June 30th Protests in Cairo and Last Day in Egypt

Last night's protest was quite lively, to say the least.  We are on the side opposite of the building to the right of this picture, so as you can imagine, we can hear a lot of what is going on.  Throughout the evening, we could see at least one helicopter flying overhead, while below thousands marched along the streets.  We posted a video as well as some pictures of when we went out for dinner.

The video has gained quite a few views since being posted, and has gotten the attention of a news outfit in London, who has asked if they could use it.  I am not sure if they will, but we did grant them permission.

Later in the night, we heard fireworks and other loud banging sounds, which we suspect may have been gunfire.  Other noises included chanting and horns.  People rode scooters with the Egyptian flag on the streets below our 7th floor hostel room.  In alleyways, people gathered for tea and sheesha, in between protesting.  Then, around midnight, everything suddenly went quiet.  There were no sounds at all.  It was strange.

Upon awakening, there is little noise at all outside.  In fact, it sounds just the same as when we arrived in Cairo, over a month ago.  A big part of me is sad to leave -- as we leave tonight.  I have really enjoyed my time here, and at times I forgot I was just a traveler here.  I have gotten very used to Egypt, and that's one reason I enjoy taking such long trips -- I begin to feel as a local and feel at home in these places.  The longer I stay somewhere, the harder it is to leave.  I wonder when I will be back in Egypt.  It could be many years, or it could be never.  Perhaps that is what makes it hard to leave as well.

Tonight we will be going to the Cairo Airport and flying to Amsterdam before heading to New York.  It has been a great trip.  There will be more blog posts coming, including The Temple of Luxor, the Train from Luxor to Cairo, the Khan al-Khalili Market, more hotel and hostel reviews, and a few others.  This blog will also become an information source for those who are looking to travel to Egypt in the future.

Thank you for reading.