November, 2025
Knoxville, TN
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P rologue
I have been fascinated with Egypt and its culture since I was quite young, particularly with the mythology and the pantheons of the Egyptians along with the Norse, Romans and Greeks. In recent years the I have nurtured the idea of floating down the Nile where one of the first great human civilizations arose and flourished. I was beginning to wonder if I would ever get that opportunity. With improving health and discounts by the cruise lines, it will finally become a reality.
The history of Ancient Egypt begins around 5000BC and is divided into a number of distinct key periods. There were three periods of Egyptian culture rising to extraordinary heights with intermediate periods of cultural lows. It was during the early rise that the first pyramids were built including the Step Pyramid of Djoser constructed around 2670BC. During the period of the Old Kingdom, the Great Pyramids of Giza were built. And in the New Kingdom period, the Temple of Karnak, and the Abu Simbel temples were constructed. For a more detailed History of Ancient Egypt
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T he Language
The official language of Egypt is Arabic, and most Egyptians speak one of several vernacular dialects of that language. Here are a few basic Arabic words that should come in handy (the spelling is somewhat phonetic).![]()
O ur Journey
We will be journeying with Uniworld Boutique River Cruises. The tour begins in Cairo on Saturday. We, of course, will be departing Knoxville on that Friday since all trips to the east take a major portion of the day and arrive the next day. On Monday we will fly south to Luxor and join the good ship SS Sphinx embarking out of the Luxor Cruise Port on that evening for points south.
The following table summarizes our daily agenda. To see details for any day, click on that row.
Knoxville, TN
I have been fascinated with Egypt and its culture since I was quite young, particularly with the mythology and the pantheons of the Egyptians along with the Norse, Romans and Greeks. In recent years the I have nurtured the idea of floating down the Nile where one of the first great human civilizations arose and flourished. I was beginning to wonder if I would ever get that opportunity. With improving health and discounts by the cruise lines, it will finally become a reality.
The history of Ancient Egypt begins around 5000BC and is divided into a number of distinct key periods. There were three periods of Egyptian culture rising to extraordinary heights with intermediate periods of cultural lows. It was during the early rise that the first pyramids were built including the Step Pyramid of Djoser constructed around 2670BC. During the period of the Old Kingdom, the Great Pyramids of Giza were built. And in the New Kingdom period, the Temple of Karnak, and the Abu Simbel temples were constructed. For a more detailed History of Ancient Egypt
The official language of Egypt is Arabic, and most Egyptians speak one of several vernacular dialects of that language. Here are a few basic Arabic words that should come in handy (the spelling is somewhat phonetic).
- Hello: Salam alaykum (السلام عليكم)
(formal, religious greeting)
- Hello: Ahlan (أهلاً)
(informal greeting)
- Welcome: Ahlan wa sahlan (أهلاً وسهلاً)
- Good morning: Sabah el-khayr (صباح الخير)
- Good evening: Masaa el-khayr (مساء الخير)
- Good night: Tesbah ala kheir (تصبح على خير)
- Goodbye: Ma'a as-salama (مع السلامة)
- Please: Law samaht (لو سمحت)
- Thank you: Shukran (شكراً)
- You're welcome: Afwan (عفواً)
- Pardon me: Afwan (عفواً)
(I know its the same as You're Welcome but it kept popping up)
- Yes: Aywa (أيوه)
- No: Laa (لا)
- Water: Maya (ميه)
- Where is the toilet?: Ayna al-hammam? (أين الحمام؟)
We will be journeying with Uniworld Boutique River Cruises. The tour begins in Cairo on Saturday. We, of course, will be departing Knoxville on that Friday since all trips to the east take a major portion of the day and arrive the next day. On Monday we will fly south to Luxor and join the good ship SS Sphinx embarking out of the Luxor Cruise Port on that evening for points south.
The following table summarizes our daily agenda. To see details for any day, click on that row.
| Day | Itinerary | Activities |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cairo | Fly, sleep, eat, drink (not necessarily in that order). Four Seasons Nile Plaza Hotel |
| 2 | Cairo | Citadel of Salah al-Din, the Alabaster Mosque, the Grand Egyptian Museum and a Night at the Bazaar |
| 3 | Cairo, Fly To Luxor, Cruising The River Nile, | Temple at Karnak |
| 4 | Dendera, Cruising The Nile River, Luxor | Temple of Hathor, Temple of Luxor |
| 5 | Luxor, Cruising The River Nile, Kom Ombo | Colossi of Memnon, Hatshepsut Temple and Valley of the Kings |
| 6 | Kom Ombo, Cruising The River Nile, Aswan | Kom Ombo Temple, Life on the Nile Tour by Motorboat |
| 7 | Aswan | Aswan High Dam, Unfinished Obelisk and Temple of Isis, Boat Ride in Traditional Nile River Felucca and Sunset Tea at the Old Cataract Hotel Aswan |
| 8 | Aswan, Cruising The River Nile, Edfu | Temples of Abu Simbel |
| 9 | Esnå, Cruising The River Nile, Luxor | Temple of Khnum |
| 10 | Luxor (disembark), Fly To Cairo | Grand Egyptian Museum, National Museum of Egyptian Civilization |
| 11 | Cairo | Pyramids at Giza, the Great Sphinx, and Sakkara Visit |
| 12+ | Return to Knoxville | Epilogue |
To Day 1 - Cairo