The Widow and the Spinster: The Search for Adventure, Enlightenment, and the Quest for Forbidden food - Bacon, Bacon, Bacon, and New TR Link! 5/23

[franandaj]

There’s a pretty good chance that you’re right I’d think.

But… only two in the area? And one a sandwich shop and the other McDonald’s??

I'm sure there was another restaurant in the area, but he didn't know we had already been that one. We probably could have pushed it, but that restaurant was decent enough.

Interesting… and so this thread doesn’t run the risk of the mods’ wrath, I’ll say no more.

Probably best.....I certainly would not have been happy if my guide brought me to a protest. Even a peaceful one.

You really look… annoyed at the very least.

Even so…. Tour guides must be concerned about reviews? And unhappy clients do not leave stellar reviews.

Well he also didn't notice that Jill didn't touch her fish the day before either.

 

[franandaj]

That's ok, I think I can picture it in my mind.

This seems like it would be such a foreign experience when you're used to being crammed in coach.

I'll tell you, I used to fly First or business class all the time, and this was still a foreign experience!

That might be the highest compliment they can get!

Watch out! They spit.

Wait til you get to the chapter on camels!

I'll have to remember that one.

I thought that you would particularly get a kick out of that!

It looks like a very nice hotel!

It was a very nice hotel.

If I had been traveling for over 24 hours, this would look like the most wonderful meal in the world to me.

I think even if you hadn't been traveling for 24 it would still look like a wonderful meal to you!

 

[franandaj]

The Night market was just overwhelming...Think Times Square on NYE.

Times Square was bad enough when we were there and it wasn't NYE!!!!

It was cool but it was overwhelming being in the middle of it with everyone hassling us to buy things. I wouldn't have been as bothered if the sellers weren't always in your face.

Yeah, the sellers were the biggest problem. I didn't want to buy anything because I didn't want them hassling me. Besides most of them were just peddling cheap crap.

The spices were amazing but they did trigger my sinuses! I was quite happy to get back to the room.

I might have been interested in checking out the spices, but the merchants just had me so triggered. I'm getting ahead of myself, but I was so thrilled when we found the place which is about three updates away.

 

[franandaj]

multi-coloured sneezes for days!

Technicolor sneezes?

 

[pkondz]

Probably best.....I certainly would not have been happy if my guide brought me to a protest. Even a peaceful one.

Nor I!

Well he also didn't notice that Jill didn't touch her fish the day before either.

Hmmm… true

 

[pkondz]

Technicolor sneezes?

From inhaling all the different colored spices

 

[franandaj]

We woke up early again, and both of us farted around on our phones or me on the computer. Eventually we got dressed and went down to breakfast. I chose an omelet again for the second time this trip. I only needed one plate of breakfast today since it was a pretty full plate. I miss those slices of cake. I wish I had the recipe, but my blood sugar doesn't!

We decided that we would use the morning to repack our suitcases for the flight the next day, and just basically chill. I used that time to get caught up on the TR notes, post an update on my DL TR, and actually start the first post of this TR. I had already written the bulk of the first update from home. I still had a few more pictures in photobucket that needed to be incorporated, but it was less than half an hours work, and I got the Trip Report started before the second half of the trip began.

Around noon we went downstairs. We settled up our bills for the laundry and then called an Uber. First we went to one of the Starbucks we tried to visit yesterday (but it was closed), and see if they had the mug Jenny wanted. They did not, so we would have to try at the airport the next day.

Then we took another Uber (turns out it was the same driver) to the Marriott where we had our massages scheduled. Jill noticed this little dog house outside for the security dogs.

Immediately we noticed that this hotel seemed A LOT nicer than the one where we were staying.

We had planned to have lunch there. They had at least six restaurants on site, and we found the restaurant we wanted to eat at outside. Jill asked about a non-smoking area, but the gentleman told us the entire outside was a smoking area. He led us to an airconditioned room inside and said that we could order from the same menu in here. Bonus! No smoking and AC!

For beverages, Jill ordered a Cola, I ordered strawberry juice.

