Holland and Egypt

A near death experience...A panic attack...Detained by the Egyptian government! Read below to get the juicy details. (if you want to view larger photos, OR cannot see photos below, click HERE to view entire album)

So a Holland/Egypt vacation is kind of random. We can't think of two more opposite places on the planet. But it was different in a good way like combining salty and sweet...peanut butter and chocolate...Bert and Ernie.

Amsterdam was COLD. We arrived around 8 a.m. and after a train, a tram, and a brisk walk, our room was not ready. So we dropped off our luggage and strolled around the city for a few frigid hours. We saw canals, ice rinks, and bikers galore. That's bicycles, not crotch rockets.

We went back to the hotel early hoping that they would take pity and give us a room so we could crash. They did. And we did. After listening to Dutch anthems in front of us and "Mr. Romance" commentating behind us throughout our entire flight, we were exhausted from little to no sleep. So, that night we ate Thai and crashed early.

Day 2 was much better. The Torture Museum was better than Van Gogh, seeing "Jumper" with Dutch subtitles wasn't nearly as annoying as it may sound, and McDonald's was fabulous. But traffic?...crazy! You have to watch out for cars, trams, AND bikes. Three guesses who saved whos life...literally. Tonight? Walk, tram, train, plane...Egypt! Sure, Jonathan got bumped from the flight and Erika freaked out on cue..."I CANNOT go to Cairo without my husband!" But it all worked out.

What's better than getting to Cairo at 3:00 in the morning? Getting to Cairo at 3:00 in the morning and having a falafel from an all night sandwich shop. The hotel was like a glorified dorm. We had to push the twin beds together, but the sunrise over the Nile was Heaven. Not much to do on day 1 Cairo except rest, meet up with our tour leader, Mustapha, and have a little KFC (all KFC workers are deaf. So much easier than trying speak broken Arabic to an Egyptian).

Day 2 Cairo - Cairo is just like NYC...if a grenade went off and no one bothered to clean up. Not just crowded...20 million people PACKED...and probably 19,999,999 of them smoke. And the smog is off the meter. But the people are really nice, the food is great, and the sites make it totally worth a visit. The Pyramids of Giza and the Egyptian museum with the mummies were awesome! We'll give you 3 guesses who had a panic attack and had to bolt out of the pyramid tomb to get some air. Tonight we board the Hell train for 12 hours.

Aswan is much more laid back than Cairo...in a good way. We took a 30 minute motorboat ride to a Nubian village on an island on the Nile. We toured their school and a home. They even prepared dinner for us. But the relaxation was short-lived. We joined a police convoy at 1:00 a.m. to make it to Abu Simbel, the temple complex for Rameses II and his favorite wife Nefertari the Nubian. It was a holiday of sorts where an interior sculpture is illuminated by the sun twice a year. Once in October and once in February...the day we were going. We fought crowds and watched the sunrise over Lake Nasser while waiting to enter the temple. Afterwards, there was a huge celebration with singing and dancing. Tonight, we board the riverboat cruise.

You know those Carnival ships? Well, pretend one pooped. That was our boat. It was really cute, clean, and charming...just teeny tiny : ) The staff were superb, the food was amazing, and this was our most comfortable room in Egypt! We spent 3 nights on the boat. One night we had a belly dancer and a Scarf Guy (sounds lame, but it was cool) and another night we had a game night/dance party. We made stops along the way at Edfu and Komobo to check out temples and we spent the last night in beautiful Luxor where we went bowling. Classy.

After a week in Egypt there's nothing better than a peaceful 45 minute donkey ride to the Valley of the Kings...IF you can actually stay ON your donkey. Three guesses who couldn't! Tonight? The train from hell again. But this time it's only for 9 hours instead of 12.

Back in Cairo and we almost skipped Saqqara. We were all templed out. But we gave ourselves a pep talk. When is the next time we'll get a chance to see the oldest pyramid? Probably never. So we went and it was totally worth it. But after a very long, very hot day and a fight with a waiter (don't ask) we needed some comfort food. So we went to the Egyptian bakery and got what seemed like a bottomless box of assorted cookies. Mmmmm, cookies. Up and out at 1:00 a.m. again. Off to the airport and back to Amsterdam. Did we tell you that we were detained at the Egyptian airport? Note to self: look in person exactly the way you look on your passport. If you don't, you may be mistaken for an African trying to escape to the Red Light District in AMS.

Back in Amsterdam we were totally harassed coming from Egypt. Coming from US=easy. Coming from Mid East=hassle. Once back in AMS, you know the drill...Train, tram, BURGER KING pit stop, walk, hotel. Two days of rest, relaxation, a great hotel room, and Mac N Cheese at the Hard Rock Cafe is the perfect way to top off an adventure in Egypt.

LINKS
Egypt Tour Company: Gecko's
Booked Though Travel Agency: Adventurecenter.com
Name of Tour: Nile Escape