Adventures of Tom Sako and Damien Waterford

Land of the Pharaohs

So different from any of the countries we had been through, Egypt is a land of such beauty and infinite history. 70 million people live here in an area marginally larger than NSW. More than 90% of the population live along the Nile and it's only inhabited no more than 3km either side.

The Nile is a continual oasis with date palms and lush green crops adorning the edges. There's a backdrop of yellow sand dunes, workers in the field with their donkeys and carts, timeless felucca sailing boats coursing
gently along, cattle donkeys and goats wander through the villages, turban headed men dressed in their jalabiyya robes riding donkeys and sitting in cafes drinking coffee - smoking sheesha pipes, incredible huge stone temples not hundreds but thousands of years old.

I love this place and was fortunate enough to meet up with Mum and Marianne for a couple of weeks and an earlier trip here with Cate. By the time Tom and I came through I still hadn't had enough.

• We went for a trip out through the Libyan desert leaving from Luxor heading west then north up into Cairo. There are four oasis, about a day's drive from each other. The desert between them changed as we went further north, going from yellow sand dunes to an eerie moonscape type place with tall chalk white stone columns
sticking up through a flat white plain. They call this the white desert. There is also the black desert to contrast the white where the sand is sparkly black. We saw virtually no one on this trip except in the oasis's.

• The oasis's can be quite large being 50 km long and a town has built up at each one, having a hotel where we'd spend the night. We saw some ruins of temples as these were once large civilizations thousands of
years ago. Went swimming one night in some hot springs. We were taken there by a young bloke and his brother who loved his 4 wheel drive. He'd deliberately go up the steepest part of a sand dune or rock hill, nearly rolling it on at least one occasion and our heads hitting the roof quite a bit. He had a grin from ear to ear but was a bit
embarrassed when we bogged in the sand.

• Crossing the Suez canal into the Sinai peninsula was also crossing the dividing line of Africa into Asia. The Sinai itself, bordered by the Red Sea and the gulf of Aqaba, is mainly white desert and makes a beautiful
contrast where it meets the green blue waters of the sea. Underneath is some of the world's most spectacular coral reefs.

• We spent a bit of time in this area and stayed in Sharm el Sheikh for a few days. The area seems to have an oversupply of resorts. One night Tom and I went resort hopping to see which was the best so after hiring a driver for the night, went from one to the next accessing if they'd earnt their 5 stars or not. The Hyatt Regency was a 7 star resort although we couldn't see the difference, only in the price tag paying $20 for 2 beers. One night we came across a resort totally empty. It had its own amusement park. Spotted the dodgem cars and practically woke up the attendants for a ride. They started it up and because there were only the two of us, set up an obstacle course and had the attendants cheering us on. Man, not to wait in line for the dodgem's - can you imagine that!

• The cafes and restaurants line the streets endlessly, all trying to outdo each other. Most are outdoors and at night they light up like a Christmas tree with thousands of coloured lights. Apart from table settings,
there's Bedouin style seating, cushions on the floor rugs giving lots of colour and character. The meals were great and used to be one of the focal points of the day.

• Dahab is another great spot to chill out for a while with a nice array of restaurants aligning the water and great snorkeling spots which Mum, Marianne and I can attest to. Also spent a few days here with Cate.

• We went inland from there and saw St. Catherine's monastery which supposedly has a strand from the burning bush that Moses saw. When Tom and I came through, we climbed mount Sinai, where Moses got the rules. Leaving at dusk we reached the top at midnight. A great night for the stars even though the moon was out which lit our way. The sunrise was also magnificent and we're joined by a busload of other tourists who started their climb at midnight.

• Bedouin tribes people live here in low random shaped tents. The floors are covered in colourful rugs and cushions. They live fairly simple lives offering camel rides to the visitors.

• Crossing the Sinai heading up towards the delta, we pulled up in the middle of the desert, got our bags out to use as seats and took in the desert scene. Hour after hour went by unnoticed including the sunset and finally got going after the 3rd military patrol thought our car had cooled down enough - the excuse Tom gave
them. Spent the night in the van off the side of the road waiting for the bridge across the Suez canal to open, only to be moved along by the military about 3am up the road another couple of kilometers. Incidentally Egypt has 10% of the population or 7 million, in the military. The two main industries are tourism and the Suez canal.

• We crossed the canal across a huge bridge at Ismailia and went north to Port Said, another charming port full of life and hustle & bustle. West from there to Damietta then down through the centre of the delta which is lush, full of endless crops and palm trees, into crazy Cairo.

• Cairo, the largest city in Africa, has a lot of character and excitement. The old buildings with balconies haven't been painted for 50 years. Lots of street squares where people hang around the coffee bars. The city
lives by night. Entire families walk the street to eat or shop in modern style shops - lots of clothing and shoe shops. Its more westernised here with not as many women wearing veils. Traffic is chaos but everyone sorts that out. Saw Tutankhamun's stuff in the museum along with mummies and other old stuff. The markets are colourful
and interesting along with the camel markets - camels being brought from Sudan, through the desert. The pyramids impressed me the most - seeing them from miles away, peeking up through the tall buildings - incredible feat.

• Alexandria is another place of beauty and one of my favorites. A city built on the Mediterranean by Alexander the great and once one of the grandest cities in the world. Its lost none of its charm, built around the
bay, old buildings, street side cafes, packed beaches with deckchairs, umbrellas, bars and restaurants. It is the place where the famous lighthouse was, one of the 7 wonders where now stands a castle built from its stone. Underwater they have found ruins of Cleopatra's palace. The seafood is perfect, the weather superb and the
people hospitable all amongst a city full of charming old character.

• Sailing along the Nile from Aswan to Luxor was also one of the highlights as well as seeing Abu Simbel temple. Situated on the Nile, it has 25 meter high monuments of the Pharaoh Ramses ll and his wife Nefertari
carved into the rock cliff.

• The ancient temples and pyramids depicting a lifestyle and civilization so advanced - even in today's terms - is why many come to visit. It is far more than interesting and when you see 40 ton rocks, cut precisely to fit with each other, lifted 40 meters high, carved with intricate language and drawings, see their water systems
and culture - ahhh I was truly taken in.

Alexandria