After making sure I was recovered and packing for my trip back to China, I set out to explore near the Acropolis one last morning. What a difference two days make. It is warmer, calm wind, and sunny. I toured on one of the coldest days and glad I was able to make use of the beautiful morning.
I walked to the Acropolis and climbed up Mars Hill/Aeropagus which is where St. Paul once preached. What a great view! I noticed another Archaeological site and went to explore.
Archaeological site below.
I did not enter the archaeological site as the pass was expensive considering I only had a few hours before leaving for the airport and included places I have already seen. This is the site of the Roman Agora and I walked around the perimeter.
A house within the confines of the site.
I’m glad to stretch my legs before the many hours flight back to China.
Despite having intestinal issues overnight and lack of sleep, I believed I was getting better and decided to continue with my planned cruise. Once arrived I wasn’t feeling great and saw how packed the general compartments are. It is worth the money to pay double for the VIP lounge which I did.
Places to lay down, personal service including drinks.I did try ouzo which tastes like licorice.
The island of Aegeana.
From the Apollon which is 5ooo BC older than the Parthenon.
Pistachio trees are the biggest produce from this island as well as olives. These are pistachio trees.
Peloppoinase mountains on Athens with snow.
Mother of aegenae statue.
Monastery on the island is just beautiful.
Bones of the martyr Saint Cugat.
Zeus and Aegaena were in love but she needed to be hidden away. Their son is Ercos who became the first ruler. Zeus made inhabitants of the island out of ants as the legend goes. Hercules is the most famous Greek from this island.
We were to visit hydros which is a small beautiful island but tough ranges made docking impossible. At least it was calmer than the day before which caused the tour to be cancelled.
The islandof Poros
The next island was a chance to walk around and visit shops. I bought a pair of silver post earrings in spirals which is good luck in Greece. Here are some views of walking around which I was able to do after drinking ginger ale unsuccessfully which gave me a little time before the next wave of sickness.
A rough day. I slept about 4 hours of the trip and made many trips to a bathroom but still glad I went as it was nice to walk in the sunshine in such a beautiful place! I will have to come back when it is warmer and hopefully not feeling poorly.
After purchasing a hop on hop off tour I decided to walk to the acropolis as it is close to my hotel and the first stop where your ticket must be activated. Along the way there are spectacular sights.
The church of the metamorphosis.
I arrived early and explored the hill of the muses that is near there.
Socrates prison. This is the alleged prison where he was believed to be housed.Polipponas monument. Beautiful view of the acropolis here. An ancient road between the two hills.Church of nymphs Observatory.
There are many places to visit on the hill but most pictures just look like any national park. This actually is an area where people bring their dogs in the morning for a walk. Beautiful trails and a lovely place to walk and enjoy nature.
The Acropolis
This ancient citadel dates back to the 5th century BC.
The Parthenon.
Ruins of the temple of Rome and Augustus.The temple of Athena Nike.Remnants of the sanctuary of Artemis.The old temple of Athena.
National Archaeological museum
The museum is huge and has many antiquities.
From the paleolithic age and shows fascination with male anatomy.Gold leaf death masks and body for children buried found in a Mycenaean site.Aphrodite.Apollo.Hermes.Artemis.Aphrodite and Eros from the sanctuary at Delphi Minoan culture from Crete is evident in pottery and metals. They were revered in Egypt and Greece.The spring fresco wall painting is the only one still existing depicting the Theran landscape before the volcanic eruption.Statue of a kouros. The statue is larger than life and enhances the musculature. A kouros is a statue of a standing male.The Minotaur.Funerary stele from after the Peloponnesisian war when there was unrest and poor prosperity leading to a plague. Many funeral stele were found from prominent families. Here two children have died.Funerary stele. The person seated is the one that died, in this case a young mother.Zeus.The planospheric astrolab. This device talked astronomical movements and therefore also time. The gears were used to line to different constellations. Ptolemy’s astrolab.This sculpture shows incredible detail to the muscles and look on the child’s face. 5th century BCA larger than life boxers arm showing bandages to protect the knuckles. 2nd century BC. The arm was cast separately from three rest of the statue of the boxer.Ancient medical instruments.
