Times have changed !

We have rung out the old year and ushered in the new.

I was going through my pictures last night and came across the pictures of my trip to Egypt in 2008. Tahrir Square – at that time – was a quaint old square, smack in front of the Egyptian Museum. People came, sat and saw the world go by.

Never did we expect that the people's revolution with its epicenter at the same Tahrir Square would force Hosni Mubarak out of power in 2011. Hundreds of thousands of anti-government protesters there, intensified pressure on president Hosni Mubarak to step down. The square - according to the media reports - was flooded with an estimated 500,000 Egyptians clamouring for change.

We were not destined to see history in the making. May be it was better that way. The picture last night brought memories flooding back.

Tahrir Square circa May 2008
.

The world has changed since then. Starting with the Tunisia, we have seen revolutions across across Africa and the middle east. Whether the regime changes will work out for the better or the countries make a slow descend into a quagmire - only time will tell.

As conflicts rage on and with a few more wars on the anvil, how the world shapes up in the new year remains to be seen.

Anyway, lets wish the best for everyone. . .

Here’s to wishing all my dear readers a very happy new year.

Cheers,

Nile Cruise

A cruise on the river Nile. . .

"The Pharaohs" - a theme restaurant on the Nile - from where we started our cruise. The cruise boat is parked on the right hand side.

Decorations on the side of the boat

Entertainment . . . belly dancing

Accompanied by Egyptian musicians, a whirling dervish spins on the dance floor of the cruise boat on the Nile. Dervishes, traditionally members of the Sufi Muslim sect, which originated in Turkey, perform their order's ritual prayer by spinning.

I felt this was a majorly jazzed up version.



A bank of photographers trying to get a piece of the action . . .

The dancer asks one of our colleagues to try out the dance

. . . and she tries it out . . .

Another cruise boat on the Nile and a Police launch hovering close by

A view from the boat . . the Grand Hyatt Cairo

Cairo - interesting pictures

Some interesting pictures from Cairo . . .

Curious locals

Woman diving on to a taxi, Downtown Cairo

The Sphinx and the Pyramids through the gate

Camel toys outside the Sphinx

Gate man outside the theme restaurant "The Pharaohs"

A smiling camel

Cairo 2008

We were in Cairo, Egypt in the end of April and early May 2008 as a part of our MDP 2008.

The pictures taken - mostly with the Canon EOS 400D and 18-55 kit lens are here:

Please click on the pictures to see the large image...

Cairo Airport

The Nile from my room at Ramses Hilton, Cairo.
The bridge is called the 6th October bridge.

The Nile . . . it is not blue but a shade of green

The Nile and the Four Seasons Hotel

Lions guarding the Qasr El Neel' Bridge over the Nile



Cairo University



Ornate gates of the Cairo University



Downtown Cairo



Cairo - the palm tree lined roads leading to Tahrir Square.


The Egyptian Museum at a distance


The road leading to the 6th October bridge and our Hotel, the Ramses Hilton, the large building on the centre of the frame.


The rear of the Egyptian Museum



Cairo skyline


Cairo, 2008


Modern Cairo

Dusk on the Nile

Lights on at the Egyptian Museum



Cairo at dusk



Sunset



6th October bridge at night . . . shot from my room balcony



Our first view of the pyramids


Sunset


Cairo skyline


Sunset on the promenade of the Nile


Feluccas on the Nile


Crazy angle shot taken of the Ramses Hilton from the Tour Bus window


Sunset . . . seems that Cairo skyline is aflame


Feluccas parked by the side of the Grand Hyatt, Cairo


The Grand Hyatt Cairo, where we had our MDP 2008


Another view of the Grand Hyatt, Cairo