Egypt Odyssey 2023

 

 

Our Journey is fully booked!

 If you would like to be added to the waiting list, please email Cynthia at cynthiafloressignet@protonmail.com

OUR MAGICAL ITINERARY 

Our itinerary is open to changes due to spontaneous synchronicities and magical twists and turns onto lesser known paths to encounter the divine, because “AMAZING”  has its own agenda! 

 

Day 1: Arrival into Cairo

All is royally prepared for you from the moment that you step off the plane in Cairo to ensure that your way is made as smooth as Egyptian silk! You will be warmly welcomed by a member of our expert team immediately upon arrival to assist you through customs and immigration and transfer you by private coach to our luxury accommodations.  Here you can relax, unwind, and revel in the knowing that yes, you are really here in the ancestral land of the gods!  In the evening we will have an opening circle to meet our best-of-the-best Egyptian guides and family of kindred spirits to set our intention for this magical pilgrimage!   Ahhh… Sweet dreams in the land of THE FIRST TIME!  

(Individual V.I.P. meet and greet assistance through customs and private transfer from the airport to our hotel.  Steigenberger Pyramids Hotel or similar)

Day 2:Saqqara/Serapeum/Step Pyramid

In the hours of the early morning upon your first awakening in Egypt,  you will hear the hauntingly deep and beautiful sound of the entire city being called to prayer. Open your balcony door and listen.  Take in the energy as you watch the sun rise over the Giza plateau with the pyramids   welcoming you home again!

We begin our first day at one of the most awesome wonders of the World! We travel by luxury bus to SAQQARA and to the oldest pyramid, the STEP PYRAMID OF DJOSER and its amazing SOUND AND HEALING TEMPLES! 

This magnificent complex includes the earliest known hieroglyphs, the PYRAMID TEXTS, a collection of ancient Egyptian spiritual texts containing spells and incantations for the afterlife and instructions for ascending to the heavens. A part of these ancient texts later became known  as the EGYPTIAN BOOK OF THE DEAD.

Our group will be given a most special access into the underworld of the SERAPEUM, an underground necropolis with a grand gallery of huge granite “sarcophagi” (oblong boxes) cut from single granite stone blocks weighing over 60 tons each!  Most of these  precision-cut giant “containers” were found completely empty, and their purpose remains a mystery still today.  This is one of the most hauntingly “other worldly” places that you will ever experience!   

(Breakfast; dinner, overnight Steigenberger Pyramids Hotel or similar)

 

Day 3: The Grand Egyptian Museum/Luxor

The unveiling of Egypt’s Crown Jewel, the new Grand Egyptian Museum is set to open its doors in time for our group to tour one of the greatest modern architectural achievements that houses Egypt’s greatest treasures, including the complete exhibition of artifacts discovered in Tutankamon’s tomb!  Our Egyptologist, who we lovingly call “Indiana Jones”, will guide us back through past epochs of time as we stand face to face with the spiritual legacy of priest kings, queens, scribes and healers!  Even after thousands of years, the energy from some of these statues and artifacts that were imbued by magical rites can be tangibly felt.

In the afternoon we take our short flight from Cairo to LUXOR, the ancient city of THEBES and check into our beautiful hotel overlooking the Mother Nile!

(Breakfast, dinner, flight to Luxor, overnight Nile Luxor Hilton & Spa or similar)

Day 4: Karnak Temple/Luxor Temple

Our sacred pilgrimage continues as we visit the KARNAK TEMPLE COMPLEX, the largest religious center ever constructed in the ancient world!  Karnak is said to have been built from a golden blueprint on the very mound that rose up from the primordial waters of creation.  It was built to represent the manifest universe, spirit descending into matter.   As a holy precinct it originally served as a mystery school and a place where the gods dwelt with humanity.

