Egypt 2002 page 1

"Egypt, a country the average tourists see as the land of sun, sand, and sea, and not forgetting of course, for those who can afford a luxury cruise holiday,a sailing trip along the famous Nile River . Very few people actually visit Egypt because of an interest in the Pharaohs, Mummies, Pyramids and all the other things to do with Egypt's Pharonic past history.
For most people who see the pyramids they do so simply because they are there, not many people visit due to a real longing to actually see them close up.

My interest in visiting Egypt was a little out of the macabre and a little curiosity. Having seen all the movies and documentaries about the famous pyramids, mummies and Pharonic times in general, I wanted see and experience the settings where all this history and make believe had taken place.

What follows is my travelogue compiled from notes made as I travelled along on my ten-day visit to this sometimes strange, and yet always fascinating country.
I was hoping to encounter a little more than the average tourist would as I followed the Nile from the Egyptian Capital city of Cairo in the North, to Abu Simble some 800 Km to the South.
My idea was to take in as much as I could in this short space of time, so I had planned to try and visit the major attractions on the run, so to speak. (Click here to see map)

With time against me for this kind of trip, the intention was to travel overland using the trains as much as possible, I would be following the route of the Nile river from North to South just as people had done for centuries, only I wouldn't be travelling on a felucca, or any other kind of sail boat along the river.
In this travelogue I will try to explain, but only briefly about the places, history, and things I see, simply for the benefit of setting the scene. I won't go into any great long-winded detail about the new and Pharonic Egypt I discovered. There are two good reasons for this.

One: I don't think it is really necessary to explain in great detail, this is after all just a travelogue, anybody wanting an in depth account should look elsewhere as this is what guide and history books are written for. Hopefully the accompanying pictures in this travelogue should help the reader to visualise exactly just what it is I'm rambling on about.

Two: I myself am not really that interested in writing about Egyptian history in any great detail.
This is just more an informal account of my journey, and more importantly only a personal view.
While I have tried to be as accurate as possible with the information contained in this account of my travels, there may me some factual mistakes, as I have not really gone to any great lengths when doing my research. This is a more as is account and record of my trip. Click on the "Go to Day" links on the right to proceed.