Day 86: Saturday 26th April: Luxor back to Aswan to fetch the Doddle.

We make an early start and the driver assures us that the journey will take about two-and-a-half hours using the western desert road which is quicker. About an hour-and-a-half later we are stopped at an army checkpoint (there are many army and police checkpoints on all the roads so we are used to this). Our driver is told that tourists are no longer allowed on the desert road as it is too dangerous and a big argument ensues. The driver even phones Waleed (our tour organizer) to try to get some leverage, but the army is determined and we are diverted onto another road which is terribly busy and passes through every single one-camel town.

About four hours later we eventually reach Aswan and everyone is in a froth as we are so late and the customs guys will only release the cars to the registered drivers. We are hurriedly taken to the port and then the very same customs guys won't let us in as we don't 'have permission'. Egypt's officials can be incredibly 'officious' which results in endless haggling and arguing. Eventually the driver's produce enough documents and our guide joins them from inside the gates and they are allowed in to continue with all the 'officious' requirements. Two hours later the cars are released and the weary drivers return to Aswan city. Needless to say all these delays mean we cannot drive to Luxor (tourists are not allowed to leave cities later than 18h00 or before 06h00) so we go back to the Pyramisa Isis Island Resort where we are 'welcomed home'.

Simon goes to fill up the vehicle and is puzzled that the 'petrol jockey' asks him what the price of diesel is (2 Egyptian Pounds / litre which is R3.00/l). It turns out that, like everything in Egypt, the price is negotiable and our guide has negotiated himself a price of 1.10 EP/l which is roughly R1.70/litre. We have learnt our lesson and now fill up for 1.10!

Egyptian police and army officials always look very stern and 'officious', but are usually very friendly and welcoming when you get to speak to them. They have a nice sense of humour and generally crack a joke or two. Hotel and restaurant staff are incredibly helpful and cannot do enough to welcome you. Ordinary citizens in the street are always very friendly and most people say hello and welcome. They are really desperate for tourists to come back to Egypt. Apparently tourism accounts for 75% of the employment in Egypt so you can see why they want us back - its been three tough years for them. The merchants of course are the most welcoming and although they always say they won't "hassle" you (their words), you can bet they won't leave you alone till you've bought something. We are quite good at negotiating and of course being South Africans we are also good at totally ignoring them when we are not interested.

So far we have always felt very safe and comfortable and at no stage has anyone tried to steal anything from us so that's all good so far. We will see what Cairo holds for us as Egyptians tell us not to trust anyone in Cairo!

Day 87: Sunday 27th April: Aswan to Hurghada on the Red Sea:

We make an early start and get on the road along the Nile before it gets too busy. We drive along the banks of the Nile through all the villages until Qena (about 4 hours north) and then turn East into the desert to Safaga which is on the coast, and then along the Red Sea coast to Hurghada. We have an uneventful journey and decide to stop for a picnic lunch in the desert. We slow down at an abandoned army checkpoint and spot a driveway with some shade from a couple of trees and stop there. We are just getting our food out when a man comes walking down the driveway from the house (the only house there). This must be an army base so we are a little unsure, but he is most welcoming and offers us water. I think he must have been very bored or lonely as he hung around and then came back again with an offering of herbs for us. It looked like he'd picked some flowers for us, but they were sprigs of sage that were in flower. Smelt lovely, but when he tried to give one to Simon he wouldn't take it and told him to give it to me. "I'm not taking flowers from an Egyptian man!!" Very hospitable and friendly and soon we were on our way.

Hurghada looks like something on the Mediterranean - beautiful blue sea with resorts and hotels and apartment blocks all along the coast. We were amazed at how big it is and once we'd found our hotel - the Diana Hotel full of photo's of Princess Diana - we went for a walk to the sea. Unfortunately the way it has been developed means that there is no public access to the beach or the sea and you have to go through some resort. Due to a lack of English being spoken, we managed to get down to the sea and paddle in the water before someone arrived to try to charge us each 30 Egyptian Pounds (R45) for doing so. Being South African we refused and left the beach.

Hurghada is apparently a favourite holiday place for Russian tourists so there are many restaurants and bars to choose from for a change. We settled for pizza and even managed to find some decent wine. There is still a huge amount of development going on (a lot of it half-finished) and we don't really know where they will find all the tourists to fill these hotels and apartments (or even the money to finish them).

Day 88: Monday 28th April: Hurghada to Cairo.

The Diana Hotel (at about US$30 per night) was not great and Lyn did not sleep well due to the traffic and usual call to prayers at all hours. Anyway, after the now obligatory omelet, we set off for the Big Smoke of Cairo.

Travelling along the Red Sea reveals literally hundreds of thousands of rooms in nearly complete developments of apartment blocks and tourist resorts - there must be some heavily bleeding investors out there as there is scant sign of construction work being done to complete these units.

Just before Suez we turn west and head via the desert road to Cairo where at the first toll gate we stop for the mandatory "we have arrived" group photo - it's quite emotional as we know this is now nearing the end of the journey.

I realize that our GPS with only Tracks4Africa on it is next to useless in Cairo so we rely on the others to guide us to Le Meridien Hotel Giza Pyramids which is very nice and situated within view of the pyramids.

We go into the hotel to check it out and ask about the cost and the guy at reception agrees that we can get a better price online. We order a beer in the lobby and I use their free wi-fi to book two rooms for us via booking.com - at a better rate than they would give us as a 'walk-in' [Lyn]

After a swim in the hotel pool, some decent Mexican food and a few beers we crash ready for the big smoke's tourism offers.

