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It Began in Africa 2011It Began in Africa 2011
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It Began in Africa 2011

March - April 2011
A 36-day adventure by Joel Read more
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  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    1
    Day 21

    Day 20: Dubai Water Park

    March 25, 2011 in the United Arab Emirates ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    We decided that today we'd visit a water park to relax before heading to the mall in the evening for the fountain show, dinner and a trip up Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest structure. Annoyingly, you can't book tickets up the tower online less than 48 hours out, so we had to stop by in the morning.

    Despite arriving within 20 minutes of the ticket booth opening, the only session available was at 11pm that night. Irritating, but we could make it work. Bought our tickets and headed for Atlantis Aquaventure. It's located on the tip of the Palm Jumeirah, and is a water-based fun park like Wet'n'Wild.

    We spent pretty much the entire day here, going on the different slides and rapids. We eventually worked up the courage to go on the huge speed slide, which dropped you a huge distance, in a tube through the shark tank and into the splashdown pool. Long wait for a very short ride but it was worth it!

    Left the park at sunset and headed back to the Dubai Mall. Had a Chinese banquet dinner at a table facing the fountain show, so we had front row seats for the amazing spectacle. After dinner we wandered the mall and browsed for a while. Was tempted to buy a few clothing items as the strong AUD made prices very reasonable, but ultimately decided against it.

    Finally it was our turn to ascend the tower. Despite calling it "At The Top", it's actually only about 2/3rds of the way up, on floor 124 of 160-odd. But it's still very high, more like being in a plane landing than a tower. Took photos and had a nice long look around, slightly disappointed we couldn't see The World islands since it was night, but no matter. The view was amazing and the tower itself is one of the most awe-inspiring feats of engineering I've ever seen. Back down the amazingly fast lifts we went, into a taxi and back to the hotel at around 1am.    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    Day 22

    Day 21: Dubai to Cairo

    March 26, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Said a tearful goodbye to Shandos as she left for the airport in the morning on her way back to Sydney, before settling in to a long day of time-killing. Originally I'd booked a flight to Cairo at 9am, but a few weeks before leaving Sydney Emirates had changed their schedule, pushing my flight back to 6pm Dubai time. So I killed time at the hotel, killed time at the airport. Almost bought a Man United shirt duty free, but they didn't have my size.

    Had the shittiest flight to Cairo - despite getting an exit row seat with lots of leg room I had no window and was wedged between the wall and a fat man, right next to the screaming baby section. Plane left an hour late, was bumpy the whole way and I dropped fish curry on myself during turbulence.

    At last the flight ended and I got through the airport OK, cleared customs and met the transfer man. The drive to the hotel was an experience - Cairo traffic is crazier than anywhere I've seen. No rules and nobody bothers doing anything except swerving, beeping, flashing their lights and cutting people off. Pedestrians do the same thing, just walking through the traffic.

    At the hotel I met the tour leader Mohamed who's a pretty young and funny guy. Since my flight was late I missed the group meeting and dinner, so meeting the group will have to wait for the morning. Tired after a long day of travel and expecting an early start I went to bed around 10 and slept through the constant car honking and calls to prayer.    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    1
    11
    Day 23

    Day 22: Pyramids & Egyptian Museum

    March 27, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Met the rest of the group over breakfast. There's 10 of us - two couples from Melbourne (Tim & Cara, Matt & Clare), a couple from Brisbane (Shane & Jodie), a single mum from Adelaide (Cheryl) and a pair of Canadian girls from Toronto (Jess & Jenn). Everyone is young and friendly and seem pretty chilled out which bodes well.

    First stop for the day was the Pyramids which literally just stick out of the city. There's not much I can say that hasn't already been said about them. They're huge, impressive, so iconic it's hard to believe they're really there, and surrounded by friendly people doing their utmost to rip you off. Being brought up with British manners, it's hard to not reply when someone calls out "hello my friend, where are you from?", but they only want to part you with your money. One kid even rode his camel into a photo and then demanded a tip for being in the photo!

