Simply impressive. Copyright CareerBreakSecrets.com

Getting to Abu Simbel seems a little daunting. But, it’s not. Base yourself in Aswan and then sign up for the daily tour that leaves early in the morning. After a 3 hour ride, you have a couple of hours to visit this impressive landmark. The monuments don’t sit on their original site. When a dam was planned for the region, the Egyptian government had to move the entire site so as not to be flooded once the dam was completed. It’s a good thing they did too. These massive sculptures welcome you to the main entrance. I spent a good deal of time trying to figure out how they moved it without damaging it and without you being able to see a thousands cracks. Abu Simbel is a a suh-weet engineering feat and a great place to get this week’s Suh-Weet Shot.

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Stone Gods of Abu Simbel is a post from: Career Break Secrets: Travel show, independent travel blog and advice for career breaks and around the world travel adventures

Another lazy day on the Nile comes to a close. Copyright CareerBreakSecrets.com

By day, travel in Egypt can be overwhelming: the heat, the amount of people, the noise, the crazy traffic, the hassling for baksheesh (tips) for even the most mundane task. It’s enough to wear out even the most intense road warrior. But, then there are moments and places that center you once again. Seeing the sun set over the Nile is one of those. I got this on a felucca ride up the Nile. It was the same trip where I showed you the full moon over the Nile. It was a suh-weet ride where I got today’s Suh-Weet Shot.

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Sunset Over the Nile is a post from: Career Break Secrets: Travel show, independent travel blog and advice for career breaks and around the world travel adventures

This profile is how most people see the Sphynx. Copyright CareerBreakSecrets.com

As impressive as the Sphinx is, the visit to see it isn’t exactly the most enjoyable during a trip to Egypt. Even in September, when I was there, the place was overly packed with people. But, once you get to a spot without people in front of you, you get the chance to admire this infamous landmark. The main viewing platform is, oddly enough, on the side of the Sphinx, not in front of it. In fact, the photos I have from the front are pretty crappy. But, I was able to find a nice position to get the nearby pyramid in the photo and wind up with a pretty Suh-Weet Shot.

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Profile of the Sphinx On a Clear Day is a post from: Career Break Secrets: Travel show, independent travel blog and advice for career breaks and around the world travel adventures

Need a ride? Copyright CareerBreakSecrets.com

Visiting the pyramids in Giza is a must while traveling to Egypt.  It’s on everyone’s itinerary. No surprise there. Most of the desert seems cut off from anything or anyone not related to the tourist trade. And, getting an original shot is difficult. As we were walking around, this guy riding his camel caught my eye. He happened to pass by one of the pyramids just as I got my camera in position allowing me to capture this week’s Suh-Weet Shot.

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Camel Crossing in Front of Giza Pyramid is a post from: Career Break Secrets: Travel show, independent travel blog and advice for career breaks and around the world travel adventures

 By far the best part of my trip to Egypt was the three-day felucca ride up the Nile from Aswan to Luxor. There were 5 of us on our felucca: me, my friend Zoe, and 3 guides/boatsman. I thought we got lucky by being on the Nile during a full moon. But, Zoe told me later that she had planned for us to be on the Nile so we could have that as part of our experience. During the day, several large cruise boats passed us by. But, at night, it was quiet with only the stars and the moon around. It was a suh-weet experience and I got lucky enough to capture this Suh-Weet shot!

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Full Moon View From Nile River is a post from: Career Break Secrets: Travel show, independent travel blog and advice for career breaks and around the world travel adventures

Is the sun rising or setting on Egypt's future? Copyright CareerBreakSecrets.com

We arrived at the airport in Luxor so we could catch our flight back to Cairo for two final days in Egypt. It had been a long 10 days up to this point. Almost everything about the country overwhelmed me, and I was not looking forward to returning back into the middle of it. Four days in crazy Cairo upon arrival almost had me packing to leave right away. The crowds, the pestering for goods and services I neither needed nor wanted, the lack of any real connection to the people I was meeting and let’s not forget Egypt’s infamous expectations of backsheesh for even the most mundane task.

