Back in Cairo again

We are back in Cairo after an incredible trip on the Nile. We went as far south as Abu Simbal. That is where the great statues of Ramses were moved after the High Dam was built at Aswan, thus creating Lake Nassar. Lake Nassar is the largest manmade lake in the world. We were about 1/2 hour drive away from Sudan, and pretty near the equator. We had unseasonably hot weather, about 116. Yup, it was hot. However the temples were amazing, and the ice cream was worth every cent.

We flew back to Aswan and started to sail north. We thought we would be bored on the ship, but it was pretty interesting going through the locks and watching the negotiations between the captain and the official of the locks. They were at top volume, which meant we could hear every word. Of course it was all in Arabic so we understood little if anything. We were betting on what was being said, but we certainly could be wrong.

Eventually we got to Luxor, unfortunately too late to go to the Museum. Since it is supposed to be a fantastic museum, we were disappointed, but we watched a movie in the lounge with the members of our travel group. It wasn't too shabby.

We flew back to Cairo yesterday and today we went to the Citadel which houses the mosque of Muhammed Ali- no, not the fighter. We also went to another mosque which was much older. Then we went to Coptic Cairo. Coptic is a form of Christianity. There we went to the hanging church. It is about 60 feet up, and was built on another foundation which is not there any more, thus it hangs. Services were going on inside, but since I don't know the language, I don't know what they said. Near by is the crypt where Mary, Joseph and little Jesus were supposed to live. There was a service going on in there as well, so we couldn't go inside. I was disappointed that we missed that.

We then went to the Egyptian Museum. Since we had already seen most of it when we went earlier, we went to the mummy exhibit. Ramses the Great's mummy is there as are many others. I wonder if they wish they could have just been left alone in their tombs. I hope no one digs me up in a few thousand years.

Tomorrow we will return to my son's home and fly home Sunday. It has been a truly educational and wonderful experience. The group was great fun. We ranged in age from 12-82, and there wasn't anyone we wanted to vote off the island. That is pretty amazing when you think of it.

We are currently experiencing a sand storm, of all things. Wicked wind, and since there is a lot of sand around, we have a sand storm. Fortunately the temperature is cooler, so we are happier.

Be well. See you soon.

Aswan

Today I melted. I didn't know I could get so warm. It is really hot here, and if anyone says dry heat, it is still hot. Tomorrow we will be about 600 miles north of the equator. Hotter. Oh well.

We went to the Temple of Isis this morning. It was one that they had to move because of the Aswan Dam. Then we went to smell essences. These are the bases for perfumes. Pretty interesting, and good smelling. The granite quarry was really hot, but it is from there that much of the granite on the temples was quarried, then sent on cedar barges down the river.

After lunch we went on a boat down the Nile to Kitcheners Island where there is an incredible botanical garden. Our guide was wonderful and knew so much about plants and birds. We took a lot of pictures, but downloading them at an internet cafe is not possible. Be patient.

We then visited a Nubian village. The Nubian people all had to be relocated when the dam was built. Our guide is Nubian and he thought life was better since the dam, but his children disagree. Life is like that.

Last night we had a galibea party. We will show you what that is when we return. Mrs. Calderwood looked beautiful in hers, and danced well also.

We are having a wonderful time, healthy and hot, and thoroughly enjoying ourselves. More will be added when we next get near an internet.

