Exploring Pyramids Around the World + 10 Travel Tips

A few weeks ago, we took a staycation to Egypt to explore the pyramids and take a Nile river cruise. It lit a fire in me to really plan a trip to Cairo and surrounding areas, because it has been on my trip wish list for a long time, but seeing how truly unique and beautiful it is really pulled me in. Egypt isn't the only place with pyramids, but it is the most known. Check out all the other places with pyramids and then learn some tips on traveling within Egypt. 

If you plan to visit Egypt, here are 10 tips for visiting: 

1. You will need an entry visa - This will cost $25 at the airport, and it will need to be paid in cash (not in local currency).
2. Agree on  prices ahead of time - You can haggle on pretty much everything, so make sure to agree on prices, especially on things like taxi rides and tours.
3. Don't hesitate - Walk confidently across the street, because traffic can be crazy and hesitating is not your friend.
4. Carry tissues or toilet paper with you - Many places don't have toilet paper, including busy places like airports. Make sure you are prepared.
5. Carry cash/change - Tipping is expected almost everywhere, for everything. 
6. Don't feel pressured - You'll feel like you're getting the hard sell on a lot of things. First off, learn the phrase "La, shoukran", meaning "no thank you". You can also leave a small tip for demonstrators to show your appreciation.
7. Get travel insurance - It's highly recommended to have insurance if you're traveling in Egypt.
8. Dress conservatively - Egypt is primarily Muslim, so cover up more than you normally would in a hot climate. It will also help protect you against the desert conditions. Think Indiana Jones: long pants and long sleeves (at least no tank tops). Columbia Sportswear and other outdoor clothiers sell lightweight clothing that's moisture-wicking and embedded UPF to keep you from burning in the blazing sun.
9. Use Uber - Uber is a great mode of transportation, plus you pay by the app and you have a price set up-front. It relieves you of haggling one place. Just make sure you double-check your car and driver before getting in. 
10. Smoking is allowed - People can smoke everywhere, pretty much. Don't be surprised by this. If it greatly bothers you, this might not be a destination for you. If you can tolerate it, expect to do laundry, or carry a spray bottle with plain vodka in it to spritz clothing. As it evaporates, it removes odors like smoke. Since it doesn't have it's own smell, you won't go around reeking of booze.

Is Egypt on your wish list? If so, what do you most look forward to seeing?

Exploring Egypt from Home

Hey, hey! I'm back with another Destination Date Night. This time we visited the pyramids in Egypt. If you can't travel, you might as well make the best of it. We had a great "view" of the Great Pyramid and the Sphynx.

Things are super stressful right now, so any break from reality is nice. We've been doing little things, like going to corn mazes, taking virtual tours, and walking our neighborhood to look at Halloween decorations. There are still things to enjoy and be safe. I have a handful of friends who've been fruit-picking a ton this month. You just have to look for different opportunities or ask friends what they're doing. 

I've been thinking a lot about Egypt. This has been on my travel list for a while, and my name is, unintentionally, Middle Eastern (my parents mashed two names together) and it's pretty popular among Egyptians. Eventually, we'll get there, but until then, we've got this.

This date night gave me vibes from The Mummy (circa 1999), so I pulled together a quick little table setting with this cute little aloe plant and vintage-feel hourglass, then finished with this Anubis statue I purchased specifically for this. I meant to use a gold tablecloth for this that I already had, but I had purchased a rust table cover for another thing, so I decided to use it for this for extra color, but still keep with a neutral palette. I also used my gorgeous blue and gold melamine dishes by Opalhouse.

I ordered dinner ahead from a great Middle Eastern restaurant. We tried to choose things we've not tried before. We started with Kashkeh Bademjan - similar to Baba Ganoush -  and "big bread", which is basically giant naan. Then we moved on to Mirza Ghasemi, a roasted eggplant dish with rice, and Kotlet, a ground beef, potato, and onion patty inside a wrap with tzatziki sauce. 

While we ate, we took a tour inside a pyramid and a river tour down the Nile with a couple of vloggers. They took a 3-day cruise that included all their meals and it was highly affordable: 200 Euros. Even if that's for one person, it's one of the cheapest tours you'd be able to do anywhere for everything included. We also took a highlights trip. 

As with all our dates, we ended with dessert. We took a short break so I could whip up a batch of Sahlab, a milk pudding drink that's served warm and topped with cinnamon, coconut, or pistachios or a combo. It was quick and easy. I served it with our dessert sampler, which came with rice pudding, baklava, baklava cake and kanafeh (a really cool cheese and shredded phyllo dish). We learned a bit about hieroglyphs while we indulged. 

