Day 7 Egypt- from camels to pools

A leisurely start yielded a lovely poolside breakfast where the layered pastry was actually good (croissants) and the usual omelette appreciated- buffet breakfast the best on this tour. Coffee a 4/10 up from a -2 on the cruise boat….

6 of us then bundled onto a boat to the West Bank (so nice and cool on the river….) and met up with camels for a ride up to St Simeon Monastery ,abandoned in the 13 th century. It was pretty much ruined by the last attack but perched on a hill had a great view and interesting story not to mention a flock of bats…. back onto the camels for the ride down- saddles not nearly as comfortable as the Bedouin ones…. we had an armed guard again with us for this trip from the tourist ministry.

Back at the hotel again Anne and I peeled off for a walk into town to visit the Coptic church and the Nubian Museum while most of the rest went to tour the Nubian village (we together with an elderly English couple, thought it too much like a spectacle but those who went seemed to enjoy it). It was a bit of a hike to the church which was huge and quite attractive – and Definitely cooler! A further hike to the museum where we walked most of the grounds (themselves worth seeing) before finally finding the entrance. The construction going on right at the entrance had fooled us. It was almost deserted, a nice change from the tourist throngs of the week, but rather dry. Very complicated history this region has being defeated by one people after another and then winning it back and calling themselves something else….

Another day of 37C though I see it’s going up to 41-42C next week- hotel staff tell me it goes to 50C regularly in the summer. Oooff …….I was done after the museum so split with Anna who wanted to take a ferry over to the southern part of the hotel island – my walk was very purposeful, back to the pool which although too warm, made you feel at least temporarily cool on getting out. There was only time for a little lying around, in the shade of course, before pack up and taking a ferry over to the mainland to catch the hotel car to the airport. The airport security was relatively lax though the sniffer dog was out at the dam and though I’d forgotten I’d packed half a bottle of water nothing was triggered at the security checkpoints.

And so here I wait, hoping that this next encounter with Cairo airport is kinder than the last, and that I manage to find the hotel shuttle on arrival.