Time to chill out and relax this afternoon before heading across the water to visit the Nubian Museum. We decided we would walk as Leader Linda said it was about a ten minute walk. Well she can obviously walk faster than us because it took a lot longer than that, and by the time we wandered around the museum for a couple of hours, my feet were killing me. But what an amazing museum. We spent a long time in the part of the museum dedicated to the relocation of Abu Simbel - something I had absolutely no idea about. We are going to Abu Simbel tomorrow so it will all make a lot more sense then, but basically these temples were moved 210 metres back and 65 metres higher in preparation for damming the Nile. What a colossal undertaking. So first I am absolutely gobsmacked that people could actually build these structures in the first place with no technology or tools or heavy machinery, and then thousands of years later they get picked up and shifted. When I get home and have time to properly document all the information I have received I will update this information. This was a UNESCO operation.

Obviously because all the temples and important structures were being moved before they were flooded, the Nubian people had to be relocated as well and this is talked about as the migration of the Nubian people and this is well documented in the museum. It was well worth the visit and it was good to be able to put into perspective a lot of the stuff we saw at the Nubian village this morning.

We came out of the museum and started on the trek down the hill back to catch the ferry to the hotel. A taxi-driver started to hassle us and we started off saying no we would walk back to town, but when he heard Leader Linda talk in Arabic he offered us a very good price of 10 pounds. A huge difference to the $50 the tour driver told us it would cost. So we agreed to go in this beat up old taxi - a dented, rusty Pugeot - for a fast trip down the hill, ducking in and out of the traffic and around horse and donkey carts, and dodging pedestrians.

I was sitting in the front seat, having gone of course to the wrong side of the car to get in when the girls said, "Heather you go in front." The taxi driver laughed and suggested it would be better if he drove. I agreed, but his driving left a lot to be desired.

He dropped us off outside the bazaar, and here Linda had her first experience of a real souk. We each bought a few things, and were absolutely fascinated with how the shopkeepers operate.

Outside the first stall we were looking at hair clips - and bought a few each. The shopkeeper invited us inside his shop to look at his spices and we finally convinced him that we could not take loose spices home to NZ. He then said come with me, and he led us down the alley to another shop where we ended up buying a cotton top each. The change problem was still with us, and we handed over 200 pounds and these two shop keepers then swapped notes between each other so we got the correct change back. Now at last we have a few small notes.

We wandered around for a good hour or so, and we were constantly approached by shop keepers saying "look in my shop - no hassle" Mmmmmmmm. not sure they know what that means.

I was certainly pleased to get back to the hotel and I put my phones on to charge, tidied my handbag, put away my shopping, wrote a few quick notes in my diary and was asleep I think before my head even hit the pillow.

So a very long day, but what an amazing day it was. Starting off in luxury at the Movenpick Hotel - a long and luxurious breakfast, an introduction to the Nubian people, and ending the night with haggling for goods in the souk. At last mixing with the local people and getting to feel the vibes of the city.

The shopkeepers in the souk were certainly pleased to see us and talked about the situation in Sinai and the effects it is going to have on them here in Egypt. There are very few tourists around, and the country was just starting to get back on its feet, and now people will be too scared to come here again.

But as far as we are concerned, we are feeling incredibly safe and there is a huge police presence in each area we visit. Leader Linda tells us that the safest place usually is anywhere but near a policeman, but it really is hard to avoid them at the moment. Every tourist attraction we enter the Tourist Police are at the entrance and our bags are either searched or xrayed. Of note, I have one of those telescopic walking sticks folded in the bottom of my handbag, but no-one has ever questioned it or asked to see it, and I would think it would look a bit dodgy on an xray. But I guess they know what they are looking for.

We are made very welcome at every place we visit, and they shopkeepers all say 'hello and welcome' followed of course by the 'no hassle.'

It is fascinating watching and learning about the lives of the local people. Mervat our guide has shared a little about her personal life with us. She is in her early 30's and is divorced, and she tells us that this is becoming more common as women stand up for themselves more and more. She covers by choice, and each time we see her she is wearing a different outfit and a different coloured hijab or scarf, and each time worn in a different style. She is certainly a fashionable young woman, and wears a lot of makeup and jewellery - and again different jewellery for each outfit.