The reason we chose this restaurant was that it was basically similar to an American coffee shop. While we had enjoyed the Schwarma, mixed grill, the fish (Jill not so much), at home both of us eat quite a variety of international cuisines, which we had not experienced here. Italian was on the menu for tonight, so we thought regular American style food sounded pretty decent.

They had a variety of sandwiches and other choices, but as I check their website, the menu was updated as of today and it has been severely reduced. But at the time, I think they even had a Reuben sandwich on the menu. Anyways Jill got the burger with beef bacon.

I got what was called Chicken Pane on the menu, but it was really just chicken fingers.

Then we found the spa.

Both of us received fantastic massages and we chilled out in this hot tub for about half an hour after we were finished. During my massage, I swear I heard Fran say in my head, "I'm so glad you're getting to do the things you want." It made me tear up a little bit.

When we went to check out, we asked about leaving tips for our therapists. Evidently this is not common. What kind of place is this where you have to tip someone to get toilet paper in the restroom, but folks don’t tip their massage therapist?

I also tipped the gal in the ladies lounge, and she didn’t even understand. She tried to give me the money back, and I had to gesture to her, “for you, from me and my friend.” When she finally understood I was giving her a tip, she was overwhelmed. It came to about $3.50US, but she was so happy.

We came back to our room at the hotel after that to find these towel animals.

He even got fancy with the wine glasses we had in the room!

And then we chilled out for a little while more. We tried to figure out how much money we were going to need for tips on the ship and for guides etc. on the cruise. We determined that we had enough cash on hand (provided the guides wanted USD). If they wanted local currency, we would need to visit an ATM. But according to what we had seen online, those were everywhere in the remote areas of Egypt.

We changed our clothes for dinner and caught another Uber to the Kempinski hotel. This is another one that was way nicer than our own. We were surprised to find this Halloween display in the lobby. As far as I know Halloween is mostly celebrated in the US although it is gaining momentum in other English speaking countries.

This chocolate shop wasn’t open and it’s a good thing! We might have wanted to purchase some of the treats!

Tonight we were dining at an Italian restaurant called Blue. Thank goodness this one was a non smoking restaurant. They started us off with a bread service.

We ordered another bottle of the wine we had a few nights before. While it wasn’t quite what we thought it would be, we thought it would go well with the pasta that we planned to order.

I ordered the Minestrone soup. It was good, but it had just way too many peas in it.

Jill got the Caesar salad, she had to order without tomatoes, and mushrooms. She asked for No Anchovies, but they were mixed into the dressing. She was OK with that, she just didn’t want little fishies on top looking back at her. Especially after the experience the other day.

Somewhere during the meal a couple who was originally from Queens, but had relocated to South Carolina sat down next to us. We sparked up a conversation and had a good time talking to them for most of the night.

Our mains came shortly thereafter, I ordered the Ricotta stuffed ravioli with tomatoes and a light cream sauce. It wasn’t the best thing I’d tasted, but it was good.

Jill got the Penne Pomodoro, and she was able to select the spicy level of the dish, she chose medium spicy.

Once our entrees were served is where things started to take a downward turn. The woman at the table next door was not only a New Yorker, but she was Italian. She ordered the same thing as I did. When it came she started complaining, “What is this? I ordered ravioli with Tomato and Basil? I don’t see any of that in here!”

Evidently her husband ordered the Linguine with Fruits de Mer, but asked for only shrimp, his had calamari in it. She complained so much that they prepared her a new dish.

She still wasn’t happy.

Then she started to complain about the husband’s dish. He was like, “I’m OK with it, just leave me alone and let me eat.”

“No! They need to know these things! It’s for their benefit, I used to work in customer service at a bank. It’s important that they know they did things wrong!”

The poor guys who were the servers were bending over backwards to make them happy and there was nothing they could do to make it better. Except that they gave them a complimentary glass of wine. They offered them dessert, they offered coffee, and to everything that they offered the woman said “no.”

Meanwhile Jill and I are just sitting there wanting to order dessert and everyone was ignoring us because of these two trouble makers. Finally we got someone’s attention, ordered dessert, ate it and paid while the lady and her husband were talking to the guy at the table on the other side.

Jill got the cheesecake (big surprise there!)

