I didn’t know what to expect when we booked this holiday. I had heard opinions from people who had already been there, but I have long learned that you should never travel with a fixed mindset. You need to experience and see a place through your own eyes and live it through your own soul.

You know, I always research absolutely every place I go to — places to eat, places to visit, what is good and what is not, what you should and shouldn’t do in a given country. Of course, I learned the basic rules for this specific country, but nothing more. For the first time, I completely let go of control because the trip was organized through an agency, and I decided that was enough. The rest we would figure out along the way. This was something very new and different for me. I didn’t even know which airport we would land at. I assumed it would be Cairo Airport, but the adventure began with landing at Sphinx Airport.

There was a certain charm in this journey — letting yourself go with the flow without thinking about a thousand things. You let others guide you, and for you, it is time to fully experience everything. We landed late and unfortunately missed the boat trip on the Nile river. I am sure the experience would have been 100% worth it.

We checked into a hotel, which I had no expectations for, because usually hotels used for one-night stays are nothing special, but I was pleasantly surprised by the level. It was extremely clean and well-maintained, and the biggest surprise was that there was a wedding happening in the hotel that evening, which we were able to observe. It was an interesting experience because our cultures are quite different, and I truly enjoy seeing the differences in how people around the world live and experience events like weddings and celebrations.

The wedding was going very calmly, and we even said it was a bit boring at first, but soon after, the dancing started and it became very lively and fun. That night, there was also a women’s volleyball team in the hotel. The girls started having fun and later joined the wedding. It made a very positive impression on me that they were warmly welcomed even though they were not direct guests. I am sure this would not have happened in Bulgaria. Right then, I started noticing something — Egyptians were very united; even strangers were still connected in some way.

Great Pyramids of Giza and Great Museum of Giza:

The next day, we headed to the Pyramids of Giza and the Museum.

The previous night it had rained, and in the morning it was still raining, which we were told is a very rare occurrence in Egypt. An interesting fact is that most of the cars did not have windshield wipers (probably because it almost never rains there).

When we got out onto the road, I could already see and feel the atmosphere. The traffic is actually quite intense, and I would say it is not for everyone. Honking is very common. Our tour guide said that a car might not have headlights, but it must have a horn. There is also an interesting fact about the headlights, but we will talk about that a bit later.

The museum is truly huge and well protected. History lovers will definitely fall in love with it. We didn’t have much time, so we went through things more quickly, but I can definitely say that if you love history, you can easily spend a whole day there. There are also cafés and places to eat inside the museum where you can rest.

I would need a whole day to explain everything we saw there, but something interesting for me was, for example, the presence of a real mummified crocodile. There were visual explanations of how the bodies of the pharaohs were preserved and how many coffins they were placed in for preservation to happen. And of course, the mask of TutanKhamun. From the museum there is also a very beautiful view of the pyramids, where you can take an “Instagrammable” photo if you wish.

After that, we headed to the Pyramids, which are extremely close to the museum. We were told that soon a train is expected to be built that will take you from the museum to the pyramids, which will be very convenient for tourists.

The pyramids are wonders in themselves that no one has been able to fully explain to this day. It is truly incredible to see something like this in real life. Of course, the whole group discussed theories and how we think they were built. They are truly enormous and majestic — a miracle that must be seen at least once in a lifetime. Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to go inside, but we will definitely do it when we return.

In front of the pyramids, there are of course stalls where you can buy souvenirs, as well as a scarf that a local ties around your head in a special way. You can also ride a camel if you wish.

And here I want to mention something VERY IMPORTANT!

Be careful and only ride a camel if someone from the travel agency has agreed on the price in advance, because there is a very high chance that they will let you get on and then not let you down until you pay more money. For one person, they even let the camel walk off into the desert on its own until they paid extra to get off. Tips and bargaining are very common there. But as fun as it can be, it can also go the other way, and you might end up with a bitter feeling about the whole experience if you are not careful.

---

FUNNY STORY WITH MY CAMEL!

They put us on camels, and first of all, of course, someone from our agency agreed on the price so there wouldn’t be people being randomly left on camels in the desert. Everything was so chaotic because every worker there was shouting: “Go, go, hurry up, get on!” (Overall, I noticed they like shouting, and if you are a very calm and sensitive person, it might even throw you off at first.)

They put us on the camels and we set off. Even from the start, I felt that my camel was not like the others. I was last in the line, and my camel kept trying to “overtake” the others, but since they were tied together, it couldn’t. Then it started pulling at the pants of the girl on the camel in front of me. At first, I found it funny, but things started to escalate, and it began pulling harder and even going toward the girl’s face. We called the handler, who moved me and my camel to the front, holding my camel with one hand and the whole line of camels with the other.

But my camel again started bumping into the one next to it, and I could barely stay balanced on top. It started leaning forward and backward, and I felt like I was on one of those rodeo bulls from city fairs that try to throw you off in every possible way. It was fun at first, but things escalated so much that I had to get off and walk back on foot, because at one point I really couldn’t hold on anymore and thought it would throw me to the ground. Well… I guess we just didn’t match in personality.