The Benaki museum
This museum is beautiful and houses cultural artifacts from Greece.
The inside of the museum is just gorgeous.Wood carved distaffs for the spinning of wool from the early 1900’s.Glass ampullae along the top made from molds. The grape ampullae is beautiful.Poles extend on both sides through the stirrups to carry nobility through streets.The Nativity from the 15th century.Virgin and child from 1400.A reception room from 18th century Macedonia.Lyres and other musical instruments.Bible covers.
After the museum I wandered back to the acropolis to pick up a bus to the Riviera area.
The changing of the guard for the tomb of the unknown soldier.Temple of Zeus.Gate of Hadrion.Mosaic floor of the House of the Roman Mosaic from 200 AD.In constructing the metro they came across this bath complex during the time of emperor Hadrian after the temple of Zeus was constructed. Odeon of Heredes Atticus.
Views from the bus tour along the Riviera beaches. I met a kind Egyptian man on the bus ride. He lives in Virgina and we talked about living in different places. If I would have known that where I was headed to eat would give me food poisoning I would have continued with the conversation with him on three next bus. But my hotel read close by…
Happy New Year! I flew from Cairo to Athens and not only received a complete meal (2 hour flight, why can’t the US do this) but they have away these 2020 wishes as I left the gate in Athens.
I arrived mid afternoon, checked into my hotel, and bought a couple of tours online. I had done some research but did not actually book tours before arriving. Since I have only two whole days here in Athens I chose to use the hop on hop off tour with entrance to attractions for one day. It is cheaper this time of year. I’ll have to start early.
I also bought a one day multi island boat tour. Usually they include a stop for swimming but it is winter now. There is a luncheon and dance show. You can also learn traditional Greek dance. Looking forward to this tour.
As a vegetarian usually there is a choice on airplane food or at least most of which I can eat. Not this flight. There was cheese but also a large amount of meat. One flight attendant found an extra vegetarian sandwich. Since I hate throwing away food, I first offered the meat to those around me, but then decided to wrap it up and bring it to the hotel when no one accepted.
My goal was to find a deserving kitty or dog to give the meat to. There are not as many cats visible here as there were in Egypt.
I started touring places that would not be included in the hop on hop off tour. I found a small church where buildings have been built around it.
Ekklisia Agia Dynami is a Greek orthodox church.
Next is Syntagma Square which is on front of the old palace (where parliament currently is). It is the central square in Athens.
From here I noticed the national garden. I love to walk in nature. I also noticed the first cemetery of Athens on the other side.
On the way to the garden. You can see the snow on the peaks in the distance.One of the entrances to the national park.
I do like looking at old cemeteries and I’m sure I’ll find some cats there. I followed paths out one of the sides of the park to get to the cemetery. The word “oikos” means house which is used to announce the family name on the crypts.
And yes I found some deserving cats for the meat from lunch.
I love the narrow streets that I walked through.
Statues…
The stadium of the first modern Olympic games: Panathenaic stadium. This is a reconstruction from the 1800’s that recreates the ancient stadium that originated from AD 117.
Metropolitan church of Athens. This is an 1800’s cathedral church with Greco-roman styling and phenomenal architecture.
First, the building is just beautiful and huge. There are so many antiquities it is mind boggling.
The museum is not completely organized inside as many new artifacts have been discovered after current collections were already placed. The result is that you must have an organized way to go through the museum to not miss anything. Many important finds are wedged in hallways on the top floor which is nice as you will walk through them and not miss them.
There are so many sarcophagus that housed the mummies.
The mummy room was impressive with many so well preserved you can still see hair, nails, and connective tissue.
Canopic jars that hold the internal organs .
