So I was in Egypt last week and it was the trip of a life time. We left Sunday September 19. We drove south and stopped at Tel Beersheba and Tel Arad. At Tel Arad we saw the ruins of an Israelite temple. That night we stayed at Kibbutz Keturah which is a utopian like community of Jews that all pool their money together to support the community. It was fun to stay there and learn a little about their community. They took us to the sand dunes which were so cool. The sand was so soft and it was fun to roll around in it.
Monday September 20, 2010: Today we went across the border to Egypt and arrived in Cairo after a full day of driving. We stayed in the Oasis Pyramid Hotel. in Giza. After dinner we went to the sound and light show at the pyramids which wasn't as exciting as I thought it would be.
Tuesday we went and saw the pyramids. They were huge. We got to go in the second pyramid built by Khefra. We went through a short tunnel and into the burial chamber. Next we went to see the sphinx whose face is Khefra. Then we went to the papyrus factory and they showed us how to make papyrus. It was pretty cool. We also went to see the Zoser's stepped pyramid and the large statue of Ramses in Memphis. Then we flew out of Cairo into Luxor.
Wednesday we went to the Valley of the Kings and saw the tombs of Ramses III, Ramses IX, and Tutmosis III and King Tutankamen. They were really cool with colorful hieroglyphs and Egyptian paintings on the walls of Ramses III tomb. Then we went to Hatshepsut's Funerary Temple and saw Pit 33 where the papyrus of the Book of Abraham was possibly taken. That afternoon we went on a falukah ride across the Nile and rode on Camels.
Thursday we went to the Karnak temple which had the most amazing columns. We also went to Luxor temple. That night we went on an overnight train back to Cairo.
Friday we went to a couple churches and synagogues in Cairo and the Egyptian museum where we saw the mummies of Ramses II and Hatshepsut. We also saw the mask and treasures of Tutankamen. We had lunch at Hard Rock Cafe and to the bazaar and then had sacrament meeting at the hotel.
Saturday we went to the Cairo Citadel and saw the Muhammad Ali Mosque and al-Nasir Muhammad Mosque. We traveled the rest of the day through the Sinai Peninsula to St Catherine's cathedral which is at the base of Mount Sinai. On the way there, we stopped at Marah, Elim, and Rephidim all oasises that the children of Israel stopped at for water on their way out of Egypt. We spent the night at the Morganland hotel there.
Sunday we woke up at 2 am and climbed Mount Sinai. We were there in time to watch the sun rise. We had a little lesson with our class and then went back time. The mountains were incredible and it was neat to be on Mount Sinai. We drove back to the center in the afternoon, stopping for dinner at a different Kibbutz which had delicious food.
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