Between vacation and side effects - Egypt up close

Phew.

Finally on the airplane.

F i n a l l y  o u t !

No no, it’s not that bad... yet I must honestly say:

The further we get away from this country, the freer I feel right now.

'Breathe in, HOLD it' is gradually back to 'Breathe in, Breathe out'.

No idea when I've ever been happy that a vacation is ending. I guess I’ll say NEVER.

And yes, maybe this statement is a bit exaggerated, but if you stick with me, you might understand my/our misery.....

Where do I even start describing what we've experienced, felt, and seen in the last few days.
And besides. When did I actually write the last blog entry? I can’t remember, and honestly feel quite rusty after all this time.

There were definitely a few trips in the meantime that I never put 'on paper,' as you know. And hey, I really thought I might never write again, but I don’t want to withhold this experience from you.

But I’ll say it right away, I probably won’t be able to keep it short, so you might want to reconsider!.... ;)

Chapter 1 - the idea

I no longer remember when the desire to fly here became more present. When the idea turned into a real flight booking. And the thought of the pyramids brought hours of research on YouTube and booking.com.

The fact is, we were so curious and hyped. Also just because this culture was completely new to us. And everything we planned to see there already left me speechless long before we even stood in front of it.

Egypt - Land of the Pharaohs

In my mind, I had ancient tombs, mummies, hieroglyphs, golden desert sand & camels.

Well. And stomach issues.

Luckily, we were spared the latter. It might also be because we were meticulous about what and where we ate.

Honestly, none of us probably consumed more than 250 calories of solid food daily... we covered the rest of our needs with beer. Worked out perfectly.

Chapter 2 - the arrival

By the way, our first accommodation in Cairo or Giza was suggested to me by the (very reliable) TikTok algorithm. The first time I looked at it, I even thought of AI, but when checking the comments below, it quickly became clear that this airbnb actually existed.

I wanted, I searched, I booked.

And what can I say? We were not disappointed. On the contrary.

The evening of our arrival will probably stay in our memory forever (... or Babe?)

This city.

20 million inhabitants.

And both of us right in the midst of it.

On this crazy terrace with a view of the pyramids, which were so close.

The climate.

The first beer.

The apartment itself.

My girlfriend in a flowy top. (😝)

Everything was quite nice.

The subsequent nighttime excursion into our new hood for a while was quite short. I must admit we weren’t entirely comfortable with the area.

So quickly to bed.

Full of anticipation for the coming day.

Chapter 3 - 'built by humans, yeah sure'

Did you know that there are voices that vehemently contradict the official version that the pyramids are about 5000 years old?

There are theories that claim they were built as early as 10,000 BC.

And did you know there are actually people who seriously want to convince us that humans built them?

H u m a n s.

Yeah, sure!

Have you seen what huge 'pieces' they’re made of?

How perfectly everything fits together? Hey, I mean:

2 pyramids directly in a line, the third a bit off, just like in the Orion constellation.

And all of this 10,000 or yes, if you prefer, even 5000 years ago.

Then this granite blocks from Aswan were carted in. That’s almost 1000 kilometers away from Giza.

Google told me: just 1 (!) of those fat blocks weighs easily 40 to 80 tons. Just casually bring in hundreds of them? Without a crane? Without a digger? Completely without machines? Everything so incredibly precise? Never could have humans done this!!

At least not alone! 👽

But: either way - seeing these monuments up close, we couldn’t wait and set off the next morning with a tuk-tuk on a huge adventure. And hey, those streets alone. Well. Perhaps they were more pathways.

Rocky, dusty sand paths.

No recognizable road traffic regulations.

Honking, loud motors, and already 35 degrees in the shade.

My heart was definitely beating louder as we got closer to our destination. And it nearly leapt out when we stood right in front of them. It was honestly just awe-inspiring. And no photo, no video can ever convey it quite the same. I don’t know how to describe it. It was just unbelievable.

Walking there, being able to touch all of this, having that ancient history right in front of you... that was next level!

And then we were suddenly even inside.

IN A PYRAMID.

Everything very tight, everything steep.

This narrow staircase, always higher, further up.

Standing upright? Ha Ha!

(I would like to politely and urgently advise anyone with claustrophobia against visiting at this point!)

Humidity beyond good and evil. And at the end, we suddenly found ourselves in a chamber, in the middle this fat block that looks like a stone bathtub. Besides that, there was really nothing to see.

Not a single pesky hieroglyph. Less spectacular than we had hoped, but still just wow!

We were really there.

PS: The 'stone bathtub' is actually the sarcophagus of the Pharaoh.

