Our last
buffet breakfast at the Mena House. Pancakes, scrambled eggs, fruit, tea. We have loved our stay here. Check out. Settle bill for laundry and drinks at the pool. Cost 158.56 LE/$26.64. The staff has been amazing. Assistant manager-Abdaulah Ismael. Karima and Sayeed from housekeeping.
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| Breakfast-Khan El Khalili |
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| Assistant manager of Mena House |
Our pick up is as scheduled-7:00 am. Adel is our driver. I don't believe a guide was with us. We stopped at a truck stop of sorts. I bought some drinks of water and coke for 20 LE. Adel is searching for gas. Gas is hard to come by due to the conflict in Libya where Egypt gets most of its gasoline.
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| Leaving Mena House |
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| Truck stop |
BAHARIYA OASIS. We arrive at 12:00 pm/noon. Greeted by owner of
INTERNATIONAL HOT SPRING HOTEL-Peter Wirth. We sit with him to go over our schedule and it's our first time to partake of dates. Delicious. Dates are among the most important resources for the people of the oases. Date palms are all over. Another important crop in this region is olives which are grown to produce olive oil. Also large areas for the cultivation of cereals, green fodder, onions, bananas, apples, oranges, apricots, and figs. I also buy a book with information on the Oases of Egypt. Our room is #303. It has A/C! Single/twin beds. Mini fridge. Small TV. Bathroom has a small tub. The grounds of the hotel are beautiful. You can smell the perfume from the roses. We have
lunch. Potato/vegetable soup, salad of tomatoes/cucumber/carrots, naan bread, rice, vegetables, chicken with onions/tomato and cooked with tasty spices. Water is what we drink. Because of the heat we find ourselves drinking lots of water. Unpacking I've realized my blue folder with all our travel information is missing. I must have left it in our room at Mena House. Peter calls the hotel and my folder was found and will be at the reception desk in the lobby. We'll pick it up after our White Dessert trip as we return to Cairo.
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Main building
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Hot spring spa/pool
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Building where we had lunch and breakfast
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| Our room #303 |
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| Bathroom |
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| Hotel grounds-lovely aroma of the roses |
BAHARIYA OASIS. The northernmost oasis in Egypt, Bahariya was the hub of the great caravan tracks between the Nile Valley and Libya. In the Western Desert. Four main villages-Bawati, al-Qasr, Mandisha, and Zabw. This afternoon we have a
tour of Bahariya. Our guide/driver is a Bedouin who tells us to call him Humvee. Valley of the Golden Mummies. Discovered in 1996 by famous archaeologist Zahi Hawass. The largest and most important cemetery of this period ever found in Egypt. This discovery made Bahariya famous. The tombs investigated so far have revealed mummies in a perfect state of preservation. We make a stop at the
GOLDEN MUMMIES MUSEUM. Then the tomb of
BANNENTIU. Bannentiu was the son of Zed-Amun-ef-ankh and according to ancient inscriptions had served as both a priest and prophet. Date palms. Driving through town to a large body of water.
AL-MARUN LAKE. Scenic. Then up to a
viewpoint where Humvee makes
tea. It was a pleasant afternoon.
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Date palms
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Al-Marun Lake
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Ruins of the Roman fortress of Qasr Muharib
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Humvee preparing the tea
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Back at the hotel we have
dinner. A cream vegetable soup, salad of tomatoes and cucumbers, rice, beef kabobs, vegetables. A big problem is there are bugs all over the place-on the food, everywhere. We did not eat much. Insect repellant candles should have been there or we should have eaten inside like we did for lunch. I did
soak in the
hot spring tub/spa for a short bit. Water hot and rusty colored!
Tomorrow Humvee picks us up for our overnight experience in the White Desert!
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