Day 11: Hotoussa - Athens - Cairo

Sheraton Cairo Hotel & Casino

2 January 2026

We woke early, bid a fond farewell to all the animals we have collected over the past week, locked up the house and headed off for the 2 hour drive to Athens.

We had a very smooth drive, as there were hardly any other cars on the road until we reached Athens. We returned our hire car without any trouble, checked in for our flight to Cairo and headed off to the lounge to wait for boarding, feeling very cocky. Our flight was then delayed an hour - which was the only blip of the day. It didn't really matter, but just made the day that bit longer and more tiring.

Looking out the plane windows as we arrived, it was amazing to see so much desert and so much sand. It made us feel we had really arrived in Egypt! The airport is full of ancient Egyptian art - including this impressive statue.

We booked a car and driver to meet us at the airport, as we didn't feel confident braving the taxi system and, to our surprise, the driver met us as soon as we disembarked. He whisked us through customs and the various checkpoints - chatting vivaciously to everyone - and then helped us collect our baggage. He led us out to the carpark, and we were a bit surprised to be led to a car with quite a few dents on the bonnet. The car itself was comfortable and spacious inside, but it had obviously been through the wars.

We soon understood why. Cairo traffic is like nothing else I have see - with the possible exception of Thailand or Vietnam. People change lanes constantly and indicators are definitely optional. There is a great deal of honking of horns and gesturing rudely out car windows. Our driver said you need three things to drive safely in Egypt - a good horn, good brakes and good luck. (Obviously a well-worn joke - but true.)

People just drive wherever they want and this is all done with motorbikes weaving in between all the cars. Of course, nobody wears a helmet and there are often several people on a bike, plus packages. At one stage, we drove down a narrow road, which our driver informed us was a one-way street - even though there were several people driving the opposite way down it. 

We also passed what could have been a street party or a fight - with people revving engines, letting off fireworks and shouting at each other. I think it was celebratory, but I couldn't be sure.

Cairo is a city of 15 million people and we drove past an unending array of dingy run-down apartment blocks with washing hanging out windows. These were interspersed with gorgeous old colonial buildings, modern shops and then obviously poorer areas. It was all a bit confronting and noisy, to say the least.

We crossed over the Nile -and our driver informed us that our hotel was actually in Giza, rather than Cairo. The east bank of the Nile is Cairo and the west bank is Giza, which I was totally unaware of.

The driver told us proudly that Egypt is a very safe place. When we arrived at the hotel, a bomb-sniffer dog checked out our car before it was allowed onto the premises, which our driver assured us should make us feel very safe. Hmmm.....

Our hotel is absolutely lovely - very large and with views of the Nile. They upgraded our room to a suite, for some reason, so we have a bedroom, a lounge and a study where I am typing this. We also have a balcony where we can look out on downtown Cairo and the Nile. I can hear in the background a distant cacophony of car horns. It's endless!

After dinner, we collapsed into bed. It's been a long day and we need to be up bright and early tomorrow for a tour of the newly opened Grand Egyptian Museum.