Bitter Sweet Egypt - part 1
Egypt is one of the places in the world that has been in my dreams for the longest time! My friend Carolina from 4th grade had been there on her Easter holidays and I remember, like it was yesterday, the treasures she brought from that trip to share with her friends. She carefully collected water from the Nile river as well as some sand from the desert, which she stored in Kodak film boxes. They were relics from an ancient place, full of stories of mummies and pharaohs. With vast lands spreading from the Nile. The crocodiles, the mythology, the architecture, the amazing stories from those who ruled one of the most illustrious civilizations in the world and all their aesthetics amazed me ever since.
O Egito é um dos sítios deste mundo que sonhava conhecer há mais tempo! Lembro-me perfeitamente da minha amiga Carolina, no 4º ano, trazer e partilhar alguns tesouros recolhidos por si durante a sua visita ao Egipto, nas férias da páscoa. Mostrou-nos a água e a areia que cuidadosamente guardara em caixas de rolos da Kodak. Eram autênticas relíquias de um lugar antiquíssimo, cheio de histórias sobre múmias e faraós. As vastas terras que se estendem a partir do Nilo. Os crocodilos, a mitologia, a arquitetura, as histórias incríveis daqueles que governaram uma das mais notáveis civilizações e toda a sua identidade estética, desde então, me cativaram.
Growing up, every time I went to a museum like the British Museum in London or the Neues Museum in Berlin, I always stayed longer at the Egyptian section, just looking at their amazing jewellery, pottery and other artefacts. So, coming to Egypt was a total dream come true. However, I was also a bit frightened that all the magnificence of such a distant era would have been gone as a consequence of the potential damage that massive tourism can create.
Durante o meu crescimento, sempre que visitava um museu como o British Museum em Londres ou o Neues Museum em Berlim, a secção que me atraía por mais tempo era a da cultura Egípcia, ficava encantada a observar as suas obras de joalheria, cerâmica e outros artefactos tais. Por consequência, poder viajar até ao Egito foi um sonho tornado realidade. Não obstante, havia em mim uma sombra de medo de que toda a magnificência de uma era tão distante se tivesse extinto, devido aos danos que o turismo em massa pode, potencialmente, criar.
Our first stop was Hurghada. We wanted to recharge our batteries, so we stayed at a resort with a private beach. We were able to relax for a bit, but in our minds we couldn't forget our disappointment, that was startled when we witnessed that all the beauty that Hurghada and the dreamy Red Sea could have had once, is far gone. The over exploration of the coast by hotels left the shore so damaged that I felt my heart breaking into tiny pieces. Maybe more than half of this hotels are abandoned or their construction was never finished. I felt I was in a kind of apocalyptic scene from a movie! It is a real wake up call for me, and I wish nature could have the chance to take back the beauty that mankind once stole from it.
A nossa primeira paragem foi em Hurghada. Queríamos recarregar baterias, por isso ficámos num resort com praia privada. Conseguimos relaxar durante um tempo, no entanto, não conseguíamos varrer da nossa memória o desapontamento que sentimos ao constatar que toda a beleza que Hurghada e o Mar Vermelho um dia possuíram já não existe. A exploração em massa da zona costeira por parte de unidades hoteleiras deixou um extenso rasto de danos e ver isso fez com que o meu coração se partisse em pequenos pedaços. Talvez mais de metade destes hotéis estão abandonados ou são apenas o esqueleto de projetos inacabadas. Senti-me como se estivesse num cena de um filme apocalíptico. O meu desejo é que a natureza tenha a oportunidade, um dia, de restaurar a beleza que lhe foi roubada pela humanidade.
From Hurghada we took a bus to Luxor. We didn’t really check where our B&B was, so we were really surprised to find out that it was on a little village right next to Medinat Habu, Ramses III’s memorial temple, on the west coast of the Nile. So the first thing we did when we got to the city was crossing the amazing river by boat and visit the absolutely amazing and underrated Habu temple. Throughout our trip we crossed the Nile uncountable times but we always felt amazed by its serene beauty.
