Off to Cairo

I managed breakfast this morning and feel a bit better but not yet 100%. I still have stomach cramps and think I might have OCD because I’m washing my hands constantly like a madwoman!! If you touch Egyptian money you have to wash your hands. That means that all you have to do is shake someone’s hands and then you have to wash them, because they might have been touching money. Its just crazy! The water is so dodgy you even have to clean your teeth with bottled water. I might have got some shower water in my mouth. Easily done…!

We left the Orchid this morning and travelled to the airport with a family from Newcastle to go to Cairo for two nights. I have to say the Egypt Air flight was so much nicer than the First Choice one, and if we ever go to Egypt again we’re definitely going to book it with these people. The man behind us wouldn’t get off his mobile phone. He had two flight attendants asking him to switch off and as soon as we started landing he turned it on again and he had another telling off!! Well, that’s what I presumed it was as it involved a lot of angry Egyptian words!!

Cairo is a lot cooler than Luxor. At 35C it is heaven and I actually feel like I can breathe! We meet the rep at the airport, a gangly man looking rather sheepish in his bright Barbie pink First Choice shirt. He should have chosen the multi-coloured one – its far less garish! The rep is travelling with a police escort. The guy is very broad-shouldered and has the biggest handgun you ever saw sticking out his back pocket. Its kinda scary…!

We take the minibus to the hotel which is right on the other side of the city. The financial district is very modern looking with tall towers and brand name shops, but the rest of Cairo was quite dilapidated. As far as the eye could see there were ramshackle looking houses and you could tell that most people living in Cairo were pretty poor.

The hotel in contrast is big and shiny. We freshen up and go to the light show being held at The Pyramids. It was absolutely fantastic and Marlon Brando’s (or is it Ben Kiingsley?) voiceover was just incredible! It told the story of how the pyramids were made, why, and also talks about the lesser known smaller pyramids of the queens and children.

Outside some beggar children asked Reuben for ‘baksheesh’. He held out his hand and went ‘baksheesh’ to them, and they started dancing for him. It was quite amusing to see this kid trying to dance among the crowds of people, coaches and a cow lying in the middle of the road!