Holy Land 2019 ~ Pharaohs, Sphinx and Pyramids (DAY 2 ~ CAIRO)

DAY 2 - Touring Egypt, The Land of Ancient Monuments, Pharaohs and Pyramids

First stop is the Giza Pyramid Complex, made up of the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the Pyramid of Khafre and the Pyramid of Menkaure and the Sphinx, arranged according to the Orion constellation.

These pyramids were built from 2600-2500BC and is the last remaining wonders of the ancient world. 

This camel knows his good angles :P

Ram wants to take a pyramid home...

Carved from the bedrock of the Giza plateau is the Sphinx. It has the body of a lion with the head of a king or god. It is said to symbolize strength and wisdom. 

Lunch followed at Aklet Setti a local Egyptian restaurant ~serving authentic Egyptian cuisine.  Food is good and delectable. 

With our Tour Group family ~

After lunch we headed to Sultan Adam, Aromatherapy and Healing Oils 

Adam one of the owners and an Nth Generation Bedouin (Bedouins are known essential oil experts), explained the benefits of essential oils as holistic healing treatment using natural plant extracts to promote physical and emotional well-being.

Many (including me) ended up with bottles of essential oil from his shop.

Essential Oils are quite expensive, so make sure you are getting yours  from genuine sources

(Well, I have been using the mint and narwastu oil I bought; You only need a few drops per use the scent lasts 6-8 hours).

My eyes opened wide with interest, as we stepped in The Egyptian Museum.  

Too bad the new Grand Egyptian Museum is still under construction.  It is described as the largest archaeological museum in the world.  For now, our group has to settle with the Egyptian Museum.

I was amazed the minute we walked through the Egyptian Museum doors.. (just pure awe)!

I could spend a day here (just roaming)... 

Notes: 

• I purposely did not include pictures on mummies as others might find it unpleasant
  
• Pay a visit to the Royal Mummy Room and come face to face at the King Ramses Great.  My husband (also named Ram) was curious at seeing his namesake.  

We ended Day 2 with a Nile River Dinner and Cruise on board Nile Crystal.

We were entertained with Egyptian traditional belly dancing and whirling heritage Tannoura dancing.

The Nile River at night ~ 

The Nile is the longest river in the world. It's name came from the Greek word Neilos, which means valley. The annual flooding of the Nile deposits rich silt (fertile soil) on the river's banks, allowing the Egyptians to grow crops.

Please see also my other posts on our Holy Land Tour:

Holy Land 2019 ~ Dream Come True (DAY 1 ~ CAIRO) 

Holy Land Tips

Follow our DAY 3 - as we head off to Mt Sinai

For questions and inquiries on our Tour Package with CITTI please visit their facebook page at CORPORATE INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL AND TOURS INC

Holy Land 2019 ~ Dream Come True (DAY 1 ~ CAIRO)

A trip to the Holy Land is every devoted Christian's ultimate dream.  

I have dreamt of walking and living the bible too, and was truly blessed as I finally got the chance to visit the Holy Land with my husband.  

We would normally do DIYs, but wanted to make sure everything is perfect and worry free and so we decided to book a planned tour through Corporate International Travel and Tours, Inc. (CITTI). CITTI took care of all the planning and all we had to do was to cherish and live each moment!  

It was a blessing that we were only 20 (including our pilgrim chaplain and CITTI's tour leader) in our tour group, as interaction was on interpersonal level, like an extended family.

DAY 1 - We arrived in Cairo, Egypt via Dubai on Emirates Airline 

Our tour guide in Egypt, Amin was already waiting for us when we cleared immigrations. 
Amin is a zealous guide and wasted no time.  We found ourselves onboard a bus towards our first destination.

Our first order of business is lunch ~

Amin brought us to Armando, Heliopolis Branch (located very near the Cairo Airport).  Food is good, but I think was more Italian.  I was looking forward to a more authentic Egyptian cuisine (for a first taste of Egypt).

 


The Church of Mary (also known as the Hanging Church, as it was built on the ruins of two towers of the old Roman fortress of Babylon). This church became the seat of the coptic patriarch for several decades up until the 14th century.

