Don't judge...it was a very practical hat

Whenever I travel, the interior designer in me goes too.  That was definitely true on my trip to Egypt awhile back.

It is impossible not to be inspired and dazzled by the bright desert skies, the sheer enormity of the pyramids and the Middle Eastern architecture that has lasted centuries.

While there is nothing that I could add that hasn’t been already written about the pyramids, I can say that I was truly awed by the magnificence and scale.  Simply put, I cannot get my head around the construction; one awesome block at a time by slaves and craftsmen.

Our guide in the pink, Mr. V and I standing together and my sister in law (in blue)

Mr. V is 6'5" and he looks tiny!

All went well until I decided to cross some things off my bucket list.

1) Ride a camel in the Egyptian desert

2) Go into the bowels of an ancient tomb

The look on our guide's face says it all

Camels are ornery and a tad unpredictable by nature.  Camels can get unpleasant when people yell excitedly.  I did, however, love the Egyptian saddle blanket.

Going Down.....

I was initially surprised that my nieces and I were the only ones excited about going into the Great Pyramid of Cheops (Khufu) c.2500 BC.

I got my first taste of claustrophobia while descending into the center of the burial chamber.  I became undone when my mind started chewing on the possiblity of a tomb cave in.

Nothing like the dank, musty darkness to feed the imagination.

I was not inspired to do anything but get out.  Quickly.

World peace begins with two

Ongoing Work on the Aging Beauty- The Sphinx

Magnificent Sphinx

Very Lawrence of Arabia- but in Egypt

Step Pyramid of King Zoser - Sakkara 2700 BC

My Twin Brother among the columns of the Temple of Sakkara

Ramses II at Memphis

Ramses II at Memphis

All about Ramses II

The Bustling City of Cairo and the River Nile

Shopping In the oldest Mall in the World- The Khan el-Khalili Bazaar c. 1382

Our hotel was lovely.  It was a former palace built to accommodate the Empress Eugenie (Mrs. Napolean Bonaparte III) for her stay during the inaugural celebrations of the Suez Canal in 1869.   Hard to believe it’s now a  5 star Marriott.

Delicious gold filagree arches and Moorish stained glass

European Grandeur meets Middle Eastern Sultriness

Reflecting on the ornamental architecture

A Stairway built for the descent of an Empress

Old Coptic Egypt

Inside an Old Coptic Church- The largest population of Christians in the Middle East is here

Coptic text

There really is such a thing as a Whirling Dervish.  I saw my first Dervish whirl on a boat going down the Nile.  And I couldn’t take my eyes off him.  Dervishes are Sufi Muslims who whirl or dance as part of religious ceremony.  I grew to love Middle Eastern music watching the hypnotic way our Dervish spun around and around, eventually dissecting his costume in two and taking on the appearance of a brightly colored top.  If the opportunity presents itself, watching a Dervish is a must do.

Whirl Dervish, Whirl!

Like Being inside a Kaleidoscope!

Egypt was marvelous.  I plan to go back some day and explore Luxor and the Valley of the Kings.  When I returned home, all I could think about was the intricate mosaics, the grand scale of the pyramids and the color of the stained glass.  It’s good to be excited about design after traveling.  Even better when the experience gets stored away and can be pulled out in pieces as necessary for inspiration.

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Thanks for reading,

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