Day 8-Fayoum

This was our last day with our tour guide, Yasir and driver, Mustafa. The plan was that we drive 2 hours away to an Oasis in Fayoum where we were going to see beautiful waterfalls. As we went to  the police check point, the police asked where we were going and then told us we could not go past that point because it was not safe. Regan looked at his phone and found out that earlier there was a bombing at the place we were supposed to go. 

Yasir had to come up with a Plan B since were already out of Cairo. We got falafels at a street cart and ate them overlooking the largest salt water lake in Egypt, Qarons Lake. Even though I was nervous to eat street food, I will say it was the best falafel I ever had! So fresh!

Yasir then took us to a stand off the side of the road for some Egyptian Tea. The thing that was so interesting about this shop was that it was run by a 10 year old boy and his 6 year old sister. The parents were not there! I can not even imagine Elle and Emery running a stand off the side of a busy road all by themselves!!! By the way, Egyptian tea is not so great, but we drank it to be polite.

 Once Yasir came up with plan b, a police car filled with 4 policeman escorted us for the rest of the day. I liked that they were with us, but the extra security actually made me more nervous and then made knowing we would have to pay them.

 The first stop we took on our plan B Fayoum day was to the first pyramid ever built. The reason why it doesn't look as good as the pyramids in Cairo is because this one was made from Mud Bricks.

 We were able to go down into the Pyramid but weren't able to go very far since the inside was filled with water.

 This pyramid is said to have housed grain inside from The Old Testament story of Joseph from Egypt. In the Old Testament, Joseph is sold into slavery in Egypt by his brothers, where he later interprets a pharaoh's dreams and helps the Egyptians survive a seven-year famine - by storing grain. 

 It is crazy to think that bricks made from mud can still be standing 4,000 years later!

The policeman wanted to stop for Egyptian tea, so Regan and Yasir joined them. 

 The second stop were to some Egyptian ruins.

 The last stop was to a potter in Fayoum. He showed us how he makes his pottery.

 Every potter has their own color scheme and design to distinguish themselves from other potters.

 After we bought some pottery, we sat down for some fresh fruit juice and waffles over looking the large salt water lake. I had lemon mint juice and Regan of course had mango juice.

There was a German Couple who had a waffle stand at the pottery place, so we got a gourmet waffle in the middle of nowhere! Regan was very happy! 

After our plan b day in Fayoum, we said goodbye to our tour guide, Yasir and driver, Mustafa. They were so great to have with us and so kind.

 Regan wanted to find a dessert he loved when living in Egypt called Zalabia. We got them covered in Honey, Chocolate, and Sugar. We obviously had so many left over so I bagged them up and found a poor Mom with her children on the busy streets of Cairo begging for food. They were SO happy to have this treat. Seeing the hungry kids was so sad and it just made me want to help them somehow.

For dinner, Regan found an Egyptian restaurant that only has 10 people in at a time to eat. It is a set menu of a lady who cooks authentic Egyptian food and it was amazing. We had Tabouli, Baked Fish and Sauce, Chicken and rice and Molokhia.

The thing I love about traveling with Regan is that everything we do and everything we eat is sure to be authentic. I truly feel like I got the total Egyptian experience because of his adventure!