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It’s the last day of Egypt Week in #PhotoTravelMemory. Here’s a mishmash of wonderful moments/sights from the last three years. First, more from Nefertari’s tomb. /1 
Temple of Karnak. /2
The St. George I, and sunrise on the Nile. /3
More Egypt Week. In today's #PhotoTravelMemory a look back at what is without a doubt the highlight of every trip I take to Egypt - Queen Nefertari's tomb, in the Valley of the Queens. /1
This is an "extra ticket", like Seti I. On my first visit, I was simply told it was the best preserved tomb in the Valley of the Queens, and worth a visit. I'd already gone into a couple of other tombs, finding them interesting but unremarkable. Then I went into Nefertari's. /2
Photography of all kinds was prohibited, not that it matters because the moment I walked in, I burst into tears. There were no other visitors, and security didn't go in with me. I stood there surrounded by unbelievable beauty, a riot of color so unexpected I couldn't move. /3
Egypt Week continues. Today's #PhotoTravelMemory is about the Valley of the Kings (Wādī Al-Mulūk). It doesn't look like much. It's hot, rocky, dusty, barren. Completely unremarkable on the surface. Underneath, it's mind-blowing. Pharaohs were buried there for nearly 500 years./1
An entrance ticket to the Valley is cheap, and gives you access to any 3 tombs. At any given day, there are a handful of tombs open to the public, seemingly at random. It's by design. The Egyptian government rotates the openings to preserve the tombs, which are damaged by /2
exposure to CO2 expelled by crowds of visitors. For the same reason, time inside is limited to 10 minutes. On my first visit, I joined a long line of people entering a tomb I don't even remember. The line was moving continuously and it was so hot and stuffy I left in 5 min. /3
Continuing Egypt Week in #PhotoTravelMemory today I bring you to Kom Ombo, near Aswan. It was the first temple I visited in Egypt and remains one of my favorites. It is also unique because it was dedicated to two gods, Sobek and Horus, and functioned as a medical facility. /1
I posted extensively about Kom Ombo when I returned for a third visit this past February. You can find that thread here: My best story related to Kom Ombo actually happened during this last trip. @PenlandKW and I were leaving the temple when we saw a /2
guy showing snakes to tourists. For a small tip we could pet the snakes and handle them for a few seconds, but my Egyptologist friend and guide "Daddy" jokingly suggested that I kiss the snake as well. He probably thought I wouldn't but clearly he doesn't know me that well yet./3
It's Egypt Week in #PhotoTravelMemory. I have so many amazing memories of my three back-to-back years visiting Egypt that I will need a full week to share. Let's kick off with the first time I saw the pyramids of Giza. /1
I had planned only 3 days in Cairo before heading down to a Nile river cruise. Spent the first one at the Cairo Museum, the second one in the Citadel, and saved Giza for last. Amex concierge found me the guide, a young female Egyptologist, and the driver who spoke no English./2
Between the two of them, I had my first lesson of Arabic. The long drive to Giza went by quickly with much laughter and insightful commentary. And there we were, sharing a parking lot with a couple of tour buses and a bunch of souvenir vendors. We were going to get much closer /3
