pm, they left along with Lisa so I could get some sleep. I was beyond exhausted once again and I had a 6am wake up call for Alexandria. At around 1:30ish, Lisa woke me up (I had asked her to) to say goodbye since it was time for her to head to the lobby to await her ride to the airport. Luckily, I was still more than half asleep so I did not have time to get emotional. I went back to bed but before I did, I left one of the lights on. Don't know exactly why I left the light on but then again one doesn't think straight when they are 90% asleep! Tonight was my final night in Egypt. 

The Citadel

Mosque of Mohammed Ali

Area where Muslims wash before praying

Infamous clock tower the French gave the Egyptians; it never worked

Inside the mosque

Right circle: Allah is Great; Left circle: Mohammed the Prophet

View of Cairo from the Citadel

Step Pyramid at Saqqara

Khan Al Khalili Bazaar

Turkish Coffee

  

Sound & Light Show

Sound & Light Show

Sound & Light Show