Cairo - Egyptian for Chaos

      Since my early school years, when we first were introduced to the famous tales of Ancient Egyptian mythology, I've always been drawn to visiting the country.  It was, in fact, one of the first places I wanted to go when I moved to Europe some five years ago, and yet, my trip to Egypt never got off the ground until last month!

      As is typical with my travels, my itinerary when I left could have easily been mistaken for a blank piece of paper.  I had my flight booked into Cairo, and a flight booked out of Amman.  My assumption was that everything else would just work itself out, it always has in the past!

      The transition from the relative peace on the plane to the chaos of a new environment is always fun.  It's the rush that keeps me rolling around the globe.  Within twenty minutes of landing in Cairo, I was in a taxi fighting for survival on four-lane road.  Sure, we have similar roads at home, but none with scooters zooming past with five people clinging on, nor with Volkswagen Golfs crammed with families of eight, and certainly none with motorbikes going slalom around pedestrians on the sidewalk.  The carnage of traffic in Cairo, my first taste of the madness that fuels this city.

      After a well earned sleep, the next morning I set out for the Giza Pyramids.  I avoiding taking a tour group, and made my own way there.  It was simple, get the metro to Giza, then take a bus.  "Simple" can be a very complex word at times.

      Arriving at Giza, I was confronted with hundreds of minibuses, with the same number of drivers shouting "Harem, Harem".  I knew these were the buses I needed, so I piled into the last seat of a van filled with elderly Egyptians, right next to the sliding door...or at least, where there was meant to be a door.

      The van spun out onto the main road, with me clinging on for dear life by pressing the ceiling to brace myself from falling out! After ten minutes, some we had soon dropped some passengers off, and I got myself a spot in the front seat, with luxuries like a seat-belt and a door now at my disposal.

      I was the only tourist in the van, and soon it was just me and the driver left, and the pyramids in view to the right of us, though alarmingly they were quickly disappearing in the rear-view mirrors.  I pointed to the Pyramids, and he nodded, but we seemed to be going in the wrong direction!

      We soon turned off into a derelict looking neighbourhood, with the Pyramids just still in view.  We drove through some eerily quiet streets, then up a dead-end alley, where four of the shadiest blokes I've ever seen surrounded the van.  There was one word prominent in my head at the time.  That word was "FUCK!".

      The gents surrounding the van tried in vain to sell me camel rides, donkey rides and/or Pyramid tickets, but I steadfast refused.  They then suggested I owed them money as I was in a "forbidden neighbourhood for tourists".  I got out, and walked away, after some terse words.  They kept pestering me and following me, but eventually I managed to shake them.  I was hopelessly lost in quite the dodgy neighbourhood, with locals emerging from their houses to stare every so often.  I could still see the Pyramids over some of the buildings, and soon found my way to the rear entrance of the site, after a good 45 minutes of walking/cursing/walking!

      Ruffled, but not deterred, I bought my ticket, and headed into the Pyramids site, only for a "policeman" to stop me, and take me aside.  "It is forbidden for tourists to come here alone", he said, "you must come with me".  I had already read about this scam, so I declined and walked off.  "COME HERE" he roared, "you must pay the fine", and grabbed my arm.  I asked him for some identification.  He produced some nondescript ID card with Arabic writing only on it, possible a drivers license, or a library card!  "Nice try, but you're wasting my time" I said, and walked off.  He said nothing.

      There is no question, the Pyramids were amazing, despite the experience being somewhat ruined by the lead-up.  The current political climate in Egypt meant there were little tourists, and I had the place to myself.  Well, almost to myself, I still had touts trying to sell me camels and donkey rides, and even a Tourist Police officer pointed at a Pyramid and told me it was "a Pyramid".  He then extended his hand for a "guide fee".  Cheeky bugger!

      After a good several hours hanging in the shadows of the Pyramids, I made my way out, immediately getting swamped by Taxi Drivers, something I'd been dreading following the mornings experiences!

      I soon haggled a good fare, and in no time we were flying at 80km/h on the four-lane road, before the driver slammed on the brakes!  We came to a complete stop, prompting passing vehicles to to aggressively honk horns!

    The driver jumped out of the car, nearly being hit by a scooted, went around to the front of the car, bent down, and then re-emerged with a £5E note (equivalent to 50 pence).  He then jumped back in the car, kissed the note, place into his top pocket, and roared the engine back to 80km/h like nothing at happened.  The drivers eyesight instantly overtook the Pyramids as being THE MOST impressive thing I'd seen all day.

      The next day I decided to explore the Islamic area of Cairo.  I soon got lost in the narrow souks and markets, all selling spices, perfumes, fish, meat, felafels, shisher pipes; all fragrant smells that mixed in with the smell of two-stroke fumes from the passing scooter.  It was busy, but nice in the souks amongst local traders, but that soon changed when I man approached me holding a suspect item!

