There is no sea around here, so desert it is.

Our flights were painfree, except for that incredibly long layover at JFK. The Delta SkyClub is comfortable, of course Delta recently stopped putting any decent munchies out so we ate hummus and crackers for a little while. Then we went next door to Chilis and had a really nice grilled salmon dish to share.

Boarding went very smoothly, except that they boarded everybody through the front door. It's so much better when they use the second door; on a full flight like last night, I always hate to be sitting there drinking a mimosa while the poor people headed for purgatory file past. The dinner menu looked extraordinary, but not for a nearly midnight flight; we declined and crashed. Woke up a a couple of hours before landing, so that was perfect.

Man! K&D has always been a great tour company, but they do it RIGHT here. I'm sure people on the plane were wondering what celebrities they had missed; we were whisked away from the very foot of the stairs in a private car, then put in a private lounge while all our tedious little details were taken care of. Just call me Brangelina. When we got in the car to head for the hotel, we were given two bottles of cold water in insulated carriers, and I got a bouquet of flowers. We came through rush hour traffic, and that was QUITE an experience. Four lanes nicely laid out on the road, our escort called the paint job "decoration". I counted seven lines of traffic as we wove in and out among the vehicles and dodged pedestrians.

When we got to the Four Seasons, we were once again put in a small lounge while Hassom checked us in. Then we were escorted to our room and everything was checked out. This is the way to live! We can faintly see the tops of pyramids from our balcony.

We ran into Pat and Ray as we were finishing dinner; they came in to start theirs.

We'll start getting our days and nights straightened back out, now.

Great Desert Mail, Pam! Sounds like things are off to a great start; looking forward to more!

You're not kidding that is the way to live!

Say hi to Pat and Ray. They are so sweet. Tell them they've gone to extremes--the cold of the Polar Bears to the heat of the Nile.

Enjoy

Pam, please turn your head if I ever file past you so I don't feel shamed! ;)

Funny Karen - a few times I have felt a condescending look when I've been headed to purgatory and there was long line of people jamming up "FIRST" class while I headed to "LOWER" class - I LOVE to be sitting in biz and feel NO remorse!! :cool: :cool: :cool: I feel a little "condescendingly cool" truth be known

My motto: Never economize on luxuries, especially my age <img border="0" alt="[beer]" title="" src="graemlins/beer.gif" />

Suzie, I love your motto.

Suzie, I'm with you. I remember overnight flights and being upright on a packed full 747, and being so sore when we got to our destination. I don't sleep well in a really comfortable bed, so in a situation like that I never closed my eyes; that little plane on the screen at the front seemed not to move.

And they kept saying that the flight was completely full, but most of the people headed back there were hauling monster suitcases. I was overtired to begin with, so I probably overreacted to the idea of being crammed together.

We ran into Pat and Ray, Carol and Ralph, and Mary Elaine and David at breakfast.

Well Ken and I are in the business lounge at Heathrow. About a 6 hour layover. I plan on catching up on my new addiction "24". We are up to season 3 now.

Sounds like a great arrival Pam. The VIP meet and greet was promised and it sounds like it really is a VIP service. Before I left I saw pictures of the private yacht we are having dinner on and the menu looks fantastic. The man that promised me a "Princess like" trip is delivering. So excited this is finally here and looking forward to seeing you and Mark and everyone else.

See everyone tomorrow we do not arrive until midnight Cairo time and Andrea and Jerel are on our flight so we can be celebrities together.

Jerel & I are here at Heathrow in the BA First Lounge - I will pop over to see Ken & Ngaire soon!

Our flight from Boston to LHR was fine. I didn't sleep as much as I would have liked, but we had decided to get a day room at the Sofitel at T5 since our layover was about 11 hours. I got a few good hours in this morning. We took our time getting ready and then came over to the terminal for lunch. Now we're just catching up on email.

Pam, the arrival sounds fantastic! Hopefully I"ll be awake enough to enjoy it.

See you soon!

Pam, Isn't it a marvelous feeling to be on your balcony at the Four Seasons and gaze upon the pyramids for the first time? I remember when that happened to me. It was an awe-inspiring moment. Just think, this is the beginning of many of those for all you NILErs!!!

Enjoy and report in often.

Oh wow what a grest start to your trip Pam. It sounds so exotic and wonderful Love the VIP treatment Way to Go!!!!

Have a wonderful trip and can't wait to read more Desert Mail.

Say Hi to Pat and Ray for us, as well as Andrea and Jerel (tell them looking forward to seeing them on TUT) and of course Ken and Ngaire.