I got the Tiramisu (also not a huge surprise).

We came back to the room. Jill had enough wine, so I had to finish off the half bottle we had left before I went to sleep. No wounded soldiers on my watch!

Oh, and here’s our Google Timeline for today.

Up next: This is where we’re staying next trip!

 

[jedijill]

We ended up with an extra day in Cairo due to our international flights and when the Nile cruise was scheduled and I'm really glad we had it. We had been go go go since arriving in Jordan and it was nice to have a bit of a rest especially in hindsight. Alison and I had been trying to figure out what we wanted to do and I stumbled on the Marriott spa and it was a good find! The prices were pretty reasonable for a major hotel and the hotel itself was gorgeous. I'd MUCH rather stay there next trip! Lunch was tasty but beef bacon still isn't good!

Dinner at Blue was good but the seating was strange and the lady at the next table was AWFUL! She really ruined the second half of our dinner. I named her Karen.

Jill in CO

 

[DnA2010]

Just like at Disney you can get different "characters" on your tickets!

Always exciting for me

I think it was around this point that Achmed starting referring to himself as “Speilberg”.

This one is more of a classic shot!

These 2 pics really put the size of the blocks in perspective for me!

hehe these were good ones!

The One Where We Ride a Camel.

I was waiting for this when I was following alone live!

Keeping with my constant need of nature’s calling, I took advantage of an interesting advanced version of a mobile potty. It was a portable type building, but it had full running water. It was definitely not a porta-potty, but it wasn’t a fixed structure either. It was raised off the ground and each stall had a separate entrance with a couple stairs to get to the doors. There were probably four different stalls. I was very impressed, it was really clean for being in the middle of a bunch of pyramids.

Good facilities near pyramids, noted!

It was $40USD for the longer ride from our starting point around the backside of the pyramids to the Sphinx.

That seems reasonable to be honest

I lucked out with this shot.

Hey bird! What would he be comparable in size to?

These came up and I was like what the?!!

Yeehawww!!

beauty shot!

Classic shot, but a good one!

He did like to do these type of shots hehe

Once again, these ones came up and I was like "what the?!"

I will watch all the videos with D later, as didn't want to watch youtube at work...

As we were leaving the papyrus place, I noticed this woman selling coffee and tea out of the back of her car.

Did you try it?

The map even shows the border for the Cairo/Giza governates.

Not sure why I quoted this, sorry!

These rides are averaging $1-$2 per trip and she was generously giving the drivers 50% tips.

Whoa! that's very cheap indeed!

We were seated at a nice Nile view table. Excuse the glare in the window.

Nice view! Glad you got a window for the birthday meal!

4 different types? Nice!

300g Rib Eye with a mushroom thyme sauce.

This would be what D ordered...

Filet with Beef Jus with cracked pepper sauce.

This would be what I ordered

Next time, ask to be seated in the non-smoking section.

I know I'd probably totally forget also, I'm so not used to smoking anymore

Also his name on Instagram is “thebestegyptiantourguide”

I totally laughed out loud at this!

I did get over seven hours of sleep, so why not?

I would love to regularly get over 7 hours of sleep...le sigh...too many years of early mornings and not getting to bed till late

I made a little sandwich, had some salad with a lemon creamy dressing, some potatoes, and those chocolate and vanilla cakes that I seem to love so much.

Yum, looks like a nice, fresh looking breakfast!

For Jill and I to walk to dinner the night before we would have had to cross at least four intersections like that, and at night, and after a bottle of wine.

I am very glad you did not do the walk!!

We went over this bridge that our guide complained about how much it cost when people don’t have food, education or decent housing

I do get his point, but infrastructure like bridges is so necessary...

although maybe it's a bit big?

his tail looks lonnnnngggg from this angle!

aww man, the closer one is sooo skinny!

Lots of the little satellite dishes!

I have been enjoying all the ticket pictures!

They would lower the mummies down through this chamber.

Very cool!

I’m sure Ahmed was telling her something pertinent about this chamber in the picture above, because she took this picture.

@jedijill do you remember what was interesting here?

Fancy!

bones of horses were found. The bones themselves are on display in the tomb where they were found.

