Plunging into the Red sea at Hurghada

Hurghada is aptly called the ‘Russian’ capital of Egypt, the influx being attributed to dissolution of the Soviet Union 25 years ago, lifting the foreign travel ban on its citizens. As soon as you enter the city, you’ll find most of the ads and signage on the streets written in Cyrillic. Although the Russian expats and tourists dominate the scene, you’ll find a diverse mix merrily soaking in the tropical weather, pristine waters and beautiful coral reefs that this destination offers.

Having said that, this in no way is a definitive guide to Hurghada. We just squeezed in this pretty beach town after we were done traversing the Nile Valley.

Perched on the coast of Red sea, spanning over 22 miles of the coastal line, Hurghada is where we plan to unwind over a quick dive and spend rest of the time doing nothing. The laidback atmosphere gets to us and we literally don’t move after returning from the dive.

We are staying at Hilton Hurghada, a lavish property overlooking the Red Sea (coz we are honeymooning, right!).

One moment we are savouring views of the endless sea in front of us, another moment we are loafing over an indulgent spa.

The hotel’s private beach is pretty cool too! There are many budget options in Hurghada, but when you spend a little more, you get a lot more – we thought.

Oh, let me not miss sharing the experience of travelling from Luxor to Hurghada. It’s not for the faint hearted, especially when you are riding after the sunset. We leave Luxor in a chauffeur driven car amid the scepticism borne out of reading tales about bandits and militants appearing on this route out of nowhere and shooting people. It has already started getting dark. I sit in my seat transfixed hoping this goes right. But the driver reassures us. As we progress into the vast desert and things seem right, I try to loosen up. Rocky mounds and barren desert on both sides of the endless road carve one hell of a landscape in our secluded surroundings. It is pitch dark now, no sign of life in the immense expanse before us as the open wilderness of desert beckons us.

At the end of four anxious hours, I am relieved to see brightness in the distance. We are stopped at a check post and the patrols might have never seen someone so delighted to be scrutinized. Signs of life come back in my vision and I let out a huge sigh!

So much variation and personality in a single country, we are definitely coming back to you someday Egypt!