2 Weeks in Egypt 2008

Views of Cairo

Cairo is full of gorgeous old buildings like this crying for care and restoration.

Promenade on the Nile, three blocks from Sunny's apartment.

There is but one traffic law in Cairo: watch out!

Houses floating on the Nile.

Corner near Sadat Square. The center of Cairo.

Library at The American Univerisity in Cairo (AUC).

Rare example of street art.

Well-preserved building on the island of Zamalek in Cairo. This is the neighborhood of embassies, ex-pats, and 'Drinkies' one of the few places that will deliver alchohol to your door.

Egyptian Museum of Antiquities

The only place that would permit free entrance with a MoMA ID. They thought MoMA was a New York newspaper. This museum has a fantastic collection including the artifacts from King Tut's tomb in Luxor but it's upsetting how people are allowed to touch the statues. Many of them are have blackened edges from the abuse.

Pyramids at Giza

Sunny between two of the Pyramids, that of Chephren (left) and Cheops (right).

Entrance to the Great Pyramid of Cheops.

Close up of the Great Pyramid of Cheops. There are roughly 2,300,000 blocks, each weighing an average 2.5 tons.

Sunny turning down a camel ride. The peddlers of all things from tours to postcards were very aggressive. A good strategy is to yell 'no' constantly or make an offer of 1 Egyptian Pound ($.20).

Cairo Streets

A local fast food is koshary: pasta, rice, lentil, chick peas, fried onions and garlic all doused with tomato and lemon sauces. A portion this size sets you back about $.40

Cafes spill out onto many of the streets.

View of Islamic Cairo. Satellite dishes sprout from every building. The state practices censorship and the citizens find workarounds.

Fresh pita bread delivery. The agility of these men navigating through Cairo traffic is something to behold. The pictures in this post are from a recent NYTimes article on Cairo.

Indulging in Shisha in Cairo

Apple flavored tobacco.

Sunny's roomate Patricia.

Islamic Cairo: Ibn Tulun mosque (879 AD)

Atop the minaret, Islamic Cairo in the background.

Atop the minaret. The Citadel and the Mosque of Muhammad Ali in the background. The first two images are from the NYTimes.

Thrilled that Train to Luxor Finally Arrives...

After waiting on the train platform for 3 hours, we were ecstatic to get to our sleeper car (where we couldn't sleep, but at least we were moving).

On the way to Luxor from Cairo.

Invitation to Belly Dancing Competition

This sign was on the inside of our train car. Generally, the signs in English in Egypt are a 'wanderful' comedic diversion, even in the Museums.

Luxor Temple: 3000 Years of Religious History

Mosque built atop Pharaonic Temple.

Roman murals painted over Pharaonic hieroglyphics.

Our Ship: The Nile Plaza

Our ship at Luxor was designated a 5 star cruise liner by the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism (as is every other registered cruise ship operating on the Nile). All went well, but when they started playing the Muzak version of the Titanic soundtrack it was time for a drink.