After arriving in Cairo and making our way to the Ramses Station from the Airport, we purchased our tickets to Aswan on the overnight sleeper, or Wagon Lit. On arrival in Aswan we are to be met by our Egyptian guide Abu el Naga Gabrail, or Naga for short, who is to take us on our personalized tour of Aswan, Luxor, Abydos, El Minya, Djara Cave, the White Desert, Baharyia Oasis, and last but not least; Cairo and the Pyramids.

Naga and Shaban, our driver, were there to greet us as we alighted from the train at 8 am, and after introductions, we were handed ice cold bottled water and escorted to our waiting car, a spotless 12 seater Toyota . Our bags were loaded and we made our way through the streets of Aswan to our hotel where we relaxed in the beautifully appointed lobby of the Basma Hotel, sipping complementary glasses of icy hibiscus juice, while discussing the finer details of our impending adventure with Naga. The following is a brief description of our tour with whom I would consider one of the best guides in Egypt. We were not rushed from site to site as were the bus loads of other tourists, and were given as long as we wanted at each site, staying long after the crowds had departed.

Click on photos for larger image.

ASWAN TO CAIRO: With ABU el NAGA GABRAIL

Day One:
On arrival in Aswan, we were met and escorted to our hotel, the Basma, high on a hill overlooking the beautiful Nile. After booking in and served complimentary ice cold hibiscus beverages we were taken to the Nubia Museum, completed in November 1997 after taking 11 years and costing LE 60 million to build. It houses over 3000 exhibits reflecting Nubian and Islamic history and culture in a remarkable structure spanning over 7000 sq mtrs. Well worth a visit. Then to the unfinished obelisk lying frozen in time in the northern quarry that supplied the red granite used in many of the ancient temples and colossi throughout Egypt. We were then taken to a quarry rarely visited by tourists where two unfinished statues lay, one being that of Ramses II. Then time for afternoon tea, where we relaxed on the verandah of the famous Old Cataract Hotel, watching the silent and graceful feluccas sailing past as the sun set on the golden hills of sand along banks of the Nile. O/N Basma

Day Two:
Leaving the hotel at the civilized time of 9 am after a great breakfast we were driven to our felucca, owned and expertly sailed by Captain Hamamy, and ably assisted by a young first mate, Ahmed. With the food loaded on board for our lunch and dinner we set sail for Kitchener Is., a botanical wonder not to be missed. In 1899 the Egyptians gave the Island to Lord Horatio Kitchener, a general who fought in the Sudan. He set about planting specimens from all over the world, and was responsible for the amazingly beautiful gardens that cover the Island today. We then set sail for the Monastery of St. Simeon After docking, we mounted camels for the short trip up the hill to the abandoned Monastery, taking time to explore and contemplate what life would have been like there in times past. Then back to the felucca for a virtual feast that had been prepared while we were away. We consumed a wonderful meal as we sailed to the Island of Sehel, sacred to the goddess Anukis where excellent examples of ancient Egyptian "graffiti" were carved into the rocks overlooking the Niles's first cataract. After visiting a Nubian village it was time to set sail for a cool and delightfully relaxing trip along the Nile, just as the inhabitants of this ancient land had done thousands of years ago. We ate a delicious meal that would have rivaled any good restaurant, prepared on board by Capt. Hamamy as we sailed into the sunset. Tomorrow an early start as we join a convoy for our drive to Luxor. O/N Basma.

Day Three: On arriving in Luxor at 11.30 am, we booked into a hotel of our choice on the west bank. Nur el Gurna is situated across the road from the office where the tickets to all the sites on the west bank are sold, and a short walk to where the Colossi of Memnon silently stand guard, protecting it seems, the wisdom and ghosts of the long forgotton past. Silent witnesses to a time steeped in ritual and meaning, so far removed from our own. Nur el Gurna is a small, family run mud brick hotel, not your 5 star, but clean and comfortable with a friendly rural Egyptian atmosphere. Lunch was served in the open air dinning room amid trees and the household animals confined to their sheltered yard at the side of the small complex. No noise and a wonderful nights sleep. Next was a visit to the Valley of the Baboons, a magestic vista of soaring cliffs, hiding as yet undiscovered treasures of antiquity in the maze of valleys littered with the most unusual rock formations. There was no one else but the four of us, Naga waited at the the entrance, letting us "discover" this surreal landscape for ourselves. No time limit. The gentle breeze caught you every now and then, without a sound, as if not wanting to disturb the remarkable stillnesss of this prehistoric landscape, and break the hypnotic spell that it had woven over us. Before we left the valley, we visited the Tomb of Ay, again we had the luxury of being alone and unrushed. A short drive to the ferry terminal for a plesant trip across the Nile to the main part of Luxor on the east bank, where most tourists tend to stay. Here we explored the "Temple of Man", the remarkable structure that is Luxor Temple. Naga's knowledge was invaluable as he took us through this wonderous site, answering any questions we had. Then as the sun set, throwing glorious shafts of brilliant red and gold through the giant stone pillars we made our way to our car , and taken to Naga's home for a dinner to remember, cooked and served by Eman, his wife. After dinner the opportunity to buy jewellery from the manufacturer, before catching the ferry back. O/N Nur el Gurna.

