One of the things I noticed while in Egypt was "The Package Tour." At several points throughout each week I noticed some of the tourists from the flight,arriving in large groups in their coaches and told they had a very strict time-table to adhere to. They marched around the temples, trying to hear the tour-guide, glancing at the walls. I was glad to be there with a small, tailor-made group, all of us there with a sense of purpose.
To be able to browse, to meditate, to sit down and sketch was a true privilege. As most of us on the trips were healers, we made the most of opportunities to share our respective therapies and gifts. Our own tour guide was excellent, sensitive to our desire to have quiet time in the temples, and happy to answer our questions and provide fuller "lectures" in the hotel.
Due to the heat, we did most of our exploring early in the day, returning to the 4 star hotel for lunch and an afternoon of group-work, and then r&r beside the pool. Darkness fell quickly. Upon realising the sun was about to set, by the time we had readied our cameras it had dipped out of sight completely.
Our evenings were also full, as the town seemed hardly ever asleep. Shops and restaurants stayed open well into the night, as did the museum and the Temples, for the evening Sound And Light shows.
07/02/06 @ 11:45