Pyramids. Camels. Ancient artifacts. Mystical hieroglyphics. The magical Nile River…Singles Travel International led a small group to the wonderful country of Egypt to experience these incredible sites first-hand, and it’s safe to say that this 10-day journey was a dream come true for each of us!

Our first impression (after the traffic from the airport to our hotel) was the incredible up-close view of the Pyramids of Giza from our hotel! Imagine having a sunset cocktail with the Great Pyramid as a backdrop? We all kept commenting on how surreal it was!

During our 5 days in Cairo, we visited both the Museum of Civilization and the Egyptian Museum, which houses the largest collection of Pharaonic antiquities dating from the Predynastic Period to the Greco-Roman Era. Of course, we also visited the Pyramids of Giza, Djoser’s Step Pyramid complex in Saqqara, the Mosque of Muhammad Ali Pasha, the Church of the Virgin Mary, the Cave Church, the Floating Church, and the Fortress of Babylon.

Our intimate group and our private Egyptologist, Rabie, then flew from Cairo to Luxor, where we would embark upon our Nile River cruise and see, truly, some of the world’s most impressive archaeological sites! To have gone to the Valley of the King and the Valley of the Queens, and to have walked inside of tombs, such as the tomb of Tut Ankh Amun and Ramses III – words almost cannot describe the feeling!

To avoid the heat, our group went one early evening to the Temple of Luxor. It is here at this twilight hour that the site felt almost mystical. The impressive Luxor Temple was the largest and most significant religious center in ancient Egypt. The impressive colossal statues of Ramses II are what first stop your breath!

Cruising peacefully on the Nile, aboard a lovely ship called the MS Farah, we were able to see so many sites that we had only dreamt about. Having an Egyptologist traveling with us made the trip an A+. Rabie was with us throughout to tell us the fascinating history, answer our questions, and pique our interest about ideas we had never contemplated.

These 10 days, set amongst a backdrop of ancient history, brought our current realities into perspective – while also opening up many more questions that hopefully we’ll be able to explore some more with another Singles Travel International trip to Egypt in the future!