I took the earliest Friday bus from Jerusalem to Eilat, then walked across the border where I waited for my bus from Taba to Cairo.
After 11 cumulative hours of travel; from Jerusalem to Eilat, Eilat to Taba, and then Taba to Cairo, I arrived at my first destination. In Cairo I stayed with a Couchsurfing friend, Fady. It was a convenient time for me to visit, because he was planning on visiting Sohag and would be able to drive me halfway to Luxor.
So, my first introduction to Cairo came in the form of driving on its incredibly crowded and lawless streets. Fady showed me how offensive driving is necessary in Cairo, and that once you get used to having several near-death experiences each day, you're fine!
Four hours later I arrived in Asyut where I would hop a train to Luxor. At this point, I had seen none of the ancient monuments or historical sites that Egypt is known for, but only had the pleasure of experiencing insane Egyptian traffic conditions, sexually degrading looks and assaults from every person I passed and the inevitable confusion of being a foreigner in a culture with language that I did not understand. I was ready to see some ancient temples and tombs already! But, I was still a six hour train ride from Luxor, so I had to sit tight and try to enjoy the beauty and intrigue of daily Egyptian culture.
At the train station I was on my own, so I had to find someone who spoke decent enough English to help me buy my ticket and locate the correct train. After approaching the man working at the ticket booth and purchasing my ticket, he immediately hailed another individual to escort me to the station cafe where I could wait until the train arrived. With five hours to go, I thought I would explore the city of Asyut and get some dinner before the night train came. After finishing my first cup of tea, I picked up my things and headed for the exit. At that moment I was stopped by an officer in the Egyptian army who asked where I was going. I responded that I just wanted to walk around and get dinner. He told me that it was best for me to stay and wait in the cafe, and he would bring me dinner. I was astounded and a bit disgusted at his protectiveness and possessiveness. I guess it's difficult for me to understand how they view women in their society, considering it would be out of the question for a young girl to travel on her own, just what I was doing on my trip.
My babysitter, courtesy of the Egyptian military
So, there I sat in my train station cafe prison. Luckily, being the equivalent to someone's possession entitles you to certain benefits, like free food and drink. So, I downed 17 cups of tea and read for my religious foundations of Judaism class. Funny.
The exhausting night train ride was worth it when I arrived in Luxor the following morning. As the ancient capitol of Egypt, Luxor is chocked full of interesting temples and tombs, all of which I learned about courtesy of my AP Art History class. The photos that originally introduced me to these sites could barely capture their real life magnificence.
Luxor Temple
Luxor highlights
Queen Hatshepsut's Temple
Valley of the Kings. (Photo courtesy of Wikipedia because they didn't allow cameras inside. Boo.)
Karnak Temple
Karnak Temple
Karnak Temple
Despite having the opportunity to see all of these historically significant places, the best part about Luxor was my mode of transportation: a bicycle. For the equivalent of $2 I rented a bike that I was able to ride all around the city. The fact that Egypt is virtually void of traffic laws made the adventure that more fun. Also, I think riding a bike, as opposed to walking, spared me at least 30% less verbal assaults from the locals. Whether they couldn't get a good glimpse at my Western face or just didn't see me, I was bothered much less when riding a bike.
Apparently in Egypt Bamboo juice is big. I tried it and it's disgusting, but I can't help but be enamored at the industrial juicer that it requires. You know how I love to juice things...
Typical Egyptian toilet. The lack of toilet paper was the least of my worries.
Muslims love Christmas...?
My luxurious, $2/day accommodations at the Bob Marley hostel in Luxor
After two days in Luxor, I took the 11-hour night train back to Cairo where I would finally see the pyramids. Luckily, this trip was without my Egyptian military bodyguards.
Pyramids at Giza!!!
Giza
Sphinx
I couldn't pass up the stereotypical camel ride. Such a tourist.
I visited Ibn Ezra and the Rambam's synagogues'
My day of pyramids and Cairo ended with a night bus back to Taba, where I would return to Eilat and then finally Jerusalem. In six days, I did a total of 41 hours of traveling. Crazy? Yes. Fun? Something like that.
Although the major accomplishments of this trip may seem to be visiting so many important and significant monuments, in truth, it was actually my miraculous ability to not get ripped off. Not even once! Pretty amazing for being a tourist in a foreign, money-hungry country. I bargained to hold on to every last Egyptian pound, which is about the equivalent of 20 cents. So, with the memories of tombs, temples and pyramids, I left this trip with my dignity and dollars.
