Day 10 - November 20th, 2007 - Cairo to Alexandria to Cairo

The overnight train was not too good this time.  Seats were less comfy and broken, was close to the hall area where the smokers went and the toilets were utterly disgusting.  The tracks seem rougher as well.  To make things even more fun, in the first 30 minutes the A/C stopped working and took an hour to fix.  In that process the power was also out so it was quite dark (which might have been a good thing for some).

I managed to half sleep for a few hours at least.  Once the sun came up I too was up.  Ate my food from the breakfast box the hotel had prepared before we left.  Had some cheese, hard egg, roll with strawberry jam and an orange juice drink.  Also got some hot tea from the train staff.

Most the others started to wake up about 2 hours out of Cairo.  Arrived at station and got off train.  Put our bags aside for porters to take to bus and then went out to bus.  Once bags were loaded we got on and went to hotel (The Pharaoh's Hotel again).  At the hotel we waited in lobby while bags were brought in, then went to dining area to wait for room keys.  The meet time for the trip to Alexandria was 10:45 a.m.  Got my room key with just enough time to run my bag up.

We boarded the bus and headed out of town.  The trip was long and not too interesting.  Stopped briefly for a restroom and smoke break.  I went into a little market and bought a can of Pringles (19 Egyptian pounds).  We got fuel and then continued on the highway.

As we arrived in the area of Alexandria it started to get overcast and then rain.  This and really bad traffic caused us to be at least an hour late into town.  We drove through town, saw the coast at the main bay and then drove over to pick up our tour guide.

Our first stop was the Roman era catacomb tombs.  These were in a really old, run down section of town that took quite awhile to get into.  Once there we were told that cameras could not be used :( .  At the gate I found out we cannot even take them in, so had to run back to the bus.  Then had to wait in line behind another large group to get in.  Finally caught up with my group as they were entering the catacombs.  A large spiral stair around a central well took us about 25 feet below ground.  We explored the rock hewn tombs for about 30 minutes while the guide explained how they were made and about some of the discoveries made there.

We left the catacombs and looked at a small tomb in a building above ground.  After this the guide gave us a choice of what to do.  The original tour included the Alexandria Museum.  However, due to the late arrival we would not have much time there.  So for the same cost we went to the Roman amphitheater and saw it and some of the statues brought up from the ruins of the Pharos Lighthouse.  We then went over to the Library of Alexandria and went inside to take some photos and marvel at the wonderful design and feel the essence of all the knowledge.  Went outside to take a few exterior pictures and another of the Mediterranean and bay.

Roman amphitheater in Alexandria.

Library of Alexandria interior.

Boarded the bus and drove to a local restaurant called Latino's.  It had mostly Mexican and American style foods.  Was good.  Spent some time talking to some of the other Aussies in the other group.  I had a caprese salad and mushroom cheeseburger with fries and bottle of water.  Many of the group went over and smoked shisha pipes.  All this smoke in the room was making me dizzy.

When everyone was done we paid our checks and got on the bus back to Cairo.  Hasan, the other tour leader, did a small speech and asked us what the highlight of the trip was for each of us.  Most mentioned various monuments, events we did, or peoples actions at events.  For me the highlight was the country itself.  You cannot pull just one or two items, they all merge with the others to form an even greater thing.

Once back in Cairo we made our way to the hotel.  When I reached the 6th floor where my room was I saw a few of the others from my group out by a room.  Talked to them a bit about Alexandria and then went to my room.

Talked for a bit and crashed.  Slept soundly most the night.