The tale of Cleo and Marc A begins.

Yesterday was foreboding. Marc A comes down with anticipatory head cold and is not worth a plug nickel. My hard drive starts to get whacky. This morning, my sent mail folder contents had blasted itself into cyberspace. Unfortunately, I am my own help desk .. NOT. But .. I am persistent. Yea! Finally got the e-mail straightened out.

Marc A awakes at 6:59 since the cleaning crew is coming at 7. Much noise & fuss; he decides we are only taking carry-on luggage. I finally go through my stuff one last time at noon, and he agrees to cross-pack in case we have to check stuff in Rome. I leave him to it. He is not-so-secretly convinced I cannot pack. I am not-so-secretly convinced it's in my best interest if he thinks it.

Suitcases come out. Much muttering and fluttering from the resident pet population. Mix food for next 14 days, and give them fresh food. My~no muss, no fuss. I must remember that strategy next time we go.

We rolled at 3:30 pm. Rain, two traffic lanes out of commission on the Garden State Parkway and a great limo driver means we arrive right on time. My laptop is quietly residing in a drawer at home, along with my cell phone, wedding rings (I wear a fake away from home) and my purse. I start to shake violently.

We fly Alitalia via Rome to Cairo. We step up to check in. The agent expects paper tickets ????. Fortunately, the agent summons the maestro of the reservation system immediately. Maestro coaxes our boarding passes out of the machine AND our Continental mileage numbers into the machine lickety-split. Bravo!

The big bonus? Virgin Club lounge access. Champagne. Computer terminal calling to me. Oh yea, baby.

I amuse myself by looking at the hotels' websites. My god! The first one, Mena House, has a stellar view of the Pyramids. It's part of the Oberoi group, whose hotels in India and Bali were simply fantastic. Cleo will have the option of riding sidesaddle on a horse or majestically sauntering in by camel. After Cleo's public appearance, she can stop by the spa for a rejuvenating treatment. I am liking this trip already.

The Old Cataract House in Aswan is where Agatha Christie penned "Death on the Nile". It's part of the Sofitel chain, so food will be sublime.

Boarding is in twenty minutes. Looking forward to lots of sleep, Marc A's cold subsiding and a magical visit to the land of Cleo and Marc A. Now where do I get a litter to carry me around?

Cheers, Cleo

Take me along Queenie :banana: Waiting for the next chapter!

Oh, how I love your reports, Cleo! There's no
De-nying you are Da Queen! Safe travels and incredible times, Cleo and MA!

Anne, it never ceases to amaze me that you and Gary can go for 14 days with just carry-on luggage! A safe landing to you both!

:nw: :nw: :nw: Queen of De Nile, you rule :nw: :nw: :nw:

Oh royal Queen....your lowly subjects await word of your next adventure! Is there a barge involved?????

Oh the b-ball you're missing! Florida won but oh what a nail-biter! ....keep the party goin'! <img border="0" alt="[vhappy]" title="" src="graemlins/icon_vhappy.gif" /> editing to add: and now Georgetown pulled out a 66-65 win over heartbroken Vanderbilt. Hope you're able to plug in, connecting in Roma!

OHHHH YES Michele- Anne you would have loved it!!!

Can't wait to hear to hear your new adventures, Cleo! Hope Marc A continues to feel better!

Yes, we are about to start a new and thrilling chapter in the life of Cleo and Marc A. We will be waiting with bated breath for the next installment.

I thought I misunderstood the carry-on part, lol. 14 days and no luggage is just a mystery to me but I gotta give you props!

I am looking forward to the next chapter!!

Carry on...all I would wear is shoes!

And poor Mark and Doug would have to go barefoot!

Filed from DeNile

We launch ourselves out of the Virgin Club, only to learn the crew is missing for the flight to Rome. No problem .. as all 13 of them trickle in over the next 45 minutes, they get a round of applause. They take it in stride, waving to their fans. The last one to arrive got a staning ovation. Of course, this meant time in the penalty box since we'd lost our take=off slot. Arrived Rome about 2 hours late.

Marc A says "leave this to me" and proceeds to put two 22" suitcases & an overstuffed backpack through security. No one bats an eye. Carry on to Cairo!

Pass out on flight to Cairo; wake up as we are hurtling into a very hazy sky. Evidently there was a good sized sandstorm early in the day. OK .. get off plane, find Nasr our logistics guy. He hands us our Egyptian visa stamps and proceeds to tell us where to pick up our luggage. Marc A points to carry on. Nasr didn't argue, just pointed us to an open line to exit the airport. President Mubarek's motorcade was coming the opposite direction as we were pulling out of the airport. Here I was thinking Ker & Downey really pulls out all the stops. In reality, he'd come to welcome Condaleeze Rice.