Day 89: Tuesday 29th April: Cairo Tourist Day 1

We grab a taxi to the pyramids and once inside are immediately assaulted by two "authentic and registered" guides. One soon gives up but the other, Emud, is clearly seeking business and eventually persuades us (after lots of haggling from EP350 to EP90 each) to ride a camel into "the desert" to get the best view of the pyramids and the sphinx - it is actually very grand and impressive, even if the camel riding is like giving birth to an asteroid - not the most pleasant experience I've ever had. Still, we even climbed up into the inside of the Great Pyramid to see the sarcophagus and it is one hell of a climb and both Lyn's and my thighs are still feeling sore from the crawling up and down a 1m chamber for a great height!

Emud then decided he would be our guide for the rest of the day and took us back to the hotel where we had lunch and then picked us up an hour later and took us to Sakkara to see the Stepped Pyramid and some more tombs and then to Memphis where there is another large sphinx and several statues the best being of Ramses II (as always). Emud was extremely amusing and described himself as a Digital (modern) Moslem as he liked a drink, smoked and had already divorced! He offered 500 camels for our guide assistant Karlien (he thought she was my daughter) or even a picture of five million camels - she wisely declined his other offers of another camel ride into the desert.

He was actually very entertaining and when Karlien started singing "No women no cry…" he chipped in with "No hashish no fly" which we found very funny. He also swore like a nut-case while driving and was actually quite an aggressive driver which we have not seen anywhere except in Cairo. [Lyn]

Day 90: Wednesday 30th April: Cairo to Alexandria.

We were going to spend another day in Cairo today but after realizing Thursday was a public holiday (and Friday is a non-business day weekend) we had to high tail it to Alexandria today to meet with the shipping agent and get all the paperwork sorted for the Doddle's trip back to Cape Town.

The agents "fixer" Faghri was magnificent and dragged us around the various government departments until 3pm making sure all the documents we had were duly authorized and the agent was authorized to ship the vehicle on my behalf. At lunchtime we sat at a café opposite the court and witnessed 4 prison vans roll up full of prisoners. The café and surrounds were chokka block with people wanting to see their loved ones with kids being held up to the van windows to see their family members. The police and army were of course out in force but we did not feel so secure sitting there! I tried to get Faghri to organize me some local food from the café (i.e. local kofta) but he wouldn't and instead bought us packet food! (Much safer and more hygienic - Lyn)

After all the formalities were finished we set off onto the Corniche to find a hotel. Alexandria is a massive sprawling city and the Corniche (along the Mediterranean sea-front) goes on forever. After about an hour of driving we stopped at The Sheraton (which we booked using the wi-fi at the shipping agents' office earlier) and booked in.

The drivers here are nearly as crazy as those in Cairo and lane discipline is non-existent, but if you drive like them it's actually quite easy - I will be in big s*** driving in Cape Town now having adopted the habits of Kampala, Addis Ababa and now Cairo!

The Sheraton was ok but we decided only later that evening to stay - only to be told that they were full the next 2 days due to the public holiday. Not to worry we thought - see later.

Day 91: Thursday 1st May: Alexandria to El Alamein and back. Trip Odo 19600km.

We decided a trip to El Alamein (where a decisive WW2 battle was fought) would be worthwhile and we had said to our fellow travelers that we might be there today.

The drive of 120km from Alexandria to El Alamein is ostensibly along the coast, but the industrial development, smog and litter is something to behold. And again, about 50km outside of Alexandria there are hundreds of blocks of flats and resorts in various stages of completion. Also, the existing buildings are decrepit to say the least - huge slum like areas leaving a very bad taste in the mouth.

We met up with our fellow travelers at the El Alamein War Graves memorial which is beautifully kept up. There are thousands of gravestones and many South Africans are listed. Further up the coast are the Italian and German memorials.

At around 2pm we turn back for Alexandria and look for a hotel. After stopping at 2 which were full, I popped into the Four Seasons (US$400 per night), which was also full - but the concierge, after calling 7 other hotels, eventually found us a room at the San Giovanni Hotel on Stanley Bridge on the Corniche (at a mere US$85 per night) - we were getting quite desperate actually!

Day 92: Friday 2nd May: Alexandria.

Friday is spent just being tourists - Thursday was a public holiday here so it seems incredibly busy and many of the hotels are fully-booked. Simon gives in and allows me to book the Four Seasons Hotel as a great way to end our trip. We check in and it is indeed a treat so we get into the flow and arrange a limo to Cairo International Airport (3 hours away) for Saturday afternoon - might as well really end it in style!

The hotel has its own private beach (complete with security guards) across the very busy road from the hotel. They have a tunnel which leads directly to the restaurant and beach. A tunnel is really a misnomer - it is marble-lined and looks like a shopping arcade. They also have an outdoor pool on the fourth floor and an indoor pool on the ground floor so we make sure to use everything they offer and go for a dip in the Mediterranean Sea. Mind you, they also have 7 restaurants so we are not going to be able to use all those.

Day 93: Saturday 3rd May: Alexandria to Cairo:

First order of business is to get the Doddle delivered to the port so that she can be shipped home. We have contracted an excellent shipping company to assist us in getting this done so we are hoping that it won't be too much of a challenge. Simon wakes early so puts his bike together and goes for his first cycle in Egypt (while it is still early and the drivers are not too manic!) He has now cycled in every single Country that we have travelled through.

We will do some more sight-seeing later today and make good use of the pool until our late check-out and our trip to the airport.

See you all tomorrow!