Luxor, Egypt

Wed., Feb 17, 2010

We had quite the journey getting here, arriving at our hotel on the 15th at 4am after a night sleeping in the airport in Israel, then about 8 hours of flying to Cairo via Rome and then a 10 hour car ride from Cairo. But it was worth it when we were able to connect up with Carol and her family (a friend from my England days). Back when we began to plan this trip in earnest, Carol mentioned that they would be vacationing in Egypt at about the same time as us. Since they live in the north of England, we don’t see each other very often, so it was a happy coincidence and one we gladly scheduled around.

About a week before they left England, I sent Carol an email telling her I wasn’t sure the swank resort they were staying at would let us in the door as grubby and stained as we were. My two t-shirts are both soiled and stretched out and looking pretty bad. So when we met up, Carol pulled out a bag and presented us with a care package. In it were little bottles of body wash, two rolls of travel toilet paper (genuine rolls without the cardboard center), a packet of HobNobs (yum) and best of all, two brand new t-shirts for me. I was sooo excited to have something clean and presentable. As soon as I had a shower, I put one on and felt like a princess. Sweet.

We had a great time catching up (having a chin wag as Carol would say) and just enjoying one another’s company. She and her husband Kevin met Jeff and I one morning and we toured Luxor temple together and then hit the little (but surprisingly good) Luxor museum together. That was a double bonus for me because I got to hang out with Carol AND she is a fellow “see every square inch of the place and read every plaque” kind of gal (if you really want to see a historical site, tour with an archivist). If it had just been Jeff and I, I’m quite certain the touring would have been over a good hour or two earlier. Plus, this was their second trip to Luxor, and Carol had done some pretty thorough research, so she was able to serve as a bit of a tour guide through the temple.

They left for home this afternoon, so we all had lunch and then we saw them off as they boarded their coach for the airport. We have lined up several excursions, including a two day car trip to Aswan and Abu Simbel in the South as well as a one day Nile cruise to Dandara Temple north of here. There is so much to see in the Luxor area, that a person could spend a month and not see it all. We’ve got about 6 days, so the race is on!