Drive Like an Egyptian

Walk like an Egyptian nothing, the way Egyptians drive is what's impressive. For the day inbetween hiking around Petra and driving the 6 hours to Cairo we stayed at a resort on the Red Sea, which is now my new favorite body of water with its crystal-clear water and incredible coral reefs. Then a driver picked us up and drove us the six hours to Cairo. The man's driving was genius. He kept a steady pace of 130 km/hour, which on bad roads in a large van that has absolutely no shocks left takes true talent. He slowed down only for the dozen checkpoints along the way and once to avoid hitting a camel. For the first time this trip my mom insisted we all put on our seat belts. Then when we got to Cairo the driving only got more spectacular. In a city of 18 million there are about 5 traffic lights, yet it somehow all works. On the way back to Israel a car drifted across the freeway and our driver had to slam on the brakes and swerve to avoid hitting him. Our driver came to a stop and got out of the van. I thought maybe he was going to check on the people in the car to see if they were OK, but no, he just pulled over to yell and make hand gestures at the other driver. Amazing. Our day at the Red Sea was so enjoyable that I tried to convince the rest of my family to cancel our excursion to Cairo and just stay a few more days at the sea relaxing, snorkeling, and eating well, but everyone else still wanted to see the pyramids, which I think turned out to be the right choice. Aisde from the pyramids we also saw several other ancient sites, the Egyptian Museum, and took a dinner cruise on the Nile. We packed a lot into those two days and I'm so glad we made the trip over to Egypt.

Riding a camel is not the most comfortable way to travel, but now at least I can say I've done it. Aside from a driver we also had with us at all times an armed body guard, a tour guide, and the tour company manager. While having 4 grown men escort our family of 5 around was overkill, having our own entourage made us feel like rockstars. Although having a guided tour makes everything easier, it also has some downside: time at all of the places you actually want to see is shortened to make sure you have time to visit all of the souvenir shops they want you to buy from (and thus get kickbacks from). Courtney became a little hostile towards our guide by the end of the second day and it got a little awkward. But now we are back in Israel where we have complete control over our schedule each day.