Our last night in Luxor ended with a fabulous clay pot dinner at the Hilton Luxor along the Nile. The illumination is of the Valley of the kings as a fitting backdrop to our outdoor dining setting. Food was fantastic with a rice & lentil mix I will recreate at home. Oxtail stew, fish pot, beef in broth and lots of other delicious treats were served.
The next morning began early with a flight to Cairo from where we started our exploration of Islamic Cairo with a visit to Sultan Hassan mosque. home to four madrassa Islamic schools, this ancient mosque dates back to the 14th century when Cairo was the international trading center at the crossroads of the Far East, the orient, and Europe.
Sustenance of the Middle Eastern type was on the menu at Pacha 1901 with fantastic Mezze 🫒 appetizers followed by mousaka and lamb stew on rice and topped of with date strudel and ice cream. From there, we managed to see the Egyptian Museum under Ahmed’s expertise in under two hours.
The building that houses the museum was erected by the French back in 1898 to house all the treasures French expeditions unearthed. Much of the highlights have since been relocated to the Grand Egyptian Museum which was supposed to be open by now. Unfortunately the government has postponed the opening till 2022 just a few weeks before our arrival. Bummer!
Nevertheless, the museum still contains some amazing relics including the black granite statue of Ramses II and Horus where the god Horus is hovering over his head in a way that only lets you see it from the side. From the front, only Ramses is visible – symbolizing that Ramses is god.
Our visit also included the treasure of Tutankhamen as a highlight. Then we transferred to our hotel by the pyramids as a last 3 night stay at legendary Mena house in Giza. Stay tuned for my thanksgiving blog on the pyramids.
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