Hello!
We left the heat of Egypt yesterday morning and landed in Istanbul in the afternoon. We weren't quite sure what to expect but were pleasantly surprised! The metro was fast, clean, cheap, and easy to operate and we were off the plane and in the center of the tourist district before we knew it. Our hostel isn't much to write home about, but its in an awesome spot. We're only blocks from all the sites. Yesterday we ate dinner on a small cafe on a cobble stone lane. We enjoyed our first Pide (turkish pizza) and are very happy to report that the food is World's apart from the Egyptian food that we were struggling with.
Moments before checking into our hostel, we had a bit of an incident. Jessie took a tumble which later resulted in a lot of pouting, and a reasonable amount of tears. This morning her ankle felt a bit better and she toughed it out with the help of a tensor. All joking aside, it was very scary as a bummed ankle is the last thing we need !
Today we visited the blue mosque 3 times. The structure is very impressive and we had a lot of fun walking the grounds and soaking it in while sitting on the marble slabs.
We were lucky to be in the right place at the right time as a turkish festival was held today which drew quite a crowd. We saw turkish dancing and music and all for free!
We also visited the basilica cistern which is a huge underground area which was built hundreds of years ago to manage water in the case of a drought or siege. It was quite dim and had a very unique ambiance - it was very cool!
We have made two brief tours through the grand bazaar but haven't had nearly enough time to see it all yet. We're told there are 4000 stores, and while that seems an unbelievable number, the more that we walk around it, the more that we believe it. The shopping here is great. There are less geeky trinkets and more very cool things that we're excited to bring home. We're currently investigating the cost of a shipment home! Otherwise, we may be taking on an additional piece of luggage to house our turkish treasures.
The weather here is VERY cold in comparison to Egypt. Its a pleasant 25C during the day, but dips to just below 20C in the evening which requires our first use of hoodies and wind breakers. That said, we're still not complaining.
Well, that's it for now. We've got a full schedule of sites in Istanbul tomorrow and look forward to heading inland on Sunday.
Cheers! Jess and Steve.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Back in Cairo
We're currently back in Cairo for one night before heading to Istanbul tomorrow.
After a day in Luxor, enjoying the pool we joined the convoy and crossed the Sahara. We arrived in Hurghada (east coast of Egypt, on the Red Sea) at around noon. The convoy was "interesting." We were paired with about 60 other vehicles and a number of military personnel. All members of the army, of which we've seen 100s, carry full automatic AK-47s or sub-machine guns - its crazy! As the convoy passed a small town, a kid (maybe 8 years old) posed, by pointing a handgun into the air - I JUST missed the pic! The convoy was cool because we got to see a lot of Egypt outside of the standard tourist areas. We saw many farms and rural areas as well as a LOT of desert. The topography is surprisingly mountainous but it was very cool.
Hurghada was a great break as it felt at least 10C cooler than Aswan and Luxor as it is tempered by the Sea. The water there is beautiful as it has that caribbean/exotic blue colour. We swam yesterday and after a dismal showing at the hotel buffet, made our way to the Hard Rock Cafe. We know...not very authentic, but man was it a nice break! Everything was in english, rock music was playing, and we had fajitas and a cheeseburger. The cheeseburger was about $8CAD, but the drinks were $10 a piece! Very strange. They had some crazy deals. On Saturday, you can eat and drink as much as you want for 100EGP (aka ~$20CAD) - ridiculous - too bad it was tuesday! Later that night, after a few "pops" at the hard rock, we had our first "shisha" experience - a large, "smoking device." It makes the smoke very smooth. The tobacco comes in a number of flavours. We've had peach, cherry, and apple - all are delicious. If we could fit one in our backpacks, it would already be there. :)
This morning we slept in and meandered down to the beach where we relaxed and then headed out on a glass bottom boat for a tour of the reef which included some swimming/snorkeling. The snorkeling wasn't great, but it was still fun as we were about 1KM from shore, but could touch the sandy bottom because of how the reef was situated. It was a very strange feeling. The water was incredibly beautiful and warm. We saw a variety of fish through the glass bottom - very cool.