Day Four: Breakfast, then a short drive to Habu Temple, The Valley of the Kings, and the Temple of Hatshepsut, the abode of a woman who ruled as a Pharaoh in her own right. This temple is built at the base of, and hard up against the high cliffs of Deir el-Bahri commanding uninterrupted views across the Nile far off in the distance to the east bank. Breathtaking. Hot air ballon trips leave at sunrise taking you aloft for what is arguably one of the most spectacular sites in the world. Naga can arrange this even if only one of the group wants to participate. Nothing was too much trouble for him.



Day Five: An early morning start to join the convoy by road to Abydos, truly an amazing place. The exquisite wall carvings are the best to be found anywhere in Egypt. It was the place of power, the seat of knowledge, the chief holy city and historically perhaps the most important site in Egypt. A place that evokes the most intense inner feelings, no matter what your beliefs or leanings may be. The soul knows this place, of this I am in no doubt. Lunch, and then we head off north away from the well worn tourist path to the lesser know parts of the Nile's journey north through towns without the plethora of shops full of repititious souvenirs. Without Naga obtaining the many permits required to travel into military controlled areas, and his numerous contacts, travel would have been a lot slower, and in certain instances not possible. We arrived in el Minya in time for dinner.

Day Six: A police escort travelled with us in the van as we made our way through the busy streets to Beni Hassan 20 km south, to walk up to the little known tombs set up high in the cliffs overlooking the Nile below, winding it's way through the fertile valley. An interesting painting depicting a voyage to Abydos adorns the wall of one of 39 tombs, of which only some are open to the public. Disappointed that no photos were allowed inside. Then a short trip of a few kilometers to the Grotto of Artimis, known locally as Istabl - Antar, built by Hatshepsut and Tuthmoses III, and dedicated to the lion goddess Pakht. An eerie place well worth a visit. Our next stop was for me the highlight of my trip; Bahariya Oasis, approximately 330 km south-west of Cairo. El Beshmo Lodge was a welcome site after one of the longest days so far. But I would have to wait until we returned from our desert trip to realize this dream as we left early next morning for a three day desert safari.

Day Seven: This is where we changed to 4 wheel drives for our trip to the Djara Cave. Discovered in 1873 by Gerhard Rohlfs, but little known until more recent times. Some engravings found in the cave date back to 10,000 BC and















several stalagmites are dated to greater than 450,000 years but are now in danger of being vandalised by unthinking tourists! Spending the night in the desert under the deep blue/black sky full of stars, was absolutely awe-inspiring. I saw no less than 5 shooting stars from my snug sleeping bag staring up at the fathomless northern sky. The meal that was prepared by our two Bedouin drivers was both tasty and plentiful. Ghanem and Magdi navigated without maps, and handled the difficult desert terrain effortlessly. Talk about multi talented! They were great cooks, capable drivers, extraordinary navigators, master mechanics, and good company.

Day Eight: Today we start out for the White Desert after a sumptuous breakfast of boiled eggs, juice, pita, cucumber, fresh dates picked along the way, bananas, mangoes and fresh guava. Yum! En route we encounter an old well shaft, the grave of an infamous smuggler nicknamed Ali Baba, a carpet of round stones stretching for miles that resembled black water melons, and the remains of an old Roman settlement littered with shards of broken pottery. The well there supplies fresh clear drinking water to this day. We were taken quietly up onto the low hills surrounding the well to view and pay resect to the people that once inhabited this place hundreds of years ago. Their bones visible in shallow graves. We leave quietly. The White desert looms ahead of us like an alien landscape resplendent in indescribably beautiful colour as the sun slides beneath the horizon to leave everything bathed in unworldy blue-grey twilight. While we wander amongst the grotesquely beautiful formations, our dinner is being prepared. Another magic night under a canopy of stars, and a visit from a rare white desert fox.















Day Nine: We travel through miles of incredible white rock formations before reaching a place called the Crystal Mountains, so called because of the calcite found in abundance in the area. As we spread out and explore I come across a cave that would have been well below the surface thousands of years ago, but now naked and vulnerable, it's stalagmites now exposed due to the erosion of thousands of tonnes of sand, soil and rock.