This was a surprisingly romantic date, and we got a small heater for our back porch, so now we can continue to have outdoor dinners through winter without freezing to death. With dinner and our backdrops, plus my souvenir Anubis, we spent around $105. Egypt is a great destination if you are looking to try your hand at ethnic foods. And if you're not, and you don't want to order out, you can get many of the staples for a fantastic dinner at Trader Joe's, including dessert. 

If you want to do your own destination Egypt date, here are some things to make it more memorable:

• Backdrops:
• Pyramid and Sphynx
• Hieroglyphs 
• Statue centerpiece
• Anubis
• Ankh
• Obelisk
• Neutral tablecloth (mine is the burnt orange shade)
• Egyptian cutting board/serving platter
• Gold flatware set
• Hieroglyph alphabet and papyrus
• Turkish tea/coffee cups
• Middle Eastern cookbook
• Moroccan-style lantern
• A great YouTube playlist
• Here's mine
• Egyptian music

Make this a few hours or  a whole day event with your special person or your family. Learn to write your name in hieroglyphs, play games with your kids, take a an online class about the Egyptian gods. The possibilities are endless. 

Have you ever been to Egypt? If so, what was your favorite thing? If not, what do you look forward to the most?

Disclaimer: This post includes affiliate links, and I may be compensated should you choose to make any purchases through them. This allows me to keep this blog running for you. Thanks in advance!

It's Time to Vote!

I was going to do a regular post today, but instead, I'd like to take this time to tell you two things. First off, I have a new Twitter account and have been slowly changing it places, but if you haven't seen my Facebook posts, my new Twitter handle is @ShereenTravels. Unfortunately, my account was compromised and could not be recovered. It's unfortunate, but what are you gonna do.

My second thing is that I want you to go out and VOTE. This is one of the most important elections in our lifetime, which I don't say lightly. If you can vote early, please do so. There are many places where even now the wait in line to vote is hours and hours. I've seen friends post about only waiting for 90 minutes and then I've seen folx posting on Twitter after waiting an excruciating 11 hours in Atlanta, Georgia. People in other countries are dumbfounded that we have to wait at all.

If you are lucky to be able to vote by mail, make sure you get your ballot back ASAP. As much as I still trust the post office, I didn't want there to be any doubt about my ballot, so I dropped it off at the election office. If you have the option to drop at a ballot box or election office, I would encourage you to do this as well. You can also check to see if you ballot has been received. 

If you know others who don't trust the post office to get their ballot back on time, and are unable to drive to a ballot box, maybe offer to take their ballots with your own (if that's legal in your state) or give them a lift to the ballot drop box (if you can do it safely). 

If you must vote in person, and you want to help others vote, volunteer to help in any way you can, whether that means you drive them to the polls, or figure out a way to get them there, as there are many places that have few polling places and there are tons of people who can't get to them to vote either.

There have been a lot of cases of voter intimidation this time around. If you show up at the polls and there are people blocking the polling station, this is a crime. If you don't feel safe using the voting machines or they are down, you can request a paper ballot. Know your rights and don't forget your ID or proof of residence.

Oregon only votes by mail, so I have already voted and returned my ballot and checked that it was received. I've also offered my services to pick up and drop off ballots for those that need a bit of help to have their vote count. Do you know that only half of eligible voters actually vote in a normal election? This time seems to have motivated a lot of peeps to have their voices heard. Last I checked, over 50 million people have already early voted. In 2016, 138 million people voted in total, so we're more than 1/3 of the way to that number, with expected record numbers in all to take place. 

Younger voters are slower to turn in their ballots, so please encourage everyone to vote. We still have over a week to go, which is both not that many days, but also more than enough to push people to complete their ballots and get them in, or show up at the polls. If they are intimidated by all the boxes, tell them that they, literally, only have to vote for the president if they want. 

Remember, use your secrecy envelope, regardless of whether or not it's required, as some places do and some don't, but let's be extra safe. Make sure to sign your envelope, or your ballot will be tossed out. If your ballot isn't prepaid and you mail it in, you will need two first class stamps.  I've made no secret as to who I'm voting for in this election. I believe in Democracy, racial and marriage equality, healthcare for all, justice, and for a more tolerant America. If you don't, I'm sure you've stopped reading my blog months ago, but if you haven't, I'm not going to tell you not to vote. I also believe in freedom of speech and diversity. Please make your vote count, whoever you vote for.

Thanks for doing your civic duty and helping us work towards a better America.