Creating the Perfect Travel Memories Takes Planning as well as Being Open to Last Minute Ideas

On February 26, 2025February 26, 2025 By Living The Q Life Travel AdventuresIn Blogging, Travel TipsLeave a comment

We have had several trips where we have spent several weeks in a location and others where we simply did so much while we were there that it seemed like a couple of weeks. Because we often have to spend the better part of a day just traveling to a destination, we definitely try to maximize our stay as much as possible. We tend to make sure that we have something planned for every day, but we also make sure that we aren’t on a rigid schedule for the entire trip. After all, we want to enjoy our time in a location, not just run from tourist spot to tourist spot. Here are some of our favorite trip ideas and itineraries in no particular order.

Seven Day Itinerary for Egypt – Egypt is a destination that is on almost everyone’s wish list to visit at least once in their lifetimes. With so many incredible sights to see across many different cities, you will want to plan as many days as you can to make the most of your time in Egypt. We found our trip to be ideal in many different ways, but with any destination, if we had more time, we would have seen even more. What we have here are the locations and sites that we chose to make our priority during a full seven days in Egypt. Due to the length of air travel, the total trip was twelve days, but much of that time was spent in transit. Although we landed in Cairo, we left early in the morning to fly to Luxor and begin a cruise down the Nile River to Aswan and then flew back to Cairo where we spent the remainder of our time in Egypt. It would be easy enough to flip the trip around and start in Cairo, but we found that it worked out well to finish in Cairo.

View of the Quilotoa Caldera and Lagoon in Ecuador

Top Things to Do in Ecuador – Ecuador is such a wonderful country in South America with so many different places to see and explore. It is a country made up of three distinct ecosystems from the coast, the peaks of the Andes Mountains, and the dense Amazon Rainforest. Quito, the capital of Ecuador, is centrally located, making it the perfect location to start any adventure. Ideally, any visit to Ecuador would last for at least two weeks, but if you don’t have that much time, you’re going to have make some difficult decisions. During our trip, we made sure to make the most of our time there, but we had to decide whether we wanted to go to the Galapagos Islands or spend time in the Amazon Rainforest as we didn’t have time to do both.

The Perfect Itinerary for a Trip to Southern Spain – There are so many wonderful places to see in Southern Spain, so we have put together what we considered to be an ideal itinerary for visiting the region. We rented a car for the two weeks that we spent there, which is ideal as it is easy to get around and the highways are not very busy. Although we stayed at one central location so that we didn’t have to continuously pack and unpack, it could easily be done by going to each place individually. With such a rich history and wonderful culture, it is a great location to spend time relaxing and exploring.

Making the Most of a Trip to Hanoi, Vietnam – Visiting Hanoi in northern Vietnam is truly an amazing experience. We spent a little over a week exploring Hanoi and taking excursions into the countryside. We also did an overnight cruise in Halong Bay, which was certainly one of the highlights of our trip. We stayed in Hanoi’s old quarter, which has a variety of restaurants, street food, and many different boutique hotels. With so many options of things to do when visiting Hanoi, these are some of our favorite memories of our trip. We took advantage of our time there to fly to Vientiane in Laos for a couple of days as well.

View from Piazzale de Michelangelo in Florence

Top Things to Do When Visiting Florence, Italy – Florence is one of the most beautiful cities in the world with a rich history that includes architecture, art, and politics. There are so many wonderful sights to see when spending time in Florence, but if you have limited time in the city there are a few things that should certainly be on your itinerary. We would certainly recommend spending at least three days in Florence if at all possible as there so much to see and do. Depending on the time of year that you visit, you can expect plenty of crowds in Florence, so going during the off-season is advisable. Here are our top things to do in what we would consider to be the order of priority depending on the amount of time that you have to spend in Florence. If you have the time, we would definitely recommend adding a few days in Rome to your trip to Tuscany.

Maximizing Your Time in Chennai, India – Visiting the city of Chennai in India is a trip that we will always remember. We have mentioned previously that it was a trip that not only had a profound impact on us personally, but also changed the way that we have traveled since that visit. Although we only had a limited amount of time to spend in Chennai, we certainly made the most of the time that we had. We tried to see as much of the city as possible, but also made sure to take a couple of day trips to see the surrounding area. It can certainly be overwhelming to visit a city with as many people as live in Chennai and it takes a little getting used to as you visit the various sites.

Traditional Dance and Music in the Embera Village

Top Things to See and Do When Visiting Panama City, Panama – Panama is such a beautiful country with many wonderful sites to visit and growing ecotourism opportunities. It is a narrow country with the Atlantic Ocean on one side and the Pacific on the other, making it a strategic location that has been sought over by various countries throughout history. Today, it has its own independence and the people are very proud of their heritage and mindful of their history. Panama City is surrounded by jungles and mountains with strict restrictions on where populations can reside, so it is a city that is growing higher rather than growing wider. It is the perfect location to stay and to take advantage of all of the opportunities to take day trips to see the amazing locations that the country has to offer.

