WHEEEEEE! It's the Pyramids
We arrived in Cairo, Egypt on February 18 in the evening - we met our guide for our stay - Marco - and headed to the Marriott Hotel and Casino in Downtown Cairo. It was a long (and night) of flights and airport stays. We actually had an 8 hour layover in Amsterdam where we took the train into the city - walked around the town a bit (bu-r-r- we were not dressed for freezing weather) visited the Rijksmuseum and headed back to the airport for our flight to Egypt. Tip - don't fly Egyptair unless there are no other airlines available!
Here is our first day out "on the town" and our first stop was the Great Pyramids in Giza. It was very windy. Dust (and trash) were blowing everywhere and so was our hair - so pardon the photos.
Guy standing on the first rung of the Great Pyramid
Pat touching the top of the Great Pyramid
(I know - touristy shot - but, oh well!)
Pat and Guy on camels - First Day out
Ah, Camel Travel is the Best!
Another view of the desert, the pyramids, a camel driver and Pat
Guy and his camel say HI
A closeup of the top of the pyramid - you can see where the pyramid had been coated with a smoothing protective layer that thousands of years of dust storms (and humans) have stripped away.
Ah, The Egyptian Cuisine!
We had a lovely lunch overlooking the Nile River. See the charcoal grill setting on our table - with shish kabobs and Egyptian Bread on top! It was delicious and a novel idea for us in the USA. Somehow I think actual table sized charcoal grills (with real fire and charcoal) might not make it through the safety check at the restaurants. Stella (Egyptian) beer was great.
Almost every restaurant had their breadmaker and oven constantly turning out Egyptian bread - this was at a very upscale restaurant on the Nile.
At the Citadel
Here is Pat overlooking Cairo at the Citadel - a very old fort high above the City.
Guy, too! No, that is not snow on the roof - just lots of old dust
Carriage Museum at the Citadel
Look closely and you will see horse's heads decorating all around this Carriage Museum (no they were not real - just plastic horse heads) The Museum was really interesting! All of the old ceremonial carriages are inside (sorry no photos inside).
We had two lovely days touring with our guide, Marco - who we highly recommend. He met us at the airport - got us Visas - brought us through customs and dropped us off at our hotel. Each day he picked up up from our hotel and took us touring - getting close to all the sights and having insights on how much to tip, etc. We went to the Egyptian Musueum (no photos) where we were amazed at all the OLD (over 5000 years) aritfacts. King Tut's treasures were spectacular!
We went to the Coptic Christian area and saw the Church of St. George and the Dragon plus the church where Jesus, Mary and Joseph were said to have fled to in exile after his birth. The Nile was wide and interesting (although in Cairo it seems to be filled with dinner tour boats). So we did see Mosques, Shopping Streets, etc. But our favorite were the pyramids - we talked Marco into taking us back one more time so we could see them without all the sand flying.
Here they are once again.
Pat and Guy on their camels
Guy discussing the price of a camel ride
Guy, the Sphynx and Pyramid
Pat, Sphinx, and Pyramid
Here is a great composite so everyone can see how close the sphinx and the pyramids are to each other. The sphinx is very close and in the same area of Giza as the pyramids are. There were a lot of folks around all of these beautiful sites selling trinkets - books, postcards,mini-pyramids made of sand,hats, t-shirts, whatever anyone has ever thought up - you can buy it around the pyramids.
And they are so awesome and grand... that you pay no attention and enjoy them for what they are - a true Wonder of the World!
We left Cairo and headed to Bahrain on Saturday the 21st of February. The weather in Cairo was cool the entire time (around 50) and the wind was pretty strong. The Eyptian people were very friendly and we did not find much begging on the streets. A lot of folks selling trinkets at all the sights - but our walk along the Nile and our walk around the streets of town were very quiet.
Lots of tipping is expected - so we needed to take a lot of small bills along.
On to Bahrain and a visit with little Elisabeth Riley Combs!!
I'm your GRANDPA - That's who!
little Elsa - Sound Asleep and Content
Hush Puppies! Wow - Becky, Pat and Elsa are taking a look at some of the new styles
and for Claire - here is "Grandma Pat" in front of her very own store here in Bahrain.
Pat looking at a cabbage patch - all irrigated by gravity from hundreds of years past.
Pat petting a camel - Wow - were there ever a lot of camels here!
Don't do this at your local zoo - here is Guy petting a camel - see all the others in the pen?
Our friend the camel - isn't he cute?
Here is a camel with a "+" brand and a heart on his back leg
The talking camels - hundreds of camels of all ages were taking a look at us!
Becky, Pat and Elsa... with our friends the camels checking us out!
Guy, Becky and Elsa...
and a special surprise - a little white donkey 
The "girls" - Becky, Pat and Elsa taking a walk through the Camel Preserve
Grandpa Guy and Elsa - A matched set! Else wearing her outfit by "Hip Violet" - thanks Jesi!
Pat and Elsa having a little chat - what a great little girl. Guy and Pat have had the chance to do a little babysitting - she has been calm and looking around - a real cutie!
