Relaxing at the Resort

Thursday and Friday were our last full days in Egypt, and we had already been on three excursions: to Luxor and its historical sites, to see Hurghada city's many faces with Vlado and Zdenka, and to snorkel in Soma Bay.  So we decided to just lay low and enjoy the resort and all it had to offer, relaxing, reading, and taking in all the natural beauty around us.  

Ahhhhhhhhhhh…………!!
"Feet" picture #1

And "Feet" picture #2:
 I tried the introductory special Thai fish treatment just for fun!  Five minutes for free!
LOL!!  It was interesting and it didn't hurt at all.    :-)  

Twin swans made of towels on our bed Thursday --- and it was fun to see the varied ways the pillows were set up on the bed to accompany the towel animals too!  

The specialty seafood restaurant was an extra cost, but since we were first-time guests, we were given a free coupon for one dinner there.  There were many courses served as a fixed menu, and all the seafood was very tasty Thursday night. 

And this is our view of the sea from the Italian restaurant during the majority of our meals.  The main restaurant up near the hotel lobby was undergoing renovations while we were there, so this was the main eating area temporarily.  

There were many food choices in the serving areas along the right and back, and there was also a made-to-order area where we'd get omelets for breakfast, pizza for lunch, or grilled meats for supper.  There were always many fresh fruits, a lot of delicious bread, and many choices of desserts too!

The water on our beach was quite shallow for a long ways out, which was great for young kids, but this pier was a convenient way to get directly out to swimmable, deeper water.  And it was a great spot for romantic walks out over the water too.   

Wow!  We had never seen a towel crocodile before!!  Impressive!!   :-)

These cabanas were so nice along the side of the pier.  We took books out and read in the shade there, enjoying the fresh breeze from the sea.  

There was a large dock area at the end of the pier, with chaise lounges in the sun and stairs down into the water.  This area is filled with coral reefs teeming with bright colored fish, as I discovered on Friday when I rented a snorkel right by the beach.  We wouldn't have needed to go on a special excursion because the snorkeling was just as spectacular right here at our resort.  Amazing!!   

The coral colors didn't show up much from above the surface of the water, but at least from this one, you can see a little of the purple.  I spent several hours snorkeling over the coral on Friday, delighting in many of the same fish shown on the earlier snorkeling post.  Tim chose to read on the beach instead of snorkel again, but I went back and forth, spending time with him on the beach, and then returning to the water for a while again.  

The pier continues out past the sunning area to another swimming area on the other side, and then finally out to where the excursion boats are docked.  You can see one big chunk of the coral in the foreground.  It's crazy though that you can't tell how many, many fish are swimming around down there until you get a snorkel mask in the water.  Then it's as if a whole new world opens up, and you're right in a 'fish tank' with exotic species!!  

I took this shot to show the cabanas over the water, plus a view of the beach area in the distance, with the beach umbrellas and chairs and the resort behind.  

The late afternoon sun was shimmering on the water, with the Egyptian desert and hills in the background.  Everything on either side of our resort was lifeless and sandy gray, but we stayed in a little oasis of tropical greenery at the Amwaj Blue Beach Resort!  

Camel rides on the beach??  Several people did give it a try, but we didn't even ask how much it might cost and were content to just watch.  You can also see how far out over the water our pier went, over to the right in the background.  

A selfie on our last evening at the resort!  We took a walk down to the end of the pier in the waning light, enjoying the pastel colors appearing on the sea and in the sky.  

It was an awesome surprise to look down into the water when there was no longer direct sunlight, and we actually could see some of the fish swimming around the coral right off the dock below us!!  

Admiring the sunset over the hills from the end of the pier.  So beautiful!!  

Sunset skies over the Red Sea!!  

This is our favorite waiter, Osman, who anticipated our every need at all our meals.  Most of the other guests seemed to self-serve their beverages, but Osman was always right there to refill our hot tea, juice, wine, or water, clear our plates, and chat for a while.  We really enjoyed getting to know him during the week!  

Our wake-up call on Saturday 'morning' (really the middle of the night!) was at 2:15 a.m., because our pick-up time was at 3:15.  Yikes!!  So we turned in pretty early to get at least a few hours of sleep.  Since our resort was the farthest south of Hurghada, the bus came to pick us up first, then continued northward to the airport.  The check-in process at the airport was smooth, customs was a breeze, and we were soon inside the gate area with a 2-hour wait for our plane.  We had another delicious sack breakfast provided by our hotel, so we enjoyed that at a normal breakfast time before boarding.  I will say that being such a 'novelty' in this area (as American visitors) did have a few perks.  For example, when the airport ticket agent was assigning our boarding passes, he asked if we wanted exit row seats with more leg-room.  I replied that we'd be happy to sit there, but if there was an extra charge, we didn't need the extra room.  He asked another agent something in Arabic, then told us we could sit there for free.  Maybe they didn't expect anyone else to be willing to pay anything anyway, but it was still nice!!  :-)  All too soon we were winging our way back over the Red Sea, the Egyptian desert, and finally to Europe again.  Our first trip to the African continent was certainly a memorable and wonderful one --- yes, even a magical one, from beginning to end!!