No idea, we didn’t know that beforehand.

I mean, we are Germans.

Where was the sign anyway? 😝

Chapter 4 - between desert and fridge magnet

By the way, I cheekily skipped something. On my bucket list in connection with Egypt was 'Photo on a camel in front of the pyramids'.

Well, there were many camels there. And their 'owners' who were just itching to get us to take a ride in the desert. But you know, we like these animals... and that’s why we didn’t want to ride them, but rather 'just' sit on them for a picture.

Just for this photo.

For an expensive price.

And yeah, it worked out.

No idea how long we stayed on the site all in all, but I already mentioned that it was hot (despite the wind)... and we were thirsty (!!).... and hungry (just kidding).

So back to a tuk-tuk and off to the apartment.

Well.

First, we went to a souvenir shop.

Probably the 7th cousin of the driver.

To show us his hospitality, he really wanted to take us to this store.

Arguing was pointless.

And um.

Moreover.

We wanted to have these 5 magnets anyway...

The climate in the accommodation was our best friend for half an hour, then we couldn’t stay longer on the sofa, because the next day we were heading to Luxor.

Chapter 5 - cultural shock

We thought we’d head to the Nile. Just to the water. Chill a bit. See something different.

And yes, 'see something different'.

This wish was fulfilled to such an extent.

The tuk-tuk driver spoke no English, but he asked a random guy where we wanted to go and promised to take us to a taxi station because no taxis run in this area and vehicles like ours can’t get there.

We quickly noticed that we were going in circles. We looked at each other questioningly. But said nothing. Then he wanted Nadin to come up front to drive the thing herself.

She didn’t want to at first. But I already mentioned earlier that arguing here was sometimes pointless. And it looked somewhat fun. After a while, she came back to the back. The same fun for me.

F u n.

Well. One felt pressured. The space was probably enough for 2.

And yet he was practically sitting in my lap. And instead of letting go of the handle and the gas, which honestly wasn’t rocket science, the old creep lightly touched and stroked my fingers. I told him I wanted to go back. He only reluctantly agreed to that request. Back with Nadin, she told me what I hadn’t noticed before.......Ugh. This guy. 🤮

We just wanted to get away!

And since there was no taxi stand in sight anyway, and we were already riding a merry-go-round with him, we urged him to stop.

'MONEY MONEY.'

I held out the agreed 200. He pointed to us one by one.

Kept driving.

'MONEY!!'

Ah, the jerk wanted to charge us double.

All of a sudden, his entire demeanor changed.

The mood shifted.

Especially since I started to argue and didn’t understand why I should pay him twice.

Quick glance at my girlfriend... her face spoke volumes.

Well, how about 400 then. 🤬

He stopped, hailed a taxi for us, and made a deal with the driver to take us to the Nile.

And I, the fool, almost wanted to get in when Nadin said

'That’s not a taxi.'

And indeed. Why did I assume it was one before? It was just any vehicle.

What did he want? 

Do they know each other? 

'Work' together? 

No no, that was not for us. 

We walked away.

Followed by loud voices.

'COME. COME. TAXI TAXI.'

We walked a bit and felt like we were in the next nightmare.

No idea what kind of neighborhood that was. But there were no tourists here. Especially no women.

It was loud. Stinky. People everywhere. They all stared at us and didn’t hold back with comments. Children with their hands outstretched.

“Money. Madam. Money.”

Sheep and goats were being slaughtered or bleeding out in the open street. Next to them, their living four-legged buddies who probably already knew they would be next.

And that smell… ugh!

Blood, trash, spices, all at once.

It was cramped.

You could hardly walk, especially not side by side.

Everything was so dirty.

The honking everywhere.

You could only squeeze through incredibly slowly.

It was almost unbearable.

I’m usually someone who enjoys going with the flow, honestly.

Strange cultures? Bring it on!

I’m not a coward, honestly.

I’ve been to many countries and seen poverty there.

But THIS was so, so uncomfortable. And yes, frightening.

We didn’t know which direction we should go. There were no taxis. We were scared to get back in a tuk-tuk. We were lost. That’s how it felt. I don’t know how long we walked, the strange and genuinely slightly threatening places we passed by. And honestly: that really stuck in our memory.

I remember how relieved we were when we finally got back to the apartment.

With a huge fright and a slight trauma.

And for everyone who might say we shouldn't exaggerate, I’d like to politely invite you to experience this charming experience for yourself. 😆

Chapter 6 - off to the Nile (this time really)

You can imagine how glad we were the next day to fly on.
We were so so curious.
We wanted to delve even deeper into the history of Egypt.