Our group will be given special access to two temples within the Karnak precinct dedicated to Sehkmet, the lion-headed goddess and Mut, the ancient Mother Goddess of Thebes.  In a dark, secluded chapel stands a majestic full-size  “living” statue of Sekhmet, the lion-headed goddess, who has remained in her original location for more than 3,500 years! On certain nights the moon’s light beams through an opening in the ceiling and shines directly over her head, which is adorned with a flattened disc and raised Uraeus, a symbol of supreme authority and divine power.  In her hands, she holds the wadj scepter with the flowering lotus and the ankh of life. The profound silence of thousands of years envelops us as we enter this chapel to stand before the living Sekhmet!  

In the evening under a star-drenched sky we will view the lighted avenue of the sphinxes and tour the magnificence that is LUXOR TEMPLE!  This temple is also known as the TEMPLE OF MAN as the sacred geometry of the temple’s architecture mirrors the proportions of the human body.  It was built as a symbolic representation of man’s physical form in its evolution into a conscious, fully perfected human.

It is here where over 3,400 years ago a 3 km avenue was constructed between Luxor and Karnak, flanked with over 1,350 human and ram-headed sphinxes! This avenue was used once a year to celebrate the OPET festival, where the ancient Egyptians carried offerings and priests carried statues of AMUN and MUT as a symbolic reenactment of their sacred marriage. 

 (Breakfast, dinner, overnight Nile Hilton Hotel & Spa or similar)

 

Day 5:Abydos/Osireon/Dendera

We drive early morning through the dessert of upper Egypt to one of the most ancient and sacred precincts in the world, ABYDOS!   Abydos was a major spiritual pilgrimage site for the ancient Egyptians and the cult center of the god OSIRIS.   In the nearby mountain there is said to be a gateway portal to Amenti, guarded by WEPWAWET “opener of the way”, which only those of the purest vibration could enter.

We will explore the grand hypostyle hall, sanctuaries and chapels of the SETI I TEMPLE, which contain some of the most beautiful bas-reliefs of  Egypt!   We will walk the ancient paths where pottery chards are still visible in the dessert sands left as offerings by the ancient Egyptians on their sacred pilgrimages.

 Behind the Seti I Temple is one of the most enigmatic structures on the planet that many hypothesis was constructed in the same epoch of time as the Great Pyramid, the OSIREION!   The Osireion is a subterranean temple of much greater antiquity than the SETI I temple.  It is constructed of megalithic red granite blocks weighing up to 100 tons each! The Flower of Life symbols can be seen etched in red ocher on its columns. In antiquity, this is where the Osiris mysteries were performed by the living pharaoh during the nights of the “blacked out “ moon.    

From Abydos, we drive a short distance to DENDERA, a sacred temple complex dedicated to the Divine Feminine! It is here that beauty was expressed in its highest form with its exquisite main temple dedicated to Hathor, the goddess of abundance, love and joy.    The inner chambers and great temple rooftop still echo with the music, song and dance of the Hathor priests and priestesses as they performed their celebrations and ceremonies in epochs past.

We will view the well-preserved zodiacal relief paintings in their exquisite original colors that recall the origins of Egypt and its connection with the celestial heavens.  We will explore the underground secreted chambers whose walls are covered with perfectly preserved hieroglyphs and beautiful bas-relief carvings. 

(Breakfast, dinner, overnight Luxor Nile Hilton hotel & Spa or similar)

Day 6: West Bank/Deir El Bahri/Nefertari’s Funerary Temple 

This morning we make a sunrise pilgrimage to DJESER-DJESERU, the magnificent funerary temple of the female Pharaoh HATSHEPSUT at DEIR EL BAHRI.  The name in abbreviated form means Holy of Holies, but the complete Egyptian name means, the great temple of millions of years, the temple of Amun at his outstanding place of the first time. 

We then travel a short distance along the West Bank of the Nile to the Necropolis of the VALLEY OF THE QUEENS for a rare view of one of the most colorful, exquisitely detailed and decorated royal tombs of Egypt! It is the HOUSE OF ETERNITY, the royal tomb and resting place of QUEEN NEFERTARI MERYTMUT (Beloved companion, Beloved of Mut).