This morning we went down for breakfast, ran into Pat & Ray, Carol & Ralph, and Mary Elaine & David; breakfast is a wonderful meal here. No pork, of course, so several different types of sausage, "bacon" and "ham". Incredible juices. Then we came back to our room and took a nap. Housekeeping finally ran us out so we walked down the street (past the French embassy, complete with armed guards who grudgingly nodded when I insisted on saying hello to them). Found a pharmacy, bought the pill that apparently everybody needs for "mummy tummy" and some hair spray, since I can't find mine. The bags that were so delayed in coming in were smaller than I anticipated, so I may have put the hair spray in one bag that got left behind.

Then we walked back, went into the mall that is attached to the hotel and had a bowl of soup. I had a coke, with ice. Wonderful. Our escort told us that ice in the 5* hotels would be safe, but to avoid it elsewhere at all costs. Went to the spa/fitness center to look around. I made an appointment for a pedicure, since I didn't get a chance before we left home, then we went to the casino. It's illegal for Egyptians to gamble, so we had to show our passports to prove we weren't Egyptians. I played a slot machine for a long time on $40, and Mark won $50 playing blackjack.

In a little while, we'll go back to where we had the soup, and have a sandwich or something. It's a far simpler place than where we ate last night, and much more to our tastes. It also has some of the most beautiful desserts I've ever seen, which I'm going to do my best to avoid!

A perfect way to acclimate and rest up after such a lot of travel ! Congrats on Mark's casino winning!

Pam, I am drooling already....VIP service indeed!

See you all soon!

Doug

We are officially on our way. I stopped working around 2:30 and went to get my typhoid shot and my nails done. Doug and I had a nice supper locally at an Italian place and the limo with our favorite driver was waiting for us. The traffic was pretty bad but left early enough to beat the jfk madness. Sitting in the Delta lounge with our eyes peeled for Susan. Can't wait to curl up and go to sleep and wake up to all of you in Cairo!!!!!

Hello everyone.

Everyone arrived safely and we all enjoyed the VIP treatment at the airport.Relaxing in a lounge why they got the visa handled and collected our luggage. When it was all completed we walked to the vehicle identified they had all our luggage and off to the hotel. We did not land unil 11.30 pm and by the time we reached the hotel it was about 1.00 am in the morning. EVEN THEN the traffic was heavy, people were everywhere and all the shops were open -- amazing. I guess this place never sleeps. In all my travels I do not think I have ever seen such bad traffic. I had really forgotten what it is like here.

March, 20th.

I had a meeting with the tour company at 1.00 pm and then one of the guides offered to take us to the Khan El Kahlili Bazaar.This is not my favorite thing I am not a shopper. Mark and Cheron came with us I did not see any of the others and off we went.

This was better than I expected it to be. The vendors of course tried to entice you into their stores, but it was done in a nice way not pulling or touching you. They were funny and laughing and we had a good time. I bought two packs of cards for pooch and Cheron bought a really pretty wooden box inlaid with mother of pearl. There were many very cheap boxes but this one was a superior quality. Now I wish I had bought one.

At about 5.30 we got back and saw Ray and Pat in the foyer. Ray was leaving with one of the guides to go to a special spot to take a picture of the sun setting between the pyramids. Ken joined him of course. I have not had time to look at Ken's pictures but I saw one and it was pretty neat.

The Four Seasons First Residence is a lovely hotel. I had forgotten how nice it really is, with beautiful furnishing and marble floors. We were going to eat in the attached mall last night but there was a reception taking place with very loud music so we ate in the Coffee Shop in the hotel. Mark,Cheron, Pam and Jim. Ken and I went to dinner and I ordered a pizza and it was really fabulous and others had sea bass that was also outstanding. I saw a steak at the table next to me that looked good too. I guess the food has improved since my last visit.

After dinner we went into the mall to get some gelato and ran into Ralph, Ray and Pat. Fun to see them and we went looking for Andi, Doug, and Susan but went to the wrong restaurant.

March 21st

Well we are officially started on NILE with our first tour today. We broke into two groups. The "highlights group" went with me and Ken went with the "do it all" group. The sun was shining and the temperature was perfect but it was windy so the sand was blowing pretty well. Both guides are wonderful, Henry and Hany are both Egyptologists, friendly, flexible, relaxed and have big smiles.

My group did not do indepth coverage of the sights and a lot less walking, we had covered Memphis, Sakkara, the Pyramids and the Sphinx and arrived at the restaurant about 30 minutes before Ken's group, who had yet to do the pyramids and the sphinx. I will let others share their impressions of the morning.

