We visited the Egyptian Museum where we got to see the Tutankhamun "good stuff"... the stuff that doesn't tour the rest of the world. Stuff we couldn't even take pictures of, like the gold head covering made of 25 lbs. of pure gold, the multi-nested burial sarcophaguses made of gold, his throne, his golden beds. And to think, he was one of the minor pharoahs, dying at 19 years of age. Makes you wonder what all of those other tomb raiders got away with from the likes of Ramses III.
We learned about the plants representing Upper and Lower Egypt; the lotus flower and the papyrus... used to make perfumes and papers.
Next we headed to the Pyramids of Giza. Along the way, we saw donkeys. Lots and lots of donkeys, pulling carts of fruits and veggies and anything else that needed to be hauled around town.
Then we arrived at one of the wonders of the ancient world. Wow! The pyramids are so big!
And here is one of the best tour guides in the world: Hany. He says the ladies often mistakenly call him "Honey". This is one of his tour guide friends, and she was really nice too. We thought maybe they were a couple, but no... he's an eligible bachelor studying to become a doctor, and he said he's open to any single ladies from America who want to have a mail-order husband. He even wanted to marry Sharayah as soon as he saw a picture of her. He's a sweetheart, so if any of you gals out there are interested in meeting a hot Egyptian, just let me know and I'll get you the info.
Next we went for a camel ride. It was awesome!
This sweet camel even said "Cheese!" as I snapped this picture. Either that or he was just amused by our camel driver beating Marty repeatedly at arm wrestling.
And here's one of our favorite pictures... great background.
Now here's a pic you may have seen hundreds of times, but this one is special to me, because it's the evidence that "I was there!"
Next we visited a Papyrus Institute where we got to watch them make paper the old fashion way.
Then we went for a drive and stopped on the bridge over the River Nile. Last night when we'd crossed it, we'd been amazed by the hundreds of people out there sitting on lawn chairs and fishing off the bridge. There were even street vendors walking up and down selling drinks and snacks and such. What a community!
Our final stop for the first full day was at the train station. Some ladies there wanted me to take a picture with them. Their children were especially sweet.
Our day ended on a sleeper train from Cairo to Aswan. That was an adventure in itself. They called it a 5-star, but there must not be any other trains that even rank as 1, 2, 3, or 4, because it was anything but a star. We were in 2 small fold-down bunk beds and the train never slowed down slowly... it always braked multiple times and you fell out of bed. The bathroom was just a double sized airplane bathroom, and there were no showers or anything. If you ever go to Egypt, I'd recommend skipping the sleeper train experience, unless you're just up for an "experience". It was definitely a "once in a lifetime thing" because I'll never do it again. Hehe.
It did have one advantage, in that the scenes the next morning as we rolled alongside the River Nile were very nice. It's just you had to look out of a dirty window to see them. Nothing like identifying more closely with those who live in a third world country... sweaty, dirty, hungry, tired.
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