We spent four days diving (Jill finally started to enjoy herself a bit on the last day) which completed our basic class, took two days off to slob around a bit and dove again for the two-day Advanced Open Water course during which we dove on a wreck (the Minesweeper El Minya, in Hurghada bay which was sunk after three days of bombing by Israeli warplanes in 1969 in retaliation for an Egyptian frog-men attack from Jordan), a 'deep dive' to 30 meters, and a night dive. We're now all certified 'Advanced Open Water Divers'!
After the Advanced class, we took another day off and then went to bed early, got up at 4am and flew to Cairo about 400 miles or so away to the northwest. Cairo has some 23 million people (yikes!) and apparently no traffic lights. No... traffic... lights... What in the WORLD are they THINKING?!? Seriously, it's like New York City, but with no pretenses! Fortunately none of us had to drive, and the tour bus driver managed to avoid clipping any pedestrians or taxis (if they're anything like the ones in Hurghada, that one's a bit of a disappointment!) and we arrived at all of our Cairo destinations without incident.
We spent the morning in the Cairo Museum with Mona, our English speaking guide (did I mention Hurghada is primarily a German and Russian vacation spot? We're often mistaken for Dutch or Swedish, and everyone is surprised to find out that we're American... But for any of you back in the 'States interested in diving, Hurghada is Da Bomb!!!) and she was great. 'Spent about 2 hours in the museum seeing mummies, sarchophogai, statues and the like and then crossed over the Nile into Giza where we had lunch at T.A.I. Fridays! actually located on the Nile itself. Dry land seems to be as such a premium with all the people that they're just starting to float buildings on the river like riverboat casinos in the 'States.
After lunch it was on to the Papyrus Institute where they still hand-make papyrus the old-fashioned way and then finally to.... The Pyramids! I have to say, that the cheap commercialism of the whole thing really detracted from the experience of seeing one of the Seven Wonders of the World. There were guys hawkin' hats, postcards & take a picture with my camel (no thanks, I just bought 10 of 'em from that guy over there!) everywhere, and I just wanted everyone to go away and leave me to soak it all in. The Pyramids themselves were impressive, as well as the Sphinx & surrounding complex (how many Pyramids did Mona say there were in that area? Nine maybe? I wish I had paid attention!) and as I watched Jill & Jake walk around with 14-month-old Rebekah I wondered if Mary & Joseph brought Jesus here when they were in Egypt.... He would have been about that age at the time, and I could almost see Joseph wandering around with him in the baby back-pack as an Egyptian approaches him to ask if he'd like to purchase a picture with his baby on a camel...
After a hot afternoon in the sun (although it was hot, about 90 degrees, it was really about the best weather we could have hoped for - the previous two days were well into the upper 90s!) we then headed over to the Bazaar where we had some Turkish Coffee and I found something for Megan, one of my Sunday School kids who wants to become and Egyptologist. I don't know if I'll have the heart to tell here that she should give up the dream 'cause they've already discovered everything....
So we drove back to the airport and got on the plane to fly back to Hurghada, looking forward to diving again the next day. I'm two-thirds of the way through my book (Ursula LeGuinn's Left Hand of Darkness) and I left it on the bus between the airport and the Resort. Dummy! It's been an 18 hour day it's definitely time for bed!
But first, some additional observations:
1. Nobody uses their headlights here when driving at night, and nobody can explain why....
2. Egypt has almost no traffic lights. Now, I know I already mentioned this, but it's was such a big point, I didn't want you all to miss it.
3. Most aquatic life will not attack humans unless provoked into defending their territory or young.
4. Stonefish venom will likely kill you. The antidote has a shelf-life of only a few days, and there aren't many countries who can afford to maintain a supply. Egypt is not one of them.
5. The divers instruction manual does tells you not to poke or prod at the aquatic life with your diver knife. Especially stonefish. Especially especially the big ones.
6. This does not seem to apply to diving instructors....
7. The inner rooms of the Pyramids are hot and smell like the sweat of a thousand tourists.
8. Camels smell worse.
9. The Pyramids can be seen from many sections of Giza city. There is desert on one side, but you could walk to them from the downtown. (although you could also spend two days walking to them from the other side of Cairo, just across the river - it's really that big!)
10. The people in Hurghada felt that they had 'arrived' and were finally 'on the map' when Radio Shack opened up.
11. Egyptians love babies. Rebekah has been the main attraction everywhere we go, and it seems customary to snap your fingers to attract the attention of an infant.
12. Whoever invented bikinis was very wise.
13. If you are arrested but the police have nothing concrete to charge you with, they may still shave your head before releasing you if they don't like you. (been there, done that!)
14. Egypt has a tax loophole that says if your building is not complete, you don't have to pay property taxes on it.
15. There are a lot of 'incomplete' buildings in Egypt....
16. Clean drinking water costs more than gasoline here.
Topic: Greetings from the land of Sun, Dead Pharohs and Cabbies from Hell! (Read 4414 times)