Adventure with the Pharaohs (Egypt-2009)

This was our first holiday we went on together back in 2009 (before I was diagnosed.) I have always been fascinated by Pharaohs and Ancient Egypt. So it was a bit of a dream really, as I had wanted to be an archaeologist when I was younger too, so to see the Amazing Pyramids and the Columns of Luxor was just awesome. A childhood dream came true and combined with a slightly newer obsession - Downton Abbey (will explain!!)

I am actually standing next to one of the Pillars in

the pic to the right. I remember it being blisteringly hot and I felt horrendous on the coach journey, a combination of travel sickness and Egyptian tummy I think.I packed quite a lot of flowing things to wear but I just felt so hot, especially in Cairo.... I swear I could have burst into flames, it was that hot!!!

We visited the Temple Luxor, the Pillars were amazing and it felt like we had gone on to a film set or something, they were huge, I took pictures of some of the markings which I found interesting. I would love to make them into a piece of art in our house, get it blow up on to a canvas and hang it up (might do that!!)

We also visited the Temple of Karnak which had several smaller tombs (but I would be here for hours if I listed them all!) The site was absolutely massive and breathtaking.

The pic below is the Colossi Memnon (there are two of them next to each other) they mark where the vanished Temple of Amenophis was (which is now covered in fields). The statue is meant to be the mythical Ethiopian King Memnon who was killed by Achilles in the Trojan war-apparently!! You learn something new every day, I picked that up from my travel guide by Globetrotter (worth getting a guide for whatever country you visit.)

We also visited Valley of the Kings, I think - I can't seem to find our pics from this excursion but I do remember being told no photography inside the tombs. After doing some research I think we went into Pillared Chamber F of Tomb KV 15, 2003 (this is remembering what I had seen and what I recognised.)

I was so fascinated but I didn't know a lot about who found what when I visited but I have since learned something rather remarkable, that the family, well Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon who lived at Highclere Castle (the set of Downton Abbey) actually found Tutankhamun's Tomb. I visited Highclere Castle and I was so fascinated by its history, what a weird coincidence that two of my passions are connected (pics below are pages from the Highclere Castle guide book, showing the dig site and some of the artefacts). I also recently watched a program of the story of Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon and how they found the tomb - very interesting to see what it would have been like. I'm so glad we visited Egypt when we did and saw all the treasures.

So we travelled quite far to see these tombs and the journey on the way back was very odd, we had stopped for a quick break and this random women just handed my hubby (then boyfriend) a goat so I took a picture because it was just a very odd situation - no I'm not kidding lol!! I was trying not to throw up everywhere or faint at that point though (what they say about the Egyptian tummy is true- the struggle is real!!)

We had been staying in Hurghada at Lilly Land Beach Club for most of the holiday and we did some scuba diving which was very cool and I had never done before. I think we did a dive about 15-20 metres, I enjoyed it until my mask started to leak but because I had missed the talk about the scuba dive signs because I was throwing up in the toilet, I didn't know how to ask to resurface. I think I had a slight panic attack when I got into the water as well (think my mask came off). I was OK in the end and it was a great experience (once I realised there weren't any sharks nearby too.) Gosh I was so much slimmer back then, oh well!! I remember actually being held up by my hubby and the instructor while they put the scuba gear on me because I nearly fell backwards-slightly embarrassing but that gear was so heavy and the tank was basically the size of me!! We saw some great fish that I had never seen before though.

On our last night we had a lovely meal down by the beach/lagoon which was part of the hotel and it was so romantic. We had red snapper, I think from my hubby's plate. We had a lovely evening and it was a perfect end to the first part of our holiday.

We then flew to Cairo and went to the Giza Pyramids and the Sphinx. We did the typical touristy thing and rode a camel round the Pyramids (we did the short walk because the other one was way more expensive!) So then the guide tried to take us on a longer walk and I knew we didn't have enough cash on us so I did what any British tourist would have to resort to doing- having a massive tantrum on the top of the camel and in my best British accent I told the guide under no circumstances would we be doing this! Not the most glamorous or sophisticated moment of my life but it worked. While on the camel I also nearly lost my shoes which kept slipping off (note to self, don't wear flipflops/sandals in a desert and on top of a camel- #Fashion Fail).

So while we were in Cairo, we were there for 2 days, we also visited the Cairo Museum and we saw some amazing artefacts from a lot of the tombs. We weren't allowed to take photos so now all we have are our memories as I hear a lot of the Museum artefacts have been looted and sold on the black market which is devastating. We saw so many wonderful things though so I can't complain. We then decided that we would also do a sunset cruise on the Nile. Something else I had wanted to do for a long time. It was lovely, we had a lovely dinner, a belly dancer for entertainment (which I noticed when she danced.....errrrr......nothing moved - if you catch my drift) and we also met one of the other guests from our hotel who we ended up sitting with which was nice. He was also with us at the Pyramids too. I have to say it was such a lovely holiday and there were other mini trips we did like going to see how papyrus paper was made and how Egyptian perfume is made which I still have, because it has no alcohol it lasts a long time (after 8 years it still smells amazing.) We also saw some churches which was interesting. Overall it was an amazing trip, I wish I could have done more.

ToodlesXX