This evening we flew from Hurghada to Cairo and had a great night in Cairo. We're finally comfortable getting around, and knowing how Cairo works and its time to go! That said, we felt like locals tonight paying "market" rates for water/ice-cream (PS - Nestle Ice Cream bars - goooood ones, are 2EGP (40 cents here), we're averaging 2 each, per day.) - ridic - and smoking shisha once again. We love the shisha! Cairo is such a neat city. Its AMAZINGLY different, but very interesting.
We have mixed feelings about leaving egypt, but are very excited to see Istanbul tomorrow!
Thanks for checking in on us!
After a day in Luxor, enjoying the pool we joined the convoy and crossed the Sahara. We arrived in Hurghada (east coast of Egypt, on the Red Sea) at around noon. The convoy was "interesting." We were paired with about 60 other vehicles and a number of military personnel. All members of the army, of which we've seen 100s, carry full automatic AK-47s or sub-machine guns - its crazy! As the convoy passed a small town, a kid (maybe 8 years old) posed, by pointing a handgun into the air - I JUST missed the pic! The convoy was cool because we got to see a lot of Egypt outside of the standard tourist areas. We saw many farms and rural areas as well as a LOT of desert. The topography is surprisingly mountainous but it was very cool.
Hurghada was a great break as it felt at least 10C cooler than Aswan and Luxor as it is tempered by the Sea. The water there is beautiful as it has that caribbean/exotic blue colour. We swam yesterday and after a dismal showing at the hotel buffet, made our way to the Hard Rock Cafe. We know...not very authentic, but man was it a nice break! Everything was in english, rock music was playing, and we had fajitas and a cheeseburger. The cheeseburger was about $8CAD, but the drinks were $10 a piece! Very strange. They had some crazy deals. On Saturday, you can eat and drink as much as you want for 100EGP (aka ~$20CAD) - ridiculous - too bad it was tuesday! Later that night, after a few "pops" at the hard rock, we had our first "shisha" experience - a large, "smoking device." It makes the smoke very smooth. The tobacco comes in a number of flavours. We've had peach, cherry, and apple - all are delicious. If we could fit one in our backpacks, it would already be there. :)
This morning we slept in and meandered down to the beach where we relaxed and then headed out on a glass bottom boat for a tour of the reef which included some swimming/snorkeling. The snorkeling wasn't great, but it was still fun as we were about 1KM from shore, but could touch the sandy bottom because of how the reef was situated. It was a very strange feeling. The water was incredibly beautiful and warm. We saw a variety of fish through the glass bottom - very cool.
This evening we flew from Hurghada to Cairo and had a great night in Cairo. We're finally comfortable getting around, and knowing how Cairo works and its time to go! That said, we felt like locals tonight paying "market" rates for water/ice-cream (PS - Nestle Ice Cream bars - goooood ones, are 2EGP (40 cents here), we're averaging 2 each, per day.) - ridic - and smoking shisha once again. We love the shisha! Cairo is such a neat city. Its AMAZINGLY different, but very interesting.
We have mixed feelings about leaving egypt, but are very excited to see Istanbul tomorrow!
Thanks for checking in on us!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Back to reality
Well, we're off the boat! The cruise was fantastic. The food was awesome, the service was perfect, the scenery was beautiful, and the ammenties were MOST appreciated. The organized tours departing from the ship each day were a nice change compared to our independent organization. We were transported to many temples and sites on guided tours. Evenings on the upper pool deck while watching the nile and desert mountains pass by was a treat.
The first day on the ship the schedule was rearranged to accomodate the hot weather (~40C). This resulted in us doing absolutely nothing but lounging on the deck, swimming in the pool, and taking tea during the sunset over the desert mountains. This was an incredible change from our fast paced, VERY hot, independent method of our trip's beginning. We started each of the following days VERY early in the morning at between 6am and 7am departures to beat the heat. While it was a little rough to receive our wake up calls, we managed to take in a lot of sites before the heat became uncomfortable. It also left us more time to relax on the ship and enjoy its ammenities without feeling guilty. We even took in a bit of satellite TV on the flat screen in our room!