Obviously, this is just the tip of the iceberg as far as trips and itineraries. We have also enjoyed many other locations in Europe such as Prague, Budapest, and Athens just to name a few. We are looking forward to having the opportunity to plan our next expedition.

How to Create a Truly Unique Experience in Egypt

On February 6, 2025February 6, 2025 By Living The Q Life Travel AdventuresIn EgyptLeave a comment

Egypt is an amazing country with such a rich history and so many fascinating sights to see, but we did learn that there are a few things that will make your visit even better. We didn’t do a lot of planning in advance of our trip, but Egypt is definitely a location that requires at least some investigation prior to the start of your journey. We wish we didn’t have to say this, but we need to at least first say that visiting Egypt is safe. As we told people that we were planning a trip to Egypt, we heard over and over again that they thought that it was too dangerous to go there since the revolution in 2011. The fact is that we felt completely safe during our trip and the people there wanted very much for us to let others know that tourism is important to the country and they very much want people to start returning to visit once again. With that said, here are some of the things that we feel people should know before going to Egypt.

Hire an Egyptologist for a Guide – To say that there is a lot of information needed to truly understand the meaning behind the temples, hieroglyphs, and pyramids is more than just an understatement. With 122 gods, 26 dynasties, hundreds of pharaohs, wives, and children, the information is truly overwhelming. Having a guide with a thorough knowledge of the history and the stories behind these impressive structures is crucial to having any idea as to why the ancient Egyptians went to the effort to build such massive structures and statues. You can obviously appreciate the grand scale and detail without having a guide, but you will miss out on the true meaning if you don’t have a guide with expert knowledge in the subject. We actually used three different guides during our trip and each provided their own unique insights into different aspects of the sights that we were seeing.

Dress Appropriately – There are two aspects to dressing appropriately when visiting Egypt. First of all, it is a mainly Muslim country, which means that you don’t want to expose too much of you skin or dress too provocatively if you don’t want to offend the locals. Pants should be below the knees and shirts should cover the shoulders. Some people say that you can wear shorts and tank tops at the tourist locations, but we believe that you should respect the local culture whenever you are out in public, so we don’t think it is appropriate, especially not short-shorts. You can wear shorts and swimming suits back in your hotel or on the cruise ship, but not when out, especially in Cairo. The other aspect of dressing appropriately is taking into account the weather in Egypt. Although Cairo sits in the Nile delta and is more humid, you will spend most of your time in the desert heat with temperatures that can reach well above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius). You will want breathable clothes that are lightweight and you will likely want to wear a hat to protect yourself from the strong rays of the sun. Also, wearing comfortable shoes that aren’t open-toed is a must, especially considering the amount of walking you will do in these large sites and since you will be walking on a lot of sand.

Visit More than just the Great Pyramids – This might seem obvious, but a lot of people visit Egypt and the only place that they go is to the Grand Pyramids of Giza. With over 100 pyramids, there is a lot more to see in Giza alone, but you should also get out to visit Luxor, Edfu, Aswan, Alexandria and more. Although the pyramids are truly impressive and are one of the seven wonders of the world, we actually were more impressed with Karnak Temple, the Valley of the Kings, and some of the other sights that we saw during our time in Egypt. The more temples and other historical sites that you visit, the more that you begin to not only appreciate the grand scale of what was built thousands of years ago, but also start to appreciate more of the flow of history as different pharaohs updated these sites throughout the history of the country.

Have Cash, Especially Small Bills – Although you will find that most places take credit cards, you will also find just as many places that don’t take anything other than cash. You can use Egyptian pounds, Euros, or US dollars, but we recommend using Egyptian pounds so that you don’t have to do the math every time you go to purchase something. Another thing that you will find is that you will need to tip people and having small bills will be important to have because you will likely find that nobody has change to give back to you. One thing to be aware of is that there will be many people trying to get you to give them money for one thing or another. The best thing to do is to try to avoid making eye contact with those people who are trying to hustle you to get a tip. They can include guards in the temples, attendants in bathrooms, children at the historic sites, etc. If you let them show you something or take your picture, you will be obligated to give them some sort of tip. As a country, the desire is to get the population away from hustling people for money, so you should try not to reward them for their bad behavior.

