Cairo, Egypt

i survived Egypt! i didnt fall off the horse or camel (tho the trauma was still there), wasn't caught in any sand storm o stranded in the dessert nor being mummified alive. crap. haha..
i had almost three days in Cairo and covered most of the tourist places.
aight firstly, the currency exchange 1USD = 5.5 Egyptian Pounds (USD widely accepted) weather approx 18-20degree in the day and 8-10degree in the night Muslim country city risk : high, precautions : conman!

DAY 1

Nile River Cruise
An authentic Egyptian buffet dinner in a cruise, entertained with belly dance, performances, Arabic songs and night scenic view along the Nile River. i would say it's similar to the cruise i did with my family in Bangkok few years back, just that the performances by the Egyptians are way much better :)

very 'pah chui' yea? XD

Fare USD17 (usual price approx USD80)

DAY 2

Nicole, colleague's daughter. i miss playing with her!

Egypt Papyrus Museum
This is quite an educational one, more to general knowlegde and alil of History.

How the first paper was made?

Our English word "paper" is derived from the word "papyrus" an Egyptian word which also carries the name of a plant, Papyrus plant. In ancient time, the papyrus plant was taken as a holy/sacred plant by the Egyptians. why? the leaves symbolize the ray of the Holy Sun and has triangular reed which symbolize ancient lower Egypt. the idea of the pyramid structure came from the triangular reed and it represents long live/eternity.


okay.. now, how the first paper was formed from this long, skinny, bushy-on-the-top plant? :D

After harvesting, the outer fibers are peeled away and the core of the stalk and sliced into very thin strips that are as broad as possible

These strips are next soaked in water to remove the sugar content. Next, the strips are pounded and the water drained away, after which they are placed side by side, overlapping slightly. A second set of strips are placed at right angles to the first, again overlapping slightly.

Next, this raw papyrus sheet is pounded once again, and left under a heavy weight (usually a stone slab or a BIG Egyptian woman =p) to dry for approximately six days. The remaining sugar within this concoction seals the strips together. Finally, after drying the surface of the sheet is polished to a smooth finish by rubbing (for example, with a shell or a piece of smooth ivory).

tadaa!

entrance fee : nil, damages : 500 pounds -.-

food for thought : do u know that paper making was not discovered until 40 yrs back by an Egyptian scientist named Dr. Hassan Ragab?

Great Pyramid of Giza
let the pictures do the talking!

hieroglyphic carvings

look, hands off the 'steering'! woohoo

entrance fee + tip + camel & horse rides : 120 pounds
info on Pyramid of Giza available here!

The Egyptian Museum, Cairo


this museum is HUGE! one will need the whole day to see each and every artifact and its history. and the best part is.. *jeng jeng jeng* i get to see a real mummy. yes, mummies! they're superbly creepy, can literally feel numbness on both knees. scary~
want to see one? scroll down..

*pictures temporary unavailable*
hahaha.. not posting it, yet! so hang in there =p

entrance fee museum: 60 pounds, the royal mummy hall: 100 pounds

Khan el-Khalili Bazaar

Tour guide's pay USD10/person with excellent service!

Day 3 - Hibernate + Gym

in short the whole trip was good. missed out the chance to go Alexandria but we're too tired anyway. it's 3 hours drive from Cairo. woooo..

i now have 3 days to rot! *cheers* my next one will be Perth on sunday afternoon. pretty easy flight, followed by one day standby and my annual leave! and d best part, will be seeing JiaChen and gf, Shaun, E447, Rachel, Derrick, Pung, Canice, WeiCheat and Ray for the next few weeks! life's good! :)) cant wait to meet up JiaChen to have my chilli mussels and Vietnamese food!