We saw numerous temples between 1000 and 5000 years old. The hyroglphyics and colours on the walls were very well preserved. The size of the temples and obilisks was amazing considering when they were constructed. Enormous sculptures were made from solid single pieces of granite that was transported from 100s of KMs away. We also visited the valley of the kings where King Tut's tomb is. These tombs were carved into the mountain. The valley itself was breathtaking - we have some great pics!
Today we arrived in Luxor where we checked in to our hotel (which, after becoming wise to the heat, we made sure included a nice pool). The pool, and our balcony both overlook the Nile and desert mountains. We're very excited to go swimming this afternoon (its 3pm now).
Tomorrow at 8am we join a convoy that crosses the eastern desert to Hurghada on the Red Sea. The trip is ~3.5hrs. We're staying in a "budget" beach resort with its own private beach and are considering a 4x4 jeep trip into the desert, or a snorkeling tour of the sea. Regardless, we'll just be happy to beat the heat in the sea. We have no ambitious site seeing plans - just relaxation.
From Hurghada, we fly to Cairo on Wednesday night, and depart from Cairo to Istanbul on Thursday morning.
We'll write next as soon as we get a chance. Thanks for checking up! We hope all is well back home!
The first day on the ship the schedule was rearranged to accomodate the hot weather (~40C). This resulted in us doing absolutely nothing but lounging on the deck, swimming in the pool, and taking tea during the sunset over the desert mountains. This was an incredible change from our fast paced, VERY hot, independent method of our trip's beginning. We started each of the following days VERY early in the morning at between 6am and 7am departures to beat the heat. While it was a little rough to receive our wake up calls, we managed to take in a lot of sites before the heat became uncomfortable. It also left us more time to relax on the ship and enjoy its ammenities without feeling guilty. We even took in a bit of satellite TV on the flat screen in our room!
We saw numerous temples between 1000 and 5000 years old. The hyroglphyics and colours on the walls were very well preserved. The size of the temples and obilisks was amazing considering when they were constructed. Enormous sculptures were made from solid single pieces of granite that was transported from 100s of KMs away. We also visited the valley of the kings where King Tut's tomb is. These tombs were carved into the mountain. The valley itself was breathtaking - we have some great pics!
Today we arrived in Luxor where we checked in to our hotel (which, after becoming wise to the heat, we made sure included a nice pool). The pool, and our balcony both overlook the Nile and desert mountains. We're very excited to go swimming this afternoon (its 3pm now).
Tomorrow at 8am we join a convoy that crosses the eastern desert to Hurghada on the Red Sea. The trip is ~3.5hrs. We're staying in a "budget" beach resort with its own private beach and are considering a 4x4 jeep trip into the desert, or a snorkeling tour of the sea. Regardless, we'll just be happy to beat the heat in the sea. We have no ambitious site seeing plans - just relaxation.
From Hurghada, we fly to Cairo on Wednesday night, and depart from Cairo to Istanbul on Thursday morning.
We'll write next as soon as we get a chance. Thanks for checking up! We hope all is well back home!
Thursday, May 22, 2008
It's Getting Hotter...
Hi Everyone,
We're in Aswan now, in Southern Egypt, we had thought Cairo was hot but it is way hotter here. When you step outside it's like the heat just consumes you, it's wild. We're really looking forward to the cruise tomorrow where we have a pool...woohoo!!!
Yesterday we spent our last day in Cairo and checked out the Egyptian Museum which was impressive. There are so many artifacts there it's hard to take it all in. We saw King Tut's death mask, throne, sarcophages and more gold than you could imagine. There were many tombs on display as well, we couldn't get over the size of them! Each had detailed designs carved into them and were made from gold, ebony, alabaster as well as others. Too bad no pictures were allowed.
We spent the rest of the day exploring Cairo and had a nice walk by the Nile. We did some shopping and made our way to the train station.
