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Such as:
“Our Middle East Studies Program has used Ibrahim 3 semesters in a row for guided educational tours, and he is absolutely fantastic. (The size of our group has been 15-18.) This past November we had him lead us in Coptic Cairo, Islamic Cairo, and a combo of the Pyramids (including Mersy Ankh and the Solar Barque) and the Egyptian Museum. He is equally knowledgeable about all periods of Egyptian history, and all sites. My only regret is that we cannot manage to have more and longer days with Ibrahim! Ibrahim is a wonderful combination of knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and just plain fun. Our University students love him, and he is an essential part of our Egypt visits (we build our trips around the time we schedule with him). You can trust his recommendations, too, whether for out of the way “must see” spots (like the tomb of Mersy Ankh near the Pyramids) or for food along the way (this last time he got us to the “best kushary in all of Egypt”! which we loved). Whether or not you have prior interest in any area that Ibrahim leads in (Pharaonic, Coptic, Islamic), you will be engaged and fascinated. Ibrahim will draw you in. Ibrahim is great at condensing or expanding what he shares, depending on the time you have available. He is great at highlights, and also at going deep into the details, depending on your time and interest. We use a lot of guides and speakers in the course of our semester program, and Ibrahim is among the very best we have the privilege to spend time with and learn from.” — Dr. Doug Magnuson PAST REVIEWS Mark Coffin [ [email protected] ] November 18, 2011 Dear Ibrahim, Miss you, my brother and friend! I hope all is well with you and your family. We arrived late on Monday evening, tired but safe and sound. Thanks so much for taking such good care of us. You are terrific!. I wanted to write the following for your website: “If you are looking for a trip to Egypt that you’ll never ever forget, go with my friend and Christian brother, Ibrahim Morgan. My wife and I are seasoned travelers having traveled most of Europe, the former USSR, Thailand and Bhutan for example. Having said that, we’ve never had such a wonderful tour as we had in October and early November, 2011 with Ibrahim. While we saw other groups were herded about various sites like sheep, we were treated to the expertise of an Egyptologist who’s been a guest speaker in Colorado on Egyptian history and culture. Ibrahim opened our eyes to the amazing details of construction of the temples and sites as other groups marched by unaware of what they were missing. When we travel to another country we like to do more that see the tourist sites. That’s why we loved our experience with Ibrahim. Not only did we see the magnificent monuments of ancient Egypt, we got to EXPERIENCE the old and the new. Ibrahim will tailor the tour to your desires regardless the size of your group. Whether your group is small of large, we HIGHLY RECOMMEND you chose Ibrahim Morgan for your travel to any part of Egypt.” Mark and Gail Coffin __________________________________________________________________ Andrew Jones [ [email protected] ] November 14, 2011 Thanks very much Ibrahim!! We really enjoyed it. I put a recommendation and a link to your website on my blog, including your email so that you might get some referrals. http://tallskinnykiwi.typepad.com/tallskinnykiwi/2011/11/enjoying-egypt.html Andrew __________________________________________________________________ Wolfgang Fernandez [ [email protected] ] November 14, 2011 Dear Ibrahim, We came from Australia, Germany, New Zealand, Indonesia, USA, Venezuela and Egypt and you called us United Nations! Your knowledge of Egyptian antiquities and contemporary issues gave us a wonderful and rich experience during our visits with you to the Egyptian Museum and the Pyramids in Giza. You made it interesting, fun and always careful that we did not waste our time during our visit. I will tell my friends about you and will highly recommend that they call on you when they visit Egypt. Personally, I’m planning to bring my wife and would love to have your delightful guidance in Luxor as well! Than you so very much, Wolfgang _________________________________________________________________ Lynn and Suzanne Groce” [ [email protected] ] November 13, 2011 Hi Ibrahim, we have faithfully been telling everyone here about the amazing guide we had in Egypt. Hope it produces some work for you. We love you and continue to lift you up to our heavenly Father, Suzanne (for all of us) __________________________________________________________________ Gunilla Andersson Diabetesförening Storstockholms [[email protected]] October 24, 2011 Ibrahim, I´ve got one good picture of you leading our group in the utmost professional way. Just like a living historybook. Most interesting and entertaining. Thank you soo much for everything. __________________________________________________________________ Lisa Ringertz [ [email protected] ] from Sweden October 19, 2011 Hallo Ibrahim! We really would like to come back! Again, thank you for sharing your knowledge with us and taking so good care of us all. Sorry to say that Bosse and I did not take any pictures on the group. We missed that. But I can always ask the others. best wishes, Lisa and Bo Ringertz __________________________________________________________________ Ibrahim recommended in the article, “Egypt After Mubarak”- July 2011 Edition of International Travel News __________________________________________________________________ D.J. January 4, 2011 DJ Dear Morgan, Extremely sorry for the delay in sending you our group photograph – I am attaching the same – hope you remember us – DJ, Suha and Amr – who gave you a tough time – Wish you and your family a great New Year!!! Looking forward to meet you again as and when I am in Egypt. Warm Regards, DJ __________________________________________________________________ December 7, 2010 Hi Ibrahim: I am sending you this picture of yourself with my sister Eth. I did not have any group ones on my camera but as soon as I get some I will send them along. Thanks for being such a great guide & source of information. I greatly appreciated your understanding of Eth’s condition as I know her husband (the famous Ed) was as well. Take care and all the blessings of the season. Hugs Sheila __________________________________________________________________ Ingrid und Otto November 21, 2010 Sehr