Walk Like an Egyptian

Today was Sophie's Egyptian Day at school. She has been learning all about Egypt and since we were there just a year ago she has become quite the Egyptian expert.

Do you see the side-way's glance...

Sisters Walking Like an Egyptian

I remember 3 years ago when Brittney was the Egyptian, now it is Sophie's turn and Brittney is the WWII expert (will post after our visit on Friday to the bomb shelters)...

Egypt ~ part 4

Now, for the last post on Egypt. We spent Tuesday in the Red Sea. We took a boat ride out to 3 different reef locations to do some snorkeling. When we signed up for this adventure I envisioned snorkeling in knee deep or maybe a little deeper water, not the middle of the sea. When I jumped off the back of the boat & felt just how cold the water was and realized how deep it was, I had second thoughts. Both Brittney & Sophie decided that the snorkeling was not for them, so once I knew they were safe on the boat I decided to give it a second go but with a little flotation help ~ hence the picture below with me in a yellow tube. I obviously couldn't go down into the water to see some of the things that the guide was showing us, but I never had to worry about how choppy the water was or how tired I was getting; I could just float along & enjoy the beautiful scenery under the water. The girls stayed on the boat and played cards. They were really good sports!

After our 3 stops on the reefs for snorkeling, we headed off to 'Paradise Island' along with all the other tour boats...
The water was absolutely beautiful, and now the girls could enjoy it as well.

Remember me talking about the choppy water while snorkeling... from the picture below you can tell it is windy by Kevin's windblown look

The Duffy's in Paradise...

On Thursday the family enjoyed a day in the Sahara Desert. It was so much fun. We went 4-wheeling, dune-buggy driving, horse/donkey/camel riding, visited a Bedouin village, and ended the night with an entertainment show. Before we could go out in the desert we had to get a proper head covering...

Duffy girls with our heads covered & our faces protected

First off was dune-buggy riding. Kevin drove first while Sophie & I sat in the back seat. You know how they say if you aren't the top dog the view never changes...

In the reflection you can see Kevin & Brittney in the front tearing up the course

I did get to drive near the end of the track, but Sophie & I enjoyed our time in the back seat; it was less sandy back there...

This was our view of the Sahara Desert; the Red Sea is in the horizon.

Next came the animal rides; I didn't post any pictures of the girls riding the horses & the donkeys because you have seen tons of those types of pictures on other posts. However, the family did enjoy riding the camels... The worst part about riding a camel is when it gets up and when it goes down. It can be very rough and is definitely not for the faint of heart.

Below is Brittney's camel getting up

She is now up & ready to go for a little ride

Sophie, Madison, Kevin, and Brittney

Sophie enjoyed riding the camel so much, she took a second ride as well

SMILE for the camera (even the camel smiled)

Sophie asked if she could go for a third ride...

Sophie & I did not go to the Bedouin camp... the Egyptian stomach bug had made its way into poor Sophie's tummy. We stayed back at the main camp sight & actually considered going back to the resort. But Sophie got some rest and some Sprite to help settle her tummy while the others went on the 45minute bumpy jeep ride to the Bedouin camp.

The night ended with a variety show. At one point they asked all the girls to come up on stage to share time with the belly-dancer. Below is Sophie & Christina on stage...

Madison & Brittney preparing to belly dance

After the Belly Dancer came a guy who twirled & turned for 10 minutes straight without stopping. I was getting dizzy just watching him...

Where did he go?

Oh, there he is... he took off his skirt, while continuing to twirl (I'm still dizzy)

Last up was a fire-eater

Gives a whole new meaning to spicy-hot food

Looking back on all the pictures & updating the blog with experiences from Egypt helps me remember just how much fun we had. The Duffy's really enjoy playing in the water, but I think the highlight of this trip was getting to share the adventure with the Shaffer family. Until next time...

Egypt ~ part 3

A huge advantage of going to Egypt with a friend is the ability to babysit for each other, then we could both enjoy a date with our hubbies... plus Jeanne found the fabulous resort that we stayed in and since they had been to Egypt before, they were a great source of information. On the Wednesday Kevin & I took a tour into Cairo to see the pyramids and the Egyptian Museum. However, our first stop was a Muslim Mosque (didn't get the name of it - sorry). I wasn't expecting this stop but enjoyed learning about the traditions and seeing the inside of the Mosque.

