Tomorrow we are going to be leaving Egypt and heading back to Sydney, so it is probably time I do one final post.

After Luxor we flew to Sharm El-Sheikh (world famous for its phenomenal diving) which is in the far east of Egypt. In fact this place falls in the continent of Asia and is located right on the Red Sea. After checking into our hotel we went for a snorkel which was spectacular, with hundreds of fish of all different colours swimming metres away from your face. Also of note the water in the Red Sea is extremely salty, which makes it really easy to float in the water. Then it was back to our room as we were told that we were going to need the rest.

Then at 11pm we boarded our bus and had a three hour ride. Our destination was the base of Mt Sinai and our goal was it climb to the top (3,000 metres above sea level) to watch the sun rise. To give you a bit of history Mt. Sinai is famous for a not only being one of the most wonderful peaks on this side of the world, the top of the mountain is the place where Moses received ‘The Ten Commandments’ as well as saw the ‘burning bush’.

At 2:30am we began our ascent up the mountain. The first part was easy as it involved a moonlit camel ride under thousands of stars, it was truly magic! Half way up the mountain it was goodbye to my trusty camel as the rest had to be on foot. I might add that it was pretty dark and total freezing (zero degrees at the top).

We reached the top around 5:30am and rugged up waiting for the sun to warm the sky. Finally it did what it does best and boy was it spectacular!! Here are a couple of pics…

OK, now I will quickly summarise the tail end of our trip. From Sharm El-Sheikh it was back to Cairo where we had a private tour of the Egyptian Museum (very cool), the Palace of Prince Mohammed Ali Tawfiq and Old Cairo. Also we did some shopping at the Cairo Bazaar and today we went on day trip to Alexandria - a city named after Alexandra The Great which sits right on the Mediterranean Sea.

All in all our entire trip to Egypt has been brilliant… In the next two weeks I will aim to have a whole lot of the best pic put into the photo gallery so stay tuned.

We have been in Egypt for over a week now and cannot help every day to be overwhelmed with the sights we are experiencing. There is far too much to go into a day by day account however here is a quick list of things we have done and the places we have been.

After Cairo we flew to Aswan and boarded a cruise boat, and not just any cruise boat this was to be our ‘luxury home’ for the next 3 nights. Aswan is a sea of colour, sound and aromas from exotic perfumes and spices to left overs from donkeys and horses.

From there we went on a day trip to Abu Simble where we visited the temple of Rameses II and his wife Nefetari. A huge monument right near the boarder of Egypt and Sudan.

Back in Aswan we began our 3 day cruise down the Nile, stopping to visit more sites including; the temple of Philae, the temple of Kom Ombo and the temple of Horus.

Also of note was a faluka (small sailing boat) ride down Nile and an Egyptian fancy dress party on the cruise which was a real hoot. (Check out the photo below).

After disembarking in Esna, we travelled by bus to the most famous ancient city in the world, Luxor… There we visited; Luxor Temple, the temple of Habu, the temple of Dendara, the temple of Abydos and Karnak Temple. A lot of temples I know, however, each had there own unique features and the size and scale where simply mind blowing.

Also while in Luxor we went to ‘The Valley Kings’. It is estimated that there are a couple of thousand tombs in this area, of which only 30 per cent have been discovered. Once there we went underground to go inside the tomb of Ramses IX and the very famous tomb of Tutankhamen.

However, the highlight had to be a visit inside the tomb of Sety I. This tomb has been closed to the public for 23 years, but opened only a couple of times a year for the world’s highest dignitaries such as Bill Clinton, Tony Blair and Bill Gates, and selected archaeologists. Through some major connections our tour company has with the government, would you believe our little group got to inside and have an exclusive, private tour of this tomb and WOW was it AMAZING!! We weren’t allowed to take any photos inside but let me just say the size, the detail, the colour, the workmanship and the beauty were breathtaking!