Queen Nefertari’s tomb is referred to as the Sistine Chapel of ancient Egypt, as it is considered to be one of the greatest artistic achievements of the ancient world. It was built for her by her husband, the most powerful Egyptian pharaoh, Ramses the Great, who so loved Nefertari that he called her “the One for Whom the Sun shines”.  The rooms are intricately inscribed with sacred and magical texts for her soul’s safe passage through the underworld. 

We make a final stop on the WEST BANK to view the COLOSSI OF MEMNON before returning to our private “royal barge” for a delicious dinner overlooking the West Bank of the Nile!

(Breakfast, lunch, dinner, first night on board our fully staffed luxury Dahabeya sailing vessel)

Day 7: Esna and the Temple of Khnum

In the early morning, we set sail and reflect on the timeless beauty of the Mother Nile …  an indescribable sensory experience!  We disembark near the village of ESNA, a hidden gem off the tourist track with its covered market and weaver’s shops.  But the greatest treasure of Esna is an ancient temple rediscovered nine meters below ground!  Covered with dirt and left abandoned for 15 centuries, this temple complex covers a yet unexcavated area that rivals EDFU and DENDERA.  This temple dedicated to the Creator god KHNUM, the ram-headed god, is slowly being restored to reveal its original splendor.  The ceiling of the newly restored Great Hypostyle Hall  is decorated with astronomical scenes and the massive columns are intricately carved with hieroglyphic accounts of rituals and “hymns of creation”.    

(Breakfast, lunch, dinner; overnight aboard our DAHABIYA)

Day 8: Edfu and the Temple of the Divine Horus

Another beautiful day of sailing along the Nile, we dock in Edfu, where we visit one of the most beautifully preserved temples in Egypt, THE TEMPLE OF THE DIVINE HORUS!  As we approach the temple, we are aware of the enormity of the sacred complex, with its vast courtyard, a forest of towering columns and a ceiling that reaches to the heavens!  Here, we follow the story of the hero’s quest as we learn how Horus and his followers (the Shemsu Hor) conquered chaos. 

We will hear the tale of the sacred marriage of the king and queen as the embodiment of Horus and the goddess Hathor. The side chambers of the temple of Horus shows the complexity of ancient rites with their healing chambers, perfumery of anointing oils and a sound chamber named the HOUSE OF LIFE, which stored all of the sacred texts used in daily and seasonal rituals. 

Horus is associated with higher vision and clarity.  The EYE OF HORUS relates to his myth and power. The left eye represents the lunar, the moon, intuition, the feminine energy.  The right eye is connected to the Sun, the masculine, and the yang energy.  Both are necessary for true power to exist.  We will work with balancing the lunar and the solar energies within ourselves to awaken our intuitive centers and experience a higher perspective.  Back on board our luxury Dahabeya, we enjoy a delicious lunch as we continue our sail to the Temple of duality, KOM OMBO! 

(Breakfast, lunch and dinner, Overnight  aboard our DAHABEYA)

Day 9: Kom Ombo 

Kom Ombo dramatically rises from the banks of the Nile River and is Egypt’s only dual Temple dedicated to two rival gods – SOBEK the crocodile god and HORUS THE ELDER.  This double temple was constructed with two of everything, a perfect mirror image of the other.  The south side of the temple built for Sobek, represents the dark, the yin energy, the negative; while the northern side was built for Horus to represent the light,  yang energy, the positive.  Each of the sides were built in perfect balance with each other and merge together along the main axis of the temple, creating a unified field of neutrality and harmony,   

The mysterious esoteric teachings of Kom Ombo resonate with a frequency of the paradigm shift that we are entering as a humanity.  We are moving from a duality consciousness into the ascended consciousness of neutrality, or unity consciousness.

(Breakfast, lunch, dinner, Overnight our DAHABEYA)

 

Day 10: Temple of Philae/Aswan/Cairo/Tanoura Sufi Dance

 

In the early morning we return to the source of all, the Great Mother Isis and her temple on the ISLAND OF PHILAE! 