Last night we took the overnight train from Cairo to Aswan, which was about a 14 hour trip. We were in a first class sleeper train and judging by some of the trains we saw the locals getting on we were in the lap of luxury. We stood up to move our bags as a 3rd class train arrived, and a number of locals warned us this wasn't going to be the train we were taking. It was funny that they knew right away that we definitely weren't getting on this train. You couldn't imagine what it looked like, so run down and people everywhere. Our train was interesting, very good service, comfortable beds, surprisingly edible food with a few touches of harsh egyptian reality including an unusual toilet featuring a wooden seat and 'exit' below to the passing tracks...yuck!
This morning we arrived in Aswan, and spent the day catching our breath and up on our sleep. We've been laying low as tomorrow will be spent touring the area with the cruise.
We're unsure of our internet access from the boat so bear with us if we're not in touch for a few days.
Hope all is well at home, and thanks for checking up on us!
We're in Aswan now, in Southern Egypt, we had thought Cairo was hot but it is way hotter here. When you step outside it's like the heat just consumes you, it's wild. We're really looking forward to the cruise tomorrow where we have a pool...woohoo!!!
Yesterday we spent our last day in Cairo and checked out the Egyptian Museum which was impressive. There are so many artifacts there it's hard to take it all in. We saw King Tut's death mask, throne, sarcophages and more gold than you could imagine. There were many tombs on display as well, we couldn't get over the size of them! Each had detailed designs carved into them and were made from gold, ebony, alabaster as well as others. Too bad no pictures were allowed.
We spent the rest of the day exploring Cairo and had a nice walk by the Nile. We did some shopping and made our way to the train station.
Last night we took the overnight train from Cairo to Aswan, which was about a 14 hour trip. We were in a first class sleeper train and judging by some of the trains we saw the locals getting on we were in the lap of luxury. We stood up to move our bags as a 3rd class train arrived, and a number of locals warned us this wasn't going to be the train we were taking. It was funny that they knew right away that we definitely weren't getting on this train. You couldn't imagine what it looked like, so run down and people everywhere. Our train was interesting, very good service, comfortable beds, surprisingly edible food with a few touches of harsh egyptian reality including an unusual toilet featuring a wooden seat and 'exit' below to the passing tracks...yuck!
This morning we arrived in Aswan, and spent the day catching our breath and up on our sleep. We've been laying low as tomorrow will be spent touring the area with the cruise.
We're unsure of our internet access from the boat so bear with us if we're not in touch for a few days.
Hope all is well at home, and thanks for checking up on us!
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Cairo / Pyramids
Hello,
Today was great! We woke up early to a surprisingly edible breakfast and then went to the Pyramids. We started with the Pyramids and Sphinx of Giza. We had our first (and probably last) experience riding camels. It was a lot of work. Our two were named Ali Baba and Mickey Mouse. When they galloped we felt like we were going to fall off! We were up very high! Its hard to imagine people building the pyramids. It was so hot that we got tired riding a camel for 2hrs and looking around! The pyramids were huge - bigger than we expected. We got some awesome pictures that look like many of the images that we are all familiar with. From Giza we headed to Sakkara Pyramids. These are smaller than Giza (still big though!) and were the first ones built. We spent a long time walking the desert and taking pictures of the pyramids including some of the 74 other pyramids that we could see in the distance. There were also tombs with hieroglyphics - the one tomb had 33 rooms! The other's passage ways were no more than 4 feet tall/wide. We had to crouch half way over to make our way down the 50 foot long initial tunnel. The hieroglyphics and drawings on the wall were amazingly well preserved - many still had their original colouring. We took our time in this area and really enjoyed exploring everything.
By the time that we got back to our hotel we were exhausted! It was 36C today and we went through a total of 6L of water today! After a short rest we hit the city and walked the streets of Cairo. Its very difficult to explain, but Cairo is very interesting. There are people and cars EVERYWHERE. Its very noisy/alive with strange/interesting shops and people. We were getting sick of shish-kebabs and enjoyed an American style, but middle eastern, fast food chain's hamburger and fries tonight. We know, not very cultural but after 4 meals of the same thing you'd want a change too!