I'm sure you took these pics for me right?

At one time there was a statue of Roman emperor Diocletian who ruled between 298–302 AD atop this pillar. It is the only ancient monument still standing in Alexandria in its original location today.

Only one in it's original spot hey? that is cool!

This guy looks Egyptian to me!

The guys with the carts that have the fruit on ice and slice it up for you?

Yes I think so, although I never actually saw anyone buying anything

I see I still have lots to look at, plus videos to watch!

 

[franandaj]

We ended up with an extra day in Cairo due to our international flights and when the Nile cruise was scheduled and I'm really glad we had it.

Actually it was the tour company who made the mistake. They had us leaving Jordan on Monday, but not checking into our hotel in Cairo until Tuesday. When we pointed that out to them they asked us where we wanted our extra day. We both just assumed that we would want Cairo, it's the big city, surely there is much more to do there!

Had we known what hotels we would have been staying at, I would have personally picked Luxor. Did you see the title of the next chapter?

We had been go go go since arriving in Jordan and it was nice to have a bit of a rest especially in hindsight. Alison and I had been trying to figure out what we wanted to do and I stumbled on the Marriott spa and it was a good find! The prices were pretty reasonable for a major hotel and the hotel itself was gorgeous. I'd MUCH rather stay there next trip!

Yeah, it was super nice to have a totally down day where all we did was eat and be pampered because the rest of the trip was pretty much go go go too!

Lunch was tasty but beef bacon still isn't good!

You got that right!

Dinner at Blue was good but the seating was strange and the lady at the next table was AWFUL! She really ruined the second half of our dinner. I named her Karen.

Yeah, they were pleasant enough at the outset, but by the end I'd had enough.

 

[pkondz]

We woke up early again, and both of us farted around

If Ahmed had walked in, would he have fainted?

I miss those slices of cake. I wish I had the recipe, but my blood sugar doesn't!

I got the Trip Report started before the second half of the trip began.

I don't know how you do that. When I'm on vacation, I'm basically off the boards (and everything else) until I get back.

Then we took another Uber (turns out it was the same driver)

Really! I wonder if there's just a few that serve one area or something.

Jill noticed this little dog house outside for the security dogs.

Probably for a Chihuahua

Immediately we noticed that this hotel seemed A LOT nicer than the one where we were staying.

Does look very nice.

Jill asked about a non-smoking area, but the gentleman told us the entire outside was a smoking area. He led us to an airconditioned room inside and said that we could order from the same menu in here. Bonus! No smoking and AC!

Score!!

I ordered strawberry juice.

I don't think I've ever had that. The only times I've come close is when it's mixed in with something else. Strawberry banana... or Strawberry mango... like that.

I got what was called Chicken Pane on the menu, but it was really just chicken fingers.

Fancy!

Both of us received fantastic massages and we chilled out in this hot tub for about half an hour after we were finished.

Bet that felt good after all the touring you did up to that point!

During my massage, I swear I heard Fran say in my head, "I'm so glad you're getting to do the things you want." It made me tear up a little bit.

When we went to check out, we asked about leaving tips for our therapists. Evidently this is not common. What kind of place is this where you have to tip someone to get toilet paper in the restroom, but folks don’t tip their massage therapist?

That's... very strange. I mean... you'd just assume??

When she finally understood I was giving her a tip, she was overwhelmed. It came to about $3.50US, but she was so happy.

Little things... sometimes are big things, you know?

We came back to our room at the hotel after that to find these towel animals.

Nice!

He even got fancy with the wine glasses we had in the room!

"Do extra! These rich Americans even tip massage therapists and lavatory attendants. Just think how much they'll tip us!!"

. We were surprised to find this Halloween display in the lobby. As far as I know Halloween is mostly celebrated in the US although it is gaining momentum in other English speaking countries.

Um...

This chocolate shop wasn’t open and it’s a good thing! We might have wanted to purchase some of the treats!

Close call!!!


Darn it!

Jill got the Caesar salad, she had to order without tomatoes, and mushrooms.

That's... different. Never heard of a Caesar with tomatoes and/or mushrooms.

