First, the Valley of the Kings–An area on the West Bank of the Nile where the tombs of Egyptian Kings have been unearthed. The Ancient Egyptians believed that the dead should be buried where the sun sets. Their homes were built on the East where the sun rises… symbolizing life and death. Pyramid tombs had been robbed during previous dynasties so in later dynasties they built their tombs in the mountains of the desert. King Ramses and King Tut’s tombs are in the Valley of the Kings. When you see the interior of these tombs it is unbelievable the work that went into them. The hieroglyphics and colored pictures telling the story of the journey into the after-life carved into stone. Also separate chambers were built for food and possessions to take with them into the after-life. The Egyptians were more concerned with the after life then the present, so their homes were made of common materials. Their tombs and Temples elaborate works of art.

You can see some sights of life in everyday Luxor. The people live simply. We are also here during Ramadan a holy month of prayer (5x a day), fasting and celebration. It has been really interesting to witness the people participating in their most important holiday. During Ramadan the Muslim people fast from sunrise to sunset. In the evening after the final call to prayer, the people gather to break the fast inviting friends and family for meals.

Some mosques provide meals for the not so fortunate, and it is a time for giving gifts to family and friends and for gifts of charity. The people enjoy the festivities late into the evening. Mosques and homes are decorated with colored lights and lanterns.

We drove from Scotland to London Heathrow to catch our flight to Egypt. We  signed up for a tour for 10 days. When we arrive we are greeted by the man in charge of taking us to our first hotel. To our surprise there is no one else on the bus, turns out we will be the only ones for the entire trip! Cool huh?

Wow! Egypt is an amazing land! Our first stop is Cairo. 20 million inhabitants all driving like crazy. We took a photo of the traffic from our bus. We had just been involved in a minor fender bender (a taxi hit us in the rear) It was interesting…the drivers exchange a flurry of words for about 20 minutes, the taxi driver finally pays a bit of $ and within 20-30 minutes we are on our way again. Weaving in and out of 3 lanes of traffic when there is really only 2 lanes on the highway!

We took a tour of the Pyramids, attended a light show in the evening, and visited the Egyptian Museum where the contents of King Tut’s tomb are on display. Amazing!

Cairo is this huge city with modern buildings and Mosques, KFC, Pizza Hut AND men driving donkey carts with sugar cane along old, shabby, run down buildings. The local market in Old Cairo teems with carts and baskets full of dates, spices, fruits and the reddest tomatoes I have ever seen. In the doorways hang fresh meat, crates hold live chickens and pigeons It is quite something to see.

As you are driving away from busy Cairo into Giza all of a sudden you see the tips of the Pyramids! They sit right on the edge of the city with a vast desert behind them. A place of sharp contrasts indeed!

We stopped by Stirling to meet up with Michael & Karen Baybut. Tina worked with Michael at Krimpers, and they were in Scotland for a niece’s wedding. There is a lot of historical people and places in and around Stirling: Stirling Castle, Stirling University, Robert the Bruce, William Wallace (Braveheart, for you movie buffs) and in the town of Balquhidder, the grave of Rob Roy, the famous folk hero. Scotland is a relaxed country with very nice people. Michael cooked a proper English Breakfast for us everyday. We tried the Black Pudding, but never got to try Haggis! A highlight was sitting in on an impromptu group of musicians at the Settle Inn (est. 1733) playing traditional Scottish and Irish folk music. Each musician took a turn choosing a song accompanied by their guitar, fiddle, flute, or drum. One of the customers, a young American girl, joined in with a lively jig.

The Highlands are ruggedly beautiful and desolate with towns far and few between the winding roads ans peaks.  We passed Ben Nevis (the tallest peak in the UK, but we were unable to see it, as it is covered by clouds and mist. 100,000 people climb it every year, but we were not among them..

We went looking for Nessie the Loch Ness Monster..can you find her in the photos?

Aaah….The Lake District….so beautiful…home to the English poet William Wordsworth, author  Beatrix Potter and busloads of tourists! We spend our days up in the hillsides, hiking to escape the crowds walking through the little villages that dot the area. The cows we encountered on our way home one afternoon. They have to get home the same way as everyone else, I guess. Traffic stopped while the farmer moved the herd. Talk about up close and personal! I could have touched them as they walked past our car! We will be here for a few more days before heading to Scotland. We have plans to meet Michael an ex- co-worker of mine, and his wife Karen. Should be tons of fun!