Mena House is at least 1 hour 15 minutes from the airport and it is drop-dead gorgeous. It's a royal hunting lodge from 1860. It's got strong Ottoman influence in the building and antiques, since Egypt was part of the Ottoman Empire at the time the building was constructed. We've got one of the palace rooms; most of the resort is an add-on from the 1970s. The room is fine but could use a facelift. Gorgeous scented and unscented flowers are in abundance everyone, exceeded only by the amount of gold leaf and stenciled metal light fixtures. They have a spray of anthuriums that must each be 10" across.

They have a golf course across the street, so you can play under the pyramids. Now THAT's a golf course with a view. Even the club dog is extremely friendly. The pool area is inviting and, hee hee, the belly dancer performance starts at 1:30 am. For reasons we do not fully understand, we are to be out of the hotel by 3:30 pm for a 6 am flight to Aswan. No other activities are planned for Tuesday. So ... we're napping after Monster Cairo Museum day tomorrow, setting the alarm for 1 am and catching the belly dancer show with our breakfast.

Egypt is well staffed with tourism police, and we feel every bit as safe here as we do in America. Our guide, Meged, is not only taking us around Cairo, but is flying around to the rest of Egypt with us. As it turns out, no one else signed up for this tour's departure date. Can you imagine K&D will fly your guide around with just two guests at a group tour rate? Unbelievable. Meged is a wizard at Egyptian history. His special interest is building construction, so he and Marc A are having scintillating conversations about proper foundation support and pyramid/burial chamber design. Marc A, thankfully, is feeling way better today.

Last night we went to the Sound & Light show at the Pyramids. It was lovely to see everything lit up. Afterwards, it was a quick dinner at the main restaurant (open 24/7) and then bedtime. The internet room is also open 24/7. Connection is about US$25 for 2 hours.

Today was the tour of Memphis. We saw the other king of Memphis, Ramses II, minus one leg. I swore the spirit of Elvis was floating around the place. Next was Sakkara, with the first pyramid and a bunch of interesting ruins. Lunch was at a lovely open-air zoo come restaurant. A guy, no kidding, was sitting with a lion cub who he'd let you pet & take a picture for a negotiated fee. After lunch, it was back to the Pyramids to see the Solar Boat & the structures up close. We then headed to the Sphinx, where we nearly had a head-on collision with a camel. We were tossed right out of our seats. No damage. We are clear on the fact camels have the right-of-way. We got to a major pedestrian jam at the entryway to the Sphinx. Promptly at 4 pm, the tourist police started herding everyone out of area.

Traffic here is not quite as crazy as India but close. At the pyramids, a guy on a donkey trots up and smiles, saying "TAXI!!". It's camels, donkeys, car horns and a bit of prayer.

Tomorrow is a very full day. I've already begged off three straight hours of the museum. Meged said I could look at the jewely from the Tut exhibit and then be excused. I like this guy already. Marc A, though, may get more time on building design and engineering aspects. I may go shopping. I did spy a store where I can get the Cleo clothes ...

Until next time

Cleo

Love the report, Cleo. K&D are really doing right by you. Looking forward to reading more about your adventures.

Cleo, thanks for the great reports and welcome to Egypt!!!

Nancy

Here ya go, Cleo!
I am so enjoying your reports!!! Glad to hear that Marc A is feeling better!
Can't wait for your next post!!!!

LOL Betty, what a cute Cleo!!

Hi Cleo,

You are not only Da Queen of De Nile, you are Da Queen of colorful reporting, too! K&D are a first-class act, so it's only fitting that a first-class guide tour with first-class couple such as you and MA!

Waiting for your next installment of "MA & Cleo's Cairo Capers!"

You are a wonderful reporter!!!! Really enjoying tagging along with you two!!

Thanks for the report...another place I need to go....keep having a wonderful time and bring us along with you ... figuratively, of course...

Loving your updates...keep 'em coming Cleo! :app:

Anne you are the BEST writer. You reports are so wonderful I am laughing and reading bits to Ken as he checks our spam for the day. I am also SO happy to know you were met with no problems and now in the good hands of your guide. No matter how long I do this job I always worry. I wish I could accompany everyone and hand them over personally so I know all is well. I have been on that treadmill there is SO MUCH to see in Cairo and you still have the best to come!

Looking forward to your next installment.

Cleo & Marc A. Ever since Tush, I've always wanted to go to D-Nile. I'm glad your sharing your trip with us.

Dave

Gazing from Giza

It’s 1:48 am and the belly dancer DID NOT SHOW for Da Show. Dang! The “breakfast bagel with belly dancing” idea will have to be saved for another time.