geehrter Ibrahim, wir sind wieder gut in Deutschland und dort in unserem Wohnort angekommen und haben eine ganz tolle Reise durch Ägypten erlebt. Dank der hervorragenden Qualitäten der uns anvertrauten Reiseleiter – sowohl in Kairo mit Ihnen, als auch während der Nilkreuzfahrt – haben wir sehr viel gelernt und viele positive Eindrücke und Erlebnisse von dieser Reise mit nach Hause genommen. Natürlich ist es nicht einfach, so sehr viele Eindrücke und Informationen über Könige, Götter und Tempel immer wieder richtig zuzuordnen, aber dennoch ist diese Reise für uns ein Höhepunkt gewesen. Wir bedanken uns nochmals bei Ihnen für diese wunderbaren Tage und die sehr interessanten und einprägsamen Erläuterungen und werden Sie in unserem Freundeskreis gerne weiterempfehlen. Wir hoffen, dass wir für Sie auch angenehme Gäste waren und Sie uns in guter Erninnerung behalten. Richten sie bitte auch herzliche Grüße und ein großes Dankeschön an den Fahrer Tarek aus, der uns so zuverlässig und unfallfrei durch dieses Kairoer Verkehrschaos geführt hat. Zur Erinnerung an die Tage in Kairo anbei ein paar Fotos. Viele liebe Grüße aus dem kalten Deutschland __________________________________________________________________ Sofia Silva McGowan from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada [ [email protected] ] September 21st, 2010 A trip to Egypt is an adventure that everyone should do at least once in their lives. But like all adventures, they start long before you leave home, with the planning and the decision of what you want to get from the experience and how best you can do this. Egypt is a country that is not easily experienced without the assistance of a good knowledgeable local guide. Ibrahim Morgan took the time to share his enthusiasm and passion for his country, the good, and the not so good, all in a way that made the experience so much more real and memorable. For those that want to learn the most, to see the most and get the most from what they see, to find spots off the beaten track or to weave through the noise of the crowds and be something more than a tourist hurried through to the next destination, you can do no better than having a guide like Ibrahim on your side. Ibrahim offers the best of what an excellent guide can be: incredibly knowledgeable about all things Egyptian; thoughtful and accommodating to meet your needs and hopes; good humoured; punctual; all demonstrated with high integrity and cheerfulness. He shared his well considered perspectives on both the ancient and modern cultures that makes Egypt such an intriguing country to visit and before the trip was done, he had become a person that I, my two boys aged 10 and 12 and my wife all considered to be our friend, confidant and trusted advisor. Thank you for your superb efforts for us. We hope that you are able to share your talents with a multitude of travelers that are equally passionate for getting the most from their experience. Ross, Sofia, Josh and Tom Canada (Please also see the attached letter of recommendation) __________________________________________________________________ The Khazen Family [ [email protected] ] September 18, 2010 Dear Ibrahim, This summer, our family decided to visit Cairo for the first time. A dear friend recommended Ibrahim Morgan, someone she has known for years, telling us he would make our trip highly enjoyable. The trip turned out to be amazing, one of the most fun and interesting vacations we’ve had. His knowledge of all of Egypt (not only Cairo) is impressive. The information we learned during our tours was so interesting that it brought the Ancient Egyptians alive to us. We felt like we knew them and understood them. Everywhere we went, Ibrahim was able to read the hieroglyphics to us and explain the significance of the artwork on the walls. It was extremely interesting to learn that the Ancient Egyptians had a sense of humor, as Ibrahim read some of their funny comments and showed how they thought and acted. There wasn’t a question Ibrahim couldn’t answer, and we had some very tough questions. We learned so much while seeing some of the most amazing sights in the world. We enjoyed it so much more because we understood what we were seeing, the history and secrets behind these ancient monuments, and the fascinating background information that put everything into perspective. Ibrahim has so much love and enthusiasm for Ancient Egypt, we began to feel the same way. Each day we discussed with Ibrahim what sights we wanted to see, with his recommendations of what would be the most interesting and worth seeing. We were able to see all we wanted because he was so organized, his van and driver were completely professional, safe, punctual, and we had door-to door service everywhere we went. We were able to get the most out of the time we spent there. Ibrahim also took us to delicious, good-priced restaurants that were very clean. Each day we were able to choose what type of food we wanted, we tried to experience mostly local food, and we were able to do so without worrying about what we could or could not eat. All in all, we will never forget out trip to Cairo because Ibrahim made it a truly amazing experience for us. We are already thinking about visiting Luxor and the Valley of the Kings, sometime in the future, where Ibrahim will also be our tour guide. He literally knows every inch of Egypt and we won’t think of going anywhere in Egypt without him. He is very funny, friendly, and interesting. We have recommended him to all our friends and we think very highly of him and his love for his country. Sincerely, The Khazen Family Kathy, Ramzi – Patti and children, Katrina and Justin – Lana and children, Nelson, Dani and Ethan __________________________________________________________________ Wildaris Garcia-Martinez September 7, 2010 Hello Mr. Morgan! I am so exited to have found your contact information! My boyfriend Omar & I took a trip to Egypt and you were our Guide last year in May. I had been wanting to email you to thank you so much for your help and sharing all your great knowledge! You taught us a lot and we were so blessed to have you as our guide It has honestly been the best vacation we’ve had by far! I’ve attached some pictures for you to see, hopefully you will still remember us! We were the couple who requested to go to Abou Tarek for lunch one day! I hope you are doing well and hope to hear from you soon! Best Regards, Wildaris Garcia-Martinez PS: If you have contact with the rest of the people who assisted us, we