We're relaxing the rest of tonight and spending tomorrow exploring Cairo further before departing for Aswan that night.
Bye for now!
Today was great! We woke up early to a surprisingly edible breakfast and then went to the Pyramids. We started with the Pyramids and Sphinx of Giza. We had our first (and probably last) experience riding camels. It was a lot of work. Our two were named Ali Baba and Mickey Mouse. When they galloped we felt like we were going to fall off! We were up very high! Its hard to imagine people building the pyramids. It was so hot that we got tired riding a camel for 2hrs and looking around! The pyramids were huge - bigger than we expected. We got some awesome pictures that look like many of the images that we are all familiar with. From Giza we headed to Sakkara Pyramids. These are smaller than Giza (still big though!) and were the first ones built. We spent a long time walking the desert and taking pictures of the pyramids including some of the 74 other pyramids that we could see in the distance. There were also tombs with hieroglyphics - the one tomb had 33 rooms! The other's passage ways were no more than 4 feet tall/wide. We had to crouch half way over to make our way down the 50 foot long initial tunnel. The hieroglyphics and drawings on the wall were amazingly well preserved - many still had their original colouring. We took our time in this area and really enjoyed exploring everything.
By the time that we got back to our hotel we were exhausted! It was 36C today and we went through a total of 6L of water today! After a short rest we hit the city and walked the streets of Cairo. Its very difficult to explain, but Cairo is very interesting. There are people and cars EVERYWHERE. Its very noisy/alive with strange/interesting shops and people. We were getting sick of shish-kebabs and enjoyed an American style, but middle eastern, fast food chain's hamburger and fries tonight. We know, not very cultural but after 4 meals of the same thing you'd want a change too!
We're relaxing the rest of tonight and spending tomorrow exploring Cairo further before departing for Aswan that night.
Bye for now!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Next Stop - Cairo
Hey everyone,
Thanks for checking in!
This morning we were up early because of our jet leg. We both had a bit of trouble sleeping last night as our bodies thought maybe it was time to wake up in the middle of the night after a short nap :) We walked around Athens and got a great omlette at a little cafe outside. It's so nice to just sit and relax and enjoy the scenery. We had a little walk around the city and then it was back to the hostel to pack up and hit the airport.
The trip to the airport on the bus was easy but a bit of an adventure as one of the men on the bus had just been pick-pocketed as he got on the bus. That was a reminder to us that we have to be extra careful with our stuff.
Then we had an easy flight from Athens to Cairo, only about 1.5 hours total. The airplane food definitely wasn't great, but luckily we had eaten beforehand. At the airport we were met by someone from our hostel and then taken on one of the wildest rides of our life. We knew we were in for adventure when we got in the backseat, looked around and there were no seatbelts! The driving in Cairo is insane, there are cars and buses everywhere, people are constantly honking. Our driver used his horn more in the first 5 mins than we ever have. It is hard to tell how many lanes of traffic there are and there doesn't seem to be any lights.
We made it to our hostel safe and sound and it seems great. The staff are really friendly. On their advice we headed to old Cairo to the bazaar. The architecture in Cairo is beautiful, big towers, mosques and very middle eastern, like out of a movie. The market was full of action, as practically the only two white people there we drew a lot of attention at the bazaar. People were trying to sell us stuff everywhere. We got a chance to practice our haggling, it's definitely expected in this place and a result we were able to get some great stuff. Everything here is very expensive, our approx. 10 or 15 minute cab ride is equivilant to $1 total...crazy!
The culture, scenery and atmosphere here are so different, it's really unlike anything we've ever seen. People like that we're from Canada and always refer to 'Canada Dry' when we say where we're from. It's clear that a lot of people are living in poverty and recognize the money that tourists have. That being said people are very friendly and always wanting to help (hoping for a nice tip of course!).