And of course there is King Tut’s treasures.
Canopic jars are housed in their own tomb
There is also a collection of Yuya who was King Tut’s great grandfather. What is notable is the excellent embalming methods that were used.
These jars have the mummified organs still in them.The mummy is still inside.The mask had incredible detail to features which is outlined in the book of the dead so the spirit will be able to find the correct body later to ensure resurrection.
There were so many artifacts it was overwhelming. I took pictures of things that caught my eye.
King Amenophis III and familyA granite altar found in a pyramid.
While I was waiting fur my driver I snapped some pictures outside.
They are building a new museum to be able to hold all the items as many have not been unpacked due to lack of space. As impressive and needed the new museum will be, it is sad to see this beautiful building not used as the museum.
I spent the afternoon after I was free done from diving sitting at a restaurant eating Greek salad. Yes of course there was a cat on my lap!
The Red Sea along the corniche in Dahab.
Later in the afternoon, I took a quad tour into the desert. The hotel sheikh ali dahab resort set it up for me for 300 egyptian. It was pretty fun riding in the sand and seeing the water on one side and the desert and mountains on the other.
One of the Egyptians told me I looked like a badass. Funny! The scarf was needed to keep sand out of your face.We had to ride on roads for part of the journey to get to the next access point in the desert between the mountains.
At the outpost they had Bedouin tea which was very sweet. We climbed rocks on a narrow trail to get to the to of a hill.
The path we climbed to get to the top. That was part of it as it curves around to the right at the bottom with some narrow passages between the rocks.
The view was very pretty and to get back to the other side and an easier way down you cross a suspension bridge.
The suspension bridge.We were told to go slow across the bridge. That was not as much fun so of course I didn’t listen and went quickly.
We relaxed at the outpost for awhile and I chatted with Egyptians I met. One wants to teach English in China and we talked about that, connected on we chat, and had dinner laughs.
On the way back it was very dark and there were no lights on the quads. But the one leading had a light so I could make out the quad just in front of me.
Afterwards I met Nicole and Mostafa at Yalla bar and had soup and Egyptian beer.
At the resort we have been eating traditional Egyptian breakfast which is eggs, foul (yummy fava bean dish), homemade cheese, cucumbers/pita bread, fruit…
The next day we booked a tour to the blue lagoon. It took a guy with a truck and a boat ride to get there. Cost was about 265 Egyptian plus $10 US to get through the checkpoint.
Not sure why there are two tickets and not just one. If it helps preserve the area, I have no problem with this.
We stopped at Blue Hole which is a diving spot. It has the best coral and fish. However. It goes from 10 metres to 30 meters as you step of the shelf and then if the current pushes you it will take you to the 50+ meter depth or what is known as the blue hole. It is a dangerous spot. Many drivers die here and there are memorials.
Memorials to divers
We stopped for a bit while we waited for the boat.
After getting off the boat we were at Ras Abu Galum.
The are little supermarkets like this one that had cashed goods and supplies. You can choose to camp in one of the little bungalows over night. It is cold there in the desert but they supply all the camel blankets you will need.
We walked quite a long way (about an hour) to get to the blue lagoon. You can be driven in a taxi instead: the back of a pick up truck!
At this point across the water is Saudi Arabia. That is how far we are up now in the Sinai peninsula.
At the blue lagoon the water is quite shallow a long way out. It was cold water but we braved it anyway. It would be much warmer in the summer but also more crowded. You can kite surf which requires lessons.
We relaxed in a tent, enjoyed tea, and enjoyed the day.
Cats are everywhere. I felt bag for this mom and family as there would not be much to catch to feed them here.
We decided to take the pickup truck taxi back.
At Ras Abu Galum we ate rice, vegetables, and chicken from one of the locals. I should have taken pictures. She told Mostafa that she would make a meal and he would never forget her! It was very tasty. I saved the chicken to give to cats when we arrived back in Dahab. I should have taken a picture of her as she was obviously the boss of the area!
