Tag Archives: Cairo

Coptic Cairo – Plus a Bonus Visit to Garbage City

On our last full day in Cairo, we visited an old part of the city known as Coptic Cairo for its predominantly Christian orthodox population and proliferation of churches. Coptic Cairo is conveniently accessible by metro, so we rode the subway there to give our feet a break.

Cairo, Egypt | www.nonbillablehours.com
All aboard the metro!

We started with the Hanging Church, one of the oldest churches in Egypt. The church is so-called because it was built over the gatehouse of a Roman fortress with its nave suspended over a passage.

Hanging Church, Cairo, Egypt | www.nonbillablehours.com
Beautiful gate leading to the Hanging Church. | Image credit: Scott D. Haddow

Continue reading Coptic Cairo – Plus a Bonus Visit to Garbage City

In Which I Wax Poetic About the Egyptian Museum

One of the obvious highlights of any visit to Cairo is a trip to the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, commonly known as the Egyptian Museum. With an almost incomprehensible number of priceless antiquities, including the famous Tutankhamun gold and the mummy of Ramses II, you can easily while away an entire day or two there.

Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, Cairo, Egypt | www.nonbillablehours.com
The Museum of Egyptian Antiquities. | Image credit: V Manninen

As someone who is kind of a museum junkie and also spent her childhood hoarding copies of National Geographic that featured Egyptian antiquities, I have some complicated feelings about the Egyptian Museum. Continue reading In Which I Wax Poetic About the Egyptian Museum

A Tale of Two Cairos

By the time we arrived in Cairo, we had been on the road for six months. It was time for a vacation from our trip – and so we cashed in some of Marc’s rewards points for a bit of luxury and booked five nights at the J.W. Marriott in suburban Cairo.

We were delighted to discover, upon check-in, that we had been upgraded to a suite. After our creative sleeping arrangements in the Danakil Depression (volcano-side, on the floor, and in string beds), it felt almost absurd to have two spacious, well-appointed rooms just for us – plus a balcony overlooking the golf course!

JW Marriott View, Cairo, Egypt | www.nonbillablehours.com
Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in sub-Saharan Africa anymore.
Continue reading A Tale of Two Cairos