236 CultureShock! Egypt
Enjoying the Trains
Personally, I like the trains! Whenever I get the chance, I take a train
because it lets me ‘see’ and ‘feel’ Egypt and her people. For more
about my train experiences, see the article I wrote with Medhat at:
http://touregypt.net/magazine/mag07012001/magf1a.htm)!
Unfortunately, trains don’t go everywhere. Some of the trains
are getting to be a little run-down now. The Spanish trains continue
to be the best.From Cairo, you can take the train north to Alexandria and
west to Mersa Matruh, or you can go south to Aswan. If you
want to scuba dive or snorkel, you will want to go to the east
coast, for example to Hurghada, or to the Sinai, perhaps at
Sharm el Sheikh. The east coast requires either going by road
or flying. The Sinai can be reached by road, but it is simply
too far to make it feasible, so flying is the best way to get
there. Absolutely, positively, sometime take a Nile Cruise! We
all have our favourites and I have been on several exquisite
boats. My preference is clear: I want to be on one of the
Abercrombie and Kent boats. A&K boats offer top-of-the-line
facilities, food and staff. I also like them because the number
of people assigned to an individual guide is smaller. However,
I have also had a wonderful time on other boats such as the
Star Sapphire. There are so many good boats from which to
choose, that you can hardly go wrong.
Wherever you decide to go and however you get there,
enjoy the beauty and diversity that is Egypt.