I Have Walked Like An Egyptian

And we're back! From Egypt. Arrived home last night just before midnight, semi-delirious from fatigue after a 25.5-hour travel day. 

As should be obvious, I programmed my blog to pop up some entries while we were gone. I don't like announcing to the world that we're leaving home and I didn't think our house sitter would be thrilled either, so I tried to keep it low key.

But we went, we're back, and we had a GLORIOUS time. This was, without a doubt, the trip of a lifetime. Usually I run through a day-by-day playback of trips when we travel abroad but I'm not going to this time. For one, it would take way too long. We covered a LOT of ground--pyramids, tombs, museums, mosques, Valley of the Kings, Nile cruise, bellydancing, market shopping, solar boats... the list goes on and on.

For another reason, there's just no way to convey in words or pictures or a combination of the two, what we saw and did. It's too big, if that makes any sense. I stood in a synagogue on the spot where it's believed Moses was lifted from the reeds. I stood face to face with paintings and inscriptions that were written 3,000 years before Christ (and when you see how VIVID those colors still are... it's mind blowing), I climbed into the grand burial chamber of the Great Pyramid (following in the footsteps of people like Napoleon and Alexander the Great), I learned more about the history and civilization of the world in 8 days then I learned in 8 years in school.

Once we get around to downloading them, I will post a few pictures and give you a few fun facts. But for now I'm trying--in the face of over 400 e-mail messages, 6 loads of laundry, and 2 ticked-off cats--to retain the essence of the trip in my mind. We enjoyed every single second we were there. Our tour group was great and our guide, Sherriff, should go down in the tour guide hall of fame. He's been an Egyptologist for 26 years and knows the ropes and TOOK CARE OF US. We were treated as graduate students studying the culture and our heads now swarm with the names of pharaohs, kings, and lineage charts. Our guide also saved one woman in our group from possible jail time (maybe) when she accidentally left her camera on in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings that didn't allow pictures. That was the same day that one of the young kids in our group stumbled and almost sent several French tourists crashing to their death on a steep stairwell. As Blair put it, "Rockingham County rep-re-SENTS!"

 That's all. Just wanted to say we're back and that once I catch my breath, I'll share some of the more amusing moments of the trip.

Cheers,

Dena