On the way back I was trying to take a picture of the sunset. We slowed down at the checkpoint and I tried to grab a picture. You should not do this. Even if you are not pointing the camera at the officers, it is against the rules. They asked to see my camera and Mostafa explained I was taking pictures of the sunset (which I didn’t actually take when I realized my error). The good news is I did not have my phone taken away but I did not get the shot. After the checkpoint the driver slowed down so I could take a picture.
The next morning we are leaving from Dahab. Before breakfast I walked down to the corniche to see the sunrise. It was beautiful and peaceful.
I took a nice long walk after sunrise to eat the last breakfast in Dahab. This is a beautiful place and I’ll miss it. It is only about $20000 USD to buy a house. A consideration for retirement.
Dahab is a small town on the southeast coast of the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. We had to fly into Sharm el-Sheikh and drive about an hour to get there through the desert with small settlements scattered throughout.
Dahab used to be a Bedouin fishing village. In fact you can have dinner at night in the desert with traditional Bedouin food. The corniche along the Red Sea has many shops, restaurants, and dive centers.
Dahab is one of the best diving spots in the Sinai. That is actually why I’m here as I have wanted to learn to dive. My dive center is H2O Divers.
Along the Red Sea eating vegetable Curry on a lunch break from dive classes.
At night there are many wonderful restaurants. In this area a lot of fish are caught illegally and you should not go to many restaurants to eat fish. There are a few that are reputable and eco dive centers can tell you them.
We ate at night at Shark. It is set up like Bedouin. Carpets, chairs with cushions… The food was wonderful but so were the cats. As is usual with people who know me, I attract animals. The cats would come and sit on my lap here. So funny. The grey one just wanted to relax and
Lebanese bread with assorted dips as an appetizer that is brought automatically to your table.
We are staying at the Sheikh Ali Dahab resort. It is beautiful and quiet and not too far from the corniche along the Red Sea.
The resident dog became my friend too wanting belly rubs and pats on the head. Well, and my breakfast…
The skills for dive certification are challenging for me as I have a serious fear of the water. I have yet to swim under water for one minute with just the regulator in and no mask. But I accomplished many of the skills and I’m very proud of myself for that. But that skill had freaked me out. In the end, I completed 36 of the 60 seconds. If I could have calmed myself down I would have tried again but had made 4 attempts. I am still not comfortable under the water so as a result getting the verification was not important for me. I did do two other dives and was able to see cornetfish, coral, Moray eels, pufferfish, lionfish, rockfish, and many others that live along the reef. Even though I wish I could get the certification my level of discomfort under the water was a barrier and I’m pretty proud to have conquered my fear that far. I also realized that I was not having fun and even on the dives I was not comfortable. Even though I cleared my ears in the dive, I have swimmers ear and that problem made it miserable after the dives.
Outside one of the restaurants there was a large amount of cats congregated. The poor dog stood in the back. He doesn’t stand a chance if any food is given.Nicole took this picture of a black cat sitting amongst cat statues. It is the Where’s Waldo of kitties.Nicole also took this picture along the Red Sea. Beautiful!
I went shopping for caftans. I remember my mom wearing them in the 70’s and lately I think they would be really comfortable for lounging. I found a long sleeve one and then found this short sleeve that was very pretty.
Now that I am not diving anymore it have me the afternoon and next day to do other things.
We hired a driver to go to Alexandria. We almost cancelled the trip because of the rain that was forecast. Here there is no drainage on the roads and dangerous flooding has been known to happen. There was rain and some areas that had standing water. It definitely took longer to get there.
At a rest stop I’m always on the lookout to try something different. I found paprika Pringles and basil seed drink. The Pringles are fantastic and the drink much tastes like a chia seed drink but the taste of basil seed.