would love for you to say hello for us…. Mr. Maged, Mina, Semah and everyone else who assisted us! Thanks a lot! __________________________________________________________________ Kathy [ [email protected] ] August 3, 2010 Hi Ibrahim, I just got back home from Lebanon yesterday and Lana will be home in Dallas tomorrow. Ramzi came back a week ago. I am still very jet lagged and tired, but soon, after I get all unpacked and caught up a little here at home, I plan to write a letter to you for your web site about our really wonderful trip to Egypt thanks to you. You made everything so interesting and comfortable and you were very organized. I’ve been telling all my friends that we enjoyed our trip so much because you knew so much about ancient Egypt and made everything so interesting for us. I will be in touch with you soon. Thank you again for making our trip so interesting and fun. And we are all so happy to know you. Sincerely, Kathy 2nd letter from Kathy to a friend: Hi Lesley, I have been back in Austin for about a week. . .We had a wonderful time in Cairo. I think the favorite thing of the children was the camel ride into the desert, but they enjoyed most everything else too. Ibrahim is so organized and always made sure that we were doing the things we really wanted to do You can see he loves what he is doing and he has so much knowledge about everything. He made the early Egyptians come to life by what he read to us in some of the hieroglyphics and by some of the stories he told. Ibrahim was happy that some of us spoke Arabic. He was especially impressed with the fluency of Patti. While we were in the Egyptian museum, in the King Tut room, some of the museum caretakers came in and unlocked and opened the golden mask of Tutankhamen and then just carried it over and set it on one of the cabinets where I was standing. They were changing a light in the case, but they never made people leave the room. They just put the mask down in front of all of us. We could easily have touched it, right out there in the open. Ibrahim was waiting right outside of that little room, but I knew he would want to see the mask, so I went out and got him before they put it back in it’s case and he was so happy. He just ran in the door without a word and was so happy I called him. Also, in the hanging Church in the Coptic area, a Monk walked in and spoke with us and we had a picture with him. Ibrahim says this kind of Monk never does that and that you rarely see them. and If you want an appointment, it takes months, so Ibrahim was excited about this chance meeting. Thank you again for all of your help in my planning of this trip. We liked our hotel, we were very pleased with Ibrahim as our guide, and you gave us enough info on what things cost and on taxis and shuttles, that we managed very well. We would not have enjoyed our trip nearly as much as we did if it had not been for all your help and advice. Thank you so very much. Hope you are rested from your long bike ride. Love, Kathy __________________________________________________________________ Frank Ringsmuth To Whom It May Concern: In May, 2010, I spent five days exploring parts of Egypt with a class of nine students from St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Our class was privileged to retain the services of Ibrahim Morgan as our tour guide. I want to briefly explain why I would highly recommend Mr. Morgan as a tour guide to others who have the opportunity to tour Egypt. Ibrahim Morgan has an exceptional depth of knowledge about his native country of Egypt. He holds a Master’s degree in Egyptology. Speaking in fluent English, Ibrahim has the ability to clearly explain the historical background of virtually every Egyptian site of interest. When asked to expound further on a topic, he was always happy to do so. Ibrahim has a professional, friendly demeanor. When our time in Egypt came to an end, I felt we had developed a true friendship with Ibrahim. He was always sensitive to our curiosities and to our needs. My experience as both a tourist and a student were enhanced by the excellent service we received from Ibrahim Morgan. I can highly recommend him to all who are seeking a similar experience in their travel in Egypt. Sincerely, Frank Ringsmuth Blog with photos of the tour: http://bleakaugust.blogspot.com/ __________________________________________________________________ Neil Dufva [ [email protected] ] July 13, 2010 Hey Ibrahim!! I hope you are doing well. This is Neil Dufva. You gave Robs, Victor, Bryan and I a tour of Cairo that was really great! I just wanted to send you my contact info and also send you the link for www.facebook.com because you need to have a facebook in your business! I have also posted the pictures on facebook that you wanted. You can see my facebook profile at www.facebook.com/neildufva . Once you have a profile made, it will be very easy to show people your facebook profile and generate even more business. Please let me know if you create one so we can all add you as a friend. I will refer people your way when they go to Egypt. Let me know if you ever make it to Florida because Rob and I will take you out for a great time and be your tour guides! Here is a link to the Cairo photo album too: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=187859&id=580804536&l=5462c06cb6 Neil Dufva __________________________________________________________________ Jeanette und Axel [ [email protected] ] July 1, 2010 Dankeschön! Lieber Ibrahim, anbei, wie versprochen, unser gemeinsames Erinnerungsfoto vor dem Sphinx. Wie Sie sehen, habe ich mir gemerkt, dass es sich bei Sphinx um einen Mann handelt, vermutlich Chefrem, den Sohn Cheops. An dieser Stelle möchten mein Kollege, Axel und ich uns auch noch mal ganz herzlich für die tolle Tour mit Ihnen bedanken. Wir fühlten uns fachlich wie persönlich sehr gut bei Ihnen aufgehoben. Insbesondere Ihr unerschöpfliches Wissen der Geschichte und Kultur Ägyptens, Ihre fantastischen Deutschkenntnisse und Ihr offenes Ohr haben uns gefallen. Wir haben in der leider nur kurzen Zeit, wahnsinnig viel erlebt, gesehen und erfahren. Etwas schlauer und mit viel mehr Kenntnis über das Land und die Stadt Kairo sind wir zurück nach Hause gefahren. Ganz herzlichen Dank, weiterhin viel Erfolg und wenige Schafe…;-))) Beste Grüße aus Deutschland und Polen Jeanette und Axel _________________________________________________________________ Marge Wentland June 11, 2010 Greetings from Minnesota, Ibrahim, Thank you for being a wonderful tour guide