Take Time to Learn About the Culture, Religion, and Recent History – Obviously in a country with over 5000 years of history, there is a lot to learn and understand. There is also a lot more to Egypt than just ancient history and it is important to understand the current culture and how it came to its current state if you want more than to just visit the country like it is a museum. Going to the churches, mosques, synagogues, markets, and other places that are part of the daily lives of the current residents of Egypt is important to understanding the country as a whole. Egypt was self-ruled into 3rd Century BC and then it has been invaded and ruled by the Greeks, Romans, Babylonians, Ottomans, French, and Germans. It wasn’t until the 1950’s that Egypt was once again self-ruled, which is important to understand how the culture has evolved to the point that it is at today.

Try to Buy Authentic Merchandise – You will find markets and vendors selling trinkets and other items almost everyplace. Unfortunately, most of the time these items have been manufactured in China and are not actually made in Egypt. Although there is nothing wrong with buying those items and they will help the overall economy of the country, but if you really want to bring something authentic from Egypt, you need to be careful with where you purchase it. There are many wonderful places to buy carpets, tapestries, essential oils, spices, alabaster artwork, papyrus paintings, etc., but you find just as many knock-offs of the same items. We recommend working with your guide or concierge of your hotel to find the best places to purchase something truly handmade in Egypt if you want to bring back something special with you.

Pack a Smile and a Sense of Humor – You will find yourself spending a lot of time learning about the history of Egypt, seeing these amazing pyramids and temples, going to museums, etc., but visiting Egypt doesn’t have to be like a school field trip. The people of Egypt are very friendly and having a smile on your face will make them more likely to interact with you in a positive way. Not everything that you do has to be educational or historical in nature. Ride a camel, go out on the Nile River in a Faluka, walk through a bazaar, or just generally relax. Lets face it, if you have fun and enjoy yourself, you will have better memories. It is true that there is more to see than you will likely ever be able to get to in a single visit, so don’t stress yourself out. See what you can and be sure to make the most of the time that you have.

Egypt is truly a special place with so much history since it is the cradle of civilization. We knew before we visited that this would become one of our favorite places and it certainly lived up to our expectations. We didn’t get to all of the places that we would like visit, so we will have to plan another trip sometime in the future. Hopefully, if you do plan a trip to Egypt, you will find some of these tips to be useful.

Our Time in Luxor During Our Trip to Egypt was Truly Fascinating

On October 8, 2024October 8, 2024 By Living The Q Life Travel AdventuresIn Egypt2 Comments

Luxor is certainly the highlight of any trip to Egypt and there are many wonderful ancient sites to visit. Luxor takes at least a couple of days to truly see, and you should divide your time between the west and east banks of the Nile. It is a short flight from Cairo, although it can certainly be reached by bus or car if you prefer. There are plenty of hotel choices in Luxor, but because we were there to start our Nile River cruise, we stayed on board our ship. Out of our entire time in Egypt, many of our favorite memories came from our time in Luxor.

Karnak Temple – After the Great Pyramids in Cairo, this is probably one of the most visited and photographed places in Egypt. We visited both during the day and then again at night for one of the light and sound shows. Regardless of the time of day, it is an amazing location with so many sights to see. From statues, columns, obelisks, to the hieroglyphs and temple walls, it is a labyrinth of fascinating art and architecture.

The Valley of the Kings – If you have watched any mummy movie or ever imagined yourself as an archeologist discovering an ancient site, walking through one of these ancient tombs is a memory that you will never forget. Even though all of the treasures have been removed and can be found in museums throughout the world, seeing where the pharaohs were buried centuries ago is worth the time.

Hatshepsut Temple and the Colossi of Memnon – Although these are two separate sights, they are close enough to each other that we are combining them as one attraction. The sheer size of the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut is amazing to see and it is definitely different than most of the other temples that we visited in Egypt. As for the Colossi of Memnon, it will only take about a half an hour to visit, but seeing these enormous statues that face the Nile River is quite impressive.

King and Queen Together in the Luxor Temple

Luxor Temple – Although not as large as the Karnak Temple Complex, it should definitely be on your list of places to see while in Luxor. There is a road between the two temple complexes that is being reconstructed that will be absolutely amazing when complete. By the time you have visited a couple of the temple complexes, your head will be spinning with all of the historical, mythological, and cultural information that you will be told if you use an Egyptologist guide as we did.

Nile River Cruise – Taking a cruise from Luxor down to Aswan is an incredible experience that you will treasure forever. As you leave Luxor and start to head south, you will see the mountains that house the Valley of the Kings off of the banks of the Nile. It is also a great way to get out of the heat of the desert and travel in relaxing style.

Alabaster Factories – Going to one of the many alabaster factories is certainly worthwhile, even if you don’t purchase anything. Just seeing the artisans who create unique works of art from the translucent stone makes it something that you should do while in Luxor.

There are many other sites to visit while in Luxor, such as the Valley of the Queens or the Luxor Museum, if you have the time. If you only have two days as we did, we would certainly recommend that you at least visit these particular places.