I was lucky enough to join my family in Cairo for 3.5 days on a long weekend, for one of the most memorable few days of my life. Not knowing what to expect, I found Cairo to be a massive, colorful, vibrant city packed with some of the best food, most friendly people and truly stunning sites I've ever been around. Pictures have little ability to capture the character of the city, but here's shot:
They called it the city of 1,000 mosques...I think
Stuffed pigeon might be my new favorite food
Side streets
Even saw a few of the famous sites - the Sphinx and Great Pyramid in the background
A highlight: climbing a random mosque at dusk to watch the sunset during the call to prayer
Sheesha - the national pasttime
It's hard to take a bad picture in this city
A visit to Coptic Cairo
Amman, Jordan was a bit more of a spur-of-the-moment whirlwind adventure: Plane tickets bought Thursday afternoon; flight to Amman Friday morning; back to Abu Dhabi by Saturday afternoon. It was perfect - about 24 hours of New Years adventure in a completely different feeling area of the Middle East.
Mt. Nebo, where Moses is said to rest. Views across to the Holy Land are also possible on a clear day.
The Dead Sea: want to feel like a human cork? Or feel every paper cut burn like hell? This is the spot
The Temple of Hercules atop the Citadel in downtown Amman
Winter is the real deal in Amman - it was COLD...like Juneau, AK cold