Ciao ♥ At the beginning of this month I managed to
escape the constant hustle and bustle of London life to the serenity of Sharm
El Sheikh, Egypt. I went away for just under two weeks with one of my closest childhood friends. As it was her first girls' holiday we really wanted to make the most of our time away together by exploring and taking on as many excursions as possible.
All of ours were booked via
Sharm Excursions prior to flying out. This site offers a range of excursions at affordable
prices which work out to be a lot cheaper than those prices offered in Egypt. Better yet, at checkout you’re only required to pay a 10% deposit as the remainder of the cost will be collected upon your arrival. This is a great benefit for those who are slightly weary about making a payment with a site they’re not familiar with.
Our first excursion took place in the desert on the outskirts of Sharm and consisted of camel riding, dinner with a Bedouin tribe and star gazing. Despite doing this excursion the last time I was in Egypt, I just had to do it again as it's such a fun experience.
Our next excursion was a trip to Cairo which, as you can imagine, is bustling with character and has a history so rich it’s hard not to feel overwhelmed. Our first visit was to The Egyptian Museum which was
absolutely phenomenal and my favourite part of my trip to Cairo. Yes! Even more than the pyramids. I was in awe of the many different artifacts which are more than a thousand years old. You wouldn't dare think it as they're in immaculate condition and preserved exceptionally well. My favourite part of the museum has to be the section displaying an array of mummified animals, including a crocodile the length of a double-decker bus, if not longer. Amazing, right? Unfortunately, I'm unable to show you guys any of this as you're not allowed to take photos inside of the museum (wah!). Here I am in the museum's garden...
After visiting the museum we then had a boat ride along the River Nile before stopping off for some lunch.
After filling up our bellies it was finally time to pay the magnificent pyramids a visit.
For our final excursion we went quad biking in the desert.
On two separate occasions we managed to drag ourselves away from the hotel's pool and head into town to visit the old market. The old market is flowing with merchants sitting on stools as they smoke tobacco and sip on glasses of hot chai, infused with mint. Handmade jewellery of a wooden and mother of pearl composition can be found dangling from metal fixtures affixed to shop windows and doors. Stray, lounging cats take refuge during the hottest hours of the day as the sun beams down, unforgiveable to those who dare get in its way.
I put my haggling skills to good use as I bought a ton of souvenirs for a fraction of the original asking price. This was helped massively by the fact that I can speak some Arabic and wouldn’t take no for an answer. Trust me, haggling is my thang. One shop owner even called me ‘big mafia’ as I refused to back down. LOL! I rest my case.
Some funny-ish things to expect when in Egypt:
- Taxi drivers transporting you to your chosen destination at a speed of 80-100mph.
- The constant honking of car horns for no apparent
reason.
- Camels parked up at the side of the road.
- Merchants mimicking English expressions (i.e. lovely jubbly, cheap as chips and etc.).
- Being offered herds of animals as a dowry for marriage (I was offered 50 cows LOL)
If you want to see some more of my photos from Egypt then make sure you follow me on
Instagram. Also, do let me know if any of you guys went away this summer? If so, where to? :)
Ciao ♥ Xx