    We wandered around for a couple of hours and went inside the Great Pyramid to the burial chamber which was incredible. Visited the boat museum (they found an enormous wooden boat buried next to the great pyramid in the 1950s) and the panoramic vantage point where we took some silly group shots.

    After that we went down the hill to the Sphinx which is beautiful but smaller than I expected. And again surrounded by street vendors and touts. Had lunch at a nearby local joint where we ate koshari - Egypt's national dish of noodles, rice, chickpeas and other stuff mixed in. Very delicious, but carb overload!

    In the afternoon we visited the Egyptian Museum. The collection is mammoth and way more than we could see in an afternoon. I wandered around with the Canadian girls, marvelling at the statues, sarcophagi and so on. And of course the entire wing dedicated to King Tut's burial chambers. Sadly we missed the Rosetta Stone!

    Back to the hotel where I killed time for an hour or so before a group meeting ahead of our overnight train to Aswan. We got upgraded to sleeper cabins which is awesome, though I had to share with Cheryl the single mum, but that was no big deal. Much better than sitting up in a seat for 14 hours!    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    Day 24

    Day 23: Aswan

    March 28, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    The overnight train was annoying, but not as bad as expected. The ride was bumpy but not much worse than a plane in mild turbulence. The food was awful though - crappy 1970s airline meals.

    Awoke fairly early as the train chunted along through a classically Egyptian landscape - the broad Nile flowing through a sandy desert, with a narrow strip of fertile greenery and palm trees either side. Arrived in Aswan around 10:30am, and it turned out to be quite a nice city, at least in the centre anyway. Wide-ish boulevards, and situated right on the Nile with lots of waterfront parkland.

    After checking in to our hotel and freshening up, we went to the Unfinished Obelisk, which is a massive obelisk partially cut out of a granite quarry. Evidently someone ran out of money or willpower and the obelisk is still there. Next stop was the Nubian Museum where we spent most of the afternoon. The Nubian people are the local tribe from southern Egypt and northern Sudan, and a lot of them still live according to traditional customs. They are noticeably different from northern Egyptians - much darker skin (close to sub-Saharan African) and speak other languages, whereas the northerners look Mediterranean or Middle-Eastern in appearance and mostly speak Arabic.

    In the evening we wandered the local market, laughing at the lines used by shopkeepers in an attempt to drag you into their shop. Ultimately the salesmen were more annoying than amusing though.

    Had dinner at a restaurant floating at the edge of the Nile. Lovely tagine food, followed by the obligatory tea and shisha session. Not a late night though, as tomorrow is Abu Simbel day which means a very early start.    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    Day 25

    Day 24: Abu Simbel

    March 29, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    Abu Simbel is one of the most famous of the ancient Egyptian temples, situated near the Sudanese border 260km south of Aswan. Getting there required a 3 hour drive, leaving Aswan at 4:30am. We drove in a convoy of 20-odd tourist buses, and a small military escort. We jokingly hoped the military cars were to ward off the souvenir sellers!

    Arrived in Abu Simbel on time around 7:30am and it's one of the most awe-inspiring places I've ever seen. The temple is built into the face of a cliff, guarded by 30 metre high statues of Pharoah Ramesses II portraying himself as a god. The facade is just incredible, and the inside is also very impressive for its size and richly detailed carvings.

    His temple to one of his wives, Nefertari, stands nearby as well. Also very impressive but not in the same league as the main temple. Incredibly, both temples were painstakingly moved in the 1970s, as the downstream construction of the Aswan High Dam would have submerged them both. How the place isn't a wonder of the world is beyond me!

    After a couple of hours worth of open-mouthed wandering, we boarded the bus for the long trip back to Aswan. On the way back we stopped at Philae temple on an island in the Nile, which was very pretty but my hieroglyph quota was fast filling up for the day.