Luxor

Today if Friday, 31 March. We are in Luxor, on the Nile south of Cairo. We joined our cruise ship yesterday, and this is the first time that we have had access to an internet cafe. Thus the delay in messages is explained.
The pyramids at Giza were incredible, as was the light and sound show that night. It explained the history of each pyramid and the Sphinx, and lit them up so the view at night was pretty spectacular. We were staying in a hotel right by there and from the pool we had an incredible view of the pyramids. Pretty incredible.
We flew to Luxor yesterday. Flying over the Sahara let me see that is isn't just sand, but also rocky mountains. The green is only along the Nile and the rest is desert. The line is pretty drastic.
We went to the Temple of Karnak which took 1300 years to build. Some of these guys really liked themselves. Ramses chiseled everyone's cartouches out and replaced it with his. A cartouche is the way they would sign their names in hieroglyphics. The temple is huge, and it was pretty hot-90s- so after we got on the ship, we sat up on the top deck and watched the world as we sailed by. It was pretty great. Little kids kept yelling hello and waving. We saw sugar cane, papyrus, and date palms growing, as well as rice paddies. A lot of agriculture along the Nile.
We sailed to Dendera where we were moored for the night. I got sick, but Mrs. Calderwood went to the Temple of Hathor, the goddess of family and love. I will let her tell you all the details on that since I slept through it.
This afternoon we took a calish- horse and buggy- to the Temple of Luxor. Another incredible place. The temples were for worship, not tombs. We then went to the Papyrus Museum.
Tomorrow we will visit the Valley of the Kings and Queens. It is hot, but we are having a wonderful time.
Hope all is well. We will have tons of pictures to show you when we return, but the connection here isn't as fast as the one at home. Oh well. More when we can get on a computer.

Lunch really?

Would you believe this is lunch? I didn't think so. This is the mime in front of Sacre Coeur, Paris, kissing Mrs. Calderwood's hand. How French! No, he wasn't really in love with her, I don't think. To have this happen, you need to donate money to the little cup in front of him. Yes, we have a picture of me with him as well, but my disc is in the computer right now. Soon I will find the right picture of us at lunch.

Lunch in Maadi

OOPS! This isn't lunch in Maadi. This is a sneak preview. Evan visited Giza. We will next week. Obviously we will send more updates about that one.
Right now we are sitting at Cilantro, on the outdoor patio eating lunch. Iced coffee is fantastic and the turkey and cheese toasted sandwich is pretty good too. Evan gave one of his teachers her gift from America- the first Harry Potter book in English. She was pretty pleased. Some things are pretty international. Good books fall into that category.
We walked here in the street, weaving through traffic. The constant sounds of horns beeping help you not to get clobbered. My favorite site so far was two dogs soundly sleeping on the hood of a car. Evan says they are usually there. At least they won't get stepped on that way. Evan also says the animals look both ways before crossing. Obviously their mothers trained them well.
We are at lunch, you are thinking about getting up, maybe. It's early and Sunday. Have a lovely day. I hope it is as sunny as it is here.

We're Here!

We have arrived. It is 12:30 Cairo time- as in the middle of the night. We are here safe and sound, and heartily recommend Air France. The food was great, we got our luggage promptly, and we arrived close to on time.
We had time in Paris and so we visited Sacre Coeur, a beautiful basilica that is on top of the hill overlooking all of Paris. The sky was blue, the flowers were blooming, and it was great to not sit and be able to walk. On the flight from Paris to Cairo, we flew over the Alps, Athens, Alexandria, and the Mediterranean. The clear views were amazing!
George and Evan picked us up from the airport, and we drove through Cairo seeing all the sights. I look forward to visiting them when we are more awake. We are at Evan's and are really tired. So goodnight to all. We will update more later.

Cameras

With digital photography, we can add pictures of what we are seeing. So far we have only added pictures that were taken by the computer. We need to practice adding pictures taken by the camera. Mr. Ozias has been showing us the settings on our cameras so that we can get the best quality of pictures. This is really important because if I want a picture of a person, I want them to be in focus, not the background. But if I want to take a picture of the pyramids, I would rather they be the focus, not the guide in front of them. I have homework to do on practicing the various settings instead of always using "auto." A lot of learning will go on as we travel starting with our preparation.

We have a layover in Paris, France. The airport is far away from downtown, so we are not sure how much we can see, but if the pictures don't look like Egypt, that may be the reason why.

Off to learn more and more.... Au revoir, mes amis.

Learning about Blogs

We are spending our lunch times in computer class with Mr. Ozias, learning how to set up and use our new Blog site.

Now we are learning how to use our cameras most effectively, so that we don't miss a single photo opportunity.

Preparing technology

Good thing we have Mr. Ozias to give us hints as to what to do on the computer. We are going to try to keep a blog of our adventures. Maybe, if we remember how, we will even put in pictures so you know what we are up to. Mrs. Calderwood and Mrs. Meabon would never take any silly pictures, so be ready for serious stuff only.


This is our first blog, and our first picture. Please notice how serious we are.