AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL STUDY TOUR
Ancient Egypt
Specially designed for Families
Including a 5-Day Sonesta Nile Goddess Cruise
12 Days December 23 – January 3, 2010
Led by Professor Lanny Bell


Ancient Egypt is our study tour specifically designed for families with children between the ages of 10 and 17 years. While traveling to all the major Egyptian monuments and museums with our scholar, grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles will be sharing the irreplaceable experience of discovery with their children. Some of the highlights of the tour include the Great Pyramids and Sphinx at Giza, the mummies and antiquities at the Egyptian Museum, Cairo’s fascinating Islamic monuments and exciting bazaars, a five-day Nile Cruise from Luxor to Aswan, a camel ride and tent party in the desert, visits to famous tombs and temples, a Sound and Light show and many other exciting events. We will also meet archaeologists excavating in Egypt and learn about their work. Throughout, our lecturer and our special Egyptian guide will introduce us to the history and art of the ancient Egyptians and help us to understand Egyptian life in the 21st century. We have planned special events and fun-filled days of adventures and precious memories.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009: Depart from New York on Egypt Air in the evening.

Thursday, December 24: CAIRO: We arrive into Cairo in the early afternoon. Our Egyptian guide will be waiting to assist us with the entry formalities and transfer us to the Meridien Pyramidsi Hotel, situated in view of the Great Pyramid. This evening we will join Professor Bell for a lightChristmas Eve dinner. Don't worry, Santa will find you!
Meals: Dinner

Friday, December 25: CAIRO: Our touring begins at Sakkara, visiting the Step Pyramid complex of Djoser, which predates the Giza pyramids and is the first monumental building constructed entirely in stone. After a traditional Egyptian barbecue lunch, touring continues at the pyramids of Dahshur. Here we will visit the pyramid of Snofru, the “Bent Pyramid” (so called because the angle of the inclination changes halfway up its sides) and the “Red Pyramid,” perhaps the most perfect of all pyramids. We return to our hotel to relax before a lovely Christmas dinner at our hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Saturday, December 26: CAIRO: Today’s touring begins with a camel ride to the only surviving representatives of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. We will also stop at the museum, where the remarkably preserved remains of the Solar Boat of Cheops are displayed. After a break for lunch, we will drive back into downtown Cairo to visit the Egyptian Museum. We will view the highlights of this huge collection, including the new mummy room and the objects from the tomb of Tutankhamun. This evening we will have dinner in our private Bedouin tent. Belly dancers, whirling dervishes and musicians will entertain us!
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Sunday, December 27: LUXOR: A morning flight brings us to Luxor and the Steigenberger Hotel, centrally located and overlooking the Nile. Touring today will be on the West Bank of the Nile. Here we will visit the tombs in the Valleys of the Kings and Queens. Among the tombs to be visited are those of Tutankhamun as well as those of other Pharaohs selected from the tombs open to the public. We will return to our hotel with time for a visit to the bazaar.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Monday, December 28: LUXOR: This morning we will visit the magnificent sanctuary of Amun-Re at Karnak Temple, with its maze of monumental gateways, obelisks, pillared halls and subsidiary shrines. We will board the deluxe Sonesta Cruise Ship, the Moon Goddess, our floating hotel for the next four nights. After lunch on the ship, we will have a long break before our late afternoon visit to the smaller Temple of Luxor, including the procession of the Opet Festival and scenes of the divine conception and birth of Amenhotep III    .Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Tuesday, December 29: EDFU: This morning we will recross the Nile to visit the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahri, one of the most spectacular monuments in Egypt. After visiting some of the Tombs of the Nobles, which are of special interest for their artistic and naturalistic murals of everyday life in ancient Egypt, we stop at the Colossi of Memnon before returning to the ship for lunch. In the afternoon, the ship sails to Edfu, where we dock for the night. We will have a few hours to relax on the sundeck and at the swimming pool. Professor Bell will use some of our time aboard the Moon Goddess for short talks and slide lectures.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Wednesday, December 30: ASWAN: Touring begins at the Temple of Edfu, a completely preserved temple dedicated to the falcon god Horus. We will have several hours to enjoy the sundeck and pool as well as the ever-changing panorama of life along the Nile as we sail on to Kom Ombo. This temple is often called the Acropolis of Egypt for its spectacular site overlooking the Nile. It is also unusual in that it is dedicated equally to two gods, Horus the Elder and the crocodile god Sobek. We will spend the afternoon touring the temple before sailing on to Aswan to dock for the night. This evening we will have a Sound and Light Show on Philae Island.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Thursday, December 31: ASWAN: This morning’s touring will include the High Dam, the Quarry, where an unfinished obelisk remains embedded in its native stone, and the Ptolemaic temple dedicated to Isis. This temple is known as Philae and is named for the island on which it was originally built. After lunch we will sail in a felucca, a traditional Egyptian sailboat, around Kitchener’s Island. There will be time this afternoon to explore the town and its fascinating spice market. Tonight we will have a festive New Year’s celebration prepared by the Sonesta staff.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Friday, January 1, 2010: ASWAN/CAIRO: Our last day in Aswan will begin with a relaxing boat trip through “papyrus” marshes and a bird sanctuary to Suheil Island, where we will visit a traditional Nubian village. The Nubian people originally occupied the area between the First Cataract at Aswan and the area just north of the Fourth Cataract, in the Sudan. Many of their villages had to be relocated after the High Dam flooded this region. We will be invited into one of the brightly painted homes for traditional mint tea and to learn more about life in the village. We return to Aswan for lunch before flying back to Cairo. Tonight we will have an opportunity to dine in one of Cairo’s small restaurants on our own. Intercontinental Semiramis Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast & Lunch

Saturday, January 2: CAIRO: This morning we will begin our touring with some of the most interesting Islamic sites, starting with the Citadel, famed as the stronghold of Saladin. From this point we will have a beautiful view over Cairo. Our next stop will be the Beit as-Suhaymi, a traditional 17th-century house. This visit will give us a wonderful picture of a prosperous family’s life in Cairo at that time. We will see the harem, fountains, courtyards and the many tiled receiving rooms. After lunch at a popular neighborhood restaurant, we will visit the Khan el-Khalili Bazaar, one of the largest suqs in the Middle East. For over 600 years Egyptians have been shopping along its narrow, winding streets filled with exotic spices, fruits, vegetables and household goods as well as jewelry and souvenirs. This evening we gather for our farewell dinner at the hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Sunday, January 3: We bid farewell to Egypt as we transfer to the airport for our flight home.