February 29th - homeward bound and an overview

It was a really early start this morning. Up at 5.30am, breakfast at 6am and airport pick up at 6.45am. Mando from Jolleys was waiting outside the hotel entrance with a mini bus. Even though he wasn't accompanying us to the airport, he had bothered to come and meet us to ensure all was OK. I've been really impressed by his attention to detail and will certainly be using his services next year. 

On the drive to Luxor airport we noticed a flurry of activity. Roads being swept, police everywhere and all in their smarter uniforms. We realised a VIP was due soon. The driver told us that it was the wife of President Sisi. 

We arrived at departures and went through stage one of the security. This is as soon as you enter the building. We went to the check in desks, there was only a short queue.  As we reached the front there was just a couple of people at the desk. Then the computer system went down so that no luggage labels could be printed!  It took about twenty minutes for it to be sorted, then we move on to stage two. 

We had been given departure forms, so there was the mad dash to find somewhere to complete them, forgetting there is an area around the corner! Then we finally went through and up the stairs to departures. 

There are quite a few shops and a large cafe and eating area. The only problem with the duty free shops is that all the goods are priced in US$. If you buy anything with cash then the conversion rate is rubbish. It's not too bad if you use a credit card though. Suffice to say, I went home empty handed!

Stage two security came next, before we moved to the gate lounge. This was even more demanding and thorough. Once through we walked down to the waiting area, but they weren't ready for us. Two security men were carrying a bench to the wrong gate lounge! It took the passengers to tell them the correct one. At this point all electronic items had to be removed from hand luggage and be examined. This took some time, and then the lounge gradually filled with passengers. 

The plane was due to leave at 08.55am. At 08.35am the wheelchair passengers were moved to the front. Everyone else stood up, waiting for boarding. After ten minutes we were all told to sit down. The airport was in lockdown due to the arrival of the President's wife! 

We eventually boarded our plane at 09.25am, after a bus transfer which passed her private jet, next to the VIP lounge. 

The flight was unremarkable, except for the absolutely awful meal. There hauls have been a choice of chicken or beef but most people got given beef. This was a tough as old boots and the bread roll WA just short of being frozen. This has to be the worst meal I've ever had on a plane. 

The IFE is just a drop down screen for every six rows and very poor for a 5-6 hour flight. I was lucky, as I had downloaded films to my iPad mini, my lifeline! In fact, it was this that made my flight seem quite quick, as I watched two excellent films. 

We actually arrived at Heathrow exactly on time. We would have arrived even earlier but we were stacked and had to land at the set time. 

It was a long walk to the baggage reclaim, about 15minites, but most ch of this is on moving walkways so it wasn't too bad. By the time we arrived at the baggage carousel I could see that my case had just appeared so I got it immediately. My companions came soon after so we were well on time for our next flight. 

We had to get from terminal 2 to terminal 5. This involved lifts down to the Heathrow Express for a quick and free journey between the terminals. We went straight to the BA check in to see if we could get on an early flight but it was too tight.  We checked in our luggage, went through the automatic secturity barriers and into the main security area. 

My goodness, what a performance! There were so many people that we realised that we would never have made an earlier flight!

There were different rules depending which person you had. My companion didn't have to remove small devices from their hand luggage for scanning but I did. I was surprised by the lack of consistency. 

We finally ended up in the departure lounge, where we settled ourselves down for a couple of hours before our gate would be announced. I could not believe just how many people there where, everywhere! Finding a seat was a challenge but we managed it. I was so tired I couldn't even bother to walk around the shops. 

Our flight was called and we boarded on time, although we took off late. The BA plane seemed to be very new and was an A319. It was very pleasant, with LED lighting, and very comfortable seats. It was an excellent flight which was over very quickly and so we landed at Manchester, home. 

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My overview of the trip

As usual, I thoroughly enjoyed my trip, travelling around Egypt

What I loved:

The hotels- the Winter Palace Pavillon in Luxor. The location was far better than being at the Sonesta St George. It was so easy to get everywhere from here, especially to the ferry. 

The hotel itself although nic, has become very tired. The Accor group really need to smarten it up as it has a long established reputation to maintain the facade of the palace is flaking off and does not give a good impression. It's talked shabby grandeur a little too far!

My room was lovely, with a king size bed, a fridge and a large TV. However, for a hotel of this standard it should be providing tea and coffee making facilities. Also, it was funny to see the use of ping pong balls as door stops!

The food was generally good. We really just had breakfast each day, eating out at night. However, the egg chef really needs teaching how to make scrambled eggs. I was stunned to see him pour a CUP of milk into a small pan, add a portion of butter from those little containers, then lightly whip two eggs with a fork and throw them in. This resulted in a soggy mess of unmixed eggs, with a clear distinction between cooked white and cooked yolk! Once on the plate they quickly went to liquid. Awful!

