Yesterday we left Buenos Aires early in the morning and flew to Ushuaia. We arrived for a late lunch on our own. Then to the hotel on the outskirts of town for checking in. A little free time, then a bus ride back to town for supper on our own and some shopping if you wanted to.

We arrived in Buenos Aires in the late morning after an overnight flight. After a ride to the hotel in the city center, we had some free time to walk around by the Obelisk. It was warm and humid, so we made a stop at a gelato shop.

For those that enjoy cats, you can’t visit Egypt and not see and talk about the cats. This may be one of the places cats were domesticated. Ancient Egyptians revered cats and the Arabs also have a soft spot for them as Mohammed did.

On our last day in Egypt we went out to the pyramids at the Giza plateau. The pyramid complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The previous two days were windy and there was blowing sand and dust. Today was windy, but very little blowing sand and dust.

There were more signs of Christmas in Egypt than I expected. From gingerbread houses in some hotels, to Santa Claus and a few nativity scenes.

Talking with our guide it seems like even some Muslims in Egypt are giving gifts at Christmas.

We spent our Christmas day visiting some churches. Most churches in Egypt are Eastern Orthodox, so they celebrate Christmas on January 7, so it wasn’t Christmas day for them. We visited the Hanging Church first.

Today we flew from Luxor back to Cairo. It was windy and a bit of a dust storm in Cairo. The visibility in Cairo wasn’t great. There was a motorboat ride on the Nile in the afternoon, then a group of six of us on the tour organized a car through the hotel to go out to the Pyramids Sound and Light show.

Today is a packed day, Karnak Temple in the morning, then a trip out to the Valley of the Kings for some more tombs, then Luxor Temple in the late afternoon.

These are in the modern town of Luxor, over the years it’s had many names. In the Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom it was called Thebes, and was the capital of Upper Egypt. With the two major temples, the priests here had considerable power.

We had another early departure for a two-hour bus ride to Dendera Temple. The water is a bit low on the Nile this time of year, so the boat can’t sail closer and make it a 20-minute bus ride.

We went to the Valley of the Kings today. This is where many New Kingdom Pharaohs are buried. We saw four tombs, Ramses IV, Tutankhamen, Merenptah and Ramses III.