JOIN US ON A LAND AND DIVE EXPLORATION TO EGYPT AND THE RED SEA
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2010
Below, enjoy a few pictures we took on our scouting trip May 2008. We went with a skeptical attitude and came back totally captivated with Egypt, its people, the Red Sea and its diving. We decided it was worth the time and money for us to investigate this dive destination with an eye to first of all finding out if we felt safe and welcome in Egypt; second, we wanted to know if Egyptian land/Nile excursions and Red Sea diving were all they've been cracked up to be. In our opinion, IF you have THE best Egyptian tour company providing top notch security and Egyptology expert guide and escort who is savvy in the ways of the culture so that he smoothly maneuvers you through airports, hotel check ins and ancient ruin exhibitions; AND you are able to book THE best dive operator in the Red Sea area, Egypt and Red Sea is all you've dreamed of and oh, so much more. We've done the maiden voyage to scout out the best Egypt and the Red Sea have to offer so we can provide you with as worry free an Egypt experience as we can make it. Take advantage of our first hand knowledge of this region and join us in 2009 for a trip of a lifetime.
THE NILE - Just saying the word conjures up adrenalin pumping expectation that something exciting and possibly a little dangerous is about to happen. If you are a Miss Marple or Inspector Poirot fan, you'll be intoxicated with your Nile cruise. Once you experience it for yourself, you'll know why so many writers continue to this day to find this part of the world, this river and its surrounding country side full of fascination, mystery and intrigue. We did not have time on our familiarization trip to take the cruise down the Nile to Aswan but we were able to stay land based right on the Nile in Luxor making it possible for us to visit the temples and tombs accessible from Luxor. Our group Nile Cruise will expand the antiquities experience to include more ancient sites on our way to Aswan. The city of Aswan and the Aswan Dam will be areas we'll explore for the first time along with you.
CAIRO AND LUXOR - Two cities everyone should visit no matter where your interests lie. This is the cradle of civilization where people organized themselves to live in harmony and to worship powers they perceived as greater than themselves. I was astounded at the level of sophistication exemplified in everything ancient in Egypt. The design aspects of their clothing, furniture, jewelry and buildings are still copied today in our desire for beautiful surroundings and adornments in our modern cultures. Not only do the temples, tombs and expanse of that desert amaze you in that they are still there, over 7,000 years after recorded history but modern Luxor and Cairo will surprise you also. Want to know how Muslims and Christians work and live together in modern Egypt? Come with us and you can see for yourself. Ancient entrepreneurial trade and modern capitalism are alive and well in the Middle East and at a robust level unknown to us in our own U.S. of A. Spend a few hours in the Cairo Bazaar for a thrill of a lifetime. The Cairo Museum will blow your mind. You can't get the true magnificence of Egyptian artistry until you see it in person. If Egyptian cotton, Egyptian gold and semiprecious stone jewelry reproducing the ancient Egyptian design work, alabaster and papyrus (the first paper known to man) and a 150 year old historic hotel (Shepheard's in Cairo) that exudes a bygone era of elegance and exotic intrigue are the stuff that float your boat, you will fall in love with these two cities.
THE RED SEA - A Dive destination at the top of every diver's "Must Dive" list. Can you imagine diving the waters that Moses (allegedly) parted? It gives me shivers just to think about it. The diving is obviously world class. Fish life and color abound. As is expected with any body of water that offers a diverse abundance of sea life, diving conditions can vary from very easy to challenging and that just adds to the excitement of Red Sea diving and the liveaboard dive experience. Andy found the Red Sea a little too cool to his liking in early May. Consequently, we decided to charter our dive cruise during the last week in September when the Red Sea will be nice and warm. We enjoyed relatively smooth waters for our dive cruise but the Red Sea is huge, not some little pond and the vessel can rock some during crossings which are usually done at night. Once you get your sea legs and always hold on to the railings when going up and down stairs, we had a very enjoyable and exciting dive cruise experience. Land based diving at the Red Sea, just like land based diving at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia or Palau in Micronesia is, in our opinion, a waste of time and money. For those of us living in the U.S. to travel half way around the world to dive these destinations, we want the best diving we can get and that is from a liveaboard dive vessel. Below is a picture of Andy on the "Elite" which is the top of the line dive yacht in the Emperor Divers fleet. We are currently evaluating the pros and cons of choosing a dive vessel within the fleet that offers THE best dive itinerary yet does not cost an arm and a leg. Anyone who has ever traveled with us knows that safety and comfort are very important to us, especially when using a live-aboard dive vessel. But, luxury? Hmm. Given the current economic situation, we feel our dive travel team members contemplating joining us on this trip in 2010 will appreciate our efforts to control costs as much as possible without compromising on the important stuff. Details will be available shortly on the Red Sea trip information page.