      The man was holding a turd, and although I'm not expert on faeces, it did appear to be of the human variety!  I quickly gave the man a wide berth and picked up the pace a little, annoyed that the Egypt tourism board hadn't made mentioned of this type of occurrence in any of the postcards I had come across.

      Cairo is as busy as it is dirty, the very definition of chaos.  It has an inner charm, but you have to dig a little to find it.  I was glad to have visited, but equally chuffed to be getting the overnight train the hell away from it as well!  Next stop was Aswan, story for another day perhaps.  Watch this space!

Sunset in Aswan - a far more relaxing climate to Cairo!  Stay tuned....

A Weekend in Iceland

Iceland, a set on Flickr.

Easter in Reykjavik, and all it's wild surroundings.

COMING SOON...

Israel, Jordan and hopefully Palestine, and more stories from the UK!  2012 will also see travels to Russia, the Baltics and plenty more!

Stay tuned, and Merry Christmas.......and I suppose Happy New Year as well.

Amos

Belting About Bruges

The night time canals are, apart from being full of water, also picturesque.

      A weekend out of the London hustle and bustle brought me to Bruges, Belgium.  As I so often come to regret, I caught the bus to Bruges from London, but unlike my previous trips to Amsterdam and Paris, the number of hours on the bus was a single digit figure (six to be exact).

A Boy Band

 Once I had arrived I moved toward the centre of town, from where I would be able to navigate my way to the hostel.  Bruges is an old city, with a very European feel to it, emanating from it's architecture to it's cobbled streets, and to the wafts of open sewers that you consistently walk through unexpectedly.  On arrival to the centre square, and with enough of an appetite to settle for eating the crotch out of a low flying duck, I purchased myself some famous Belgium Frites with Mayonnaise, and sat down to watch some live music and get my bearings.  While the music was great, I was disappointed when my request for some Michael Bolton tracks was shot down.

This tower was built specially for In Bruges

       While the music played, I sat in the shadows of the famous Bruges clock tower, which you may recall was the lead actor in In Bruges.  Just like in the film, there were an array of larger sized American tourists trying their luck with climbing the stairs to reach the top.  I didn't go up myself, owing to the fact that I still held out hope of hearing Michael Bolton, mixed in with the fact that I really could not be arsed.


      I went and checked into my hostel, and, to my horror, was awarded a Top Bunk bed, breaking my 44 hostel streak of getting a bottom bunk bed. Despite my protests, the Hostel manager would not negotiate on bed altitude, and so I begrudgingly made my bed from such lofty heights, and set back out into Bruges for some more sight-seeing type activities

Lot's of empty calories

This is a picture of my left hand.  Apologies the
Waffle is in the way.

BELGIUM

TREATS

This Fall has Niagara beat

     

      No trip to Belgium is complete without the cuisine.  I had already sampled the Frites, and later that evening it was time to hook into a famous Belgium Waffle!  I can confirm that these monstrosities taste like heaven, and luckily for me, my (trendy) beard was able to catch all the cream before it hit my face.  Coincidentally, Belgium is also the source (and sauce) of Belgium Chocolate, and there were no shortage of shops selling the very same product that drives Jenny Craig's profits.  While I didn't try any Chocolates on this trip, I did look longingly into many a shop window...sometimes at the chocolates, and sometimes at my own reflection.

Olives...why did I photograph them...because they are olives.

       One of my favourite parts of travelling, is hanging in the markets.  Here you get a great cross-section of different people, including locals.  Earlier that day, I had had a mini-crisis involving my belt snapping (unrelated to the consumption of the Waffle).  My exploration of the markets was one delicate balancing act, as I focused on keeping my pants from falling down, whilst trying to locate a bargain belt store.  Finally I located the finest/cheapest belt stand in Bruges, and negotiated a deal in which I would swap cash for the belt.  He agreed to this novel deal, and I was off, basking in the glory of having pants that stayed up on their own.

A Windmill.  (Also grass and trees)

       With my belt issues now well behind me, I ventured to the outskirts of Bruges, where I was faced with some type of a Windmill device.  These contraptions are quite famous in Belgium and particularly Holland, where they are used to blow away the smell of marijuana from the cities and towns. 

A Mouthful

     
    After admiring the Windmill for a full three minutes, I began cruising around the canals.  These meander all about Bruges, and it wasn't long before I was completely lost.  Luckily getting lost is the best mechanism for sight-seeing.  While I decided which way I should go, I partook in the consumption of a Belgium Beer at a near-by bar, where, to my immediate excitement, they played Go The Distance by Michael Bolton.  It was at this very moment that I realised how much Michael Bolton sucked, and was grateful for having had my request rejected on my first day in Bruges.

Bruges by Night

Money Shot

BRUGES AT NIGHT IS PRETTY SWEET

      
A weekend is plenty in Bruges.  It is very small, and you soon get sick of tripping over tourists.  In a way, Bruges only survives for it's tourists, every shop seems to sell souvenirs, rather than local goods.  Still there is no doubting it is a pleasant place to be, and it possesses four key culinary items, Beer, Frites, Mussels and Waffles (not strictly in that order).

