Elphantine island

A view of the archeological site. In the upper right, I think that is the mausoleum of the Shah Aga Khan.

A technical note

I have two camera with me on this trip--- a canon digicam about 5 years old and this iPod touch about 4 weeks old. (This iPod touch is one of my favorite purchases of the year. I just have to make certain that I have access to wifi.) The pictures I'm posting were taken with the iPod. At some point in the future (not immediately after I get back) I will be able to download the pics from my canon.

Obligatory fabric note: I wore my blue linen HotPatterns Marrakech pants and a brown long-sleeved T shirt (Burda) made from bamboo jersey. I was fairly cool. Linen and bamboo seem to be great fabrics for hot weather. The Marrakech pants garnered a comment from an observant moslem man who called out, "thank you for wearing modest clothing" then he wanted to talk about Louis Farrakhan. I told him I was Catholic, shrugged then walked away.

Sent from my iPod

Yes, it's that hot.

Aswan, Egypt. Elephantine island. 1:53 pm.

Frankfurt airport - one special purchase

I had a two hour layover in Frankfurt. I spent most of my time charging my iPod and having lunch, but I did have time to make one purchase. I didn't have time to read the English edition that I received at home, so I purchase the German language version.

I did look through the magazine called Cut, but I decided not to purchase. It was more crafts than sewing and I hardly ever craft.

I arrived safe and sound. One tip--if you travel with cans of cranberry sauce in your suitcase, expect to get your bags inspected. :)

On my way!

I'm at SFO using the free wifi while eating lunch and waiting for my flight. The TSA lines were long, but they moved quickly. The agents were friendly and professional and I did not observe anything out of the ordinary.

Right now I am at the point on my vacation where the adventure has begun. Actually, the adventure started with the crazy shuttle driver-- it's the first rain of the season and the roads are very slippery. I swear, we skidded on at traffic signals and I was worried we were going to rollover. He did slow down when I asked, but I couldn't help but feel this was in preparation for Cairo's crazy taxi drivers.

Sent from my iPod

In less than 24 hours, I will be on my way to....

In less than 24 hours, I will be on a plane, headed on my vacation to: Egypt!

I visited Egypt in 2004 and I had a lovely visit. I've been trying to get back to visit ever since. This past summer, I realized the stars aligned and I had friends there I can visit, so I made plans and so now I'm going!

The attached picture is from my 2004 trip. My tour guide at the time provided a detailed list of what the women should wear. After we arrived in Egypt, some members of our tour group (myself included) realized that our leader erred on the side of being very conservative and as a consequence, many of us felt very dowdy or that we were dressed as new age hippies. You can dress conservatively, without looking like you are wearing a costume of some sort.

I was not sewing anything at that time, so most of my clothing was very inexpensive stuff from Marshall's, which includes this floral campshirt and black capri fitness pants (with a white stripe down the side), and I snood that I purchased at a Cairo mall. It was fine wardrobe for traveling, but I dread looking at the pictures from the trip: you know--the pictures of when you visit the pyramids, etc, and you want to show your friends later...

In any case, when I look at my suitcases (how shall I fit everything?), I see that I have made most (but not all) of the clothing will be things that I have sewn myself. I'm so happy! If I can, I'll send brief blogging updates via email. I know that I have enjoyed reading the different travelogues. If you don't hear from me, I'll be gone from blogging for about 3 weeks.

It started raining on Friday--winter has started in Northern California. Our long extended summer has ended. I'm flying from San Francisco (rainy) and through Frankfurt, Germany (cold), so I need a warm jacket. This morning I finished the Ottobre Woman Winter 2008 #6 knit jacket. About 2 years ago, I had made a zipper-less version from a cotton raschel knit. This time I used a black stretch fleece, similar to powerstretch (from a fabric store that is near Happy Stop in Oakland) with a swarski rhinestone zipper. I purchased the zipper about a year ago: if I remember the prices correctly, the zipper cost more than the fabric. I did add some darts along the back--the jacket is supposed to be loose fitting but the fabric didn't drape in a flattering way. I'm not certain if I'm in love with the way the zipper was installed. When I make this jacket again, I'll have to look for a different method from the one that OW suggests. I also want to add inseam pockets.

So for traveling, I'm wearing the jacket, a burda t-shirt made from a black/grey tribal jersey print with a black burda pull-over sweater. I'm wearing store bought yoga pants from Adidas--they are a loose-fitting trouser pants made from a knit, and cost way more than I expected, but they fit and I don't have a suitable fabric in my stash.

Okay--I need to pack a few more things!

Edited to add--I want to wish everyone a very happy and safe Thanksgiving! Please eat some turkey for me (the dark meat) and stuffing!

Rose

Oprah Winfrey's Favorite Things episode is ....

an orgy of conspicuous consumption.

I used to like watching the 'Favorite Things' episode, but in the last few years, I've been turned off by the outrageous product placement and endless screaming audience members. Yes, I know that she has to approve the products. And yes, if I were in the audience, I would enjoy the gifts. And I know that the audience members are worthy souls. But while sitting in my living room, watching Oprah distribute the products (carefully naming the retail price) with polished munificence, I almost want to go look through mythology or fable reference book and try to find something that matches.

Hmmm..