The heat was so intense that a head covering became a necessity.

don't know if you can see, but in the horizon past Cairo are the pyramids

motorway in Cairo with the pyramids in the background

Once we got to the pyramids I was blown away with how big they are. The individual blocks used in the base are taller than I am and the cuts are perfectly straight, even after all these years. Amazing...

Kevin is such a clown - he loves doing these type of pictures but of course I join in as well

Kevin decided to go into one of the pyramids. I had been warned that it would probably be too much for my asthma due to the heat & the dust. Kevin did emerge from the pyramid, but after his trip in he agreed it would not have been good for my asthma...

One of the locals tried to get Kevin to buy a turban. He even went so far as putting it on Kevin & taking a picture but Kevin wasn't in the buying mood...

Our next stop was the Sphinx. The detail & the size are just breathtaking.

I love how this picture shows the huge size and detail of the Sphinx's feet stretched out in front

Not only are there orange carrots in Egypt, but they grow red carrots...

Lastly we visited the Egyptian Museum. We were running very short on time with our tour so we had to quickly go through the museum... but we were amazed at the artifacts inside. Again a very surreal experience looking at things that I have only read about in history class or seen on the History Channel.

Egypt ~ part 2

On Sunday morning we had to wake up very early so we could be loaded onto our shuttle bus (home for the day) by 5am. Now in the world of Cathy there is only one 5 o'clock and it doesn't have an 'am' in it... but we had a long drive in front of us & lots of exciting things to see. We were off to Karnak Temple, the Valley of the Kings, and a ferry ride on the Nile River.

Our first stop was Karnak Temple. The sight is a huge open-air museum that has not been completely excavated. It is one of the largest ancient religious sites in the world and a must see when visiting Egypt.

The first picture below is of the entrance area to the sight, notice all the lion-sphinx statues...

notice Pink Baby even got to visit the Karnak Temple...

Ok, you need to know the story here... first it was really hot & we were all getting a little tired of walking around so Kevin bribed us with ice-cream. Next, according to tradition, if you march around the object immediately behind me 20 times counter-clockwise you are to be granted a pregnancy within the year (it is a fertility statue/god). So I was determined to prove it wrong & proudly marched around it counting with a very loud voice (hence the picture with my mouth half open). Ten months later there is no baby in the Duffy future - HA, I proved it wrong!

After a very long morning we were glad to enjoy a nice lunch buffet overlooking the Nile River.

We then took a short ferry ride on the Nile River.

Next we visited the Valley of the Kings. Now most of these pictures are actually from the internet because no pictures are allowed. And don't you dare think that you can sneak a picture because security is on you like stink on poop ~ no chance! (Now we didn't try to sneak any pictures, but it was interesting to see people try & some even loose their cameras for trying)
In the lobby area there was a display that showed how the tombs have been found...

and the underneath of the display showed how the tombs went deep into the caverns

entrance to a tomb

example of inside of tomb ... a lot more roomy than expected and very colorful decorations

We did not go into King Tutankhamen's tomb, because it is an extra charge. Also, we have previously visited the traveling museum artifacts for the tomb so we weren't sure that we would learn anything more by going into this tomb ... plus it was on the other side of where we were & it was really, really hot - too hot for the extra walking

Our last stop in the Valley of the Kings was to a separate location to see the Queen Hatsheput Monument. This was built by a Queen who was able to obtain Pharaoh status based on her statues having beards. Below is a picture of our shuttle ride from the buses to the actual monument; you know they say that Caterpillar equipment is durable & useful ~ leave it to someone to decide that a fork lift can be converted to a tram/shuttle engine.

The lovely Shaffer family pictured above

The girls & I were hot & tired so we sat in the shade while everyone else toured the humongous sight :-)

After this last stop we all piled back onto the bus for the return journey ~ most of us feel asleep on the way. Then we stumbled back to our hotel rooms in hopes of getting a good nights sleep because Monday was a day for swimming, eating, and more swimming ~ well, Cathy & Kevin also worked in a massage each.