THE PATH of WESTERN CIVILIZATION: from EGYPT to the IBERIAN PENINSULA Standard Route: Cairo, Egypt to Lisbon, Portugal
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
THE PATH OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION: FROM EGYPT TO THE IBERIAN PENINSULA Standard route: Cairo, Egypt to Lisbon, Portugal 21 Days National Geographic Explorer 148 Guests Expeditions in: Apr From $27,420 to $51,270 * Call us at 1.800.397.3348 or call your Travel Agent. In Australia, call 1300.361.012 • www.expeditions.com DAY 1: Cairo, Egypt padding Depart on an overnight flight to Cairo. Upon arrival transfer to our hotel and enjoy an afternoon at leisure. This evening join us for a welcome reception and meet your fellow travelers. (D) DAY 2: Cairo / Giza padding Begin the day with a visit to the Egyptian Museum to view the astonishing masterpieces from Ancient Egypt, including mummies of the pharaohs, 2022 Departure Dates: beautifully adorned sarcophagus, and many of the dazzling jewels found in King Tutankhamun’s 16 Apr tomb. Following a lunch of Egyptian specialties, Advance Payment: travel to Giza to see some of the most enduring symbols of the ancient world, the pyramids. The $3,000 complex is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and the only one that remains intact. Learn how and why the pyramids were built before seeing the enigmatic Sphinx. (B,L,D) Special Offers DAY 3: Cairo / Luxor FREE BAR TAB AND CREW padding Early this morning, transfer to the airport for our TIPS INCLUDED flight to Luxor. Upon arrival we will enjoy a relaxing We will cover your bar tab and all tips for lunch at our hotel before setting out to tour the the crew on all National Geographic Karnak Temple complex—a massive building Resolution, National Geographic project of the Ancient Egyptians. Many of the more Explorer, National Geographic powerful pharaohs added their individual touches Endurance, and National Geographic to the buildings during their reign. We’ll return to Orion voyages. town for our visit to Luxor Temple, a complex built primarily under Amenhotep III and Ramses II. This impressive site was built on the banks of the Nile COMBINING OFFERS River, and the afternoon light will provide photo opportunities where the stones appear to be Certain offers may be combinable, up to glowing. Enjoy dinner at the hotel. (B,L,D) two savings opportunities, except where noted otherwise. For example, travel with DAY 4: Luxor / Safaga / Embark a group of 8 or more on back-to-back padding expeditions, and take advantage of both Following breakfast travel to the West Bank of the savings. Nile River to the Valley of the Kings. Used for burials for nearly 500 years, the valley contains at least 63 tombs of pharaohs and powerful nobles. BRINGING THE KIDS These royal tombs are decorated with elaborate mosaics and paintings depicting Egyptian We believe sharing an expedition with mythology. Visit one of the most famous your kids or grandkids is a life-enhancing archaeological sites in the word, the tomb of experience. So take $500 off for each Tutankhamun. The tomb had remained largely child under the age of 18. hidden until its discovery in 1922—keeping the treasure trove of antiquities safe from looters. Enjoy a special lunch on the Nile before crossing TRAVELING AS A GROUP the desert to Safaga on the Red Sea, where we will embark the National Geographic Explorer. Save 5% when traveling as a group of 8 (B,L,D) or more people. Take advantage of these great savings, while enjoying traveling with your friends and family. This savings DAY 5: Transit Suez Canal padding is applicable to voyage fares only, and is Spend the day transiting the Suez Canal. Sail past not valid on extensions or airfare. small villages and massive expanses of desert Deposit, final payments, and cancellation sand as we learn the history of this amazing policies for group travel vary from our example of human engineering. The canal regular policies. connects the Red Sea to the Mediterranean and was opened in 1869 after 11 years of construction. Today it carries about 12 percent of the world’s trade. Spend time on the Bridge and observe the ship’s officers as they communicate with the vessels in our convoy and maneuver through the twists and turns of the canal. (B,L,D) DAY 6-7: Alexandria / At Sea padding Call us at 1.800.397.3348 or call your Travel Agent. In Australia, call 1300.361.012 • www.expeditions.com Founded by Alexander the Great, Alexandria was considered the intellectual and cultural center of ancient Mediterranean society. Visit the Catacombs of Kom El Shougafa and climb the rocky hill to see Pompey’s Pillar, built in memory of the Roman Emperor Diocletian. Spend time in the Bibliotheca Alexandria—the cultural complex built to