Can't wait for tomorrow, we're headed to the pyramids first thing!!!
Thanks for checking in!
This morning we were up early because of our jet leg. We both had a bit of trouble sleeping last night as our bodies thought maybe it was time to wake up in the middle of the night after a short nap :) We walked around Athens and got a great omlette at a little cafe outside. It's so nice to just sit and relax and enjoy the scenery. We had a little walk around the city and then it was back to the hostel to pack up and hit the airport.
The trip to the airport on the bus was easy but a bit of an adventure as one of the men on the bus had just been pick-pocketed as he got on the bus. That was a reminder to us that we have to be extra careful with our stuff.
Then we had an easy flight from Athens to Cairo, only about 1.5 hours total. The airplane food definitely wasn't great, but luckily we had eaten beforehand. At the airport we were met by someone from our hostel and then taken on one of the wildest rides of our life. We knew we were in for adventure when we got in the backseat, looked around and there were no seatbelts! The driving in Cairo is insane, there are cars and buses everywhere, people are constantly honking. Our driver used his horn more in the first 5 mins than we ever have. It is hard to tell how many lanes of traffic there are and there doesn't seem to be any lights.
We made it to our hostel safe and sound and it seems great. The staff are really friendly. On their advice we headed to old Cairo to the bazaar. The architecture in Cairo is beautiful, big towers, mosques and very middle eastern, like out of a movie. The market was full of action, as practically the only two white people there we drew a lot of attention at the bazaar. People were trying to sell us stuff everywhere. We got a chance to practice our haggling, it's definitely expected in this place and a result we were able to get some great stuff. Everything here is very expensive, our approx. 10 or 15 minute cab ride is equivilant to $1 total...crazy!
The culture, scenery and atmosphere here are so different, it's really unlike anything we've ever seen. People like that we're from Canada and always refer to 'Canada Dry' when we say where we're from. It's clear that a lot of people are living in poverty and recognize the money that tourists have. That being said people are very friendly and always wanting to help (hoping for a nice tip of course!).
Can't wait for tomorrow, we're headed to the pyramids first thing!!!
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Arrival in Athens
Well,
We made it safe! It was a long trip. I had never been on a plane for that length of time, but everything went surprisingly smoothly. We found our hostel, to our amazement, after a few questions for local passer-bys.
It was national museum day so we were able to see the Acropolis and other sites for free today! The Acropolis was very cool. Its amazing to think of the history, but I still have a hard time making bricks and mortar come to life. That said, the view of athens from the Acropolis was worth a lot. Its such an interesting city with small buildings and no sky scrapers. Reflective surfaces made the city sparkle from the view.
Athens is the city of patio and $6 coffee. We had a great dinner with a variety of greek fare on a single plate which we shared. It was too much food and was delicious - a great start in that department. This morning we woke up early from jet leg but feel fine. We were proud that we stayed up until 9pm yesterday after an exhausting two days of travel!
This morning we are taking our own walking tour of Athens and then heading to Cairo this afternoon. It was VERY warm in Athens yesterday and I can only imagine how hot it will be in Egypt!
We made it safe! It was a long trip. I had never been on a plane for that length of time, but everything went surprisingly smoothly. We found our hostel, to our amazement, after a few questions for local passer-bys.
It was national museum day so we were able to see the Acropolis and other sites for free today! The Acropolis was very cool. Its amazing to think of the history, but I still have a hard time making bricks and mortar come to life. That said, the view of athens from the Acropolis was worth a lot. Its such an interesting city with small buildings and no sky scrapers. Reflective surfaces made the city sparkle from the view.
Athens is the city of patio and $6 coffee. We had a great dinner with a variety of greek fare on a single plate which we shared. It was too much food and was delicious - a great start in that department. This morning we woke up early from jet leg but feel fine. We were proud that we stayed up until 9pm yesterday after an exhausting two days of travel!
This morning we are taking our own walking tour of Athens and then heading to Cairo this afternoon. It was VERY warm in Athens yesterday and I can only imagine how hot it will be in Egypt!
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