for “Michael’s” group. I had such a great time. As promised I am attaching the photo you requested along with one of you and me. Things are finally settling down a little, but I have much work to catch up on. Hope that your summer is going well. Wishing you peace and all good things, Marge Wentland __________________________________________________________________ Karl und Paul Radenbach [ [email protected] ] June 7, 2010 Uhr Lieber Ibrahim, wir sind wieder zu Hause und hatten noch eine gute Zeit in Cairo um Umgebung. Wir sind am Freitag-Abend geflogen und konnten einen guten LH-Flug genießen. Alle ok und pünktlich wieder in Frankfurt gelandet. Hier in Deutschland ist herrliches Wetter mit fast 30C und ein wunde3rvolles Wochenende liegt hinter uns. Paul ist heute wieder in der Schule und hat sicherlich viel zu erzählen bei seinen Freunden. Anbei einige Fotos von uns mit Dir. Freuen uns auf ein Wiedersehen. Beste Grüße Kalli __________________________________________________________________ Hamsa Nemsaui April 14, 2010 hallo Ibrahim, wir sind problemlos wieder nach hause zurückgekehrt, jetzt ist Ägypten wieder ein großes mystisches und ungeheuerliches rätsel für uns. wir haben die tage mit dir sehr genossen, im nachhinein muß ich mich ärgern, nicht jeden tag mit dir genutzt zu haben. dank deiner kompetenz haben wir mehr und anderes von deinem land erfahren. wir haben uns auch ein bißchen beschützt gefühlt. bitte richte auch Hani schöne grüße von uns allen aus. ich freue ich auf eine nächste ägyptenreise mit dir. alles gute nach kairo von deinen hamsa nemsaui p.s.: ich schicke dir die fotos einzeln, da alle zusammen schafft das outlook nicht __________________________________________________________________ Gerhard & Jutta Könnecke April 10, 2010 Lieber Ibrahim, nun sind wir nach einem tollen Ägyptenurlaub mit Kairo im Schnelldurchgang und einer erlebnisreichen und erholsamen Nilcruise wieder im kalten Deutschland gelandet. Vielen Dank für die tolle Betreuung vor Ort. Anbei die versprochenen Bilder. Herzliche Grüße __________________________________________________________________ Carsten April 5, 2010 Hi Ibrahim, Once more many thanks for your wonderfully planned tour. I will certainly contact you should we plan to do an other trip to Egypt. Best regards __________________________________________________________________ Doreen March 15, 2010 Lieber Ibrahim, wie versprochen hier ein paar Fotos von unserem schönen Ausflug zu den Pyramiden :o) Ganz lieben Dank noch mal an Dich! Und Herzliche Grüße nach Kairo! __________________________________________________________________Michael Wurche[ [email protected] ] January 30, 2010 Lieber Herr Morgan, haben Sie vielen Dank für die gute Betreuung und Führung meiner Gäste. Ich werde Sie gern auch in Zukunft in Anspruch nehmen. Haben Sie Interesse, als Freelancer bei Bedarf für Emeco zu arbeiten? Falls ja, würde ich Sie mit dem zuständigen Vice President Hisham Refaat bekanntmachen. Beste Grüße, Michael Wurche __________________________________________________________________ David Morin [[email protected] ] January 3, 2010 Ibrahim, At last I’ve gotten around to sending you the photos we took at the Ibn Tulun Mosque. Thanks again for the fine tour you gave us. I’m only sorry that we were so tired we could not see more. Hope your holidays were good to you and that you have a good year. -David Morin __________________________________________________________________ Jeroen van Stokkum [[email protected] ] December 30, 2009 Ibrahim, For thebest guide we ever met in Egypt. Thanks for the nice days and the best greetings from Francis, Jeroen, Nicole, Bram and Bas ___________________________________________________________________ A.Bijany from Toronto [ [email protected] ] November 29, 2009 Dearest Ibrahim, Hi, how are you my friend? I hope all is well with you and the family. We are back to Toronto. Marianne, Arash and I are feeling so weird these days ever since we are back to Toronto. All of us badly miss Egypt and all of you guys with all the sweet memories we brought home from your wonderful country. We simply cannot stop talking and thinking about this trip! Although all of us have immensely traveled to so many places around the globe, I can honestly say that we have never felt the same way as we are feeling like this about Egypt. Your country is the most amazing place on earth in terms of history and civilization, and I remain totally speechless with everything that I have seen there. You showed us so much in that short time that we are so grateful for having such an excellent and knowledgeable source availbale to us.I for one (and on behalf of Arash and Marianne), would like to take this opportunity to thank you for making this trip such an amazing journey for us. I have no doubt that without your presence, we would not be able to achieve and learn as much as we did. Thanks for everything my friend, Ibrahim. We will of course be good friends from now on, and I am sure our roads will cross again, in Egypt, very very soon. I will keep you posted for our next trip. Yours Anoosh/Andrew ___________________________________________________________________ Monica Furmanski [[email protected] ] November 7, 2009 Hello Ibrahim! We hope that you are doing well. Did you get the note I sent with Fawzy? The trip was wonderful and you really did an amazing job putting it all together for us last minute. We truly appreciate all of your expertise and assistance, not to forget trust! We had a great adventure and enjoyed everything we did. The cruise was lovely and relaxing and even though Sharm was very touristy we had a relaxing time there as well. Thank you! Here are some photos for you. We would love to work with you again and hope we have the opportunity to. If you ever visit the States please let us know and we would love to help you out. All the best and many many thanks! Monica, Matt, Sam, Roan and Ani __________________________________________________________________ Barley Wood [ [email protected] ] August 18, 2009, Ibrahim, Hope everything is going well for you and your family? I am writing to let you know that I took a contract with Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines and the ship I was placed on is the Vision of the Seas. We are currently running a schedule in Scandinavia out of Copenhagen. Over the next few months we will be traveling into the Mediterranean. Our schedule is going to include long schedules in the northern Med then to Turkey where we will be doing a Holy Land