I was relieved to leave the craziness of Cairo for a few days and head down to Luxor, in the southern part of Egypt. As they say, most of Egyptian history is in the South. As I gaze out of the plane window at the golden colors of the deserts, it quickly changes to rich green vegetation. Are my eyes playing a trick on me? No, we are now landing in Luxor, a rich oasis in Egypt. I stayed in a beautiful 5 start hotel right on the Nile, for $55 a night (just to give you a sense of the state of the tourism industry at this moment in time).
We first start with the Valley of the Kings, a place I wanted to see even more so than the pyramids of Giza. The kings had moved their tombs to this area as it is was further away and remote, making it more difficult for grave robbers to steal the riches buried inside. I make my way through these ancient tombs, just blown away by the detailed hieroglyphics that line the walls and tell a story. I also had a chance to visit the Temple of Luxor and the Temples of Karnak, which were of course lined with many statues of Rames II , the most known of the Egyptian kings. I was thoroughly impressed with the outdoor temples; especially the pillars and walls with intricately carved hieroglyphics.
The next day, I get to the airport to head back to Cairo. There is a problem with my ticket, it is handwritten and doesn’t have a confirmed seat number on it. The agent asks me where I got the ticket from. I hesitantly say I bought it in Israel. “Israel?!” he says. Then he asks me a series of questions trying to figure out if I was Israeli and what exactly I was doing in Egypt. Not being able to bear the thought of being stuck in Egypt for a few more days, I exclaim, “ I am a resident of the UAE, look at my passport, I am American, just let me get on the plane!”. I get the travel agent on the phone from Israel; the Egyptian flight agent gets a kick out of speaking to someone from Israel. He then jokes with me “Where will you go next, Tunis? Or Libya?”. I reply, “No, I think I’ll stop over at Damascus first”. He then chuckles before letting me go through, even though my ticket wasn’t all that legit.
Sometimes I wonder how the hell I get myself into shit like this. Traveling alone, a woman, during Ramadan, picking a stupid route, Jordan – Israel –Egypt. I end up doing what I want to do, basically what is more logical or convenient for me, rather than what might be safer or risk averse. At least it makes for some unforgettable stories.
The next day, I get to the airport to head back to Cairo. There is a problem with my ticket, it is handwritten and doesn’t have a confirmed seat number on it. The agent asks me where I got the ticket from. I hesitantly say I bought it in Israel. “Israel?!” he says. Then he asks me a series of questions trying to figure out if I was Israeli and what exactly I was doing in Egypt. Not being able to bear the thought of being stuck in Egypt for a few more days, I exclaim, “ I am a resident of the UAE, look at my passport, I am American, just let me get on the plane!”. I get the travel agent on the phone from Israel; the Egyptian flight agent gets a kick out of speaking to someone from Israel. He then jokes with me “Where will you go next, Tunis? Or Libya?”. I reply, “No, I think I’ll stop over at Damascus first”. He then chuckles before letting me go through, even though my ticket wasn’t all that legit.
Sometimes I wonder how the hell I get myself into shit like this. Traveling alone, a woman, during Ramadan, picking a stupid route, Jordan – Israel –Egypt. I end up doing what I want to do, basically what is more logical or convenient for me, rather than what might be safer or risk averse. At least it makes for some unforgettable stories.
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