Cairo Vacation

Creator: Dr. Alex Cullison
Date of Trip: December 2014

Re-think Egypt

It's January 2015, and my children and I have only came back from a two few days vacation in Egypt. We invested 5 times in Cairo, 5 times in Aswan and 2 times in Luxor.

We continued every tour that has been supplied. We'd tour guides and Egyptologists that immersed united states in both ancient history therefore the contemporary culture of Egyptian folks. We consumed, strolled, shopped and prayed using the locals.

The sights that Egypt is offering can’t be located any place else. We had wonderful climate, sunlight was cozy and the piece of cake had been cool. A light coat ended up being all of that ended up being required at night.

The hit is unfair to Egypt – capitalizing and dramatizing protests into something over what they are. The Egyptians tend to be enthusiastic about their particular country as well as take their particular politics very really. Like united states. They are going to openly show, like united states, once they feel they need to capture the attention of a larger market for shared support. We stepped around Cairo and believed perfectly safe.

Allow me to dispel most of the misconceptions about Egypt.

Safety: Their airports tend to be thorough about safety as ours. The roads, museums, sights, temples, etc., are all really safe because Egypt features seen to assigning copious tourism authorities to guard travelers like ourselves. They truly are every-where.

Clothing: I didn’t see any adherence to any clothing protocol. The Muslim females can choose to wear garments being consistent with the norms and values of their community, but same is a personal choice. Everyone else outfits like what you will expect you'll see in a US retail center.

Personality: We found the Egyptian individuals be friendly and welcoming. Tourism happens to be down for four many years today and are really accommodating to Us citizens (we tip much better).

Shopping: the values for hotels, meals, trips, transport and souvenirs was very reasonable. There are lots of bargains can be found. You can easily properly negotiate a 25% deduction off many things.

Cash: The trade rate is good. They use Egyptian lb notes. 100 Egyptian pounds is about add up to about $15 American dollars. They're going to accept US bucks in most stores as well as tours. They like Visa cards. American Express wasn't accepted in many stores.

Food & Water: water out from the faucets isn't toxic, but very few beverage it. Water in bottles is abundant, cheap, and widely consumed by all. Steer clear of ice. You won’t get Pharaoh’s Revenge if you stick to fresh fruits that you could take away the external epidermis. They usually have great flat breads. Beef ought to be well-cooked and stay of local fare. They do a great job with sweets. If you order anything completely special into the says, there isn't any telling the length of time this has sat inside fridge. When in Rome; eat due to the fact Romans.

Traffic and Car local rental: just take a taxi or your trip car. Don't rent a car or truck in Cairo. Try not to drive-in Cairo. Nothing in your or my entire life knowledge could prepare you for operating in Cairo. Aswan and Luxor are somewhat better. I thought Washington, DC traffic was challenging. In Cairo, driving is a systematic free-for-all. Although there are extremely couple of accidents, it is not for insufficient attempting. If they have any sort of accident, they stop their automobiles, blame other individuals and yell lots for around ten full minutes. Chances are they merely drive off.

Dirt and sand: plenty of dust. Lots of sand.

Prayer: You will be prayed over by a patio PA system at the least 5 times daily.

Cigarette: The Egyptian folks do smoke cigars and it's also a commonly acknowledged practice throughout Egypt. If you should be a smoker, you may feel much more welcomed than in the past. If you're an instant non-smoker, after that seek those no-smoking signs.

Alcoholic beverages: the majority of the native Egyptians do not take in for religious explanations. You are invited to drink and alcohol is readily offered, albeit just inside of buildings, like at a bar or at a dinner dining table.

ADA Compliance: Okay middle-agers, this is really important… if you had any inkling to attend Egypt, GO today! When you attend temples, tombs, and particularly pyramids, there is no facilitation for wheelchairs or walkers. You will find little to no hand rails or standard measures. When you yourself have any desire to really descend into a pyramid or tomb corridor, its steep and reasonable… Quasimodo reduced… you will have to be fit and nimble enough to make the pilgrimage both down and support. Im serious. If you wait a few more years to attend Egypt and your physical prowess deteriorates; you will miss a lot.

Routes: Plan your routes from United States very carefully. Absolutely nothing flies directly into Cairo through the US. We travelled into Istanbul first, after that into Cairo. We flew Turkish airways. The purchase price ended up being reasonable together with contacts virtually seamless. We then flew EgyptAir, which is like our Southwest Airlines, to Aswan and Luxor.

Baggage: every one of united states had one piece of traditional size luggage with a carry-on bag. The suitcase must weigh not as much as 18 lbs. if you wish to carry it in the plane (rather than check it). We caused it to be work. We stuffed light. We weren’t walking straight down any purple rugs.