She asked for No Anchovies, but they were mixed into the dressing. She was OK with that, she just didn’t want little fishies on top looking back at her. Especially after the experience the other day.

I bet!

Somewhere during the meal a couple who was originally from Queens, but had relocated to South Carolina sat down next to us. We sparked up a conversation and had a good time talking to them for most of the night.

Nice that you'd meet up with some fellow country folk.
But... these aren't the same people as the complaining ones from New York, are they?

Jill got the Penne Pomodoro, and she was able to select the spicy level of the dish, she chose medium spicy.

Will ask her (next post) on the spicy level.

She ordered the same thing as I did. When it came she started complaining, “What is this? I ordered ravioli with Tomato and Basil? I don’t see any of that in here!”

Um... I see ravioli... I see tomatoes... Not sure about the basil, though.

Evidently her husband ordered the Linguine with Fruits de Mer, but asked for only shrimp, his had calamari in it. She complained so much that they prepared her a new dish.

I might be a little bit more miffed with this one... but like him, would probably have just shrugged and eaten it.

Then she started to complain about the husband’s dish. He was like, “I’m OK with it, just leave me alone and let me eat.”

Yup.

Jill got the cheesecake (big surprise there!)
I got the Tiramisu (also not a huge surprise).

I'll go with Jill on this one. Yum!

We came back to the room. Jill had enough wine, so I had to finish off the half bottle we had left before I went to sleep. No wounded soldiers on my watch!

 

[pkondz]

We ended up with an extra day in Cairo due to our international flights and when the Nile cruise was scheduled and I'm really glad we had it. We had been go go go since arriving in Jordan and it was nice to have a bit of a rest especially in hindsight.

I had been thinking for a while now that you (both) had sure been doing a lot!

Lunch was tasty but beef bacon still isn't good!

I was surprised to see that, actually. Did you know it was going to be there?

Dinner at Blue was good but the seating was strange and the lady at the next table was AWFUL! She really ruined the second half of our dinner.

Truly unfortunate.
I wanted to know about the spiciness of your meal. You ordered "medium spicy". How was it (on a spiciness level)
And I know that's very subjective... How are you when it comes to spicy foods? On a scale of "OMG! I just ate a tomato! I'm crying!" to "I munch on Carolina Reaper peppers as a snack" where are you?

I named her Karen.

 

[jedijill]

Truly unfortunate.
I wanted to know about the spiciness of your meal. You ordered "medium spicy". How was it (on a spiciness level)
And I know that's very subjective... How are you when it comes to spicy foods? On a scale of "OMG! I just ate a tomato! I'm crying!" to "I munch on Carolina Reaper peppers as a snack" where are you?

It was a bit too spicy but not bad. I'm from the midwest and my mother thinks that black pepper is too spicy so I've been working my way up over the years.....I like some spice but I also want flavor. I don't do hot for the sake of hot.

Jill in CO

 

[pkondz]

It was a bit too spicy but not bad. I'm from the midwest and my mother thinks that black pepper is too spicy so I've been working my way up over the years.....I like some spice but I also want flavor. I don't do hot for the sake of hot.

Jill in CO

Yes. Flavour! When I was young and dumb (as opposed to now, where I'm just... dumb) I would try to impress people by ordering suicide hot wings... I stopped when I realized that I wasn't tasting anything and was spending half the time wiping at my runny nose and eyes.

 

[DnA2010]

Most of them were closed but a few were open.

The "closed" ones don't look very secure to be honest!

This guy was preparing his hookah bar for business.

We actually have one (smaller than these) from when D's brother was living in turkey- not sure if it was out when you visited, or if it's in a box somewhere

Wow! an Audi and a VW as well!

Here are a few more unique sights that I don’t think we would see in this part of the world.

Yes, that's for sure! Are there belts on that rack?

Without going back, are all the tickets the same picture?

Ahmed told us that when he was first training to be a guide, that this entire area was all dirt and they were just beginning the excavation. He’s been a guide for about 30 years.

Wow what a change!

Here’s a zoomed in shot with a better view of the ruins of the school and the baths.

quite a colour difference- did I miss why?

those are so pretty!

This is the last I saw of Jill for a while…..

