From Luxor

Hello everyone! Boy do I miss you all. It was a rough morning today as I woke up to hear about a bomb in Cairo last night. Everything is fine with me (I am in Luxor preparing for my Nile Cruise) but it is sad to hear about the attack. I have loved my time in Cairo and the people are so friendly (at times a little too much!) so it is upsetting that an attack happened which may impact the city negatively - the people and the country rely on tourism.

Anyways, we finished the Sinai portion of the tour last night. We went to the Nile Valley restaurant for dinner and entertainment. It started with a traditional Egyptian band, then a man danced with two sticks, But the highlights of the evening were the Whirling Dervish (so incredible) and the belly dancers. I bought a belly belt in the Bedouin camp in Sinai so now I can practice my moves! It is so incredible and looks like so much fun. It was a great evening and it was kind of sad to split the group. Some are going on the cruise with me, some are going on a felucca and some went home. It was a great group of people let by an incredible tour leader, Mohamed. I know that he will be top tour leader in the Middle East soon (Mohamed - I will put in a great review :) ).

So I am just getting ready for a whole new side of Egypt. This country is amazing: it is beautiful, diverse, interesting, challenging, friendly, different and peaceful. It is a good thing I have a couple more weeks left!

In the last few days, we have travelled from Hurghada to Luxor by bus. We went to Karnak Temple which is an amazing complex. Everywhere I looked were inscriptions engraved into the columns and beams and walls. It just blows your mind when you think how the ancient Egyptians made these massive monuments! We also got to ride donkeys (I named mine Jake and he was such a good donkey) to Hatshepsut's Temple which was so incredible and so different from the rest of the monuments and then by bus to the Valley of the Kings. My favourite part of all the monuments has been the painting on the inscriptions. It has remained for centuries and it so powerful. Of all the paintings, my favourite are the ceilings which were painted blue with yellow stars. It is so magical!

I hope to post some pictures when I have some time. But right now I am off with Rachel to see some sights and pack for the cruise.

I miss you all and hope you enjoy the blog. I have enjoyed the comments!

Love, Lisa