Here are couple more photos of the highlights… (Click on the images to enlarge)

Today was one of those days that you wish you could bottle to re-experience over and over again. It started early and I mean early (4 am), for private tour of the Sphinx. Under the light of the full moon, we walked around the sight of the Sphinx while listening to commentary from one of the leading authors & Egyptologists. What was special was the fact that this area is now totally closed for public access as the closet point that most other tourist can visit the Sphinx is some 100 metre away. However, we were able to literary touch the Sphinx and stand directing under the iconic face. After an hour or so we witnessed the most magnificent pink and orange sunrise, which soon lit up Sphinx and nearby pyramids. Wow was that cool…

Then it was back to the hotel for an Egyptian breakfast, followed by a lecture from Zahi Hawass who is the Chairman of Antiquities for Egypt. Zahi is a remarkable man that is in absolute control of all of the excavations and discoveries in Egypt and in fact Time Magazine voted him as one of the 100 most influential people on the planet. So to sit in room of 30 people while Zahi shared his love for Ancient Egypt along with his latest Archaeological discovers (including the mummy of King Tutankhamen) was a once in a life-time experience.

As if that wasn’t big enough, we later returned to the site of the pyramids where we were given exclusive access to go inside one of the pyramids!! Not just a few steps, but all the way in, through a maze of dark corridors with long stair cases and extra low ceilings to reach the Kings Chamber, which is believed have once contained the tomb of King Khufu (2650 B.C.) Once inside the Chamber made totally of garnet, we had more commentary on the mysteries of the great pyramids and then as a group we had the opportunity to meditate for around 15 minutes. Just knowing that you were in a place only the King visited, built nearly 4,700 years ago by well over a million people - made for a was totally mind blowing experience!

Once finally outside the pyramid it was off to a carpet factory and later a fantastic restaurant for some more fantastic Egyptian food…

Here are a couple more which pics to add to the memory.

Those of you that have read Secrets of Young Achievers Exposed you would know of an amazing individual who lives in Singapore. His name is Jeremy Lim and he was born with Osteogenesis Imperfecta (commonly know as ‘brittle bones’ disease). This means that Jeremy’s bones are like glass and they can break with the smallest knock or bump. As a result he’s confined to a wheel chair and the smallest of tasks like going to the toilet, taking a shower or simply moving around the house is a major ordeal.

Despite his physical challenges Jeremy has won three consecutive story telling championships, received double gold medals in the International Competitions of Mathematics & English, and also received Singapore’s National Youth Achievement award. If that isn’t enough he’s the Young Ambassador of the Children’s Medical Fund, a media regular commentator and a freelance writer for the Today newspaper.

More impressive to me though is Jeremy’s unshakeable positive attitude and total commitment to make use of the talents and abilities that he does have!!

Here is a quick quote for the amazing Jeremy Lim from Secrets of Young Achievers Exposed…

“I believe life is a choice; I can choose to be positive or negative. Being positive gives me a better chance in life than being negative. It also directs my attention to what I can do, rather than what I cannot do.

My positive attitude also helps to remind me that I can make up for my physical inadequacy through brainpower. There is no reason for me to be negative when being positive gives me a more exciting and rewarding outcome.”

Here is a quick photo of a meal that we shared during my time in Singapore.

I am now in Singapore and very happy to announce the launch of the Secrets Exposed Series into Asia. To begin with, the books will be made available throughout Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei. Over the last few days with the support of Pansing (my Asia distributor) and in particular Leslie and Sadie-Jane, I did around ten print and radio interviews and a whole lot of book signings throughout all the major bookstores in Singapore. The whole experience was a real buzz!! Here are a couple of pics.

It has now been a week in since Katherine and I walked ‘The Great Wall of China’, however I know there are many still waiting for the report so here it is. We travelled 1 hour 25 minutes from Beijing to reach the foot of The Wall. On the way in the bus we learnt that The Great Wall stretches 6,700 kilometres from east to west of China and part of the wall have a history of more than 2000 years. Originally built to defensive walls to ward off Mongol tribes and other nomadic enemies from the north, today The Wall remains as one of the most appealing attractions in the world because of its construction size, architectural style and historical significance.

Upon arrival we discovered that it was around eight degrees, so we rugged up and began our assent. We started with a lot of energy and vigour, however, after a short time climbing we began to feel the affects of the extremely high steps. However, we soldiered on with our determination to reach the top. After a few pit stops and some friendly words of encouragement from other tourists on the way back down, we finally made it - and let me just say the feeling at the summit was worth the effort.

Here are a couple of pics as prove that goals really come true.