Siwa – Paradise of Egypt

At the last day of the year 2016 every person is thinking about the previous year and either me. I was thinking about my best memories and actually I remembered one of my best memories of all my life. Unfortunately it did not happen in the year 2016 but actually 4 years ago. however I decided to share this memory with you today to open the New year Happily and Positively.

The story actually starts that I could choose If I want to go to a Luxor or a Siwa. Honestly I desired go to the Luxor all my life but I cannot remember why exactly  I chose Siwa but maybe because Alexandria is closer to a Siwa  than to a Luxor and what amazed me about Siwa was that it is a  Oasis ! and that something what I never saw in my entire life. So at the end the decision was to go to Siwa. And I will never regret this mine choice.

I went to Siwa actually by bus and the all way from Alexandria to Siwa took around 11 hours. Even we were going on road which was kind of free so the Egyptian people do not drive very fast and also Siwa is deep in Sahara so simply it took a time.

We arrived there around 5 am at morning at the sunrise and it was extremely cold. All people were freezing. Then in 2 or 3 hours the weather changed on extremely hot 😀

 

FIRST DAY

First of all we accommodated in a hotel. We got a nice double room with a private bathroom and that`s made me very pleased. And because we should stay in Siwa for 3 days so of course we had a sattled meal in the hotel but just a half board.

After we finally unpacked our luggage the assistent of our tourist guide asked us to give her our passports for a checking. But when she saw my passport and she saw I am an foreigner so she got scared and refused to take my passport – this is a respect to foreigner people ! 😀

 

Then we went for a walk around the hotel area – we found a small pool, swing, furthermore gazebo on festivities and horses. The horses made me really happy, I naive thought that there would be even a camels and I will be able to ride them but nothing of this has been held.

So even we did not sleep all the night in the bus, the tourist guide planned a trip immediately after arrival so there was no opportunity to relax at all. So we boarded to the bus again and The tourist guide took us to a castle ruin, which formerly belonged to the pharaohs. For sure in pharaohs time it was magnificent castle and from the top you could see the whole oasis and see to the wilderness.

But what`s interesting is that the whole Siwa is known under Cleopatra name. Cleopatra had spent a lot of time there and practically she went there to relax and renew her beauty. In Siwa we have a lot of natural “swimming pool” which remain unchanged from the time of Cleopatra. Those swimming pool are really amazing and very interesting – they contains cold, hot, boiling and bubbling water – all from the nature itself and its very beneficial to health. Moreover they clean the swimming pools several times a day, of course naturally way just by a net to get rid of the leaves from a trees, insects etc.. otherwise the waters are really clean and clear and we had the opportunity to swim in those waters.

After seeing those Cleopatra refreshing procedures we went to a place where were grown Innumerable palms with dates – it was really a never-ending quantities. The astonishing thing which not everyone will believe is on each of palm was written ” la ilaha illallah muhammad rasul allah” it was not made by human`s hand but those words grew out of the wood.

And the other secret of this place was on the verge of this palm forest was located a sea. And thats really really really shocked me. How is it possible to find a sea in a desert and oasis ?! It was a real and true sea however it has a borders. The tourist guide explained us that once it was connected to the Mediterranean sea but but over time it dried up and disappeared and the sea what we saw it was practically rest of the big sea which is remaining.  Incredible,isn`t it?! We sat on the sea till the sunset then we finally returned to the hotel to have some rest.

 

SECOND DAY

The second day in the morning I was already seriously very hungry fortunately I took with myself a several dozen of a biscuits so it made my stomach little bit full for a particular time.. Nevertheless the breakfast in the hotel was really great !

Practically we found  everything what we desired for but only in salty way. I remember I liked the most tomatoes spread, next you could have eggs,beans, vegetables cheeses, bakery atd.. of course tea and coffee. The taste of the food was totally different from Alexandria taste, it was really recognizable it was from clear nature without chemicals and other things The difference was really noticeable. I enjoyed the food very much and after breakfast we again went to some trips.

This day The tourist guide took us around all Siwa – we visited a lot of another castles ruins and churches from pharaohs time. Some were in good condition and some absolutely not…next we visited museum which was telling  about Siwa of course, then we saw another two more seas and we found there innumerable crystals and if you plunge to one of this sea your skin became absolutely white, no matter how black you are actually.Afternoon we went right to the desert. This is my the most favorite part of all the trip in Siwa. It was one of the best feeling in my life. we went there by off-road car very deeply into the desert.

By the off-road car we were going very fast on the sand dunes and some people were really very scared and were screaming very loudly. After that we got out and we were able to ride on the sand dunes on a board ( very similar to snowboarding), then we could even walk in the desert .. As we wanted.

But the next amazing thing he showed us was that even in the sand dunes appeared words,, la ilaha illallah ,, so Simply stated .. It can not be coincidence. Furthermore, in this desert was a place where he told us that if we have a  silver thing and we’ll trit it with the sand , so the silver will  changes to a gold. Well, we tried it for a while but unfortunately nothing happened…so maybe it was just a rumor or we did not have sufficient patience: D and by the way,  I luckily did not meet any animals or quicksand in the desert.

In the evening he took us to a  traditional house still in the desert where they have prepared a dinner for us – which was mutton with potatoes,rice, vegetables, bread, drinks etc. …The food was really excellent  and they even showed us how they baked the mutton.

In the sand they dug a hole and they put a pot with a meat into the hole. then they again covered with the sand and let it bake or cook on the sun. So comfortable cooking, is not it? 😀And after dinner, of course, there were belly dancers, and people who sang and danced and we played a lot of games. However I found there mate – a horse..so I spent with it a night-time under the stars.I have never seen in my life cleaner and more beautiful night sky sprinkled with a stars It took my heart, It was really touching moment and I will never ever forget it.

THIRD DAY

The third last day  we went to see the city of Siwa where we could make a shopping and we could take a walk freely as we wanted.  I bought for myself an Olive oil and healthy,natural black eyeliner – this one exactly used also pharaohs and it stayed without a change till now so I see it as a big treasure.And then I took myself to see the biggest castle in all Siwa. And this castle really scared me till a death. And the reason why I was scared was that I found all the walls in the castle was made by a human bones. And how I found out? Actually its a little bit funny story…

“I saw a beautiful small pebble in the middle of one wall and I wanted to take it and save it for a memory. Well so I scooped it out and imagine what happened ! All the tall wall broke in the middle from the ground to the top so I could see what the walls hide inside. Honestly I run away as fast as I could because I was afraid it will fell down on me. But I took 2 bones for a memory and it still with me till now. What a pretty destroyer of a castle, am I not??? :D”

Well and it was my last adventure in Siwa then we just came back to home to the beautiful Alexandria.

Books I wrote, you can read here:

1. Don´t fall in love with Egyptian man
2. Dining Like a Pharaoh