Most Inspirational Moment
At the end of my Egypt trip I leave with these, among many other lasting memories: - Best modern wonder - The National Library at Alexandria, - Cairo is outstanding for its diversity, and vibrant culture despite huge social deprivation and awful urban infrastructure. - Worse tourist experience - Abu Simbel, although a fabulous archeological site preservered through one of the worlds most successful engineering projects, impossible to view properly. - Best archaeological site - Temple of Horus at Edfu. - Dancing with Nubian musicians at an evening barbecue on the banks of the Nile. - An impromptu performance by young music students at the multi faith House of Arts and Culture in Cairo. - Most poignant memory - the shared tombstone of two unknown comrades from New Zealand, “ Known to their God”, in the Al Alamein war graves cemetery.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Our tour leader Sayed Mansour was knowledgeable, caring, helpful and compassionate. He went far beyond the usual tour leader duties to give us a real experience of his country which I could tell he has a passionate love of. This tour visits Mosques, Catholic Monestries and multi faith war graves. As a Muslim Sayed gave me an insight to his own faith and its relationship with other faiths in Egypt current and historical that will remain with me/
Advice for Potential Travellers
As others have repeatedly commented this is not a leisurely trip: it’s full on from start to finish. Even if you don’t take up the optional excursions there are lots of very early starts: if you are aware of this they don’t spoil the holiday. This trip with its' extra time in Cairo and Alexandra is in my opinion far superior to the shorter options as the extra time in both cities is well rewarded. Alexandra would be worth a visit to Egypt in itself just to see the New Library . Three days in Cairo was a real experience to sample its vibrant culture, and have plenty of time to view the National Egyptian Museum and the Pyramid complex. Sadly the New Egyptian museum hadn’t opened, but our hotel was close enough for us to enjoy views of its remarkable architecture. The only disappointment in Cairo was the food tour, which was just a lunch at a cafe and a takeaway for tea, not the informative hands on cooking demonstration I’d hoped for. Our visit in March was in the middle of the peak tourist season. I asked our Leader Sayed if there was any time when sites might be even a little less crowded and apart form August which is too hot for most people, he suggested November at the start of the tourist season.
Suggestions
The biggest disappointment to me on this trip, which is completely outside Exodus’s control, was the visitor experience generally at Egypts Archaeological sites. There appears to be virtually no visitor management being operated at these sites run by the government, to the extent that visiting them is often a very unpleasant and potential dangerous experience. Sites are crowded to the extent that the precious archaeological elements are in serious danger. There seems to be little if any control of visitor numbers, or timing of access: a situation compounded by the cruise boat itineraries which discharge the contents of dozens of boats at precisely the same time. Abu Simbel is one of the worlds greatest engineering achievements and it’s archaeology is world class, but the actual experience of seeing it is a nightmare: so ridiculously overcrowded that nobody can stand and stare and appreciate its content. The visit to the Temple of Horus at Edfu from the cruise ships is a Health and Safety disaster waiting to happen. The ships all moor overnight at Edfu and dispatch tourists to the temple visit at around 6.00am so everyone can enter when it opens at 7.30 am so as to be back at the boats for them to sail at 9.30 am. The result was hundreds of people rushing to get through the one small entrance with barriers and a security check when it opened. There was a real danger of a fatal crushing accident and I’ve never felt so unsafe. I leave with real fear for Egypts precious and irreplaceable archaeology which is widely at risk from inadequate visitor management. This has to change.