For some reason the pyramids looked even more amazing than I remembered. Last time we spent a lot of time and walked all the way around. This time it was brief visit but I really enjoyed seeing them again.

Lunch was very tasty roasted chicken, french fries, and other items. We left to come back to the hotel and the traffic was terrible. It took SO long in bumper to bumper traffic I cannot imagine what time the other group will get back.

Tonight is a very special event. We are going to the home of the owner of the tour company for dinner. I think our guide is pretty excited about this event also. The owner lives in a new area outside Cairo in the desert. I have met him before in Dallas and he visited us in our home and we took him to the Keg for dinner. I really enjoyed his company so I look forward to seeing him again.

GREAT update, Ngaire! I can't wait to see the pix from this adventure!

Agree with Karen, - great update.

Can't wait to see Ken's pictures as they always amaze me.

So happy to hear you're off to a great start !! I guess Andi & Doug and Carla & Frank were the last to arrive...just happy the gang's all there. Keep reporting, we love it!

Gary said this morning "when do the Nile folks get started on their trip?" I thought it was today. We had a lovely conversation about all the lovely experiences in Egypt.

Ngaire, I'll see your traffic in Cairo and raise you the traffic in Mumbai. worst I've seen .. but I've not yet been to Jakarta or Lagos . all three cities are particularly bad.

wishing all of you the best trip ever! If Mr. Fawzy is the Hotel Director on the Salacia, please give him our best. Is Mr. Nasr still assisting? He's also a superstar.

Sincerely, Cleo and Marc Antony

...have to agree with you Anne. I think Mumbai's traffic is even worse than Cairo's. We came so close to missing a flight once waiting for cars and cows!

It's always fun to live vicariously through your trips, Ngaire. NILE is going to be an amazing adventure to read about. Looking forward to more.

:app: Let NILE begin! Great to hear from you, Ngaire! Looking forward to more!

The Adventure begins.......can't wait for lots and lots of NILE NEWS!!!

Not sure how much posting is going to be going on during Nile. We have been SO busy. As I am with the highlights group that come back early and never nap during the day I have this bit of time to post.

Ken came back and said they had a great day. At the Giza pyramids some rode a camel while the others visited the solar boat. Talking to people it sounded like both group enjoyed their choices. I will let one of them post their impressions. Everyone was happy but tired there is so much to see in this city and with the traffic it takes so long from site to site.

At 7.00 pm we left for the private home dinner. Our host lives on the outskirts of Cairo and many took a little nap on the way. When we arrived we turned down a totally tree lined street with beautiful huge homes. I have a feeling this is the first time a tour bus had ever ventured down this road. I was afraid we were going to damage the trees.

Our host was standing at tne entrance gate to his house to greet us. We went into an expansive foyer and living room the the biggest bar I have ever seen in a private home. The house was beautifully decorated and had hand painted eggs and plates that we learned had been painted by our hosts wife who he unfortunately lost a few years ago.

We then went outside to the large pool area where a huge buffet was set up, two egyptian musicians were playing. A wonderful scene.

Our host invited us to view his garden. I would say it was like a botanical garden. A wide tiled pathway underneath a flower and vine covered walkway went for quite a distance with alcoves with park benches on each side. Of course very good gardeners take care of this spectacular garden. It is quite large and we did not see it all but it had many fruit bearing trees that all produce wonderful fresh fruit.

Tables were set up outside and he had added his dining room table and another round table inside the house as it was a little chilly. So people could sit where they pleased. Inside or outside.

Dinner was delicious. A huge variety of foods and I discovered a few Egyptian dishes that I really enjoyed. I would tell you what they were but would not spell it correctly. The pudding was yummy! A type of bread pudding, with custard and cream. He had ice cream and other deserts as well. I finished this off with a ginger cinnamon tea.

The food, wine, muscians, service and the whole ambiance was great. What made it extra special was our host and his tour company senior staff. He is such a nice genuine happy individual and this leadership is evident in his whole team. We were laughing all night and the time passed so quickly. Before we realized we had been there about 2 1/2 hours. It felt like a repeat of Ho-Down Egyptian style.

Fortunately it only took us an hour to get home as the traffic had died down. In fact the high spirits in the back of the bus I had someone tell me today he wished the ride back had last longer! Getting used to long commutes - not moving just sitting!

My group today went to the museum and straight to the Royal Mummies and then the King Tut exhibit. Our guide was like a throughbred racehorse. Knowing this group did not want to stand and walk too much he gave us a lot of information in a very short tour. He said it was the fastest tour of the Egyptian Museum he has ever done. That is exactly what we wanted. We love our Henry. The hardest thing with guides is to get them to work to your schedule. They love what they do and want to impart all that knowledge and do not want you to miss anything which is understandable. He is the best guide I have ever seen that understands the guests wishes and really alters his tour to meet the guests needs. Most of his information is in the bus so people do not have to stand around while he talks. I wish I could take him all over the world with me for tours.

