The last of my 1 year adventure

Alight, so I'm still very behind with the blogging, but I'm going to finish off my year adventure in this one post! And by popular request, I've decided to keep the blog going about my Canadian adventures (though, I'll guarantee they won't be nearly as cool or fun because I'll be in school).

Now, to pick up where I left off.  Sander and I had the chance to experience Egypt luxury style-- on a 10 day cruise on the Nile River.  It was simply amazing.  We met some awesome people, did some really super cool things, saw many many many ancient ruins, and overall just had the experience of a lifetime.  I have around 200 pictures from the trip, but I'll just post a few here. =)

It was HOT.  I never thought heat like that was possible.  We're talking high 40s low 50s for the whole week we were there.  Needless to say, we were in the pool every chance we had! 

Quading in the desert (and no, Sander and I did not plan our color coordination) with two couples from our ship.  They were super cool, and the 6 of us had a lot of fun.  

Karnack Temple in Luxor.

Me goofing off.  Sander's glasses were just too reflective! 

Kom Ombo Temple (I'm actually impressed I remember all the names!) 

On our way to Philae Island.

As an extra excursion, we went sailing. =)

We went to a little island via motorboat and this little kid swam up to our boat, held on and begged the entire way there.  Egypt is like Mexico x 100000 when it comes to begging.  The markets were pure torture because people would not take no for an answer.  Sander and I got tricked and ripped off so many times.  By the end of the week, it was getting really frustrating and we were very happy to be back.

This was a house on the island we visited.  It is one that a very wealthy family would live in.  Most of the houses on the island were built from mud and straw-- a way people built houses in the 20s in Canada.  

We had the chance to visit a school on the island as well.  These were the stairs leading up to the classrooms.  It was clearly a school that was struggling to stay running, and amazingly enough it was built entirely on donations.  I felt so selfish waltzing around on the island poking through people's lives and being surprised by their everyday lives that we would consider poverty in a Western culture.  I wanted to give them everything I had and help them create a better life. 

Abu Simbel Temples.  Fun fact: this is not the original location of these temples (also a bit of a disappointing fact).  The creation of a dam flooded the temples, so they blocked it off, shaved off the front of a mountain, and moved it to higher land, and glued it all back together.  That in itself was quite impressive, but it definitely took away from the awe factor I was expecting. 

This was our ship! 

A typical street in Luxor.  Talk about culture shock.  In all my travels, I have never experienced anything like it before.  I was speechless.

Chickens at the market in Luxor.

And that's where the fun part of my year ended.  Like the saying goes, all good things come to an end, and the fact was that I had some really hard goodbyes to say.  Over the year, I got to know, and fell in love with an amazing Dutch family.  The kids taught me a way to love that I never knew before, and I will always have a special place for them in my heart.  I just have to keep in mind that it's goodbye for now, not forever, and I hope to visit them every time I find myself in the beautiful little country of The Netherlands.

Me and my girlies! Pilou had just clued in that day that I was actually leaving and she would not let go of me! 

Me and Cleo

Pilou, who looks like she's about to cry. =(

Pippa!! 

My little family for the year.   We had so much fun.  I'm already missing them!!

It was a wonderful end to a wonderful year.  I am so lucky to have met such an amazing family.  I will never forget the experience I had, and will treasure it for the rest of my life.