Alexandria

  Alexandria, Egypt
Tuesday, October 9, 2007

Plan: I am not sure how much time we will have in Alexandria after a full day touring Pyramids, but I would like to think a nice evening walk along the Corniche will be the least we do.
Hotel: http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/alyrn-renaissance-alex andria-hotel/  
(for some reason this link only works if you copy and paste it into a browser.)

Before the drive we stopped at a buffet recommended by Rado to get some food in our stomachs before the long travel to Alexandria (~ 3-4 hours).  Another guide from the company has now met up with us.  He will take over the tour once we reach Siwa since desert treks are his specialty. 

The buffet was alright, but especially after seeing prices it seemed a bit pricey for a buffet and the quality of the food.  It came to 150 LE (~$30 US) for the two of us which is about double of what we expected.  Maybe we paid a premium for eating in front of our guides and driver who are still in the middle of Ramadan. Although we feel a bit guilty eating in the middle of the day, it is a bit too much to ask to get accustomed to the hiking around in the heat without food or water for the entire day. 

Favourite Snack

We stopped about half or three quarters of the way to Alexandira at a small strip mall type place to use the washroom and allow them to wait about 20 more minutes before they could have something to eat. They let us try a few of their favorite things (Some dates and a piece of fresh pita bread made by a lady outside one of the shops in the complex).  Since I love bread it was th best food I had tasted so far.  So good.

We drove the rest of the way and arrived in Alexandria early enough to check into our hotel and still have time to walk along the Corniche (basiaclly a boardwalk that runs along the coast of the Meditteranean.  The strip of hotels range from very old buildings that have been there for many years and also those that are brand new (The new Four Seasons is spectacular but kind of sticks out too much amongst some of the older Romanesque architecture.)  Our hotel felt over the top for just a nights stay in the town.  We had a full suite very similar to a fancy room at either the Sutton Place or Fairmont in Vancouver.  We had a great view of both the city from above to the left and the waves crashing into the beach on the right. After a long walk to check out the scenary it was a very welcoming place to come back and crash as soon as our heads hit the pillow.

- Ben

I am so much further behind... luckily I made good notes, and Ben's comments are great, so I will just fill in some gaps.

The drive to Alexandria made for a very long day... But the car was pretty comfortable, the music was entertaining, and I had a book to read.

Ben mentioned stopping in Master Master, we were relieved that the three gentlemen with us (Rado (guide), Farouk (driver) & Wael (desert guide) would be able to eat and not starve all the way to Alexandria. Ben loved the fresh bread-- I got a classic photo of his face that reminded me a lot of how Linsey looked when enjoying her white bread.

After settling in and dropping off our bags, we hit the streets. I have to say that I have never felt that safe in such a big city... No hasselling, no shadows- but crossing the street was an adventure.

We found an ice cream stand, and went to buy some, but it was hard ice cream rather than packaged bars like we thought... something about the ice cream scoop in gray water turned us off that idea.

I am really surprised that Ben didn't mention seeing an Egyptian in an Avalanche jersey. Who would have thought?

Toes in...

Also, to continue my experience of "dipping my toes" into various bodies of water and made sure to get Ben to take a picture of me standing in the Mediteranian... He wasn't intrested in getting his feet wet and putting socks and shoes back on.

The hotel was very nice-- it was certainly too big for the two of us, but we are on our honeymoon right? What Ben didn't mentioned was the weird lamps that flickered on and off even when they were "off." Ben fell asleep, so I solved it by taking the light bulbs out-- but you better believe I broke one trying to put it back in the next morning...

"Did you use anything from the Mini Bar?"
"Nope, but you are short one light."
-Ash