Nile cruise

[Epictetus]

One of the things I like to do every winter is get the hell out of Finland. (If you can’t guess why, look at a globe.) Anyway, I already did it this year and have been proactively planning next winter with the better half. She came up with the idea of a cruise down the Nile. She found one that looks pretty good: it goes from Luxor to Aswan and back again. It stops at all sorts of historically interesting places like the Valley of the Kings and Hellenistic-era temples.

I’ve never been to Egypt so am curious what others think and what kind of advice you have about visiting sites there.

Has anyone ever taken such a cruise or just visited Egypt?

[Jona Lendering]

Has anyone ever taken such a cruise or just visited Egypt?

The monuments are splendid, but prepare for two unpleasant things: the dirt and the Egyptians. Egypt is an exceptionally dirty country, and I promise you that you will suffer from the Curse of the Pharaoh, so take precautions. The people are generally friendly and well-meaning, but the problem is that the ones you meet are the vendors of cheap souvenirs. They are almost aggressive. I found it hard to cope with it; I could not be impressed, at Gizeh, by those forty centuries looking down upon me.

The great museum of Cairo is a mess, focusing solely on the New Kingdom. The Late Period, which is also interesting, gets two or three rooms (more). Photography is forbidden: you're supposed to buy books or slides or a DVD, which will of course not offer that paricular object that you are interested in. Photography is also forbidden on the major sites.

This does not mean that you shouldn't go there. To see the sun rise at Abu Simbel is splendid; Luxor, Karnak, Saqqara are fantastic; the Coptic Museum in Cairo is one of the finest I know. But don't expect it to be something like, say, Turkey or Greece.

[Ron Andrea]

I agree. Go, but know that the experience will be stressful.

When I went to the Cairo Museum I was able to buy a permit to take pictures. I still couldn't use flash or tripod, but was able to snap away. (Keep the permit handy; every guard had to be shown it.)

And do go up river. Lu-xor, Aswan and Abu Simbel are all worth the trip.

[john m roberts]

Did that cruise in '87. Well worth it. In fact, one of the great pleasures of the trip was just sitting on deck and watching the shore go by. Just knowing you're on the Nile is exhilarating. A tip for visiting the Cairo Museum: If you go there in the morning, you'll be hustled through the Tut exhibit like cattle with barely time to catch a glimpse. A hundred other tour groups are doing the same thing. I went across the street with my brother to the Nile Hilton and had an excellent lunch, then went back to stroll through the museum. The last half hour before closing time we took in the Tut exhibit and had it practically all to ourselves. Oh, you'll come to hate the word "baksheesh."

[Epictetus]

Excellent. Thanks for all the tips. When it comes to ancient history, my wife is mainly interested in Egypt so this should work out.

Also, I would like to try this some day. I saw Mary Beard blog about it last year, as she was a lecturer on one of the cruises.

[Caballo]

I've always found that a few words of Arabic really helpful in the souk e.g. Laa shokran" (No thanks) (or simply a tipping back of the head with a tut), Ma'asalaamah (good bye) , salaam eleikum (hello), Kayf al haal ? How are you?

When buying:
bekam (how much)?
Hadha akther min el lazim (Its more than it should be)
"Al a kayfuk"- As you like in answer to "how much you pay?"
Fi am anillah - Goodbye, (lit Go with God)



If treated badlly "Ana ahli min al Kutob!" ( I'm a person of the book - ie Christians mentioend in the Qu'ran), "Aysh fi, ya uhki?" (Whats the problem, my brother?) or slightly ruder "Yallah!" Go away!.
There are many ruder and wonderfully convoluted Bedouin curse, but none suitable for a family forum....

And after all, you can speak Finnish- so a little Arabic is a mere doddle.....

And heres a specialised app if ever there was one.....

http://itunes.apple.com/kr/app/yourword ... 37106?mt=8

[Gaius Julius Caesar]

I have a list of phonetic pronounciations somewhere....for Arabic.
Not very scholarly, but kindly put together by the local lads when I worked over there a few years back.
I had a good laugh with them...plus some frustrating moments. :lol: