Today we got off our ship, The AmaDahlia, spent some time touring the Royal Palace in Cairo and after lunch we said goodbye to The Others who have to get up, literally, in the middle of the night to catch their flight from Egypt to Morocco while The Husband and I will get up at a much more reasonable hour and fly to Paris. Thank you to the 1,127 readers in 46 countries that followed me along on this journey.
I’ve been reminded throughout this trip of my life in Türkiye when I was younger. I lived in a tiny village with dirt streets and all my neighbors were Muslim and were always kind to me. Forty years ago there were horse and donkey drawn carriages on the streets and highways; men gathering in chai houses; and the call to prayer five times a day. And today in Egypt it is much the same.
As the U.S. forges ahead with the latest technologies, hottest trends and children who have all they could wish for but still expect more, I have experienced peace in observing this culture. Their faith gives their lives “burbus”(Ahmed).
Some things are hard to see—the desperate poverty, animal abuse and neglect and—especially in Cairo—pollution. I’m still glad we came. I was fearful that we would run into danger or troubles but we have been treated well.
Ahmed and Mohammed the First have been excellent. Of course it is their job to be excellent but I believe they are both genuinely good men. Ahmed, habibi, like the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz, I think I’ll miss you most of all.
We came with friends and those friendships grew dearer. After all I now know who hovers and who is a “contact girl” (IYKYK).
Finally The Others’ individual blog identities came to us on our last night. There is and always will be my principal character The Husband, joined now by Princess, Goat, Spud, Mikey, Captain and Sweetpea. I’ll leave you to identify them.
Yalla, yalla. Time to go.
Photos of our day at the Royal Palace
A Pierman Sister 
Looks like you guys have had a great time, and seen some interesting sites.
I, too, lived in Turkiye about 40 years ago. I was stationed at the Incirlik Air Force base, but I lived off base in the village nearby. I remember the calls to prayer blaring out from a loudspeaker from the nearby prayer tower. I didn’t mind it, except at 5 am, when I was trying to sleep in.
I also remember Ramadan, when kids would rhythmically pound drums up and down the street about an hour or so before dawn, waking people up so they could eat before sunrise. I was so glad when Ramadan was over.
But yes, their life was simpler than ours. As far as happier, I’m not sure. I think that requires more of a spiritual journey, which is available to all of us, regardless of religion or culture.
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Oh my gosh. I was at the village in Incirlik from 82-84 working for Boeing and also civil service for the USAF. We might have been neighbors. How weird is that?
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Well, you were a little earlier than me. I was there from ’86 to ’88. But that is still pretty weird. Small world, as they say.
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Oh, and I was a broadcaster with the Armed Force Radio and Television Service (AFRTS, 😄), by the way.
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Love this connection we now have!
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what made this trip special to me is the people. Whether it was our boulders family, our significant other, our green bus family, our amazing family or our Egypt family, the people were incredible. The thousands of pictures we took will remind us in our old days of our adventures and encounters with others. Thank you all for making this so memorable.
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I took your entire trip (thus far) virtually tonight. What an adventure! I’m glad the eight of you are still friends after so much togetherness. I had wanted to go to Egypt, but now I can’t unsee your description of the public toilets and having to purchase a few sheets of toilet paper from that man. (Do you pay so much per sheet? What if you get in there and haven’t bought enough? I think I’ll have nightmares tonight!) Having second thoughts now about going to Egypt. I love your humor and wish you a fabulous time in your beloved Paris!
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In Paris now and reveling in the fact that I can use tap water to rinse my toothbrush. I’m so glad I went to Egypt. I wouldn’t want to live that way but man, they have such a rich history. Thanks for reading my posts and for the positive feedback. Means a lot. Ps You pay 10 Egyptian pounds which is about $.20 and as for the TP, you get what you get. As my friend said, “not ideal”!
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