Cruise that includes Alexandria. Right now I will be there at least twice in October. I would like to invite you up for tea, a meal and to catch up. Maybe the next time I will bring the cast with me and take the train into Cairo for the day. I will rent a driver and would love you to be our guide for the day. I will be happy to pay you whatever you wish. Just some thoughts but regardless it would be outstanding to see you once again. Until then. ___________________________________________________________________ Claudia-Katharina Oswald [[email protected] ] August 16, 2009 Hallo Ibrahim!! Ich hoffe es geht dir gut, und du kannst dich noch an uns erinnern. Wir haben letztes Jahr im Dezember eine tolle Führung mit dir in Kairo, Alexandria und El Alamein gemacht….Am Dienstag fliegen wir wieder nach Ägypten (Sharm el Sheikh), mit 2 Freunden. Wir würden wieder sehr gerne eine Führung in Kairo mit dir machen. Wäre das möglich? Was denkst du ist der einfachste Weg um von Sharm el Sheikh nach Kairo zu kommen? Wir dachten an ein Mietauto. Was denkst du´? ___________________________________________________________________ Katie Breedlove [[email protected] ] July 24, 2009 Ibrahim, I know you don’t like email that much but… thank you for the wonderful day yesterday. My work has been difficult here and at one point I just wanted to leave Egypt. But now I don’t feel that way after yesterday. I felt like for the first time I had really seen Egypt. I hope to see you again for more adventures in Cairo and Egypt. Thank you. __________________________________________________________________ Elsa from Washington DC [[email protected] ] July 11, 2009 Hi Ibrahim, My family and I are back in our homes and just would like to thank you again for your experts services during our recent visit to your home country, Egypt. Although our visit was very brief, we enjoyed the experience of being there and see for ourselves the great pyramids and the wonderful collection of artifacts at the Egyptian Museum. We will certainly come back to Egypt someday! Take care and best wishes from Washington, DC. Elsa. __________________________________________________________________ Jim Szatkowski from Safety Harbor, Florida [[email protected] ] May 30, 2009 As promised. Our picture from the Mosque in March, 2009. Sorry I am so late sending it. Thanks for an interesting visit. Best Wishes, Barb & Jim Szatkowski ___________________________________________________________________ Suzie Walker [[email protected] ] May 25, 2009 Ibrahim, Hello there! We have finally returned home after a wonderful month of traveling. Thank you so much for your expert guidance while we were in Cairo. We had an absolutely wonderful time andfeel so grateful not only to have had the opportunity to visit Egypt, but to have you as our tour guide. My parents had a spectacular time as well. Thank you for the experience of a lifetime. I have not forgotten about my promise to send Samy an email about what a wonderful guide you were and to include a review on the cruiseline’s website about our private tour. I will do that shortly now that I am home and have internet access on a regular basis. I will also send photos of our trip your way (to include the restaurant photos of you and my mother with your lamb legs!) as soon as we have had the opportunity to upload and sort through them. Jason and I met Kye and Milo for dinner last night and I told her all about our trip. She was so happy that everything went well and sends her regards to you. Thank you again – I will be in touch! Suzie Walker __________________________________________________________________ Thomas Guilfoyle [[email protected] ] May 1, 2009, Hello there Ibrahim, Just wanted to say hello and to let you know that we (Deb and Jolene and I) have not forgotten you and hope that you did not forget us either! You know I am still so happy that you were able to arrange a day trip for me to climb Mount Sinai as I still look at my photos of that and my whole trip including the movies that I took. Also to let you know we “WILL” be sending you the write up about the trip so you can show it to other clients. Once again and I know I can speak for all of us “THANKS AGAIN” for everything as you made the trip to Egypt special and especially for me as I have been to Egypt before but you showed me A LOT of things that I did not see the first time. Warm Regards, Tom ___________________________________________________________________ Alastair & Liz Simkin [[email protected] ] March 20, 2009 Dear Ibrahim, We have finally reached our home in France, after a wonderful visit to Cairo, and then down the Nile. We did go as far as Abu Simnel……and everything went very well indeed. We would like to thank you for your time and efforts in showing us around, and trying to educate us on the finer points of Egyptian history….just how much we have remembered. I do not know. As I promised, I am sending you a couple of photos to remind you of us. We do hope you are doing well, and that the tourist business continues to keep you busy. Please say “hello” to Hani for us……Our best regards, Alastair and Liz Simkin ___________________________________________________________________ Ulrich Meyer [[email protected] ] March 12, 2009 Guten Morgen Herr Morgan, vielen Dank nochmals für die sehr nette und interessante Führung durch Cairo. Wie versprochen sende ich Ihnen das Foto. Es ist leider nicht ganz scharf geworden. Liebe Grüße ___________________________________________________________________ Von: Manfred Heemann [[email protected] ] January 25, 2009 Hallo Ibrahim, wie hoffen, es geht Ihnen gut. Hier ist das versprochene Foto. Vielen Dank noch mal für die wunderbaren Tage in Kairo. Ihre gute Betreuung und informative Führung hat uns sehr gut gefallen. Wir können jedem Besucher Ihres Landes, der sich für dessen beeindruckende Geschichte und Kultur interessiert, empfehlen, sich von Ihnen bei einer spannenden Entdeckungsreise begleiten zu lassen. Beste Grüße Sabine, Manfred, Michael, Frederik und Harvey ___________________________________________________________________ Kate & Jane Hedley [[email protected] ] January 18, 2009 Hi Ibrahim, Thank you so much for being such an excellent guide and friend on our Egyptian journey – we had such a fantastic experience and thank you for being a big part of that. Some holiday photos attached for you as promised. We hope to meet again next time we are in Egypt!! Best wishes and luck for now and the future, Kate and Jane __________________________________________________________________ Janis Alcorn [[email protected] ] January 3, 2009 Hello, I traveled with Laurie on one of her trips to Egypt, both of which were guided by Mr. Morgan. I can add my very strong recommendation for Morgan, who is a truly wonderful and enthusiastic guide. He really listens to your interests & energy levels, and then matches your interests against his deep knowledge of Egyptian sites and information to come up with a great tour. We wanted a high energy, see-it-all day & night sort of tour, and Morgan organized and guided us on a high energy, see-it-all tour with some wonderful restful moments in gardens and sampling all kinds of food – from the Greek Yacht Club in Alexandria to little tea shops where we were cheerfully accepted as the only two women customers. He has a great eye for fitting things in as they come along and offer themselves according to serendipity as well. Janis ___________________________________________________________________ Laurene Church [[email protected] ] January 3, 2009 Hi Roger, Ibrahim is a terrific guide; you simply couldn’t do better! I first read about him in the acknowledgements section of a book entitled “Culture Shock: Egypt.” I contacted him ahead of time, and he was available, so we met him in our Cairo hotel. After spending several days touring Cairo with him, we decided to engage him as our guide for the duration of our trip (several weeks.) He has contacts everywhere, knows all the best places, steered us through several potentially tricky situations, and showed us a wonderful time. We stayed healthy the entire trip, thanks to his guidance. He has the very best drivers, the best cars/vans (pristinely clean, even stocked with with coolers of iced drinks!) We drove to Alexandria (also for several days; Janis coordinated a conference there.) Afterward we flew to Luxor, Aswan, and Abu Simbel and spent several days touring by car in each location. It was a “trip-of-a-lifetime”, so much so, in fact, that my husband and I brought our two sons’ families– including 2 teenage grandchildren– for a family vacation the following year. I think we stayed 3 weeks that time. We went horseback riding in the desert near the pyramids (one son and his faily are great riders), took a lovely 3- day Nile cruise from Luxor to Aswan, a sunrise hot- air balloon ride over the Valley of the Kings, which was absolutely spectacular, and a very moving tour of trash city in Cairo, which touched us all deeply, especially our 13 year- old grandson. Ibrahim is an Egyptologist; he studied under Hawass; he reads heiroglyphics, he’s proud and excited about the glories of Egypt’s past. He’s also very personable and is willing to discuss any subject, which we found delightful. He toured the US last summer for 3 months, and we were pleased that we could show him a few sights of our nation’s capital. I’ll be happy to chat with you about our trips. I’ll be home this weekend. You can reach me at home at Sincerely, Laurie Church ___________________________________________________________________ Keith & Susan McLean [[email protected] ] January 2, 2009 Ibrahim, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you! Sorry for the delay in responding, but we have been out of town for the past two weeks visiting family. It was very nice to hear from you. Our family is doing great! Had a wonderful Christmas holiday together and ready for the New Year ahead! May it be healthy, happy and prosperous for you and your family. It was such a joy to meet you and spend time with you in October. We had the most incredible trip to Egypt ! We have been telling all of our friends about you and how wonderful you are, not only as a guide, but as a friend. You made our trip truly unforgettable! After we left you, our trip continued to be spectacular! We really loved our Nile River cruise aboard the Sonesta St. George. Beautiful boat, great crew, delicious food and a great tour guide. We sailed Luxor to Aswan and then flew to Sharm el Sheikh for the last 4 days. Sharm is breathtakingly beautiful! It was a nice relaxing way to end the trip. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency and we would highly recommend it to anyone. Unfortunately, we both became ill and could not make the climb up Mt. Sinai. Very disappointed, but still had a fabulous time. We will have to go back to Egypt and climb the Mountain!! We have attached some photos taken during our trip to Egypt . We thought you might enjoy them. We also attached a photo of our family taken this summer in Eastern Canada . We would love to see a photo of your family, if you have the time. We definitely plan to keep in touch with you. It is so wonderful to have friends around the world. You are welcome anytime to visit us in Toronto, Canada . Your friends, Susan and Keith ___________________________________________________________________ Thomas Guilfoyle [ [email protected] ] November 28, 2008 Hello there Ibrahim, Hope that you are doing fine and I am doing very well. Just got all my movies I took while in Egypt and merged them into one big movie which runs for over one full hour. I am attaching a document that I wrote on my full day account on the day I climbed Mount Sinai. Let me know what you think okay? Thanks again for your help. Take care. Regards, Tom ___________________________________________________________________ Mark, Mira and Eden from Canada [ [email protected] ] August 23, 2008 Greetings from Canada! Hi Ibrahim, we have been home for the past two weeks and just now I found time to send you that promised picture. Thank You again for creating beautiful memories for us. ___________________________________________________________________ David Bebarfald [[email protected] ] July 16, 2008 Hi Ibrahim, Firstly, thank you for taking me about on Monday. It has to be one of the most poignant days of my life! The Bible speaks of the two men on the road to Emmaus. At the end of the journey, they recognized the stranger who walked with them, and they confessed, “didn’t our hearts burn within us”. That is precisely how I feel about the day. So many amazing things have happened even since my meeting you. I might have the opportunity to tell you, suffice to say, like Mary I am “pondering these things in my heart.” As to their meaning, I am not sure, but take them as gifts from God who provides for us not as we deserve, but according to his great love for us.” In respect of perhaps taking another “tour” with you, I am not sure whether I can. I don’t think