I can’t honestly say that the letter slipped under everyone’s door surprised me when it arrived beneath mine. In this line of work, you learn to spot an itinerary change memo before you even pick it up from the floor. That said, I was slightly startled to find it was Egypt we were bypassing – not Myanmar, as that is the one that everyone has been asking about (although, in truth, our sister ship has been making calls at Myanmar regularly with no trouble at all – I know this, because Amras would have told me if it were otherwise since he’s on that ship).
But I wasn’t too startled to lose Egypt, not really. There is so much unrest in that area of the world that it’s just not worth risking heading into the mire. Naturally, there are a fair few ruffled feathers at the decision, but the cancellation of a port – let alone three ports – is not something that the line takes lightly, and the has so much going on behind the scenes that we will never be aware of before such a decision is even reached.
So the pyramids and the Valley of the Kings are not in the cards for us. The Temple of Luxor will not bless our ears with its ghostly whispers, and I will still not see Karnak. I’m okay with that though, really – I’ve come to realize just how much better safe is than sorry in such things. Besides, I am among the lucky ones who have seen the pyramids, and the valley, and even the Cairo museum – in some cases on more than one occasion. While I would always welcome the chance to return, I can live without their lessons for one season.
In place of the Sphynix and Cleopatara we have gained two ports in Iseral (which I am actually excited about as it means the possibility of finally visiting the Dead Sea), and one call in my favourite port in Sicily. Heaven knows I’ll trade Egypt for Europe any day!