Ahh-ohhhhh

Wow I can't believe how nice this looks still!

I was kind of freaking out at this point. Jill had basically disappeared as far as I could tell.

I feel like my mind would be doing the same!

So I amused myself with these kitties. They looked better cared for than the ones that were out in the streets.

Comfort in the cats, good idea

Hehe I laughed at this, and also the fact that I'm the same with horses

I immediately saw the broken leaves and thought, ohh I wonder if someone will be excited for them, or if someone (like the guy who was transporting lots) goes up for them

I really liked the colour pallet in this picture!

The Qaitbay Citadel in Alexandria is considered one of the most important defensive strongholds, not only in Egypt, but also along the Mediterranean Sea coast. It formulated an important part of the fortification system of Alexandria in the 15th century AD. The fort was built on the exact location of the Great Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World.

Very cool, thanks for sharing the pics and info!

I kind of thought this was a waste of time. We spent less than 10 minutes here. Not that I wouldn’t have minded spending a little more time and checking out what there was to see here, but I got the idea that Ahmed didn’t find it interesting so he didn’t make it a point to show us much about it.

Oh well, I guess this one of those examples of "you win some, you lose some" ?

I immediately thought, look at all those fish with their heads sticking out!

I had a nice view of the coast.

Very nice, are those people in the water?

Jill was horrified and disgusted by the plate of fish that was staring at her. She turned around her plate as soon as it was served saying, “Stop looking at me!”

I'd probably do the same!!

I ate quite a bit of mine, but it was full of tiny bones which were annoying to say the least.

I would not have liked all the bones!

Awww nice pic of you guys!

We also saw this mural on our little walk.

Disney is always with you!

I think this one is in England as a norm!

Mmm glass bottle coke- I always like Mexican coke in a glass bottle

Yuck- those wings do not look appealing here at all!


Onwards!!!!

 

[DnA2010]

The Museum of Egyptian Civilisation is where you could see all the Royal mummies that were hidden in a Tomb in the Valley of the Kings by Priests back in Ancient times. Jill was very keen to see the mummies, and it sounded to me like a pretty good way to spend the morning.

Sounds like a great way, and wow what a write up, thank you!!!!

I realized that I just ate an entire plate full of carbs, and that I should have some protein.

Not like there's any bacon for the protein front

The hall includes 20 Royal mummies,18 Kings, and 2 Queens, from the 17th until the 20th dynasty.

Wow! Loads!

Rope drop for the win!

Totally! Glad you guys got their early!

Sorry, is that his actual skin or coverings?

Are those his actual eyelashes?!

He looks happy here!

Wow!

There were more mummies than that, but that’s all the pictures that were in the book. It’s better than no mummies!

Thank you for including these, it made it so real to me!

Sure looks the same!

Then we made one final trip back to Drinkies for more wine.

Hehe "Drinkies" cracks me up! the name that is

We didn’t realize until after the first day that he made up the room, that when he came back to “ask if everything was OK” that we were supposed to give him a tip.

Oppps, well how were you to know, really

The van was waiting right in the same spot we met them the two days before. We climbed in and Ahmed was not there.

Ahhh-ohhh- I enjoyed your summation of where he was.

I did find this picture of the Innermost Gold Coffin of Tutankhamun on the Interwebs which was also in the room.

So classic! I feel like you saw this before?

At each side of this shrine stands an elegant statue of one of the four female divinities in charge of protecting the deceased king, their faces turned slightly to one side and their arms stretched out in a gesture of protection. These goddesses are Isis, Nephthys, Neith, and Serket.

Nice, were their faces similar?

Its colors have not faded over three thousand years, which serves as a testament to the high skill of the ancient Egyptian craftsmen.
Apparently I didn't put the picture in, but sure is a testament, how well done!

The glory of this chair is the back; it is made of wood covered with gold foil and is inlaid with semi-precious stones and colored glass. On the upper part of the back, we see the vulture goddess with her outspread wings protecting the names of the king.

The craftsmanship is so great, considering their lack of tools and such

I was sweating like a pig. Jill probably was as well.

Ahh the people, an old building and no AC- yikes!