The Church seems to mimic the shape of Noah's ark (check the ceiling, which looks like an upside down ark).

This impressive art piece is a mosaic. 

If you look closely at the top most picture below, you would see that the new church floor (where we are standing) sets on logs and layers of stone constructed above two towers. 

The Church's ceiling mimics an inverted Noah's ark.

  

In the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 2:13–23), soon after birth of Jesus, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream telling him to flee to Egypt with Mary and the infant Jesus since King Herod would seek the child to kill him.

Matthew 2:15 cites Hosea 11:1, as prophetically fulfilled in the return of Joseph, Mary and Jesus from Egypt: "...and out of Egypt, I called My SON".

Mapping out the journey of the Holy Family through Egypt.

The Church of Mary was constructed on Roman towers similar to the ones shown here...

From the Church of Mary, we walked to oldest church inside Coptic Cairo's walls (said to be built in the 11th century with 4th-century pillars) ~ The Church of St. Sergius and Bacchus (Roman soldiers who were martyred in Syria for their Christian faith in AD 296). 

The Church was built over The Cave of the Holy Family, where Joseph, Mary and Jesus are said to have taken shelter after fleeing to Egypt to escape persecution from King Herod.

Steps leading to the Cave of the Holy Family...

Follow our DAY 2 - as we tour the land of ancient monuments, pharaohs and pyramids.  >>> click here: DAY 2


Please check also my separate post on all the hotels we've stayed at during our tour of the Holy Land.  


For Holy Land helpful tips to help you plan, your Holy Land  journey please follow this link >>> HOLY LAND TIPS

For questions and inquiries on our Tour Package with CITTI please visit their facebook page at CORPORATE INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL AND TOURS INC

Holy Land Travel Tips

I noticed that there is a lack of travel tips for Holy Land travels, hence this short list of tips that hopefully will be helpful to those planning to take on this extraordinary experience:

1. First and foremost, remember that you are a pilgrim; You are a traveler who is on a journey to a holy place of special significance to your religious belief.  
2. Prepare yourself mentally and spiritually; Read the bible, learn about the places and individuals in the bible ~ go online, watch Youtube or download a mobile application; I found wonderful bible map (Bible Maps 1.3.0).  It was quite helpful in making me understand the significance of the different places we've visited.
3. Don't wait until you are too old to travel to the Holy Land. The pilgrimage involves plenty of uphill/downhill walks; Some of the people in our group had to bail out on most of the walking tours.  
4. Travel light; Your luggage should just be enough for you to tag along, especially if you are crossing borders; Note: Travel to the Holy Land involves transferring hotels. In our 14 days Holy Land Tour (Egypt-Israel-Jordan), we stayed in a total of seven (7) hotels.
5. Be conscious of your luggage allowance. Certain airlines are quite strict on luggage weight and sizes.     
6. Always keep a day bag with you for valuables (passport and wallet), mobile phone, sunscreen, sun hat, shades, foldable fan, for women a shawl will come in very useful.
7. Get a WIFI to stay connected; The one we had though does not have very good signal. There are public WIFI is the airports, tour bus and most hotels and restaurants.
8. You don't need to buy Jordanian Dinar (JDN), Egyptian Pound (EGP) or New Israeli Shekel (NIS).  You can use US Dollars (USD) to buy almost anything in Jordan, Egypt and Israel, however change might be using local currencies. It would be wise to have your big USD bills changed to smaller bills of 1s, 5, 10s and 20s.  We got most of our loose bills at Dubai airport duty free shop.  We bought small items and specifically requested change in loose bills,     
9. Bring lots of 1 USDs, for paying for restrooms (they call Water Closet), tipping and gratuities.  
10. On souvenir and "pasalubong" remember that you can always bargain;  Prices vary greatly (though you have to be mindful of the quality).  Our best buys: 
• Rosaries - the cheapest we got at Cana (3 sets of 12 for USD20); while the most expensive we got at Mt Sinai (6pcs for USD60, the Mt Sinai rosaries though were made of metal with Holy Land sand and very sturdy); 
• Holy Land Book - we got ours from a souvenir shop at USD16, however we were offered the same book (with CD) at Gethsemane for USD15;
• Wine at Cana should not be missed!  My husband bought two (2) age 21 wine at USD40; Cost of regular wine is at USD15. 
• Dates - your guide will tell you, theirs is the best dates.  I have tried them in Egypt, Israel and Jordan, but got ours at a souvenir shop at the Israel-Jordan Allenby border.  They were bigger than most we've tasted and not very sweet, but also more expensive at USD10 (big box). Some of our tour group though were able to get cheap dates at a supermarket in Jordan for about JDN 3 (USD 1.4/JDN).
• We also bought Essence Oil in Egpyt, they were quite costly at USD100 per 250ml bottle. 
  