De autocarro executámos o percurso entre Hurghada e Luxor. Como não tínhamos verificado com atenção a localização do nosso B&B, ficámos surpreendidos ao descobrir que se situava numa numa pequena vila na costa oeste do Nilo, ao lado do Templo Memorial de Ramses III, Medinat Habu. Por isso mesmo, a primeira coisa que fizemos ao chegar à cidade, foi atravessar, de barco, esse maravilhoso rio, e visitar o Templo de Habu, que é bastante subestimado. Durante toda a nossa viagem, foram incontáveis as vezes que atravessámos o Nilo, mas sempre que o fazíamos ficávamos maravilhados com toda a sua serena beleza.
We tried all means of transportation. Sometimes we'd walk, we also rent bikes for one day. We started riding them to come back from the Valley of the Kings, a pretty cool way down with zero effort, then taking the early morning hours to explore the west side crops and shore and at noon we crossed the river, taking them on the ferry to have lunch and visit Karnak. I feel there are no words in the world to describe the magnificence and grandeur of that place! As people from tours would get jammed, starring at a particular detail on a wall, we were able to visit everything without bumping into them, as usually you'll find the most interesting and amazing places far from the crowds. We took time to explore all of the places and details that the guides and their tours don't care about. Apart from observing the whole stunning constructions, the paintings on the walls and the ancient rock carvings, we took some extra time to think, not only about the people who lived there, but also about the people whose names are carved on the rocks, the ones that found those ruins over the centuries, in awe for their discoveries!
Experimentámos todos os tipos de transportes. Por vezes fazíamos longas caminhadas e também alugámos bicicletas por um dia. Começámos a usá-las de manhã, bem cedo, para descer do Vale dos Reis até às terras de cultivo perto da margem Oeste do rio. Perto do meio-dia, levando as bicicletas, atravessámos para o lado Este, de ferry, para fazermos um picnic e visitarmos Karnak. Sinto que não há palavras no mundo que possam descrever a magnificência deste complexo de templos! Enquanto as multidões dos grupos de tours se empurravam e sobrelotavam zonas, onde permaneciam especadas a olhar para um qualquer pormenor numa parede, nós conseguimos visitar tudo sem termos de nos cruzar com elas. Como é já habitual, conseguimos encontrar lugares e coisas interessantíssimas longe das multidões. Explorámos todos os lugares, e são muitos, que as tours não visitam. Para além de observarmos atentamente as fantásticas construções, pinturas e trabalho escultórico nas paredes, pensámos, ainda, não só sobre quem ali viveu mas também sobre aqueles cujos nomes estão gravados na pedra, aqueles que durante os últimos séculos foram descobrindo e explorando estas ruínas.
In Luxor I never felt in danger but I felt verbally harassed everyday by men in the streets, including policemen, with no respect for me or Luis that was always on my side. I would expect them to at least respect the western "husband" figure but I was deeply wrong. We got pretty tired to hear them whistle, make kiss sounds and ultimately tell Luis loudly while looking at me like they would look at a juicy steak "Oooooh! Lucky man!". Apart from that, they pretty much try to sell you everything they can and they always start with "hey! Welcome to Egypt! Wherrr you from? Spain? Italy?...What you looking for? I have it!" at the end, we just pretended we were speaking a weird language so they couldn't guess where we were from and quit on harassing. It gets really tiering and I've never seen a country like this. How come they don't realize that their amazing selling techniques are only driving people away from their businesses? I don't want to generalize as we've met some pretty decent men on our stay in Egypt, but men need to be more respectful ASAP for tourism sake, as tourism is really important for the country's economy! Also, please stop taking sneaky selfies!! Notwithstanding, I've met some pretty fascinating women and girls, always so nice and polite! Young women are full of dreams and hopes. It feels like they belong to a secret kind of sisterhood, which I think is absolutely fascinating and will lead them, hopefully, one day, to come forward to embrace their rights as women from the supremacy of religious rules and the power of sexist traditions.
