Happy new year! I just returned from a fabulous three-week tour of Egypt and Jordan. It was a great feeling to walk around and experience the “Cradle of Civilization” in person. Thousands of years ago, powerful empires ruled and built great monuments here. The great religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam arose from this area. I got to get a taste of modern history too, as the world of Middle Eastern politics and the “Arab Spring” unfolds every day.
This trip was a bit different for me because I booked a tour. I usually travel the “do it yourself” way, but a tour of these places made the most sense. The tour operator was G Adventures, a Canadian adventure tour company. I didn’t travel with any friends this time, either. Everyone on my 14-person tour group was a stranger to me. Luckily, they all turned out to be great, interesting people. Now they are my new friends! 🙂
We covered a lot of ground in Egypt and Jordan. We rode buses, overnight trains, 4×4 trucks, sailboats, ferries – also donkeys and camels! You can click on the map above for a link to the tour itinerary.
The trip was a good combination of culture/history, local experience, and hiking outdoors. It’s hard to say what my favorite spot was. Each destination was very unique and interesting.
As you probably know, I will have a ton of photos and thoughts to share. I plan to write blog articles on the following topics:
- The Pyramids of Egypt
- Cairo, Egypt
- Aswan (Egypt)
- Luxor (Egypt)
- Mt. Sinai and the Red Sea (Egypt)
- The Rum Valley and the Bedouin People (Jordan)
- Petra (Jordan)
- Biblical Jordan
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