Fayoum Tunis Little Swiss Oasis

I have been craving for a break for quite some time and finally I got a short window to make a trip out to the Fayoum Oasis with Irene and Le Le.  I really have no time or energy to plan a long vacation!  A short break will do.  We knew little about Fayoum and I did not plan much as I just wanted to get out of Cairo for some fresh air.  Le Le was not well the day before we were supposed to go but we went ahead anyway.  Some fresh air will be good for him I thought.

And so we headed out to the little village of Tunis on the banks of Lake Qarun where the Little Swiss Oasis is located.  The drive was an easy and scenic one and we had little trouble finding our way to the rendezvous point by the lake.  There we met Doris Frei, the lovely owner of Little Swiss Oasis.  From there, she led us through the village down some unpaved lanes leading to the small but welcoming house overlooking Lake Qarun.

It was beautiful and completely relaxing.  Doris made us a sumptuous lunch of chicken, rice, bread and some really tasty tuna mix.  The wind was so soft and breezy that we spent our afternoon napping away in the nice little room on the second floor.  There is only one guest room at Little Swiss Oasis.  Fortunately we did not round up my other colleagues for the trip.

In the evening, we took a walk around the village well-known for its pottery and had dinner at a small inn next door named Sobek.  As we were getting ready to turn in for the night, Le Le's condition took a worse turn and began nauseating.  His body temperature rose over 38.5 deg C and he could not sleep through the night.  Both Irene and I were also dragged in and out of bed as Le Le struggled with his coughs and nausea.  We have no choice but to abandon the trip to the desert and other sites such as Wadi Rayan and Wadi Hitan on the following day.  Doris was most apologetic though it was no fault of hers.  She was the most gracious host and she made us a delicious continental breakfast to mark a short but memorable stay.  It was a great pity we left in such a rush that we failed to take a photo with Doris.  Nevermind!  We shall return!

More photos in my Photo Album

Here are images of Little Swiss Oasis's brochure:

金虎年！万事大吉!

听说今年是金虎年。希望新加坡的生育率不会跌得太惨。毕竟是金身的老虎，应该不比龙子龙女逊色吧。我们一小家子今年就在开罗过了年。今年没办法回国和家人团圆，心里不乐意可是也别无他法。不过我们还是可以通过电脑视讯和父母及家人拜年也还算不错了。除了到同事的家和其他新加坡同胞聚会，我们也没有什么庆祝，家里也没多加春节的摆设。

不过值得一提的是我们的家在上个月内添了不少的新摆设。所有的画，拼图和电影海报都挂上各处的墙壁。我们也物色了不少家庭装饰比如埃及的木制屏风（Mashrabiya），室内植物，花盆，灯具，蜡烛，等等。。。你可能在纳闷，怎么住进来将近两年后才来布置家内摆设呢？这是因为我们在上个月在寒舍宴请亚西安(ASEAN)各国同辈的外交官。攸关国体所以必须把家里布置一番。也因为如此，在经过一番努力后，我们的家也变得更加亮丽温馨。操劳了一天后，回到家中安坐在舒适的小厅，听着醉人的音乐，闭上双眼，一天的疲劳就减轻了不少了。

上个礼拜我们和使馆所有的同僚及家人们一同到了埃及红海的度假胜地埃因素纳(Ain Sokhna)渡过了美满愉快的家庭日。乐乐玩的很开心。海水虽然冷冰冰，他却一头扑了进去，还不感觉冷。我们耗费了不少功夫才把他从水里就出来。过了不久，他就鼻水直流了，真是伤脑筋！这第二次造访Stella Di Mare，因此我们没有拍下多照片。这有几张照片留作纪念。

有亲自远方来，不亦乐乎

上个月母亲和二姐一同来到开罗度假探亲。在短暂的十天内，我也没能为他们计划些什么节目。实在是太忙了。还好我们聘请了司机，而且乐乐刚好学校放假，所以奕云可以每天带他们到开罗近郊的名胜观光。因为是圣诞节旺季，我们无法安排到南部尼罗河旁的古迹游玩。不过，我们倒是回到了亚历山大城住了两天。虽然我们上个月才到哪儿游玩，因为我们才安排一天的时间，许多名胜没有参观。所以这次就住了两天。饭店Helnan Palestine Hotel地点相当不错，客房也干净舒服。这次短短的相聚十分难得。

多了两个人家里也热闹了多了。乐乐自从回来开罗，上了豆豆班和护理课程，有了显著的进步。他开朗了很多，也会一些简单的会话。他对陌生人也不会排斥。面熟的人他也会打招呼说拜拜。母亲亲耳听他叫声奶奶也高新的不得了。乐乐的发音还不准，“姑姑”他叫成“楚楚”。这次他的收获也不少。二姐从新加坡带来大姐和她的两件圣诞礼物。我们做父母的也预备了一份。圣诞前夕他在小圣诞树下拆开礼物，玩得很开心。