Em Luxor nunca me senti em perigo, no entanto, sentia-me verbalmente assediada por homens nas ruas, diariamente, incluindo polícias, sem nenhum respeito por mim ou pelo Luis, que estava sempre do meu lado. Esperava, pelo menos, que eles respeitassem a figura do "marido" ocidental, mas estava enganada. Ficámos bastante cansados de os ouvir assobiar, fazer sons de beijos e dizerem ao Luís, olhando para mim como se eu fosse um bife suculento "Ooooooh! Lucky man!". Para além disso, estão constantemente a tentar vender tudo aquilo que consigam, começando as conversas com "hey! Welcome to Egypt! Wherrr you from? Spain? Italy?...What you looking for? I have it!". Nós já falávamos línguas inventadas para que eles não conseguissem detectar a nossa proveniência e desistissem mais rápido da usual perseguição durante 200m. É extremamente cansativo e eu nunca estive num país que se possa comparar. Como é que não se apercebem que as suas maravilhosas técnicas de vendas apenas afastam as pessoas dos seus negócios? De qualquer forma, não quero generalizar esta ideia, pois conhecemos alguns homens bastante decentes na nossa estadia no Egipto. No entanto, para que o turismo mantenha um crescimento saudável, alguns homens precisam de mudar a sua abordagem, já que o turismo é super importante para a economia deste país! Para além disso, por favor, parem de tirar selfies sorrateiras! É sinistro! Não obstante, conheci mulheres e raparigas fascinantes, sempre queridas e com ótimos modos. As jovens são sonhadoras e cheias de esperança. Pareceu-me que elas pertencem a uma irmandade secreta, onde se protegem umas às outras, o que é absolutamente fascinante, e que, oxalá (que palavra apropriada!), um dia, dêem o primeiro passo na defesa dos seus direitos como mulheres contra a supremacia de leis ditadas pela religião e contra o poder de tradições sexistas.
Part 2 is coming ASAP!
Publicarei a Parte 2 sobre o Egipto o mais rapidamente possível!
<3
Last days in Havana
So, on our last days in Havana, we walked around a lot and were able to find this amazing old theatre that is now a carpentry. Also in walks we couldn't help starring at the women practicing Santeria at Plaza de la Catedral, I just love their style! <3
We really walked and walked and walked! From Habana Vieja to Centro Habana, we just rambled around. We actually started walking on the Malecón and only stopped after we walked for 14km. On our way we saw 2 women having a very dark Santeria ritual where they were killing a chicken right next to a bay. How bizarre!? Then we took a bus, which cost only a few cents to come back. That way it was possible to get to know Havana's surroundings, and we didn't meet any tourists on our way there and back.
La Bodeguita del Medio and El Floridita are two of the most famous bars in Havana, where Ernest Hemingway used to hangout. Today they're crowded with tourists but the old environment is still striking. On the way between both bars we bumped into some people in the street selling puff pastry treats filled with guava paste. They're absolutely delicious!
We went to La Guarida, to book an early dinner and we fell in love with the old building. The dinner was good and I would tell you to order as many starters and desserts as you're able to. When you're finished head to the rooftop terrace to enjoy the sunset and the view of nightlife starting to burst. After our dinner we proceeded to have a couple more drinks and soak in the culture one last time.
<3
Welcome to Viñales
After a four hour drive in our taxi colectivo we arrived in Viñales. We couldn't have wished for a lovelier hostess. We stayed at Casa Dra. Alicia, a little house in the quietest part of the village. Alicia was just amazing and we got to spend 3 nights at her place. We had lovely late night talks on her balcony and a delightful dinner in a nearby restaurant where we talked about our cultures and living in Cuba. Juanky, Alicia's boyfriend used to be a history teacher and now he earns a lot more as a barman. Words can't describe how amazing they were to us.
On our last day we went to a beach called Playa de Cayo Jutías. It's only about 50 kilometres away from Viñales but the roads were in such poor condition that it took us 1 hour to get there. Anyway, it was totally worth it! The beach is super clean and you can easily get away from the crowd if you walk a bit along the shore. Our driver stopped on the way to get his lunch and that's where we bought ours as well. It was super cheap and incredibly delicious (it included a delicious stewed pork, yellow rice, avocado and manioc)!