Jokes aside, I wasn’t angry or disappointed that this happened. In fact, I felt sorry for the animal, because I can’t imagine how many rounds it does and how many different people it carries every day, and how exhausted it must be. Maybe I wouldn’t ride a camel again, out of respect for the animals.

We also had the opportunity to climb one of the pyramids, although not very high — only as far as allowed, namely the entrance of the Pyramid. If you don’t want to go inside, you can still walk up close to the pyramid itself and feel it from near.

After that we went to see the Great Sphinx of Giza. It is enormous and impressive.

I won’t explain the history of the pyramids, because most of you have probably already read about it and I don’t want to bore you. I am sharing my personal adventure, and as for historical facts — there are plenty of sources where you can learn more.

After the pyramids, the MOST INTERESTING PART was coming up: a 7-HOUR BUS RIDE TO HURGHADA! YAY!

We arrived in Hurghada late in the evening and had to wait quite a while to check into the hotel. After that, there was also an issue with the room, so we actually didn’t go to bed until around 3:00 a.m. The hotel was outside of Hurghada, in an area called Sahl Hasheesh, which translates to “the land of grass,” and everything there was indeed very green and well maintained.

Over the next few days, we had additional excursions that we booked—some through the agency and others directly through the hotel.

And here I can give one piece of ADVICE: booking excursions like safari, boat trips, and diving is much cheaper when you book them through the hotel rather than through the agency, which makes sense since agencies add their own fee.

Boat trip:

Our first excursion was a boat trip. They picked us up from the hotel and took us to the marina. The boat was large, with food and drinks included, and at certain spots, they stopped so anyone who wanted could go snorkeling. Several boats were moving together, and music was playing everywhere—it was really fun. The views were beautiful, but don’t miss the snorkeling, because the real beauty is underwater—colorful fish, corals, jellyfish (which are not dangerous), and all kinds of marine life that you can see completely for free. The boat provides snorkels and goggles, and if you can’t swim, they give you life jackets and floats to hold onto.

At the end, they took us to Orange Beach, where we had free time to relax. The water there was crystal clear, and it’s no coincidence they call it the Egyptian Maldives. The experience was worth it—we met many locals, and it was a lot of fun.

Safari:

The next day, we had a mini excursion—a desert safari. Again, they picked us up with jeeps and took us to the place where the ATVs were. They gave us instructions, showed us how to drive, gave us helmets, and we set off into the desert. The ride itself lasts about 15–20 minutes, and there is time for photos. You can take your own pictures, and there is also a photographer who takes photos the whole time, which you can later buy.

After the ATVs, we also drove UTVs, and then came a really interesting part—visiting a Bedouin village. They took us there by jeep, and along the way our driver played music, we sang, and overall kept a great mood.

In the Bedouin village, there were camels, and everyone could ride them for free, but after my previous experience, I personally skipped that part. Then we saw how the Bedouins live and ate freshly baked bread.

Places like this really make you think about how little a person actually needs and how spoiled and consumer-driven we have become nowadays. It definitely opened a lot of thoughts in my mind.

We drank tea, and they told us stories about the Bedouins. One interesting story was about how they get married. Fuller women are preferred, because the fuller the woman, the more camels are given for her. They literally measure body weight, which may seem strange from our perspective, but those are their traditions. A thin and delicate woman is considered weak and not desirable as a wife.

From there, you can buy herbs or creams made by the Bedouins for various conditions, as well as handmade bags and accessories.

We climbed higher up a hill, where there was an amazing view. After the Bedouin village came the final part of our adventure—dinner and a show. There were different performances, and it was really enjoyable. The food was delicious.

The Safari is not only riding ATVs in the sand – it is a full cultural experience and I highly recommend it.

Mall visit:

For shopping lovers, you can again arrange a car from your hotel to take you to the mall. There you can buy many traditional Egyptian items at much better price – of course if you make a good bargain. I recommend buying face and body cosmetics. There is a huge difference compared to the ones in Europe. They say their medicine is also better. You can buy different flavoured chocolates. I personally took date filled biscuits with white chocolate and strawberry and they were very delicious.

The next day, we took a seaside ride with a golf carts, and with that, our Egyptian adventure came to an end.

The following morning , we headed to Hurghada airport. Security there is very strict. It is forbidden to take out corals and seashells and there are special scanners for that. At the airport you can again buy gifts but prices of course are higher than the local shops. So if you want to do shopping I totally recommend doing it in local shops.

I left Egypt with very positive feelings. At first, you might feel a bit shocked buy the difference in culture, behaviour and communication, but with each passing day, you get used to it and realise that Egypt is actually full of smiling, happy people who, even though are not materially well-off, are simply happy to live life – and they pass that positivity and desire for life to you.

We will definitely return someday, because we didn’t manage to visit Luxor. And we totally want to do it.

Thank you for travelling with me through pages!

Until next time!