AD the ‘Belly Dancer’, rises to Tilly’s challenge. ;)

Hi again, everyone. Last week, I happened to mention in one of my posts, that when we did the Nile cruise, I got the chance to impersonate a Belly Dancer. Funny-lady blogger, Tilly Budd, demanded that I put up some proof in the way of photos, so here are a few pics from my Egypt experience, included in which is the required proof.

Of course, as soon as we stepped off the plane in Cairo, we were cajoled into trying out the local transport. It was a bit scary, as the steed my son and I sat astride, suddenly spotted a mate of his,in the distance, and started galloping off to have a chat, and a bit of a spat into the bargain. The minders really didn’t seem to have an awful lot of control over their charges, and I don’t know if I would do it again.

The most photographed icon in Egypt, has to be ‘The Sphinx’, which stands on the west bank of the Nile, at Giza. This gargantuan statue which has the body of a lion and the head of a human, was much bigger than I had ever imagined. It is 73.5m long, 6m wide, and 20.22m high, and dates back to between 2558 and 2532BC.

The Colossus of Ramesses, an enormous statue carved in limestone, is about 10m (33.8 ft) long, even though it has no feet, and is located near the village of Mit Rahina. This piece was discovered in 1820 by an Italian traveler Giovanni Caviglia, and was donated to the British Museum, but because of it’s size and extreme weight, they were unable to transport it over there.

Here is the Muhammad Ali Pasha, or Alabaster Mosque, which is situated on the summit of the citadel,  the largest to be built in the first half of the 19th century, and the most visible mosque in Cairo. It is one of the first landmarks to be seen when approaching the city from no matter which side.

Even though I considered myself to be ‘modestly’ dressed, One of the officials, obviously judged me to be showing too much flesh, and rushed over to cover me up with this green cloak.

On the river cruise, there was a fancy dress evening, and during the day, many traders along the river bank, were trying their utmost to sell us Egyptian attire. They would throw it up onto the deck for the passengers’ perusal, and then if it was considered suitable, the money would get thrown down in a plastic bag. Both hubby and son bought their Galabeya (long shirts), this way.

I decided to go to the costume-hire boutique on board, and the guy there insisted on kitting me out as a belly dancer. He even stuck a jewel in my navel to complete the look. Later in the evening, during the entertainment, the authentic belly dancer, spotted me, and press-ganged me into dancing with her.

Our dual act met with so much applause, that I was persuaded to do a bit of a solo, and surprised myself when I quite enjoyed it.  I  wasn’t however, tempted to take it up as a full-time career. We all had such a lot of fun that evening.

Here is one entertainer I wouldn’t even consider trying to emulate. This ‘Whirling Dervish’, made me dizzy just watching him perform. His frenzied, ecstatic dance, accompanied by weird howling utterances, was quite sight to behold.

I hope you all enjoyed the photos, especially you Tilly.

Have a great day, everyone. Chat again soon.