Author Archives: yalla2013

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About yalla2013

Ya'lla Tours USA is a boutique tour operator offering top quality travel services in 10 exciting countries: Bahrain, Cuba, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Oman, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. Ya'lla Tours communications director, Kyna Perry, writes this blog based on personal experience and the deep well of experience and knowledge of Ya'lla colleagues near and far.

Nile Cruise Diary – Day 2

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We began the day with a delicious breakfast buffet, which included a variety of fresh fruits, flakey pastries, crusty breads, cheeses, olives, a ful bar (that’s ful with one ‘L’ – the traditional breakfast of mashed fava beans garnished with any or all of the following – olive oil, chopped boiled egg, onion, tomato, cucumber, parsley, lemon juice… Click to see a recipe for ful.), omelettes and pancakes made to order, yogurt, cereal, fresh juices, coffee, and tea.

Then we headed out for a morning of touring on the west side of the river. Tombs and mortuary temples are located on the west because the sun sets in the west. Continue reading →

NAME THAT COUNTRY

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In 1761, a hunting party of Bedouins followed a gazelle out of the desert to a pool of fresh water near the coast, a miraculous find in that place. They built a well and a watch tower out of coral, sea stone and crushed sea shells to protect and control the water, at that time the greatest form of wealth they knew. The ruling sheikh moved into the fort and Qasr al-Hosn (which means “palace fort”) remained the residence of the local rulers for 200 years there after. Today, Qasr al-Hosn stands in the shadow of watch towers of another kind, built by liquid wealth of another kind.

 

 

 

Can you name that country? 
See below for answers.

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Nile Cruise Diary – Day 1

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This morning we flew from Cairo to Luxor for a 4-night Nile cruise. Flight time was exactly one hour.

Luxor airport is pretty low-key. We had our bags and were on our way within about 15 minutes of landing. The drive from the airport to the center of Luxor, where our boat was docked, is less than 5 miles.

Although some of the cruise boats were double parked so cruisers had to walk through a boat or two to reach their vessel, we were lucky to find ours parked right alongside the dock. We were cruising on the deluxe 5-star Amarco, in a junior suite.

our cruise boat

our cruise boat

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NAME THAT COUNTRY

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Plaza de la Catedral is one of many public squares in the capital’s old city. The square was a swamp until drained in the 16th century. In a city known for Spanish colonial architecture, the 18th-century Cathedral of the Virgin Mary of the Immaculate Conception is one of few examples of the local Baroque style. 

 

Can you name that country? 
See below for answers.

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A Solar Eclipse of Peace

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Today at Ya’lla Tours HQ in Portland, Oregon, we have just come in from viewing the solar eclipse. It was awesome! Just north of the path of totality, we saw the sun 99% covered.

Some 2500 years ago, the Greek philosopher/scientist Thales of Miletus was the first person ever to predict an eclipse, according to the ancient historian Herodotus. If this is true, it’s a mystery how the prediction was made, as it was another 200 years before the Greeks understood what causes solar eclipses, the moon passing between the earth and the sun.

Legend tells that the Eclipse of Thales occurred during a battle in a long running war between the Medes and the Lydians near the Halys River in what is now Anatolian Turkey. Taking the eclipse as an admonition by the gods, the combatants dropped their weapons and called a truce. Both sides accepted the Halys River as the border between their lands and peace ensued. Based on modern scientific dating, that eclipse, and hence the battle, happened in 585 BCE.