      I still swear by Eastern Europe, but Bruges is definitely worth a six hour bus ride from London, even if it is just to reinforce how shit Michael Bolton is.

Prestigious Paris - A Habit worth Having!

A Cheeky Tourist Shot

        

      As one of the most alluring cities in the world, Paris holds a special place in many peoples hearts.  It is one of the first places people want to visit when making the big scary foray into exploring the world, and a return trip will never disappoint.  There is a magic about Paris that one cannot quite comprehend.  Like most cities, Paris is a metropolis built from masses of concrete, choked by incredible traffic, and chaos, as people dart in all directions!  Not really obscure characteristics that sets Paris apart from elsewhere?   You need to scratch beneath the surface to find the Parisian beat.  Is it the history of the city, or the culture, or even the arrogance of it?  Whichever it may be, Paris seems to just glide through life as smoothly as the boats cruise down the river Seine, a river with so much history clinging to its banks, pictures of which fill up many an SD card, as the tourists flow through day in and day out.

          I took a trip to Paris for a weekend in April.  It was my third visit to Paris.  Many people won’t see value in visiting the same city twice, but without the pressure of having to see all the attractions, I was able to simply just enjoy the city for what it was.  Many people’s experiences of a foreign environment are defined from swinging from one Lonely Planet suggestion to another!  This is fair enough, people want to see as much as they can, but you can miss out on experiencing the real heart-beat of a city, one that isn’t within earshot of American accents!  This time, my experience in Paris was deeply enhanced by not having to worry about seeing the Eiffel Tower (although I did get a cheeky photo in!), but just chilling out and soaking it all in, as Parisian’s seem to do well. 

Mixing in with the locals at a Farmers Market

One of the greatest attractions any city has to offer, are the people.  This time in Paris, I spent more time observing people, than looking at funny shaped buildings!  People-Watching is perhaps one of the most interesting things to do in Paris.  I watched the Gypsy’s try their array of scams on many unsuspecting tourists, I watched hordes of Africans trying to sell Eiffel Tower key-rings, I watched men and women sitting at cafes watching the world go by, and I watched my wallet quickly enter a drought the more time I spent in Paris!

They sell cheese in France

They also sell bread

                                                                                                                                                                                                               A weekend isn't long, but it is plenty of time to get out there and get a good feel for a city.  The highlight was buying baguettes, cheese, ham and wine from a local farmers market, and heading up to Sacre Le Cour to watch the sunset.  If you are going to visit Paris, this is a must!  Hundreds of people sit on the grassy knoll under Sacre Le Cour, drinking wine, eating, playing guitar, singing, fire twirling, playing football, juggling and dancing!  The atmosphere is nothing short of amazing, relaxed, friendly, chilled out and most importantly, fun!  Coupled with a few short visits to some local bars, it was sufficient enough to be labeled a “kickarse Saturday night”…a ranking not given out willy nilly!  

It gets wild after the sun goes down at Sacre Le Cour!

On the Sacre Le Cour Grassy Knoll

         

                 Sunday morning started off in another Patisserie, a breakfast haul of croissants and coffee getting the eyelids well and truly open for business.  The farmers market again provided us with fresh baguettes and cheese and ham, and we set off to Versailles for a day trip!   

Palace of Versailles

One of the many fountains in the Palace Grounds

Versailles is just 40 minutes from Paris, but a completely contrasting place.  There is space, calm and a 2.25% reduction in the amount of car horns you will hear.  The main attraction in Versailles is the palace.  Once in the grounds, we were surrounded with perfectly manicured gardens, intricate water features and a grand Palace that would rival the Collingwood Estate flats for striking beauty (by about 1,000,000,000,023%).  We grabbed a patch of grass, and set about devouring the products purchased from the farmers market, in the company of classical music through the PA system, and views surrounding us of the grounds.  We felt very regal, but then we were eating peasant style ham and cheese baguettes; the irony was not lost. 

Our Peasant Lunch (Farmer Market Special)

Versailles is certainly worth the trip out of Paris, if not just for a point of contrast.  Wondering around the Palace gardens, grabbing a row-boat for the lake and eating an ice-cream, only for it to dribble on your top, are all key aspects of a successful day out in Versailles

       It was back to Paris after a day in Versailles, just in time for my night bus back to London.  In two days, I chilled out in Paris, perused various farmers markets, hung out at Sacre Le Cour, drank with locals at some hip bars, grazed at an array of Patisserie's and loitered at the Palace of Versailles.   Paris is a special place, which offers a lot to any traveller, whether it is your first visit or last visit.  What are some of your experiences in Paris?

Try stay clear of the American Tourist Set

Nothing More Paris than the River Side Markets