Having said this, everything else was just fine. The evening meal was a buffet for 200LE and it wasn't bad when we were too tired to bother going out. It was expensive for what it was but it was convenient. 

The Old Cataract Hotel, Aswan. 

This was truly lovely! It was SO expensive, but I booked it as a special treat. I was not disappointed and only wished that I could have stayed longer. It was luxurious from beginning to end. 

Maybe I'll be able to return one day, but it will certainly remain one of my favourite hotels stays anywhere in the world. 

The New Memnon Hotel, West Bank, Luxor

Well, what a find this was! I booked it on recommendation from an archaeologist that I met on my last trip. I checked it out and it had great reviews so I took a chance and booked it for six nights. I really couldn't have made a better choice. It was clean, bright, comfortable and the owner was brilliant! He looked after us as though we were old friends. He dropped us off at local sites then, after a few hours he phoned to check all was well. 

He has big plans for the hotel and we all wish him every success as he deserves it after all his hard work. 

After we went to Cairo, he phoned to check we had got back safely, even though we weren't even his guests anymore. His devotion to customer service was outstanding. 

The Mena House Hotel, Cairo. 

I love this hotel and always stay there when I visit Cairo. The rooms are lovely and very well appointed. There is even free water, daily, in the room. It's recently been aquired by the Marriott Group and will be gradually refurbished before its relaunch. I hope they don't ruin it!

We ate at the 139 Restaurent, which is very good although the service can be slow. My only real complaint here was the lack of understanding by the reception staff. 

I had booked two rooms, a double for me and a twin for my friends. I explained this at the time of booking, both in writing and on the phone. I also explained this when we checked in, when we were given our keys. However, they still managed to get it wrong. I bought a round of drinks before going to our rooms and so charged it to the wrong room. When realised what the had done I went to reception to change it. Despite being assured that the change had been made, it had not. When we came to pay our respective bills they were both wrong and it took us over twenty minutes to explain and sort it out. During this time they reprinted the bills FOUR times! Not impressed!

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Egypt

Luxor - it looks a lot cleaner than last year but that's probably because the President of China had just visited. We found the best way to get a taxi was to move away from the hotel or use the back entrance. 

The hassle also seems to be less. There were no gigolos on the Corniche asking me if I wanted and Egyptian husband, so that's a definite improvement!  There's still the annoyance that is Luxor souk. They just haven't got a clue. They doesn't seem to realise that their antics actually prevent sales, not encourage it. Next time I might dress differently as an experiment so as to look as though I live there then see how that works!

Aswan

Same applied here. Very little hassle and a lovely place to visit. This is one of my favourite places anywhere and I'd find it hard not to visit when I come to Egypt. 

Cairo

Now this is another matter altogether. It's still disgusting, with rubbish everywhere the canals leaving the city towards Saqqara are really dreadful. There's so much rubbish floating on the surface of the water it is just one complete mass. There embankments are cal so covered and it's awful to see the village people washing their clothes and themselves in the water. 

The city traffic has to be seen to be believed, it's just crazy! There don't seem to be any rules when driving, undertake or overtake, anything goes. They manoeuvre so close that you are convinced the cars will be damaged but amazingly, they don't. 

In fact, the only reason for me to visit Cairo is purely to use it as a base to get to Saqqara. Even a visit to the Khan el Khalili can't change my mind. There are jsut so many people milling around that it becomes unpleasant. 

Overall

Things seem to be improving slowly in Egypt but they have a long way to go in their attitudes before people will want to return. If stalwarts like me find it difficult, there's little hope for the ordinary visitor.  

By attitude I mean those in a position of authority. The security people in Karnak were appalling. Their rudeness was totally uncalled for an unacceptable. They were treating visitors as though they were dirt on their shoes. This must be dealt with immediately. 

The same applies to tour drivers and their expectancy of massive tips for just doing their jobs. 

Then there are the guardians at the tombs who also think they should be paid to open up the tombs. It's not fair on new visitors, who think that this is the norm. 

Having said this, I also came across such acts of kindness, like the owner of the New Memnon and the Inspector at Saqqara. The archaeologists who welcomed us on to their dig sites and gave much of their valuable time to let us see their work. The local tour operator who constantly checked that our arrangements were OK, to the hotel waiters who looked after us. 

It was a trip of vast contrasts, but the end result was a very satisfying experience that will live with us forever!

So, it's goodbye for this year and I hope you'll join me on my next trip in February 2017!