Ken's "do it all group" are not coming back to the hotel before the nights activities, they are "doing it all" today for sure. They also have a wonderful guide, the head guide for the company that is a delight.

Tonight we have a private light show just for the 27 of us. Not sure how that is going to be pulled off but Henry said it will be great. Last time I saw the light show there were probably hundreds in attendance.

Then it is followed by dinner on a private yacht catered by the Oberoi chain. Should be something special.

Cairo is the busiest time and most tiring part of the trip. Tomorrow we fly to Aswan and do not have to leave the hotel until 11.00 am so that is great. On arrival in Aswan we go straight to our hotel so we will have a bit of down day tomorrow. For those that want to visit the Nubian Museum the guides will take us early evening before dinner.

Could you tell that NILE actually got started, yesterday? Suddenly our lives are lived on the tour bus, and when we get back to the hotel, the bed beckons. What an incredible bunch of sensations and sights!


Yesterday, the Highlights group (we have agreed among ourselves that we are the smart group) left the hotel at 8:30 and headed for the desert. Our guide is Henry, he has a masters degree in Egyptologist and plans to study for his PhD in the near future. He has incredible skill in getting us as close as possible to the sights we want to look at, and making it so easy for us to walk the distances that we have to walk. We saw the Step Pyramid, the Great Pyramid, another one or two, and the Sphinx (which is about half the size I expected it to be). Traffic is absolutely horrendous, so we spend a lot of quality time together sitting in traffic. All the sites are mob scenes, so accomplishing a few sights takes a great deal of time. We had lunch at a restaurant which specializes in barbeque/roasted chicken. They have an enormous grill set up, and must roast 100 or so chickens at a time.

We came back to the hotel for a little while, then at 7:00 we left for Mr. Antoine's house. Mr. Antoine is the president of South Sanai Touring Company, and is the person who has accomplished all these miraculous things for us. His home is amazing, and his gardens have to be seen to be believed; it takes two gardeners to keep them up, and you can tell why. It took us two hours to get to his house, so we had our garden tour in the dark. There is a gorgeous tile walkway with a full arbor that leads to a gazebo. A bride would feel like Princess Diana if she could get married in Mr. Antoine's garden.

Dinner was set up buffet style outside beside the pool, where several tables were also set up. There was seating for 18 (!!!) inside, in the dining room. I couldn't get enough of the little pita sandwiches that were served with drinks before dinner (I'm probably butchering the spelling, but it sounds very much like schwarma). I know it's roasted beef and some spices, but they were so delicious. The rest of dinner was great, too, and there was a lot of lively conversation. Several of his employees were there, and I ate beside the wife of one of them; she was so full of Egyptian knowledge, and so much fun to talk to.

We reluctantly tore ourselves away at 10:30, because we knew we had that long trip back.

Let me give you one example of how this company is pampering us, even after making us feel like celebrities at the airport. We went to dinner on a large bus. Sitting in the never-ending traffic, I glanced out of the window and our mini-bus was beside us. I mentioned it to Ken; he said that bus was going along in case somebody wanted or needed to come back to the hotel earlier than the big group. Everything we could possibly think of needing, they have already thought of and taken care of. I just know they have crystal balls hidden somewhere.

This morning, we again met downstairs at 9:00. Our group went to the Egyptian Museum, where the crowds were already horrible. Henry zipped us past all those crowds and through the entrance. Somebody tried to join our group, since we were apparently managing to get past some of the lines, but our tiny dynamo leader gently inserted herself in their path and stood there until all our stragglers made it through.

We went to the mummy room first; instead of having to climb several sets of stairs, Henry said the magic words and got the elevator to work just for our group. Then we dodged people and managed to see the Tut treasures. Words can't describe that museum, and I'd like to spend several, several days there. They are building a new one and if/when it gets completed, I'd love to come back and tour it. Then we had lunch in the depths of the famous bazaar, and toured some more of Cairo by bus.

We had our very own police escort, apparently. None of us were aware of them until we decided to deviate in our schedule and go for lunch before our driving tour. The police siren beside us started squawking, telling us we weren't keeping to our plans. Henry swore he didn't get into trouble, we chose to believe him.

This sounds like not much, but trust me, we all know how much we've been walking. We leave again at 4:30, to special lights and sounds show at the pyramids, then dinner on a yacht.

Tomorrow we fly to Aswan.