Returning once again to Bahariya Oasis we travelled to Gebel el Dist, a pyramid shaped mountain made famous because of the dinosaur bones found there in 1911 by the German scientist Ernst Stomer von Reichenbach. Four bones of a new species found near the mountain were shipped to Munich where they were all tragically destroyed by the bombs of the Royal Air Force in April 1944 during World War II. More recently an American paleontologist led a group back there, only to discover the largest dinosaur bone ever recorded. A warm gentle inland sea had apparently once covered most of this area. Because of my interest in this field I requested more time there, and stayed until dark wandering the slopes of this unusual mountain, trying to visualize the array of strange creatures that used to feed and fight here 99 millon years before. As darkness descended I left the place I came to see and made my way back to the road. I was walking towards the lights of Bawiti , the major town of the Oasis, when car lights up ahead signalled the end of a magical time indeed. It was time to head for Cairo.

Above left, Gebel el Dist rises out of the depression that is the Bahariya Oasis, and on the right Shaban, Ghanem, Magdi and Naga wash off the desert dust. A well earned dip!



Day Ten: After driving 300 km through the desert the previous night, Shaban had delivered us safe and sound to our hotel in Cairo, and we managed to get about six hours sleep before waking and transferring to Le Meridian hotel in Giza. After booking in we prepared ourselves for our trip to Saqqara and the Step Pyramid. Naga had arranged for us to go inside. To imagine the weight of all those stones on top of you was an uneasy feeling as we made our way along the dark tunnel to where a shaft disappeared into the depths of this incredible structure. Then once out into the daylight we mounted our camels for a ride around the complex. Well, one of us opted for a donkey this time. Our van then ferried us to the mastabas depicting beautifully carved reliefs of life on the Nile. Creatures that no longer exist on the planet are featured in exquisite detail. We bent in half and carefully made our way down into the tomb of Teti, and marvelled at the incredible 6 tonne sarchophagus made of black marble. How on earth were they able to move this to it's resting place in the cool dark room? Reliefs of dwarfs were featured on the walls, adding to the strange feel this place had. Unfortunatly the famous Saqqara rug factories were shut as we headed back to our 5 star hotel.















Day Eleven: An early start found us making our way towards the entrance to the Giza complex only 10 minutes easy walk from our hotel. Naga would meet us there and arrange entry for those that wanted to venture inside the Great Pyramid. The structure, viewed from inside with it's huge stone blocks, and majestic corbelled ceilings has to be seen to be believed. Outside was a hive of ordered acticvity as the traders arrived for a days haggling. Camels, buses, carts, horses, and the ever present Tourist Police. The sun starts it's climb up the side of the Great Pyramid as it has done since the time of the Pharaohs. I felt time stand still.

Left: Naga at the entrance of Cheops giving last minute instructions to two of our group before starting their climb up to the Kings Chamber. We were given time to wander the site at our leisure finding wonders around every corner. A guide led us to a remarkable tomb where a most unusual carving depicted the delivery of a calf along with others we found just as intriguing. Then we entered the enclosure housing one of the boats found buried along side the Pyramid. Hours went by, then it was time to visit the Sphinx. Naga would pull out all stops to make sure he could get us into the Sphinx enclosure so we we could stand between the enormous paws and reach out and touch the mysterious past. Then as the complex was closing for the day, and we were driven to our hotel where we would have dinner and a hot shower before hitting the famous Khan el Khalili market.

Day Twelve: Our last day before we board the plane at 3.45 am the following day. Meidum pyramid lies approximately 70 km south of Giza and is a very different looking structure to other pyramids. Old photos depict the causeway leading up to this imposing structure, but neglect has seen it all but filled in with the ever moving sand. We climbed down inside, once again in wonderment of the precision with which each stone was laid. Tombs off to the side of the pyramid are infested with wasps, so we declined the opportunity to enter. For me this pyramid was the most striking, with it's rural setting and sharp contours against the intense blue of the sky.

Next stop, the Pyramids at Dashur as we make our way back towards Giza travelling along back roads enabling us to get a feel for life away from the tourist orientated one of Egypt. The hectic and sometimes congested narrow roads taking us past villages, shops, farms and small workshops. Donkeys almost hidden by their loads of wheat and barley, wove in and around big lorries and people on bikes or walking. Finally we reached Dashur, home to the Red and Bent pyramids. Time was tight as the site closed at 3.30pm because of it being the holy month of Ramadan. We found pieces of casing scattered around the base of the Bent pyramid which has retained a considerable amount of it's casing, unlike most other pyramids that have lost theirs. An example is the Red pyramid only a couple of kilometers away which has none of the Tura limestone casing left. A late but thoroughly enjoyable lunch at a restaurant in Saqqara on the way back to our hotel at Giza, where we were going to try and get some sleep before our midnight transfer to Cairo airport for our flight home. Sadly we must say goodbye to Naga and Egypt.




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