Why You Must Visit Siwa A Sahara Oasis In Western Egypt

S iwa is a small desert            confirmation that he was a         oasis some 350 miles west       demi-god from the Temple of Amun.  of Cairo, and the best time                                        to go there is between October        If you love the desert, and you    and April, which is before the        want to explore well off the       mosquitoes and the heat arrive.       tourist trail the Siwa with its    At this time of year the nights       oases, tumbledown ruins, salt      can be very cold, even freezing.      lakes, springs, tombs, and                                               amazing eco hotels is not to be    It isn’t easy to reach Siwa which     missed                             is the most western of the five                                          major oases of Egypt. A hire car,     A few of the eco- friendly hotels  fully air conditioned can take        at Siwa are as follows.            about eight hours to get to this                                         Sahara Oasis.                         At the budget end of the market                                          is the Palm Trees Hotel with a     Most of the tourists who visit        beautiful shady garden.            Egypt restrict themselves to the                                         Nile Valley, and visit the cities     The Shali Lodge which has one of   of Aswan, Luxor and Cairo. There      the best restaurants, but only     they explore the familiar ruins       eight rooms.                       and monuments of ancient Egypt,                                          including the Great Pyramids and      The Adrere Amellal, which is top   the temples of Karnak, Luxor and      end of the market, no              Abu Simbel. Sadly they are            electricity, and some way out of   missing something totally unique      town                               in the Siwa Oasis, which after                                           all is one of the great places of     Please note, there is no bank in   history, because of the visit of      Siwa, so take plenty of cash.      Alexander the Great seeking                                              The first thing you will see when     will organise jeep safaris.        you arrive at the Siwa Oasis is                                          Shali, the remains of the old         It is important to remember that   fortress, rising above the town       Siwa is still a traditional        square. When you climb up to the      society, and it is courteous to    top of the hilly outcrop through      conform to the rules. Shorts,      the labyrinth of alleyways you        bikinis and brief tops should not  will see the entire oasis below       be worn. It is sensible to be      you. It is very lush after the        covered up, and women need to      arid desert with its springs and      cover their upper arms, and wear   lakes, and beyond that you can        one piece bathing suits with a     see the mountains and the Great       long shirt if they bathe in a      Sand Sea of the Sahara Desert         public place like Cleopatra’s      stretching apparently forever.        Bath.                                                                                                       The best way to explore the oasis     Siwa is a beautiful Sahara Oasis,  is to hire a bicycle or hire a        and should be visited now, before  donkey cart, and for a few pounds     tourism takes a hold and spoils    the local boys who drive the          it forever.                        carts will take you to Bedouin                                           villages, Roman ruins,                For more holidays in Egypt visit   Cleopatra’s bath, and the Hill of     the Dead where you will find          href="http://www.worldwidevacatio  ancient Egyptian/Roman era tombs,     nspots.com/categories/The-Middle-  some still containing mummified       East/Egypt/"                       remains.                              title="http://www.worldwidevacati                                        onspots.com/categories/The-Middle  A visit to the Temple of Amun is      -East/Egypt/"                      a must do, and if you want to go      target="_blank">further afield then the hotels        color="#001000"                    size="-2">http://www.worldwidevac     dle-East/Egypt/         ationspots.com/categories/The-Mid      About the Author: Peter Stewart writes about in Kenya Safaris as well as Worldwide Vacation Spots He also recommends Travel Tennis a great Game to play on Holiday. Published At: www.Isnare.com