Made of a red wood, almost every part of the outer surface is either inlaid, gilded, covered, or veneered. Ebony, ivory, faience, calcite, and gilt are the materials that richly decorate the surface and adhere to it by means of glue and, in a few cases, copper nails.

The royal couple, portrayed in the informal attitudes introduced during the Amarna period, is relaxing in a lush garden. The floral motif is continued in the other decorative panels, which depict a variety of animals in pursuit of their prey. The lid shows the queen offering flowers to the king, while below them attendants are plucking flowers.

I can't get over the craftsmanship, wow, just wow!

funerary beds that were in their tombs. The various animal motifs (including the legs) are both protective of the sleeper and ensure the rebirth of the deceased in the afterlife.

Beds, I don't think I've seen these before!

Khafre’s face is characterized by a serene expression and idealized features. The sculptor aimed to capture the king’s eternal and divine qualities rather than a realistic likeness. The statue represents Khafre’s role as a divine ruler and his connection to the gods. It was believed that the kings were intermediaries between the mortal world and the divine realm.

Totally serene!

with the slit in the middle so that the spirit can come and go.

Slit in the middle! how interesting!

Not exactly who these statues are, but it’s a cool shot.

Totally a cool shot!

This iconic statue is represented on the 200 LE note.

I like this picture, thanks for showing it!


Wow, massive updates! I need to go through this all again I think!

 

[bcwife76]

Rude lady at the table next to you notwithstanding, sounds like a great chill/down day

 

[Dis_Yoda]

Sometimes I swear people don't think. Getting Italian Cuisine in Egypt isn't going to be like getting Italian Cuisine when you are from New York. Level set your expectations people! Also, you can never make some people happy.

When we were in Italy this summer with Tauck - some people in our group were like that and its just like ugh. Shaun and I had fun communicating with our eyes in those situations though.

Overall, seems like a nice relaxing day before cruise! The spa seems like it was lovely. Did they do the European thing where they massage your front side as well? When I had my massage in Florence and then in Rome - I had a bit of shock when they just pulled down my top sheet to massage my stomach.

 

[mvf-m11c]

I am way far behind on your posts since November and got time to read and enjoy your adventures.

 

[DnA2010]

Yeah, it was nice having him to tell us about all that, but we forgot a bunch of it just because our brains could only hold so much and we're still not done by a long shot. In fact I might argue we saw even more in the second part. At least we took A LOT more pictures!

:Tightensseatbelt:

His next suggestion was Shawarma and we ended up back at the same place we had visited the first day.

Yum! Sounds like it was a decent success and the gloves were interesting (and logical it seems!)

Not sure if you can see it, but they have tactical assault rifles. It was amazing how quickly we got used to that sight.

You got used to it, wow...

Ahmed hadn't eaten all day (another sign to us that he had been in court) and he ordered two sandwiches. I think he had been counting on Mickey D's, because he ordered a burger and a chicken Schwarma both on a Kaiser roll. Here he is showing off the Chicken.

He doesn't look like a particularly big guy, but not having eaten all day...

he pointed out that this market extended for three square miles.

:jawdrop:

I said to Ahmed. “You know that neither of us actually like people….” All week it seemed like the driver didn’t speak English, but he understood more than he let on. He actually made a small burst of laughter at that comment.

Laughed out loud at this! both your mentioning to him, and the driver laughing, seems he did know a bit as you say!

Guys with necklaces hanging from their arms saying, “Hey lady!”

F no, hate it, so much. I think Dorian has told you his "Hey Mister" story about all-inclusive resorts

Ahmed snapped these shots of us walking through the market. You can tell by our expressions that neither of us are thrilled to be there.

"Let's get this overwith"

We tried to smile for these posed shots…..

Legit one of my fav pictures

Thank you for your suffering to bring these pics to the report, I'm really enjoying them!

It wasn’t a bad smell, but imagine strong Middle Eastern spices, fresh in their natural form in wide open barrels.

Wowzas!

Jill said she would just order it online.

- fair bud, fair.

I love these pics, thanks again!

Thanks Jill, these pics really showed the extent!

Wowzas! Given the context of everything, I think you two did amazing!!