Because we spent a little too much money in New York, we had to compensate in Cuba, so we decided to walk everywhere we wanted to go and pass the horse rides and the tours. The furthest we went was Cueva del Indio (which is 6,3km away) and we were the only people walking. We had a lot of water to hydrate and we stopped to drink some fresh guava juice on our way. The cave is actually not that amazing, considering the time we had to wait plus the whole experience inside it, which was too short. Anyway, the walk was absolutely worth it as we took in the landscape and were able to spot a snake, some griffons, a buffalo and an incredibly cute hummingbird.
The houses are so colourful and cute. Alicia told us that the houses are blue and pink because that's the only colours you can get when you go and buy paint, you can't really choose. Her dream was to have a sand colour house and she made it come true. Though I preferred the former flamingo pink. There are no glass windows in most houses, so there are quite a lot of bugs. We didn't have insect repellent, but I would advise you to bring some, as the itchiness can get quite annoying. While at the balcony one night we were able to see a tarantula! It was the first we saw on our trip and it was rad!
If you walk around Viñales you'll be able to find some cool caves to explore! Remember to bring a flashlight (of course we didn't have one, only our cellphones). Also, try some mamoncillo, a little fruit that you can find in trees over there. We ate way too many! Luis climbed up a tree to pick them and we shared them with some kids that were playing baseball nearby.
We usually don't go to the beach that often but if we've known beforehand how wonderful the beach was we would've stayed longer. The water is so incredibly hot that you never want to get out of it and the view is so stunning that you could stare at the ocean for the rest of your life. The sky became super cloudy in the afternoon and it started raining but I think that only made the beach look more appealing and mystical.
<3
Cuba is Blue and Pink
Havana was our next stop after New York. We decided to stay for 1 day there first, then go to Viñales for 3 days and come back to Havana for our last days in Cuba. That way it was possible to get to know this amazing city a little and come back for more! I've never seen so much colorful buildings in my whole life, and boy, do I love color!
People are polite and helpful. Though there are already a lot of schemes for tourists, so be careful. Also, if you want to visit Havana's surroundings and neighborhoods, try to exchange some CUC (Cuban Convertible Pesos, the money that you get from the ATM) for CUP (Cuban Peso or Moeda Nacional) at a Casa de Cambio. With CUP you can have a meal or a juice almost for free!
Traveling by bus is the cheapest way to travel but buses are often super crowded and surely are not for pussies! Try to negotiate if you're traveling in a taxi colectivo. Also, don't be surprised if your driver honks to every woman and teenage girl that passes by! Men are still very sexist. As I was with Luis, I never felt unsafe, but a lot of women I know who traveled to Cuba by themselves felt disrespected.
Sundays are baseball days. You can buy a ticket for a few cents and enjoy a social afternoon with a lot of cheap snacks and plenty of excitement. We watched Industriales against Isla de la Juventud.
Stay tuned for more from my trip to Cuba!
NY #1
First part of my trip to New York City.
We arrived at about 11pm, so we went straight to the hotel by public transportation. I felt I belonged with all the crazy people on the subway! 😜 The next morning we went right out and we walked non stop.
As a NY first timer I felt bliss wherever I was. It was all I ever imagined and more. I just felt I belonged to all that frenzy! And because we don't really like to stick to rules, we just decided to ramble around.
Our rambling drove us (not in a correct timeline order) to Central Station, China Town (where we had a great foot massage), Little Italy, The Met ♥ and Rockefeller Center.
As we went on, we came upon Brooklyn Bridge, so we crossed it and continued strolling towards the South. There's an amazing park over there, where people go to play sports, chill or have a collective BBQ with friends and neighbors.
At the end of the afternoon we were starving, so we looked up for a cool restaurant to eat and we ended up going to Yemen Café (176 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn). I can tell you that I would eat the same lamb with hummus for the rest of my life!Stay tuned to find out what's next! ♥