11. If you are going to the Dead Sea, bring aqua shoes.  It is very slippery, I have seen people tumble and loose their balance alot.  I was just so happy I have my water shoes on!
12. Bring toothbrush and tootpaste; They don't have these in hotels. 
13. Expect cumin spice in your food; If you are not into this taste, I suggest you bring noodles, biscuits or canned/bottled food with you (or die of hunger).
14. Bring lots of small and medium size ziplock, useful for pack snacks from your breakfast plate (please do discretely, you may find some hotel staff may frown on this activity) to keep you full during long walks or when your next meal is not up to your palate.   
15. DIY or  Organized tour ~ We went for an Organized tour as this is our first time to visit the Holy Land, but I think a DIY is possible especially in Israel. To get the most out your Holy Land travel ensure to get experience guides. Our Israeli tour guides, Alex and Abud were extraordinary and very helpful.  Highly commendable.
• Alex Radiev (fb: Alex Radiev)
• Abood Safar (email: safar.abood@gmail.com; fb: Abdo Safar)

Remember to follow my blog, for more details of our Holy Land Travel. 

Will post more tips by attractions, which hopefully help make your Holy Land Travel preparation easier. 

Daddy's 76th Birthday at Richmonde Hotel Eastwood

We recently booked three (3) suites at Eastwood Richmonde Hotel to celebrate Daddy's 76th Birthday.  We've chosen Richmonde Hotel for one reason, its direct access to malls and restaurants (loosely translated,  plenty of things to do and minimal walking for my senior parents who hate long walks).

We booked two (2) deluxe rooms  (one for my parents and  one for my sister and her family) and a one (1) bedroom suite pre-paid through Agoda.

I was a bit skeptic at my decision to book here, after reading I have read online reviews.  Primary concerns of most guests is the outdated furnishings.  Which is the least priority in my checklist as we were more concerned of location.

We checked-in easy.   There were not much guests though when we arrived, so I am not sure if the same can be said otherwise.

We got a room next to my parent, but my sister was located eight (8) floors higher.  We were a bit disappointing as we've specified during booking that we want to be located in just one (1) floor.  Another letdown was the lack of a congratulatory cake to welcome our celebrant.  Other hotels, would have given even a cup cake for show.

Our room is of the right size and was able to accommodate an extra-bed I requested set up.  True to other reviews our room was indeed slightly outworn, but fixture were still in good working condition.

After freshening up, we finally got to explore Eastwood Mall.

Ground map of Eastwood Richmonde Hotel can be found in the hotel guide ~

Almost Christmas :P

Instagram worthy

Dinner is just a few meters away from the Hotel ~  

Our birthday boy is hungry for Vietnamese cuisine ~ Pho Hoa!

Happy Birthday Daddy :P

Shopping later for your birthday gift ~

Breakfast at the Eastwood Café was included in our package.

Spread was limited, but quality satisfactory,  the bread and desserts were most noteworthy.

The kiddos got to enjoy dip in the pool, before check out.

FINAL VERDICT:

1. Price is reasonable, you get your money's worth.    
2. Food is pleasant.
3. Staff are accommodating and sincerely warm in making us feel welcome.
4. Location is A+, perfect if want love shopping.  The hotel has direct access to Eastwood Mall.   

Eastwood Richmonde Hotel is located at

 17 Orchard Road Eastwood City, Quezon City

For inquiries please contact: 

Tel: (632) 8570-7777 / Email: erh@richmondehotel.com.ph