Today was a constitutional referendum day in Egypt. The thrust of the change is to affirm the priority of the country to freedom of religion from politics, and vice versa. It got a mixed review from our guide and, from what I see in the paper, also from the populace. There were lots of banners all over Cairo and carts full of people heading to the voting places. The order of the sights to see was changed, as the guide and driver were concerned about demonstrations regarding the vote. We started at the Coptic Church and museum. Coptic is the old word for Egyptian; and the Coptic church is 98% similar to the Greek Orthodox church. Coptics are around 12 million of the 75 million Egyptians. Meged says K&D is the only company that includes this particular sight in their packages.

The church was interesting; the museum spectacular. Several painted niches from the 7th century bore a striking resemblance to those we saw from the 9th or 10th century in Cappadocia, Turkey. After that, a Greek Orthodox church and a Jewish Synagogue tour. Cleo, at this point, is remembering her good friend Jerold from ROAR. “If Jerold were here, do you suppose we’d be on the Bataan church march?” she whispers to Marc A.

Next up was the Citadel and the Muhammad Ali mosque with the alabaster portico. A couple of visitors make the cardinal mistake of putting their shoes on the carpet, soles down, and start to pray. The tourist police let them finish their prayers, then descend on them because their shoes have defiled the prayer space. Kids, do not try this other than at home. As if on cue, the muzzelin starts calling the noontime prayers through the Arabic PA system – an open grate with an air shaft behind it. The errant visitors get a reprieve. Next up is the papyrus factory, complete with the hibiscus tea (very good) and the demonstration as to why the stuff for sale outside the factory for 10% of the factory price is just plain junk. We got a couple pieces with the personalized cartouches for friends at home.

Finally, Cleo and Marc A get on a Nile river boat. Lunch was at the Pasha Nileside riverboat restaurant. Good Italian food (yes!) and a lovely setting.

Off to the Mother of all Museums, the home of Tuthankhamun’s tomb treasures. Cleo is buoyed up at the thought of the “straight to the jewelry” agreement. I failed to realize that was after we looked at a number of other sights. I go into museum overload after about 45 minutes. Kids, they’ve got mummies of everything in this museum – pharaohs, queens, kids, high nobles, beetles, cats, crocodiles, ravens and … ta daa …someone’s pet mare. The King Tut display is breathtaking. The genuine pharaoh’s throne (gold, lapis lazuli, silver, cerulean, but no diamonds), the chariots, the pure gold embellished coffin, the necklaces, and the jars holding Tut’s innards. No photos permitted of any of this. Boo hiss. Cleo is happy to see it but is oh so done with sightseeing. Marc A spots a blow-up King Tut sarcophagus punching back he’s just got to have. Now everyone’s happy. We crashed about 15 minutes after we got back to Mena House. I have to head up & awaken Marc A for our day in Aswan. We’re at Old Cataract House, where Agatha Christie purportedly penned “Death on the Nile”. I’m looking forward to a free day. Cheers, Cleo

Miss you Cleo!!!!! :hug: :hug: :hug:

Lovin' every minute of your report, Cleo! "Museum overload - yes!" But sounds like a great day over all!

THANKS SO Much!

Good hearing from you Cleo! (wasn't your name Rose last year?) Overdosed on churches and museums...thats my girl! Would you bring me back one of those blow-up sarcophagus? gotta have one ;)
To De Nile

Thanks for letting us join in on the fun, Cleo! Glad to hear that Marc A is feeling better.

Great - a morning fix from Cleo. Woke this morning and got my hot tea and straight to Sea Mail to check out LCT's own Reality show, Cleo and Marcie.

Loved reading Cleos post and reliving my own similiar experiences in Cairo although there is NO way that I could ever have described these sites like OUR Cleo does. The King Tut area of the museum is truly spectactular. The Cairo Museum is SO SO big it is exhausting but what you see really does stay in your memory.

She is now headed to the area of Egypt that I think is the BEST. Cairo is interesting, the Pyramids are a wonder to behold BUT Luxor, Karnak and Abu Simbal -- stayed tuned for Cleo's take on these experiences.

Your reports are THE BEST, oh Great Queen! Keep 'em coming! I can only imagine how awesome a trip this is for you and MA!

Can't wait for the next installment of: As Cleo's World Turns.

LOVE your posts....and from one 'carry on only' nut to another......we send big hugs to you and Mark A!! :hug:

Cleo your posts are wonderful! How on earth are you able to purchase "souvenirs" with only carry-on luggage?

Cleo - Your reports are nothing short of brilliant but then after the best non-cruise I've ever been on (TUSH), I'm not surprised! Keep up the good work - see you on FJORDS! Lee

Sailing through Aswan

Thanks, all, for your responses. We are enjoying having you all virtually join us.

Suzie .. We saw one other sarcophagus punching bag this morning. I'll try to grab it for you.

