EGYPT AND JORDAN (Oct 16 to Nov 1, 2018): This past October Norma and I traveled to Egypt and Jordan with our adventurous friends Sue George and Pete Kessler. As we discussed our proposed expedition at length and made plans for our 16 day trip, it was a journey I at first resisted (mostly, Sue and Norma said, "We'll miss you if you don't go."). Some of our friends even thought we had finally gone "Hotel California". Later, as we arrived in Eqypt and traveled from one historic site to another, I began to deeply treasure my experiences as our most capable guide, Sahar Hammad, brought life and understanding to what we saw. Sahar previously worked as a certified Egyptian Archeologist prior to becoming a Tour Manager for Collette. In addition to telling us all about the marvelous places, people, and their history that we visited, she also managed our many daily material needs such as hotel reservations, food, travel, luggage, and security. At each location, she and her assistants always had our passes, rooms, and tickets ready in hand. They also guided us through the check-in process at the airports, which is much more complicated than in the U.S. They did everything possible to make it stress-free for us, which we greatly appreciated. As is often compulsory when visiting enclosed historical places in Egypt, she also assisted us in obtaining the needed but optional "photo passes", which were required before we could use our cameras (and yes, they have camera police to enforce the rules or they will force you to delete any photos you took).
With a group of about 40 people from throughout the U.S. Australia, and Canada, we traveled by land, air, and water. We enjoyed creating new friendships along the way. We consumed lots of bottled water to keep hydrated and avoid digestive problems. And, we cheerfully changed our bus seats each day at Sahar's request so everyone would have an opportunity to sit in the front of the bus. Actually, many of us preferred sitting in the middle or rear of the bus because of Egypt's interesting driving habits. Apparently, traffic lanes, signs, and stop lights are only suggestions. Thank goodness we had great bus drivers.
Some of the folks in our band of intrepid travelers were from Alabama and Mississippi, close to our Pensacola, Florida home. They understood us when we said words like "fixin" and "yonder". We even "adopted" one very nice and beautiful young lady from Ohio and got to know other incredibly nice people from all over! As is always good advice when traveling, Pete and I mostly avoided any "political" talk.
At the end of our tour in Egypt, 13 of our group traveled onward to Jordan, primarily to visit Petra. Our tour guide there, "Steve" Mohammad, showed us another side of tour guiding. More about that later.
I hope you enjoy viewing these photos as much as Norma, Sue, and I did taking them. For best viewing, use an iPad or larger monitor. Click on each photo for largest image size when that feature is available.
Deano Givens
With a group of about 40 people from throughout the U.S. Australia, and Canada, we traveled by land, air, and water. We enjoyed creating new friendships along the way. We consumed lots of bottled water to keep hydrated and avoid digestive problems. And, we cheerfully changed our bus seats each day at Sahar's request so everyone would have an opportunity to sit in the front of the bus. Actually, many of us preferred sitting in the middle or rear of the bus because of Egypt's interesting driving habits. Apparently, traffic lanes, signs, and stop lights are only suggestions. Thank goodness we had great bus drivers.
Some of the folks in our band of intrepid travelers were from Alabama and Mississippi, close to our Pensacola, Florida home. They understood us when we said words like "fixin" and "yonder". We even "adopted" one very nice and beautiful young lady from Ohio and got to know other incredibly nice people from all over! As is always good advice when traveling, Pete and I mostly avoided any "political" talk.
At the end of our tour in Egypt, 13 of our group traveled onward to Jordan, primarily to visit Petra. Our tour guide there, "Steve" Mohammad, showed us another side of tour guiding. More about that later.
I hope you enjoy viewing these photos as much as Norma, Sue, and I did taking them. For best viewing, use an iPad or larger monitor. Click on each photo for largest image size when that feature is available.
Deano Givens
© a Deano production