Abu Simbel
Today we hit a big one. We are going to Abu Simbel. We awoke at 2.15am to find that there was a wakeup call at 2.45 and departure at 3.30am. We were given a bag of breakfast and we joined the coach. The trip would best be described as the speed bump tour of Aswan. […]
Edfu and Kom Ombo
We docked while we ate breakfast. At 0800 we departed in carriages to Edfu Temple. Rickety old examples with Anna at risk of falling out. I did not find out until later, but our carriage was also filthy. My fawn shorts were stained black. Nearly every woman in the group took the time to […]
Luxor on the west bank of the Nile
Luxor is a town of two halves. Today we visited the more rural west bank. The town has a bridge across the Nile but it was kilometres up steam from our ship so we crossed on motor launches. They were a little rustic but effective. They all had names. As we docked I saw one […]
Luxor by Night
Dinner on the ship was good. Plenty of nicely cooked food and the company of 3 other English speakers, one From New York via Krakow and two from Las Vegas, one via Lodz. After dinner we toured Luxor by night. We were assigned to a horse and carriage. Our driver was Mohammed and the […]
Valley of the Kings
We were supposed to receive a 4am wake up call. When I woke at 5 and looked at my watch I had a quiet moment of panic. I woke Anna and then the door knocked. They wanted our bags. 7 minutes later we were dressed and packed and on our way. We paid our tab […]
Hurghada
Anna and I took the bus from Krakow to Katowice. It was a crappy thing but there were only three of us so there was plenty of room to stretch out. The driver was a compulsive lane changer. I laughed to myself as we often lost positions compared to other more patient cars. The airport […]
Havana Day 1
We arrived in Havana in the afternoon. This, as you might expect was the highlight of our trip. We had lost time waiting for Fidel and that meant the tour was a little rushed. The bus dropped us off at the Customs House. It looks a bit disused but our local guide, Janko, assured me […]
Vinales
Today Anna and I went separate ways. She took the hop on hop off bus in Havana and I went to fulfill another bucket list item – watching cigars being made. I headed off in the coach with the group in inclement weather and traveled up an expressway for a couple of hours. As we […]
Hasta la victoria siempre
We travelled in the bus for several hours through the Cuban countryside passing sugar, mango trees, paw paw, pineapples, and citrus. Eventually we came to… Australia. No, not that one but a village with the same name. We stopped for a highly promised pina colada. After a brief discussion we found they came without rum. […]
Eduardo Che Guevara
Today we are in Santa Clara and following up on Ernesto “Che” Guevara. When I found that Che just means someone from Argentina I was disappointed. I expected much more. Anyway, El Che made a very big impact on Cuba. He was deeply involved in the revolution and became a […]