commemorate the Great Library of Alexandria, one of the most significant libraries of the ancient world. Once back on board, be out on deck as we sail past the Citadel of Qaitbay. Constructed at the entrance to the harbor, on the site of the ancient Alexandria Lighthouse, the fortress protected the city against the advancing Ottomans. (B,L,D) DAY 8: Phaistos & Matala, Crete, Greece padding Today we will explore the Greek site of Phaistos, among the greatest of the Cretan Minoan cities. Its wealth is evident in the extent and quality of its ruins, and the city enjoys a superb hilltop setting with fine views of the countryside. Continue on to the seaside village of Matala, once the port for Phaistos during Minoan times. Explore the cliffs and manmade caves that surround the bay and discover their varied past—created in the Neolithic Age and inhabited by the hippies of the 1960s. (B,L,D) DAY 9-10: Katakolon / Olympia / At Sea padding A small fishing village located on the western coast of Greece’s Peloponnese peninsula, Katakolon is the gateway to the ancient village of Olympia. Dating back to 776 B.C. the Olympic Games were held on this site in honor of the gods Zeus and Hera. Well preserved and in a breathtakingly beautiful setting, you can explore the same stadium used by the ancient athletes. The archaeological museum was renovated for the 2004 Olympic Games and is one of the best in Greece. (B,L,D) DAY 11: Siracusa, Italy padding Siracusa once rivaled Athens as the largest and most beautiful city in the Greek world. Explore Siracusa’s Archaeological Zone, with a well- preserved Greek theater and seats carved from limestone. Paradise Quarry, now an attractive garden and orange grove, was the primary source of that limestone, and is the site of the curious Dionysius’ Ear—a huge grotto with an amplifying resonance. Visit the excellent local market, and then see the old town on the island of Ortygia, which has a fantastic cathedral built on the columns of the Temple of Diana. This evening, stroll Siracusa’s piazzas and, if you wish, enjoy a glass of wine and a genuine Sicilian pizza. (B,L,D) DAY 12: Valletta, Malta padding Be on deck this morning as we sail into the grand harbor of Valletta, Malta’s baroque capital city. Originally founded in the 16th century by the Knights of St. John after their defeat by the Turks on the Greek island of Rhodes, the city has one of the most formidable series of fortifications in the world. After a leisurely walk within the city’s walls, we see the many fine auberges, or palaces, of the Order and the dazzling St. John's Co-Cathedral, where Caravaggio’s famous 17th-century painting —The Beheading of St. John the Baptist—is on Call us at 1.800.397.3348 or call your Travel Agent. In Australia, call 1300.361.012 • www.expeditions.com display. This afternoon you can visit the medieval town of Mdina or see some of Malta’s Bronze Age megalithic temples. (B,L,D) DAY 13: Agrigento, Italy padding This morning we return to Sicily to visit Agrigento’s Valley of the Temples, a UNESCO World Heritage site that is a collection of some of antiquity’s most magnificent Greco-Roman temples. Founded by the Greeks in the 6th century B.C., the site served as a prominent city in Magna Graecia before eventually changing hands between the Carthaginians, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, and Normans. Explore the valley’s grand row of Doric temples devoted to the likes of Zeus and Heracles. This afternoon enjoy time on deck as we sail to Sardinia. (B,L,D) DAY 14-15: Cagliari, Sardinia / At Sea padding Dock in Cagliari, Sardinia’s capital on the south end of the island, dominated by its hilltop medieval Castello. This morning, discover the history, culture, and landscape of Sardinia. Drive inland to the archaeological centerpiece of Su Nuraxi in Barumini, which is the most well-preserved of the Bronze Age nuraghi, or stone fortresses, that characterize both Sardinia and Corsica from the enigmatic civilizations that inhabited these islands over 3,000 years ago. Su Nuraxi, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is the largest and most well preserved of them all. Following lunch, visit the impressive Roman Amphitheater in Cagliari, which is carved into the sloping limestone hill at the edge of the city. Continue to the outstanding National Archaeological Museum in the medieval Castello before taking a walking tour of the old town. (B,L,D) DAY 16: Menorca, Spain padding The Vandals, the Moors, and the British Empire have ruled over this stunning little island, and prehistoric civilizations left intriguing rock mounds and megalithic monuments that date back some 4,000 years. Explore this history today while traveling overland to Mahón at the south end of the island.