If any of you have any particular questions, let me know. We have, after all, Meged the Master of All Things Egyptian on loan for the next five days.

Sue - I will give K&D a lot of credit for putting together the packing list. I followed it to the letter. It not only fit in the carry-on, it's been just the right clothes for our visit here. How is everything fitting into the bags? Beats the heck out of me. Marc A just takes over packing and voila!

To resume our tale:

Cleo and Marc A get a call at 3:31 am from Mr. Nasr, logistics man for Trans Egypt Tour (K&D's local tour operator) asking us politely to make our way downstairs post-haste. I like Mr. Nasr a lot. He runs a tight ship and takes no guff from anyone. We say goodbye to our driver from Cairo and ask Mr. Nasr to please meet us when we return from Jordan. This guy is simply amazing. He politely replies "That will be an extra USD 20". No problema!

I can't decide which of the three of us is most exhausted crawling on to the plane to Luxor. Meged scares me by asking what time we plan to do the Nubian museum. I pull out my itinerary and meet him with a steely-eyed stare. "NO museums are listed today!" He replies "As you wish. However, the next day will be too full". Aaarrg ... he is correct. By the time we get to Aswan, our local guy is missing. Much arabic flies on the cell phone, and we load into a 1963 esque Fiat station wagon for the hotel. Meged shrugs his shoulder & says we'll get the local version of Mr. Nasr on the way to the hotel .. maybe.

We arrive at the hotel (after meeting our local Mr. Nasr) and I dig for my Sofitel Privileges card. Success! We got an upgraded room overlooking Elephantine Island. This hotel is every bit as remarkable as the Mena House. It is pure old-colonial British but is now run by the French. See .. the EU IS succeeding. We walk by a lovely salon and learn that is where Condeleeza Rice met with Hosni Mubarek the day before we arrived. The flower arrangements are gorgeous yet different.

Before they leave, Meged and the local guy suggest we add the felluca/camel ride to the monastery along with the Nubian museum. The Arabic word for NO is La. I simply said "LA, LA, and DOUBLE LA!" Do not come before 6 pm for us. Eeek! They took off. We went back to sleep for about 3 hours and then lazed at the pool. I actually got in (70 degrees - chilly) and swam some laps.

Meged was prompt and rested, too. Marc A was starting to come down with a persistent cough. The Nubian Museum was terrific. The artifacts there are so complete and detailed. There's a lovely garden, a mock-up of a Nubian house and not nearly as much stuff to see.

Meged then offered to take us to the local market for an hour or so. My God .. Meged made Beijing Jane (our very capable guide in Beijing) look like an amateur. He's a power shopper and managed to keep the whole experience friendly. Some of the sales lines were priceless "I PAY you to shop in my store!", "Hassle Free Here", "Hey! You promised you would come back!!", and so many more that escape me right now. I stopped at one spice merchant and bought some hibiscus for tea for Marc A's cough. They had so much lovely stuff; a visual feast for the eyes! Then a great kid engaged me about his brother in California. His older brother brought out a Nubian nymph dress in .. ta daa .. Blue Demon Blue. He was busy telling me what a great color it would be; I looked quickly and realized it was the only dress in my size. You've got to love the salesmanship. He started at 190 Egyptian pounds. Meged sprang into Arabic and got it for 50. All in all, yesterday was fabulous.

It turns out Meged is staying on the Triton's sister ship, Salacia, which is not operating (I think due to lack of bookings, not a mechanical problem). Triton called him yesterday to check on our status. As of yesterday, we have the Triton to ourselves.

Today we did the unfinished obelisk (yep, it's still there) and the Isle of Philae (wonderful). Two hours free, then it's time for the felluca (small sailboat) over to the camels.

I've been thinking about our Four Corners tour group from ROAR. It turns our Abu Simbel is only about 15 km. from the Sudan border. There's no doubt in my mind the Four Corners group would find a way to get their passports stamped at least once or twice. Alas .. we're stickin' with Meged, who is certainly not going to take time away from ABu Simbel. After that, we board the barge.

Cheers, Cleo

Anne, your itinerary is so fascinating and busy! I am sure I would be totally exhausted by now. I am looking forward to your Jordan reports, I hope you make it to Petra, my #1 must see choice!

Cleo I need a nap after reading all what you did in one day! Hope the cough clears up for Marc A.! :)

Dear Cleo, I was kidding! No sarcophagus punching bag :rolleyes: :p A slow relaxing cruise down the Nile is what you need now. Hope M A is feeling better. Can't wait to tune in on the next chapter. XXX

Wow and double Wow! What a trip you are having, Cleo. Take care of Mark A and his cough. Reclining on your chaise as you glide down the Nile on your barge will be relaxing.