We were excited about temples and archaeological sites.

And we got that too!

I’ll skip everything about our hotel because it was super beautiful, with flat individual buildings, a huge green area around it and gigantic infinity pools overlooking the Nile, but the blog is already stretching the limit again and I really want to finish.

And even if I emphasized at the beginning how glad I was to leave - against another pool session with my love, I wouldn’t mind now.

How was that again, Nadin?!

'Beer, sun, pool, and my baby'

(in exactly THIS order (🖕)

Chapter 7 - Hieroglyphs & Cutthroats

First, we visited the Valley of the Kings.

It’s basically an ancient cemetery of the pharaohs, a huge archaeological site.

Nadin had previously told me that she once wanted to become an archaeologist.

And babe, that idea of you sitting there with a tiny brush in the sand, squinting your eyes, and excitedly calling 'I found something!'... 😍

And folks:

We even saw a mummy that day.

So real!

And not just any mummy.

But the world star of mummies, namely TUTANKHAMUN! He’s been chilling there for over 3000 years.

Now very well air-conditioned in a glass box, so he doesn’t fall apart.

We saw so much overall.

And everything we missed at the pyramids, we had here in abundance.

Deep grooves carved into the rock,

brightly painted walls,

hieroglyphs and decorations everywhere,

sarcophagus chambers with sarcophagi.

One can hardly grasp the impressions one has there.

So much history, so much work, so much mystique.

It’s just totally crazy when you consider that all of this was created thousands of years ago, and is still so well preserved today...

but there are also men everywhere who want money for every 'Hello Madame'.

They show you where a staircase is and expect something for it.

They suddenly give you a 'tour' without you knowing how it happened.

They already have their hands out because you looked them in the eye.

You feel like Al Bundy in the intro of the series.

You go to the bathroom, and suddenly there’s a woman next to the sink turning on the faucet with one hand and asking for money with the other.

It's just incredibly uncomfortable.

Annoying.

Brazen.

And yes, Egypt is not just poverty, scams, and intrusiveness.

But unfortunately, THAT casts a huge shadow over everything that’s actually so great.

And that’s exactly why Egypt won’t see us a second time.

Because as magical as the aura may be when wandering through ancient halls...

Pyramids, temples, tombs, and all that stuff looks....

you sadly can’t let it sink in.

Because you’re constantly busy saying NO.

Because you hardly do anything else than avoid sellers or self-proclaimed guides.

Well.

The next day was reserved for the Karnak Temple and that was even more impressive.

Even if it was hard to top everything before.

A bit like a stone forest it appeared to me.

Many obelisks, statues & over 100 massive columns everywhere.

(And behind each of these columns stood an Egyptian with an open hand and a toothless smile)

Chapter 7 - Beauty & Shadow

Have you ever been to the Nile?

-We haven’t either.

The ride on a felucca at sunset was like a dream.

This nature, everywhere green.

Many birds and foreign sounds.

Feet in the river,

warm skin,

red sky,

hibiscus tea,

Aspirin Complex & YOU.

And YOU or SHE is the main reason why we won’t fly back to a Muslim country again quickly.

We are not just friends, we are a couple.

And yes, we knew what to expect.

We didn’t just head into the unknown ... and we’ll always adapt and respect foreign cultures,

but it was a tough boundary experience for me, to be honest.

In Germany and everywhere else it’s almost automatic for me to take Nadin’s hand, put my arm around her shoulder, or kiss her whenever I want.

In Egypt, we were careful not to stand too close together or even sat apart at meals, for example.

We felt like we were in a long-distance relationship these last few days.

Can it get worse? - Yes.

Did I just lie? - Yes.

There’s really nothing worse. 😜

I don’t need to make out wildly in public..., we don’t usually do that in Berlin either.

But having to avoid each other like this... N o !

For anyone who can handle 50 degrees in the shade..., love the sun, ...want to experience the desert and the longest river on earth... who’s into pyramids and history... If you have no problem showing your affection publicly (or are straight), then Egypt is really for you! (Just bring enough dollar bills!)

For us, as expected, it won’t be the favorite country.

But it was still really awesome. We saw so many things that our little amoeba brain has to process first.

Moments we will definitely never forget.

If you've read this far:

You must be insane!

Thank you for any form of attention and see you sometime.

PS:

Thank you, Babe.

I’m always ready for new adventures with you.

And I’m glad to use your REAL name again and not always have to call you NADIN. 😝😝

O V E R   &  O U T.