After 5 red-eye flights, 2 super early flights ( my red-eye started from San Diego to New York then to Amsterdam then to Cairo), and a couple of uncomfortable nights at Cairo hotels, we came home only to find that our hot water heater had been leaking all over the garage while we were gone. 

Our trip to Egypt was exhausting yet so very different from any place we have ever been to, and that much more memorable.  Looking back, I can't help but have a big smile on my face.  What a journey it was!  Climbing up the 5,000- year-old Pyramids gave me a conqueror's pride but also made me realize how small I was.  Cruising down the Nile, the longest river in the world, bathing in ancient Egyptian culture, witnessing the mummies of 21 Pharaohs who ruled the oldest civilization thousands of years ago, filled me with respect. 

Touching the hieroglyphics carved on the columns at The Amun Temple of Karnak felt like people from thousands of years ago telling me tales of yore.  My heart still trembles thinking about the moment when I gazed at all those awe-inspiring giant statues of Pharaohs sculpted out of an entire mountain at the Great Temple of Abu Simbel. 

Speeding wildly on an ATV in the windy desert, covered with sand, I caught a glimpse of a mirage, something I fantasized about. 

It was like traveling through time, riding over three hours on a camel’s back, meandering along three Pyramids and the Sphinx.  Witnessing the colossal masterpieces that survived the torrents of time through thousands of years moved me to tears.

We even smoked the Shisha (water pipe) before leaving Egypt.  Through the smoke, I saw the past connected to the present and the future.  This trip was definitely a precious and heartfelt experience.  Best of all, I get to share it with you.  Someday when I look back, I will be grateful for this spiritual journey and I will find that I left my heart in Egypt!