It’s seemingly been a long while – since I’ve traveled abroad or posted. I don’t travel at the rate I’d like to keep a regular posting schedule, and given the current world pandemic, who knows when I’ll travel again, but I have a few places I’ve been still to be shared. So here’s a look at a past travel experience I have yet to discuss:
Have you ever bought a hand embroidered outfit for a 4-pk of AA batteries and a highlighter? Or maybe purchased textiles in the middle of the Nile river while bargaining over the railing of the top deck of a cruise ship with merchants in boats below?
My first international trip was Egypt. I spent 13 days in the country during the summertime, traveling through Cairo, a prop plane ride to Alexandria and a 5-day cruise down the Nile River. In addition to seeing the pyramids, Great Sphinx, a lot of tombs and King Tut’s treasures, a highlight of that trip was watching the sunset over the Mediterranean.
Additional memories include segregated train cars (by gender/ marital status not race), a city-wide call to prayer, lots of temples, and television with no more than 10 channels, one of which played Carmen Jones on repeat. I discovered how one mounts a camel to use as a mode of transportation, watched an oriental rug being made and glass perfume bottles being blown. The trip to Egypt was my first international trip and when I decided I wanted to see the world and as many of its wonders as possible.
The first stop on my Egyptian journey was Cairo. It was where I first learned the importance of packing only what you could carry especially for international travel. The hotel elevator accommodated 2 people at best and it was a tight fit including luggage. While I only had one suitcase and a carry-on, my luggage was loaded with 13 liters of water (Egyptian tap water was unsafe to drink without boiling or some other purification method) so my luggage life was a tad cumbersome at the start of the journey. Since this trip was during the summertime temps were expected to be 100+ degrees daily. While that meant relatively light clothing options, Egypt is a modest country especially for women so that also meant layers and convertible clothing. I had pants that converted into shorts, skirts with rip cords to make the lengths adjustable, and loose shirts with sleeves that could be worn over tanks and tees. My shoe life primarily consisted of a pair of Merrell hiking shoes. Other accessories included a scarf and hat for covering my head.
Cairo is where friends and I practiced bartering and negotiation skills at the market. We also saw the Great Sphinx and Pyramids at Giza, rode camels, and visited the Ramses Museum. From there we flew to Luxor, and embarked on a cruise down the Nile River. Sites while cruising included: the Temple of Luxor, Temple of Karnak, Temple of Horus, and the Botanical Gardens.
Side note: I think I’m made for cruise life. It was either a combination of jet lag catching up with me or the swaying of the boat on the water, but on the cruise is where I had some of the best sleep ever.
Following the cruise we returned to Cairo by train, and took a prop plane to Alexandria. My first prop plane ride and definitely not for the faint of heart.
In Alexandria we visited the Greco- Roman theater where your voice is amplified when standing on one specific spot on the ground. So I got some public speaking exercises in.
A few final memories from my trip… I recall our train ride and telling some individuals we were from the states, specifically Chicago. They immediately responded by saying “Oh, Al Capone – bang bang shoot em up.” 🤦🏽♀️ That city-wide call to prayer I mentioned earlier occurred fives times a day and by the end of the trip just felt like a part of my daily routine.
I can’t wait until I can travel again, and definitely would like to return to Egypt.
A Memory and a Conversation 
Leave a comment