We started at the Catecombs of Kom El Shuqafa. You can see Roman, Greek and Egyptian culture as some statues are Egyptian in style with Roman clothes and hair. The circular staircase was used to transport deceased bodies down the middle and leads down into the tombs. They were constructed in 200 AD. It was discovered in 1900 when a donkey accidentally fell into the access shaft.
Outside the burial chamber.Inside the vault are carvings that served as protectors of the dead.Tombs. Originally this was designed for a single family but it was said that horse remains were also found here.This is a wardian tomb.Inside a Tigran tomb. There is a front room, back room, and open court that is found inside the tomb. This was unearthed elsewhere in Alexandria and reconstructed here.Stone with carvings of the burial process.
Next was the library at Alexandria. On the way I noticed there are still Radio Shack’s around!
The library in Alexandria is one of the largest collection of all media in the world. They had many artifacts on display and interactive exhibits throughout.
A piece of the Kiswah of the Kaaba
Downstairs is an antiquities museum.
Egyptian alphabet.Egyptian god of the moon which is a blending of a baboon and an Ibis.The top of sarcophagus of a child.The torso of Hercules. There is incredible detail in the muscles.Alexander.Ancient sundial for tracking time by placing it facing the South to catch the sun’s rays. This is from 2000 BC.The heads of the Canopic jars that held the internal organs. Imsety had a human head and carried and protected the liver. Qebehsenuf had a falcon’s head and carried and protected the intestines. Hapy had the head of a baboon and carried and protected the lungs. Duamatef had the head of a jackal and carried and protected the stomach.This Mosaic is from the original library. It shows exceptional detail including the expression on the dog.
They also had art displays throughout the basement leading to an exhibit is Anwar Sadat.
Next we went to the citadel. There is a Greek restaurant called White and Blue that is a block away. You choose your own fish to be butterflied and grilled. It was delicious. We chose bluefish from the Mediterranean and a red fish from the Red Sea. It is not cheap but worth it.
Tahini, tzaziki, baba ganoush, seafood chowder.We ate on the balcony overlooking the Mediterranean.The outside of the citadel which has a lighthouse. Unfortunately it closed for the day right before I got there. Go early if you want to see it on your travels.
I love taking pictures of Christmas trees. There are many here in Cairo and other areas I have visited.
For my birthday on Christmas Eve we left Luxor and flew back to Cairo. The resort had decorations and played Christmas music continuously.
After a quick workout at the gym we stopped at 4 fat ladies bakery. They are amazing and make Western cakes and cookies. We bought a slice for each of us to celebrate my birthday. We ate a cookie walking around and looking at shops along the way back to Nicole’s apartment. They even had gingerbread which I bought for the car ride tomorrow to Alexandria.
Once back at the apartment we had cake. Mine was a fudge cake with lotus frosting. The others were an apple cake and carrot cake. Yummy!
For dinner we went to a great seafood restaurant called Ibn Hamido in New Cairo. It was fabulous and very famous. On the way I found other decorations as well as a mosque with a service station next to it. The sign in the hill says chill out!
The mosque is on the left. It obviously is not completely in the picture.Santa is sleeping above the I and the V!
The seafood bisque was buttery but not too rich. We also had Sea Bass on a bed of gratin potatoes. The shrimp, fish, and tahini were delicious.
I see these Santa’s in many places here.
Afterwards, Nicole and I went to the new City Centre mall and watched the new Star Wars movie. It is an unbelievably immense mall and the decorations were beautiful.
Underneath the tree there were photo booth scenes you could use for a holiday photo.
A hazy start to this Christmas morning. May everyone have a Merry Christmas!
Another early morning but this time to be picked up for a hot air balloon ride over the valley of the Kings. What a great time! It is very cold in the morning in the desert but heats up during the day.
I have never seen a balloon being inflated and it was fascinating to watch. You are actually warmer in the balloon because of the flames to hear the air. I highly recommend this as an activity if you visit.
Balloons being inflated on the ground.