    Spent another lazy afternoon wandering and relaxing before another trip to the marketplace where I bought a hat and some souvenirs. Dinner at the same restaurant before a brief tea and shisha session with Jess, one of the Canadian girls. Stocked up on pastries and biscuits as we were boarding our boat for the journey northwards in the morning.    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    1
    Day 26

    Day 25: Felucca & Nubian Homestay

    March 30, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ 🌧 17 °C

    First sleep-in for uncounted days, as we had no activities before midday when we boarded our felucca. It's a moderate-sized sailing boat with a huge mattress and a sail.

    We enjoyed a few very peaceful hours sailing up the Nile towards Luxor while reading books, or playing backgammon before arriving at our home for the night: a small Nubian village by the river. It was actually someone's home, slightly converted into a hotel. We played cards for a couple of hours and wandered the village with our hosts and some local children who tagged along.

    It was a lovely relaxing place. The home-cooked meal was delicious and included a dish of stewed camel which was nice (aside from the huge chunks of fat). The taste and texture were pretty similar to beef!    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    Day 27

    Day 26: Felucca Cruising & Camping

    March 31, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ 🌫 4 °C

    Speeding through my diary now since I've fallen slightly behind and am currently sitting at Cairo airport on my way home. We did hardly anything today on the felucca, just lots of dozing, reading, chatting and playing backgammon. Didn't actually travel that far up the river on account of the wind, but just sailing casually was very pleasant.

    Late in the afternoon we docked at a small island and set up our camp for the night. Ate and slept on the felucca, but were entertained by our Nubian crew singing and drumming while dancing around a bonfire.    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    Day 28

    Day 27: Northwards to Luxor

    April 1, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    So this is where it gets awkward. This was a hand-written diary and I was often one or two days behind with writing, and being constantly busy in Egypt meant I eventually fell way behind. Yesterday's entry was the last one I actually wrote on the trip, so from here to the end it's basically reconstructed from memory, the Intrepid tour itinerary, and the dates on my photos.

    We sailed a little bit on the felucca in the morning, but eventually met up with a van for the remaining 3.5 hour drive north to Luxor. It's a larger city than Aswan but with some major sights. On the way we stopped at Edfu Temple with a huge still-standing facade, then later in the afternoon once we arrived in Luxor we visited Luxor Temple, one of the best-preserved temples from antiquity.    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    Day 29

    Day 28: Valley of the Kings

    April 2, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    Early start again to visit one of the highlights of Egypt, the Valley of the Kings. This is where all the ancient pharoahs were buried, hidden away in giant crypts dug into the desert. Luxor was the ancient capital (aka Memphis), and this was their burial ground. I actually didn't take any photos, since photography inside the temples isn't permitted, and outside isn't actually very interesting (just cave-style doorways, essentially). Inside was beautiful though, the colours of the paintings are incredible and it's difficult to believe they've been preserved so perfectly for several thousand years.

    We visited the tomb of Tutankhamun, but it's surprisingly small compared to many others. Later on we also visited the giant temple of Queen Hapshepsut built into a nearby cliff.    Read more

  • TravelerIt Began in Africa 2011
    1
    Day 30

    Day 29: Ballooning & Karnak Temple

    April 3, 2011 in Egypt ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Super early start this morning, as we did a hot air balloon ride over the city at dawn! Amazing experience and very smooth - I was expecting it to feel unstable or perhaps even a little unsafe, but it's honestly like riding an elevator! We drifted eastwards over the Nile and then over the city proper, eventually landing in a small field - the captain joked whether we wanted an American landing (smooth), or an Egyptian landing (plonk)! Thankfully it was pretty smooth.

    The rest of the day was spent at Karnak Temple, which is the largest and best-preserved of all the ancient temples. It's absolutely enormous, and still in pretty good shape which is nice! But at this point it had been several straight days of ancient temples, and as beautiful and amazing as they are, it was definitely time for a break. Which was exactly what we were getting!

    Late in the evening we boarded an overnight train bound for Cairo, where we would pick up a minibus to Alexandria the following morning.    Read more

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