Around 2:50 PM yesterday afternoon, we had the pleasure of reuniting with Auntie and Grandma.
It was an exciting reunion...especially for Princess. After almost 8 months of being apart from her beloved Auntie, we were unsure as to how she would react. Would she be shy?? Would she be her normal exuberant self?? Or, would she exhibit some other unusual behaviour??
Immediately I realized, that time apart does not matter. Her Auntie and Grandma are still, her Auntie and Grandma and she ran up to them so fast...she gave them the biggest hugs and kisses. It was a special tear filled moment for most involved.
Then we waited...
We could not find our driver, and Hubby had left his phone in the car so we could not call him. We had to just wait. We discussed the flight in...Grandma and Auntie were tired. We were determined to keep them up for the rest of the day to help them get used to the time change.
They did great and stayed up past 9 PM!
After a good night`s rest, we decided that today we would head down to Tahrir Square and to the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities. We took a taxi through the gridlock to the Square and wandered around the museum for a couple hours. The museum is so massive and there is a lot of stuff in there. It really is quite magnificent. The most amazing thing about the museum is that almost all of the artifacts are not roped off or in cases. Most of it you can walk right up to and touch...or in the case of Princess, try to climb it. Touching is strongly forbidden...so you can imagine the reaction when Princess tried to climb it. Hilarious.
Although the museum is magnificent, it is difficult to navigate. The museum was hit by a riot during the revolution and many of the placards explaining what everything is are missing. The interest level is always higher when you know which king, ruler, or pharaoh the items belonged to, or where they were found.
I always find mummies fascinating. That is always my favorite corridor any time that we go to the museum. They are still in great shape. The ones with portraits painted on them make it seem even more realistic and fascinating. The sarcophagi and coffins are also fascinating parts of the museum.
And then, there is the entire room devoted to King Tut. Immaculate. Enough said.
After awhile though, everything starts to look the same, so, we opted to head out and explore the beauty and historical significance of Tahrir Square.
Everyone knows the story behind Tahrir Square. Just over one year ago, the international news stations had never ending coverage on the Revolution. Today, we walked over there. It was actually my first time. Hubby, Grandma and Auntie walked right into the middle of the square for some photo ops while Princess and I stayed in the restaurant and people watched the guys with the cigarette boxes for hats.
Then, the real adventure began. We introduced Grandma and Auntie to the Metro.
We have been on the Metro here before, and it was great. It is a fast way to get from point A to point B,
and, it only costs 17 cents. Today, the Metro was packed. Grandma and Auntie got a first hand glimpse as to how you have to be pushy to get where you need to be sometimes in Egypt. They also got to experience how helpful and kind Egyptians are. We managed to get onto the train, and, just when we thought it was full, another 10 men squeezed themselves into the train car. It was really squishy...think clown car. For Grandma, who does not really like crowds and tight spaces, she rocked it out like a champ. It was helpful that the next stop is where half the train car got out. We then enjoyed a relatively uneventful trip the rest of the way to Maadi.
It is hot here now. Hovering around 34 degrees in the afternoon, very quickly you can overheat. It is always nice to get home to the A/C and have a rest from the sun and blazing temperatures.
The rest of the evening will be for relaxing and enjoying each others company. Tomorrow, we head to the pyramids...3rd time for Hubby, 2nd time for me and 1st time for Auntie and Grandma. Watch out camels, here we come!
Enjoy the pictures from day one of Auntie and Grandma in Cairo!
It was an exciting reunion...especially for Princess. After almost 8 months of being apart from her beloved Auntie, we were unsure as to how she would react. Would she be shy?? Would she be her normal exuberant self?? Or, would she exhibit some other unusual behaviour??
Immediately I realized, that time apart does not matter. Her Auntie and Grandma are still, her Auntie and Grandma and she ran up to them so fast...she gave them the biggest hugs and kisses. It was a special tear filled moment for most involved.
Then we waited...
We could not find our driver, and Hubby had left his phone in the car so we could not call him. We had to just wait. We discussed the flight in...Grandma and Auntie were tired. We were determined to keep them up for the rest of the day to help them get used to the time change.
They did great and stayed up past 9 PM!
After a good night`s rest, we decided that today we would head down to Tahrir Square and to the Egyptian Museum of Antiquities. We took a taxi through the gridlock to the Square and wandered around the museum for a couple hours. The museum is so massive and there is a lot of stuff in there. It really is quite magnificent. The most amazing thing about the museum is that almost all of the artifacts are not roped off or in cases. Most of it you can walk right up to and touch...or in the case of Princess, try to climb it. Touching is strongly forbidden...so you can imagine the reaction when Princess tried to climb it. Hilarious.
Although the museum is magnificent, it is difficult to navigate. The museum was hit by a riot during the revolution and many of the placards explaining what everything is are missing. The interest level is always higher when you know which king, ruler, or pharaoh the items belonged to, or where they were found.
I always find mummies fascinating. That is always my favorite corridor any time that we go to the museum. They are still in great shape. The ones with portraits painted on them make it seem even more realistic and fascinating. The sarcophagi and coffins are also fascinating parts of the museum.
And then, there is the entire room devoted to King Tut. Immaculate. Enough said.
After awhile though, everything starts to look the same, so, we opted to head out and explore the beauty and historical significance of Tahrir Square.
Everyone knows the story behind Tahrir Square. Just over one year ago, the international news stations had never ending coverage on the Revolution. Today, we walked over there. It was actually my first time. Hubby, Grandma and Auntie walked right into the middle of the square for some photo ops while Princess and I stayed in the restaurant and people watched the guys with the cigarette boxes for hats.
Then, the real adventure began. We introduced Grandma and Auntie to the Metro.
We have been on the Metro here before, and it was great. It is a fast way to get from point A to point B,
and, it only costs 17 cents. Today, the Metro was packed. Grandma and Auntie got a first hand glimpse as to how you have to be pushy to get where you need to be sometimes in Egypt. They also got to experience how helpful and kind Egyptians are. We managed to get onto the train, and, just when we thought it was full, another 10 men squeezed themselves into the train car. It was really squishy...think clown car. For Grandma, who does not really like crowds and tight spaces, she rocked it out like a champ. It was helpful that the next stop is where half the train car got out. We then enjoyed a relatively uneventful trip the rest of the way to Maadi.
It is hot here now. Hovering around 34 degrees in the afternoon, very quickly you can overheat. It is always nice to get home to the A/C and have a rest from the sun and blazing temperatures.
The rest of the evening will be for relaxing and enjoying each others company. Tomorrow, we head to the pyramids...3rd time for Hubby, 2nd time for me and 1st time for Auntie and Grandma. Watch out camels, here we come!
Enjoy the pictures from day one of Auntie and Grandma in Cairo!
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| Auntie at the museum. |
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| Grandma and Auntie in Tahrir Square. |
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| People watching the man with the cigarette box for a hat...whatever keeps you cool! |
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| Walking down Road 9 in Maadi! |
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