Floating over the monuments we toured the day before was pretty spectacular as was seeing the sun rise and looking at the vast area of Luxor.
Views during sunrise. Vote of the colossi from above.You can see the irrigation channels that keep the area green. It is not an Oasis but fed from the NileSugar cane is a major crop which requires a lot of sunlight and water.
We used hod-hod soliman at www.hodhodsolimanballoons.com. They pick you up, take you to the location then drop you off wherever you want (or back to your hotel). Very professional with an experienced crew.
Children from nearby will follow the balloons and been for money. It breaks my heart as they do not go to school and even doing so does not give them a job as this is a class society. You are born into your class and you are unable to move into a different one.
Afterwards we went straight to Luxor temple. Luxor temple is dedicated to the rejuvenation of kingship; it may have been where many of the pharaohs of Egypt were crowned. It is on the east bank of the Nile and different from the other temples and mortuaries.
The largest line of Sphinx.which used to connect the temples of Luxor and Karnak. It is called avenue of the Sphinx and monuments were carried between for celebrations. There is another line on the otherside of the walkway. Excavation between the 2 sites is still underway.A closer up of the Sphinx.Obelisk constructed by Ramses II
The colonnade of Amenhotep III which served as the original entrance to the Temple of Amun. The walls around it were built by King Tutankemun.
This area was covered in mud and sand to the top of these columns. During building in the area, these structures were found and excavation began.Ramses II. This statue is incredible.There are so many hieroglyphics it is overwhelming. To be able to touch something that is at least 4000 years old is impressive. The color that was used is original and impressive how color and detail is used.
The Karnak temple complex is also on the east bank of the Nile about 2k away. It means fortified village. 30 pharoahs contributed to the building over a long period of time which is evident when you travel through it from the front to the back as the styles change along the way.
The row of Sphinx that connect to those at Luxor temple.
One famous aspect of Karnak is the Hypostyle Hall in the Precinct of Amun-Re. It is 50,000 sq ft or 5,000 m2 with 134 massive columns in 16 rows. It is the largest collection of columns in the world. It was created by Seti I and his son Ramses II. The columns represent a papyrus flower.
The architraves on top of these columns are estimated to weigh 70 tons and may have needed levers to lift them. This would be an extremely time-consuming process. Some believe large ramps were constructed of sand, mud, brick or stone to bring them up the ramps.
Hatshepsut had twin obelisks erected at the entrance to the temple. One still stands, as the tallest surviving ancient obelisk. Obelisks were a symbol of the sun god Ra and we’re important in religious ceremonies. Usually two were at the entrance to a temple.
As you travel around the perimeter there is an open air museum of the various artifacts that were scattered throughout and are now catalogued by years and styles.
The sacred bark shrines of Seti II. They were dedicated to Theban deities.
This was a pretty tiring day and we went back to the resort for a very late lunch and relax by the Nile. We played ping pong and then set out that night to go to the Winter palace where Agatha Christy wrote her famous book Death on the Nile and others. It is beautiful.
The winter palaceThe gardens at the Winter palace.
Stories from a shop owner
We found a tea and perfume shop where we drank hibiscus tea and talked with the owner. Mostafa found a magnet of a statue with a large erect penis. We found this hysterical and then we were told the story.
Ahmed the owner talked about Amehkim or Min. Min the Egyptian god of fertlity, virility, rain, and the desert has a great story. The image of Min is one of a human male with one arm and one leg. In the ancient legend, Min was given the order of protecting a city in Egypt when the ruler and all the men had to leave on a military campaign. The women were left alone and in need of a protector. When the ruler returned he found that all the women in the city pregnant. The god Amun punished Min for this by cutting off one leg and one arm. However, all of his progeny were strong and useful and he was elevated to the level of a god. Henceforth Min was recognised as the one armed, one legged god with the large, erect penis.
Of course this is the one temple we did not go in. We were pretty tired at this point.
And I did but some tea and perfume which are oils and long lasting.