I had dealt with most of these things before in other countries. But, in Egypt, it was different. Here it was more than an minor annoyance. Here it was depressing.  As I watched people going about their daily lives, there was a sadness in their face that I had never come across before. There was a desperation in the air thicker than the humid pollution visibly blanketing Cairo. I would have chalked it up to daytime hunger induced by the daily Ramadan fast. But, I had just come from Turkey where I never saw people like this.

Streets outside the market in Cairo. Copyright CareerBreakSecrets.com

Beneath the hustle and bustle of Cairo’s busy streets, lay a dark reality: these people had no hope for a better future.  Behind every aggressive vendor at the market, behind every tenacious offer to take my picture at the pyramids, behind every hand asking for backsheesh, was someone desperate to survive.

We took the night train to Aswan, our gateway to see the the fabled Abu Simbel. To go, we had to pack into a convoy in Aswan with police or military escorts. Really? Weren’t we in the middle of the desert? I wasn’t sure if I should be thankful for the escort or concerned about the stability of Egypt.

Abu Simbel. Copyright CareerBreakSecrets.com

Even in this rural part of Egypt, I encountered the same sad faces and desperation. Felucca operators following us down the street, offers for guides to Abu Simbel, and shop owners desperate for us not to leave without a purchase, even shouting at us as we left marked our time in Aswan. And, most sadly for me as a traveler wanting to engage, any real connection that wasn’t based on a financial transaction still eluded me.

We boarded a small felucca to ride up the Nile for three days. It was by far the best part of my trip. It was just my friend, Zoe, and I along with two crew for the felucca and a guide.  All were under 30 and I was anxious to talk to them, get to know them and ask a few questions.

By the second day, our three-man crew relaxed and opened up about their lives and life in Egypt. I had a deck of cards and we spent many an afternoon and evening playing, talking and listening to music played off my iPod and a cheap pair of external speakers. Shakira was particularly popular. It was then that I learned that while she may have been born in Colombia, she was part Lebanese from her father’s side. These guys seemed to take great pride in that fact. Whether it was her beauty, her music or her heritage, these guys loved them some Shakira.  The more Shakira played, the more they relaxed around us and the more they opened up.

One was married, one had a girlfriend and the other was single. All used Facebook, MSN Messenger and were quite internet-savvy. As travelers, we asked them a lot about Egypt, places to see and things to do. They had lots of suggestions and showed great pride in their country. Yet, none of them had traveled internally much. They told us that it was very difficult for Egyptians to travel within their own country, not for financial reasons, but for legal reasons. I don’t remember clearly if they needed a permit. But, if it wasn’t that, it was something very close. The bottom line message from them was easy to remember: taking the train or bus or a car to go across the country just wasn’t done by the average Egyptian.

Full moon over the Nile. Copyright CareerBreakSecrets.com

I had finally made a connection with these three guys. And through that connection, I got context and a bit of understanding of the world around me. They opened up about their frustrations about the government, the police, restrictions on the press and the lack of opportunities for them and their friends to earn a living.  What they were doing at that moment might well be their job for the rest of their lives.

While traveling it can be difficult to process everything you hear and see.  You only see slices of life at points in time.  Maybe the person you talked to had a bad day. Maybe there’s seasonality in the rhythm of life that makes it a better or worse time to be there. Maybe it’s just you, your biases and your filters.

As I watch what’s going on in Egypt right now, I think back to my short period of time with those three young Egyptians. I think about what they told me about their lives. I wonder what they are doing right now. Are they in the middle of it? Or are they staying on the sidelines fearing a crackdown?  Unfortunately, I will never know.  But, whatever happens to Egypt over the next few days and weeks, I hope more than anything for their sake that hope returns to them and the country.

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Is Hope Coming To Egypt: Putting My Trip in Perspective is a post from: Career Break Secrets: Travel show, independent travel blog and advice for career breaks and around the world travel adventures