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    This past September, I had the good fortune to travel to Egypt, ancient land of the Pharaohs. It was an amazing experience as I was pleasantly surprise by how much I didn’t know about this mysterious country.
     Egypt is a very safe place to visit and explore.  Tourism is their number one priority, handling over nine million tourists from all over the world. Security is well controlled at all airports and a special tourist police force is available to assist travelers in need at anytime  .The travel time to Cairo is only a ten hour night flight right out of JFK airport.  Since I slept most of the flight, I arrived feeling somewhat rested and ready to begin the day’s touring.
    Our Egyptologist, Afifi greeted us and quickly walked our group through immigration and purchased our visas within minutes.  We were then transported to our hotel and received a brief history and city tour of Cairo.   Lunch followed and as we explored the hotel and its amenities, we prepared for the following day’s tour.  
    The following morning after breakfast, we traveled to the old capital of Memphis and then headed to Sacarra, the home of the first pyramids which were designed in step formation. Our visit to the pyramids of Giza provided an opportunity to enter the 2nd pyramid which was very exciting.   The immensity of these monuments is difficult to comprehend until you find yourself standing very small before them. The chance to take a camel ride at the pyramids and some photo opportunities was enjoyed by all. We ended the day with a dinner of fine Egyptian delicacies.
     Our third day in Cairo began with a visit to the museum of antiquities to view King Tut’s exhibit and the famous mummy room. The museum itself is a wonderful place to discover and become familiar with the history of this ancient land. The afternoon was spent at the stature of the Sphinx and then to the Mohammed Ali mosque for an informational of the Muslim religion. This was truly interesting and not at all what I anticipated.
    Egypt has many items of interest and value which make truly unusual gifts to bring home.  The first is papyrus paper which is still made by hand and then painted on by local artists.  The area also has several alabaster shops where vases and statues are carved out of several types and colors of alabaster stone.  The perfume factories are known for their variety of essences which are created locally and sold. Finally, there are many carpet schools which educated children in the art of carpet weaving and tapestry design.  These carpets are made of wool or silk carpets and can be purchased for the return home.
     Day four brought us to Luxor and a chance to view the magnificent Nile River.  Our resort was located directly on the Nile, just a few short miles from the Valley of the Kings and the Karnack and Luxor temples. We toured the temples in the late afternoon where the light cast shadows on the temple ruins and surrounding areas giving it an even moredramatic look.
A longer stay of Luxor would have been appreciated but flights into our next destination city only ran twice weekly.
     Sharm El Sheik is often referred to as the jewel on the Red Sea, where you can scuba dive for a few days to sample the multitudes of marine life. The first day of diving we dovethe straits of Tiran, colorful, large numbers of fish and visibility of 80 feet. The second day of diving was at the S.S. Thistlegorm, a WWII wreck and war grave sunk by the Germans in 1949. The cargo is still in place on the ship having been undisturbed for more than 50 years.  The resort in Sharm was the Sheraton Resort located directly on the beach allowing us some quality down time from touring.  The area is surrounded by the Ras Mohammed National Park which includes the Ras Mohammed Marine Park as well.
    After four nights, we returned to Cairo and spent one final night prior to our return back to the United States. It was here we had a chance to say farewell to our Egyptian guides who became our friends. I am looking forward to returning to Egypt next Summer, why not join us for an unforgettable experience and a once in a life time adventure.

For more information:
For more information on out trip to Egypt please contact
Laura at 413-562-7431 or email her at adventures@weu.com!!