Our destination for our December break this year was Egypt, and it was definitely a vacation to remember. We had been advised by several people to take the guided approach to this trip because it can be very frustrating and difficult to get around without. So this is exactly what we did, and that included 5 star accommodations and elaborate meals - not a bad way to spend Christmas,
Our trip started in Cairo where we visited the pyramids of Giza and the Museum of Antiquities. It was absolutely fascinating to see how massive the pyramids are - all for just two small rooms inside, one of which is the tomb that the pyramid was created for. To first view the pyramids, we took a camel ride through the desert. The girls loved this part. Taelyn kept talking about how bumpy her camel was, and she would often encourage it to keep moving by yelling "Go, Mickey Mouse, go!" (Her camel's name was Mickey Mouse.) Kaelia was very calm on her camel and liked to pet it while saying, "Good boy, camel."
After learning a bit about the history of the pyramids, our guide brought us to a pyramid that we could go inside. We had to hike up half the pyramid to get to the entrance, and then we had to hunch over and make our way down a long tunnel with a ramp leading to the bottom. Taelyn walked the entire tunnel by herself, up and down, and Kaelia made it most of the way on her own. By the end, we were sweating and tired, but it was worth it. Inside the pyramid was two rooms: the first was for deterring tomb robbers by making them think this room was the tomb, and the second room was the tomb where a king was buried.
The museum was fascinating as well. We got to see many of the items that were included in the tombs with the kings. Some kings had their grand beds with them as well as jewellery and carriages - all meant for the kings to use in the afterlife according to their beliefs. The most intriguing part, though, was the mummies. We got to see several of the mummies of past Pharaohs, including King Ramsies II from the story of Moses in the Bible. His mummy still had his teeth and hair!
Next on our trip, we took an overnight train to Aswan. The train was rickety and difficult to sleep on, but it was definitely an adventure, and the girls loved sleeping on it. Once we arrived in Aswan, we headed over to a gorgeous Movenpick hotel on an island. Just hours later, our guide met us at the island in a small boat and took us on a boat tour over to a Nubian village. Here we got off and visited a local Nubian. Many of the Nubians have pet crocodiles, and this house was no different. We even got to sit with one of the crocodiles on our laps! I was terrified, Kaelia wouldn't even go near it, and Justin and Taelyn found the experience exciting. Taelyn is still talking about how squishy the crocodile was, and Kaelia stills talks about how she was too scared. After holding the crocodile, we went to a local school in the Nubian village where a teacher took us to a classroom and attempted to teach us parts of the Nubian and Arabic language. We recited back the alphabet, numbers, and a few phrases, although we didn't really remember any of it later on. We even got to write our names in Arabic.
The next day, our guide drove us to the High Dam where the Nile River is controlled to prevent flooding and to produce hydroelectric energy. After that, we boarded the Amarco II where we began our cruise up the Nile River. The cruise boat was incredible and another excited adventure for the girls. It was a three night cruise to Luxor with several steps along the way for some excursions of ancient temples. The temples were unreal. We thought we would see some hieroglyphic writing, but that is a complete understatement. Each temple was covered in hieroglyphic pictures from top to bottom on every inch of stone. Some of the pictures even still have their original color that ancient Egyptians made with natural sources such as indigo.
Our favorite temples of the entire trip were Kom Ombo and Karnak. The construction of Kom Ombo was such that the length of the temple was built like a megaphone so that when the people were outside and the high priest was inside, his voice was amplified out. Since they could not see him and could only see the statue of the god, they thought it was the god speaking. Karnak was a very large temple, with different sections devoted to different ancient kings. They were all incredibly impressive.
The cruise ended in Luxor. Aside from the temples, we went to the Valley of the Kings - tombs that were found in the moutainside to detract tomb robbers after many of the puramids had been robbed over the years. This is actually where King Tut was found, and we had seen all of belongings in the Museum of Antiquities in Cairo.
After one night in a hotel, a driver took us across the desert to Hurghada Beach, on the Red Sea. We stayed in the Movenpick Hurghada Resort, a spectacular resort on the beach. This is where we spent Christmas day. The hotel even had a kids' Christmas party that night where the girls did some dancing, baking, and eating. The girls really liked Hurghada and the beach, playground, and pool.
We ended our trip back in Cairo for a day where our guide took us to some more modern buildings (modern meaning AD and not BC). First, we visited the Citadel of Saladin and the Alabaster mosque, the former from medieval times adn the latter from the 1800s. Then we went to Coptic Cairo and visited the Church of Abu Serga where Mary, Joseph, and Jesus are believed to have rested during their travels in Egypt. Nothing but a single pillar remains from the original church, but we did glimpse the resurrected crypt below the church where the family rested.
Egypt was a unique trip that we will never forget. For more detailed information, please see Justin's write-up on our travel blog.
Taelyn's birthday party was then on Saturday. Her two best friends, Arianna and Rafi, came over to enjoy the festivities as well. We rented a bouncy castle with a slide that led to a pit of balls, and we set up Taelyn's new slip-n-slide. Between those two activities, the playroom, and the pool, the kids were pretty excited and busy for several hours. Taelyn was a perfect little hostess and had a wonderful time with her friends and family. At one point during the party, she told me, "That was so nice of my friends to give me birthday presents!"
