Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt
On the eastern coast of Egypt and the southern tip of the Sinai peninsula lies the resort town of Sharm El Sheikh. We were early for SCUBA season, so the water was pretty cold (double [...]
Everyday Egypt
One of our best experiences was walking about 6 miles through the side streets of Cairo from the local market back to our hotel. We had no idea which way to go through the maze [...]
In Awe at Luxor: Karnak Temple
The scale of the temples seems to increase with each one we see. Karnak Temple, in Luxor (central Egypt) is the largest temple supported by columns in the world. It is approximately half the size [...]
Temple guards
Demonstrations of the light hitting the inside of the temples. The temple guard in the top photo is simply holding out his hand to show the sunlight. It almost looks biblical, doesn't it?
Truly HUGE stonework
It's hard to imagine the creativity, ingenuity and sheer muscle that went into making these collosal statues. In a time without cranes and without pulleys, these temples were erected by workers (not slaves) in honor [...]
Riding camels in Egypt
Ah, the camels. Surprisingly comfortable to ride. The method is to sit on the camel when it is on the ground, then hang on and lean back as they lunge forward to get to standing [...]
Preservation
Egyptian Antiquities Department and Unesco World Heritage are working hard to restore the beautiful temples and tombs of Egypt. You can see the colors in this photo of the ceiling, which would have been undamaged [...]
Stories etched in Temple Walls
Densely packed into huge temple walls are stories of how the pharoah got his power from the gods. No one was allowed in the temples except for royalty and high priests. (All of the servants [...]
Walk like an Egyptian…
This is SO corny, but we had to do it! We also sailed like the Egyptians in a "felucca" which is a clever design. The mast is at an angle so it catches the breeze [...]
Whirling dervishes and hips
Whirling dervishes are actually doing a meditation when they twirl with great skirts and cloths over their head. This guy turned in the same direction at a fast pace for a good 20 minutes, to [...]
Western Influence into Egypt
Tshirt reads: Blessed are Ye, Best New Girl Fashion Happy The To School Beatufull. OK, then. KFC is very popular here, this photo was of a delivery bin on a bicycle. And just for fun, [...]
Modern day Egypt
Predominantly Muslim, women wear headscarves, but they are very colorful, we only see a few of the full on black headscarves with slits for the eyes (those are more common in Saudi Arabia). Men commonly [...]