Wow! Ngaire and I pushed the "post" button about a minute apart.

Justa quick post to say this trip is wonderfull. Everything has been great. Pam and Ngaire s post cover it well. Carol and I could not be happier with this trip. Yes, the traffic is something to behold. The contrasts are amazing new cars next to donkey carts. People use donkeys as a mode of travel when you are out of the city center on a regular basis.

I am so envious of you all... please keep posting

Thanks so much for your posts, Ngaire and Pam. They bring back my trip to Cairo in 08. Keep your wonderful posts coming.

You are all painting such a great picture - thanks so much for your descriptions - I'm just trying to picture ourselves in Egypt (we only have a 7-month wait until TUT but who is counting!?). Greg's lifelong dream has been to visit Egypt...

A little time before we leave for the airport so a short post from last night.

The Highlights group met in the lobby to go to our sound and light show. Today no traffic, amazing. Hossam was with us for the transfer. He is the logistics man he is the one that picked us all up at the airport and is always around making sure things are working smoothly. While we were waiting he book a whole box of kit kats. They were chilled and really hit the spot. He knows how to keep us happy.

The big bus with the other 11 showed up after
"doing it all" they had big smiles and said they were not that tired.

Into the light show we went. This was amazing all these chairs set out and the only people seeing the show were the 27 in our group. It must seats hundreds. We took the opportunity to take a group shot in front of the pyramids with no one else around. They have changed it since we last came and I think there were less of the laser graphics at the end. It was the full 50 minute show. It was early so it was not dark to start with but they do not use the lights until later on anyway. It was great to see the sun go down slowly behind the pyramids. There were two camel riders that set the scene at at one point a large jet flew in the sky behind the pyramids. It was quite a contrast to see the plane and the ancient pyramids. I am not sure how this was arranged but we all did feel like VIP's. As we left the line of people stretched way down the street waiting to get in for the public show.

Off to the private yacht. This was not what I had expected but by this time our standards had been set so high we were probably unrealistic. The meal was catered by Oberoi and was tasty. There was a large downstairs cabin and an upstairs with a while circular couch. Once we spread out between the two areas it was quite comfortable.

Some were tired from the day and after dinner decided to head back and of course our guides were wonderful about this and took them back in the bus. The rest of us set sail and we were all upstairs. Once we started sailing it actually got wonderful. It was a little chilly but not too bad. We were having a wonderful time, some beatles music in the backgrounmd suited me. THEN the desserts arrived. Strawberries, whipped cream, creme caramel, chocolate cake, a pastry cream and pastry cake, a chocolate mousse. Yum yum yum. For a small group we of about 20 we put a BIG dent in those desserts. I had coffee and to my tastes this was terrific coffee.

We were home by about 9.30 pm so we had a little earlier night that we all needed.

Running upstairs now to get our carryons, here comes the challenge the airport and our guides said they will do all they can to make it painless but an airport has rules. They will have all our boarding passes and the only place to eat is a burger king. Great, any excuse to eat that terrrible but great tasting fast food works for me. Of course Hossam who always does all he can to look after us as much as possible said he would bring us snacks so we would not starve.

Fast post I know there will be spelling errors and other mistakes but this is all the time I have.

Another great report! Thanks Ngaire! The trip sounds simply wonderful.

This trip sounds so special! Looking forward to seeing pictures once everyone returns. The schedule certainly is action packed!

Andrea

Wow, such pampering!

Reminds me of ROAR and how impressed and wide-eyed Penny and I were with the service, accommodations and scenery. That was our first exotic vacation..other than our honeymoon :woh:

With my advancing age, I'm really beginning to appreciate the pampered approach, at an exotic destination, even if it means cutting back on some other travels.

Well, you Nilers, it's nice reading your river mail; however, I'm getting concerned that you're getting so wide-eyed your eyeballs may soon pop out of their sockets.

Life is good!

Cheers! Ray

All I can say is, "what a trip.!" I'm getting wide-eyed just reading about it. To actually experience it must be truly special. Looking forward to more reports.

I am so enjoying reading about your adventure. Our oldest son, the Marine, was stationed in Cairo for a while. Your descriptions match his exactly and make me smile. He actually preferred to walk as he said all the drivers were crazy.

I just remembered this trip was going on. It brings back wonderful memories when I did a not-so-glamorous tour/cruise at the same time last year.
Ngaire, i have never seen you write so much and in so much detail on a trip. You are a wonderful writer. Can't wait until the next installment and hopefully, pictures.
Lynn
Hi Ray and Pat, and Andi and Doug, and to everyone, enjoy this wonderful trip.