JFC Travel Blog

After the disaster of the second day my initial thoughts were that Egypt was not a place I wanted to visit again, however the next few days changed my opinion on the matter. In the end it turned out to be an interesting and enjoyable trip.

The third day was simply relaxation, enjoying the facilities of the resort and sitting in the sun. I did some research for the remaining few days after deciding that the concierge was not to be trusted. Days four and five were just going to be trips in to central Cairo, first to get a feeling for the city and walk by the Nile, have lunch and dinner and the final day to spend some time at the Egyptian museum.

I found out the hotel runs a free shuttle bus to the Egyptian Museum which was also convenient for other areas in downtown Cairo. One of the first challenges of Cairo is actually gaining the courage to cross the road, but with a bit of practice it becomes second nature. The key is to be confident and don’t stop once you start crossing, if you slow down or stop the drivers will simply keep going and not let you across.

The way I dealt with the locals was to say no politely if they tried to sell anything, unfortunately after the experiences of the second day I didn’t trust anyone on the street who was trying to sell something. However, it appeared most people were actually very friendly.

The museum was the final day and if you want to see the whole museum it’s best to dedicate a full day to it. Remember that you cannot take a camera in to the museum.

Now back at the hotel, bags packed, ready to go on the early morning flight KL554. This time the flight is a Boeing 747 and I’ve already checked in online. The seats are the first row in economy so legroom should be good.

The last few days have been much better than the first and have helped create a more positive impression of Egypt. Now I’m more aware of the hazards of Egypt it’ll set me up well for the future. Next time maybe Luxor…

Despite my early problems I did enjoy my stay at the IC Pyramids Park, the staff were very friendly and it was a relaxing hotel. The rooms were a bit dated but were comfortable. The price was excellent.

This entry was posted on Sunday, May 6th, 2007 at 7:52 pm and is filed under Trip Reports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.