We (Rob, Tina and Lil Booger) took the ferry from Ijmuiden Holland to Newcastle England. The crossing over the North Sea took 17 hours, but there is plenty of lame entertainment in the lounges to keep you occupied! The seas were a bit rough, so the journey was 4 hours longer than usual. The photos show our departure from Ijmuiden, Rob enjoying a beverage, and arrival in Newcastle.

Newcastle used to be one of the largest cities in Britain, because of it’s coal and ship building industries. Now it’s Victorian architecture and river walk with art galleries and statue parks seem to be the draw. We enjoyed Newcastle and surrounding coastal towns. The eastern end of Hadrian’s Wall and remains of a Roman fort is in Wallsend (hence the name of the town). Hadrian, Emperor of Rome in the early 1st century built the wall to keep out the the Savage Scots. The wall extended coast to coast for 75 miles. Hadrian is also responsible for building the Parthenon in Rome.

We stayed in Whitley Bay, a coastal town that has seen better days, but in its time was quite the seaside destination. From the photos of the lighthouses that guard the coastline, you can see the seaside still has appeal.

Meet the new members of Ed and Sabine’s family- Not one, but two Rhodesian Ridgeback pups! We enjoyed puppy-sitting these little cuties, but they sure are handful. Luckily they take lots of naps, so we were finally able to get these shots of them when they weren’t in constant motion.

Senna, the cat enjoying her favorite position of repose…on me.

It is just 1 hour 20 min flight from Amsterdam to Prague in the Czech Republic. A city rich in history, art, and music and where you hear every language imaginable…Czech, German, Russian, French, Italian, English (American & UK versions) and Japanese to name but a few.

The capital city of Prague has about 1.3 million  inhabitants and is amazingly clean.Every building in the Old Town section is a picture postcard. Frescoes adorn the facades and statues peek out from above doorways. In summer the city is bursting with tourists, all looking up in amazement at the architecture. A few examples in our photos:

Prague Castle- the largest ancient castle in the world and residence of the Czech president

Astronomical Clock in Old Town City Hall- the center depicts the medieval perception of the universe with  the earth as center. It announces the hour with moving statues of the apostles passing through the window.

The Municipal House- where operas and classical music performances are held

We also visited the Jewish Quarter where a tiny cemetery dating from 1400-1700’s holds 12,000 graves and the remains of a former Jewish ghetto with Synagogues and shops. It is believed to still be intact because Hitler wanted to use it to show the proof of “an extinct race” Nice guy huh?

A cruise on the River Vltava lasts an hour and gives a different perspective of the city.  We enjoyed the Czech cuisine– goulash and pork with dumplings and sauerkraut washed down with a delicious Czech beer.

On our last day we finally found the cultural hot spot we had been searching for–Molly Malone’s Irish Pub, owned by Paul Smith of Dublin. We spent an afternoon watching Gaelic football (the national sport of Ireland) and sampling the ale. Needless to say, all sightseeing activities came to an abrupt halt at that point!

In the old fishing village of Enkhuizen, which dates back to the Middle Ages, we visited the Zuiderzee Museum . We went with our friends Rob, Renate and their 6 year old son, Ryan. Unfortunately, we had rainy weather so didn’t take any photographs. The museum consists of old houses, moved from all over Holland that depicts life in the old days. Blacksmith, sailmaker, shipbuilder, & laundry all in working order, and for demonstration.

The photo of the gate house Drommedaris, which was the entry into the city was built in 1540. Old Dutch fishing boats line the seawalls in the harbor. It is one of our favorite places to visit, so picturesque and cozy.

Our good friends Hildo & Joke live in Enkhuizen so we stopped by for a visit with them..always a good time with great food, stimulating conversation, and LOTS of laughs!

This boat belongs to Rob’s brother, Anthony. He was nice enough to let us use it. We took it out on the Vinkeveense Plassen a group of small lakes outside of Amsterdam. It is a man-made nature and watersport area that was created from the digging of peat for Amsterdam during the 17th-19th centuries. Along the lakes are camping spots & summer houses that are used for summer-time enjoyment. We lazed along the lake enjoying the great waarm weather, but the water was a little to chilly for this Florida girl (70 F). Rob took a refreshing dip though!

Oh yeah, we have a winner for the car naming contest submitted by Gary & Lynne: BOOGER OR as we like to call her “Lil Booger”

Gary & Lynne, you will be notified of your winnings at a later date…..much later