This sacred temple served as a powerful point of light and knowledge for the mystery schools of the Divine Feminine.  The presence of the Great Goddess and her priestesses is palpable as we walk the columned corridor to the Holy of Holies to her inner sanctum and altar, where we open to her wisdom and ask for her blessings as it has been done since ancient times!

After our visit to the Island of Philae, we are transported back to the mainland by our Nubian boatmen, where merchants await us on the dock with their colorful beads, hand-hammered bracelets and and hand-embroidered traditional bedouin clothes and fabrics!     

RETURN TO CAIRO AND AN EVENING WITH THE SUFIS

It is with a heavy heart to leave our home on the Mother Nile and say our goodbye’s to the amazing crew that we now call our family.  But we return to Cairo different than we left, forever changed by our experiences, taking with us the beauty, the serenity and the tranquility of the Nile and the wisdom that the ancients left for us in the temple complexes of Upper Egypt! 

In the evening our group is invited to attend a most traditional folkloric performance at the Wekalet El Ghoury Art Center in Cairo.  The dances, drumming and original music express the rich cultural soul of Egypt, and you will be mesmerized by the Tanoura dance (Sufi dance), an amazing and spiritually moving experience!

(Breakfast, Dinner, overnight Steigenberger hotel or similar)

 

Day 11: Khan El Khallili Bazaar/Old Cairo 

Get ready for a fun and wild day of the ultimate shopping experience at one of the most famous and oldest market places in the world …  THE KHAN EL KHALLILI BAZAAR! 

This is an immersion into an authentic traditional souk (marketplace) with vendors of spices, bedouin rugs, jewelery, hand hammered silver and copperware, exotic fabrics, lamps and all that you can imagine!  It is a labyrinth of alleys filled with shops and stalls, Egyptian trinkets and treasures!  We will take time to sit and have an Egyptian coffee (Ahwa) and watch the world go by!   We will visit Tent Makers Street (Cynthia’s favorite), where you can still vividly sense the days of camel caravans and merchant traders bartering their wares!

We cannot end our journey without experiencing the rich cultural and religious heritage of OLD CAIRO! We will walk the charming alleyways and historic cobblestone streets steeped in the architecture and history of another era.  It includes the site of a Roman-era fortress and Islamic-era settlements pre-dating the founding of Cairo proper in AD 969!  We will visit ST. SERGI COPTIC CHURCH, where the Holy Family was hidden and protected during their exile into Egypt.  From an interior chamber of the Church, at times you can still hear the liturgy sung by the priests in the hauntingly beautiful ancient coptic language.

 (Breakfast,dinner; overnight Steigenberger Pyramid Hotel or similar)

 

Day 12: Private Entrance and Initiation King’s Chamber/Giza Plateau

Prepare for the most memorable and transformational day of your life as we walk the empty GIZA PLATEAU in silent ceremonial procession at sunrise.  On this, our most sacred day in the Land of The First Time, we make our way to the entrance into the GREAT PYRAMID OF GIZA!  We explore the Queen’s Chamber before climbing upwards through the Grand Gallery to reach the KING’S CHAMBER, the holy grail of our Egyptian Quest!  Here, within the highest frequencies of this harmonic chamber and the “Sarcophagus” of High Initiation, we unite our life story with the story of those who came before us and those who will come after us as we fully open and embrace the experience of the transformation within ourselves!  These two hours of private initiation  within the closed chamber spans lifetimes and awakens deep soul memory.  

(Breakfast, farewell dinner, overnight Steigenberger Pyramids hotel or similar)

 

Day 13: Departures

It is time to say our goodbyes (for now) to Egypt and our family of kindred spirits who joined us on this sacred journey.  With a full and grateful heart we prepare for our departure home, richly blessed and forever changed by the transformational soul experiences that will continue to guide our individual life path.     

(Breakfast, Private transport to the Cairo Airport