Friday is such a possibility, but maybe Saturday. At this stage though, I can’t expect you to hold these days free for me. However, if I can see my way clear, I will e-mail you asap. Apart from that. . .If it were possible to do a 1/2 day and we could visit Coptic Cairo, that would be great. I’m sorry to mess you about, but there is a bit for me to mesh together. If this doesn’t work out, I thank God nevertheless for gracing me with the day we spent together. If not me, someone else will be blessed! Thanks again, David ___________________________________________________________________ Heike and Jörg from Palestine [[email protected] ] Monday, May 12, 2008 Lieber Herr Ibrahim, vielen Dank noch einmal für die herausragende Führung durch Kairo und den Pyramidenbezirk. Mit enormem Sachwissen, Humor und Einfühlungsvermögen haben Sie es verstanden, uns an nur einem halben Tag einen guten Überblick über die Stadt, ihre Historie, das tägliche Leben und die Verhältnisse zu geben. Wir werden noch lange die besten Erinnerungen an unseren Führer, Ibrahim Morgan, und seine Stadt Kairo haben. Mit herzlichen Grüßen Heike und Jörg Ranau (Repräsentant der Bundesrepulick Deutschland in Ramallah) ___________________________________________________________________ Joseph & Carol Jo from Maryland [[email protected] ] To Whom It May Concern: In January of 2008, we traveled to Egypt with another couple on a trip we had dreamed about for years. We looked at several packaged tours, but none of them had the exact combination of what we wanted to do – and they were really expensive! A fellow parishioner recommended Ibrahim Morgan to us as a guide and I contacted him via email. From his 1st reply, we were impressed with his knowledge of Egypt and his willingness to make our dream vacation a reality.We did a lot of cyberspace planning with him, and then it was time to actually experience Egypt. Ibrahim met us at the airport with flowers, arranged for our visas and delivered us to our hotel in Giza. The next morning, he met us for breakfast and we were off! We went to Christian Cairo, Islamic Cairo and the Cairo Souq. We visited a the Hanging Church, the Alabaster Mosque, and a Synagogue. We saw demonstrations at the papyrus, carpet and perfume factories, with opportunities to purchase. We were amazed by the artifacts at the Egyptian Museum and the Coptic Museum. We saw the pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, Memphis and the Solar Boat. We raced a busload of tourists to get a ticket to go inside the Great Pyramid. We were serenaded in outdoor restaurants, saw bread being baked in a clay oven and then ate it, and watched feluccas ferry people across the Nile as we ate. All this was the 1st three days of our trip! A very early flight took us almost to Sudan to see the spectacular temples at Abu Simbel and we were checking into our lovely hotel in Aswan by 10am. Ibrahim contracts with drivers in each city, so there was always a van waiting to deliver us to our next stop. That afternoon, we took in the new Nubian Museum and the Coptic Cathedral in Aswan. The next morning, we connected with a felucca captain named Anwar Sadat (!) who took us for a sail on the Nile, around the Elephantine Island and over to the far bank where we rode on camels into the desert to the ruins of the Monastery of San Sebastian. We went to the temple of Phila, the Aswan High Dam and back to Anwar Sadat’s house for tea. Meeting his charming family was one of the high points of the trip. Most tours include at least a 5 day Nile cruise, but we wanted to do only 3 days. Ibrahim not only arranged this for us, but got us upgraded cabins that were very nice! We stopped along the Nile to see Komombo and Edfu, which also included a carriage ride. The three days were a nice change of pace and we enjoyed the afternoon teas on the deck, as well as a visit with the ship’s captain. In Luxor, we visited the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Queens, the Valley of the Nobles and Hatshepsut’s Temple. We went to Karnak, Luxor Temple and the Luxor Museum. When we noticed that there were hot air balloon rides, Ibrahim found one for us for the next morning! We saw the Ramesseum, went in military convoy to Dendara, and walked through the souq in the evening. Oh-we spent only 3 days in Luxor! We then flew back to Cairo and connected with our favorite driver, Hani. We were all pleased that he would be with us for the rest of the trip. All of the drivers were good, but Ibrahim thought that Hani was special and so did we. Our day in Alexandria was beautifully sunny and clear. We toured the famous library, the Alexandria National Museum and had one of our favorite meals of the trip at the Fish Market overlooking the Mediterranean. The corniche which follows the shore was a great place to stroll and enjoy the sunshine. The next morning we drove to St. Catherine’s Monastery in the Sinai. It was probably the hardest day as the weather was cold and rainy, we were all tired, and it was a 12 hour trip! Although Ibrahim is able to control almost everything in Egypt, he can’t control the weather. We had to cancel our night time camel ride-hike to watch the sunrise over Mt. Sinai. It hard to see the sun in the rain! The weather cleared up by mid morning and we had a nice tour of St. Catherine’s Monastery which included the Burning Bush. We drove to a lovely resort hotel on the Red Sea, where we said goodbye. Of course, Ibrahim had arranged our ferry transfer to Jordan the next morning. Throughout the trip Ibrahim had the 3 Ts – tickets, transportation and tips – at his fingertips. His concern for our comfort and safety was paramount, almost to a fault. He has an extensive knowledge of not only the history of his country, but how it functions and how to travel efficiently. His love of Egypt came through at every turn and we now have a personal appreciation of the country that we might not have gotten on a larger tour. We have traveled extensively and have usually been independent travelers, but Egypt would be a difficult country to see on your own in just 14 days. Ibrahim Morgan was an excellent guide who became a friend. Sincerely, Carol Jo Roeder ___________________________________________________________________ Ashley [ [email protected]] April 30, 2008 Hi Ibrahim: I hope all is well in Cairo! I really enjoyed the tour. You know a lot about Egypt and it was a great day. I hope you and your wife enjoy the pictures! Ashley ___________________________________________________________________ Michel from Belgium [[email protected] ] April 18, 2008 Dear Ibrahim, Almost two weeks back, I would like to thank you for your very good support you gave us whilst guiding us through Cairo and Fayoum; it was a very good experience, and gave us a good insight in Egypt through the centuries. Feel free to contact me if you need a recommendation for Dutch or Flemish tourists. Also, don’t hesitate to contact us whenever you are in Belgium or Holland; it would be nice to stay in touch. Possibly we shall be back ourselves next year, who knows! Good luck!, Michel van Roozendaal ___________________________________________________________________ Marilyn and Paul from California[ [email protected] ] April 14, 2008 Dear ITN editor, Thanks to an earlier ITN article singing the praises of one Ibrahim Morgan, we contacted him by e-mail and asked him to arrange a 21 day trip to Egypt for us, March 2, through 22, 2008. Mr. Morgan, who earned a Master’s Degree in Egyptology from the University of Alexandria, developed a complete itinerary for our visit including his expert guide services, experienced drivers; air conditioned vans, and hotels. One of the benefits of having an individually designed tour was our ability to discuss our own particular interests with him in advance; and, even to “tweak” the trip each day to suit our needs. The Grand Hyatt, Cairo, became our island of calm in this crowded and hectic city. Our view of the Nile River was a welcome solace at the end of each day. Our guide is an expert in how to manage this unwieldy urban environment. We are expert travelers and most often “go it alone”; but, we discovered for ourselves that Cairo is no place for the uninitiated. Time after time, Mr. Morgan and his expert drivers threaded us through unbelievable traffic, timed our entrances and exits to all of the major sites to avoid the crowds, and arranged for visits to places of great interest that were off the beaten track. Of course, our visit included the entire not to be missed venues including Giza, the Valley of the Kings and the Egyptian Museum. We were in and out of Cairo three times in our three week period and were able to leave luggage at the Grand Hyatt while we took side trips to Abu Simbel, Alexandria and Mt. Sinai. Our trip included a four day Nile cruise, (Aswan to Luxor) on which Mr. Morgan accompanied us in order to provide personal guide services at each stop. This avoided the ship bus tours which are often crowded and slow. We were given plenty of personal “space” during our trip even though our guide was always available for advice and assistance when needed. We were able to make day to day adjustments in our schedule in accordance with our personal interests. One example a trip to Wadi El-Hitan (Egypt’s newest World Heritage Site) where we saw fossilized whale skeletons in their entirety. Another highlight was a trip to Mt. Sinai for which Mr. Morgan arranged an eight person van for the three of us so that we could stretch out and sleep on part of the 8 hour trip from Cairo. Sleep was in order as we began our ascent up the mountain where Moses received the Ten Commandments at 1:00 am in order to see the sunrise (an experience that we heartily recommend; one time per lifetime!) We greatly impressed by the City of Alexandria; in particular, the striking piece of 21st Century architecture that is the Alexandria Library. Housing the second largest collection of books in the world (the Library of Congress takes first place) the building was a technological as well as an architectural treasure. The price of our tour was determined by our choice of hotels. . .This included four to five star hotels in every city on a bed and breakfast basis; the four day Nile Cruise (which included all meals), daily guide services, van and driver, and two domestic airline flights. To this was added money in tips which Mr. Morgan distributed on our behalf in order to smooth our path through the country. Mr. Morgan is a very honest and intelligent individual who commits himself fully to his work. He has a wonderful sense of humor and a deep knowledge and loveof his subject matter. His professionalism, knowledge and integrity made this trip one of our best. We recommend him highly. We would be happy to provide additional details about this trip. Feel free to contact us at [email protected] . Sincerely, Marilyn and Paul Whisenand ___________________________________________________________________ Douglas from China [[email protected] ] February 10, 2008 Good morning Ibrahim, WOW !!!!!!! What a great experience it was to visit your country. I can say we have a great appreciation for Egypt after our visit, a place that was in Kevin’s dreams since he was very young as he was learning about in school. Being very honest, most of our happiness comes from the work you have done and pride you have expressed while telling and showing us each site we have visited in such a short period. From the pyramids to the Sinai, from Luxor to the desert, everything went so well. While flying back home, I was telling Ana how I was already missing Egypt. The trip has totally fulfilled my expectations. From the sand dust in my shoes and pants to the beautiful scenery of the ancient sites. I was only sorry I could not spend more time just sitting at each place to travel in time and just feel what life would be thousands of years ago, the man power involved in putting all those columns, obelisks, statues and pyramids together. One of the reasons for the smooth flow of our activities was your discipline (despite the fact that some may have felt it slightly strict…). In my opinion, that was one of the trip’s highlights considering our tight schedule. The other thing was your sense of humor: “Wow”, “Look at that…”, “Ginourmous…”, “I take that as a no…”, and many other expressions will stay in the back of our mind for a while. We had a ball with you during those days… Ana and the kids want to apologize for not being able to say good-bye to you and the rest of the tour crew. Airport departures are always hectic and as we all rushed to check in they could not come back. Really, really sorry about that… Actually, we thought we would be able to see you there… If you ever need a referral for your services, please feel free to give my name and personal e-mail address. I will be very happy in providing my thoughts for those who want to consider you as a tour guide. For your portfolio, I’m sending you a picture of you in front of our group in the Valley of the Kings (by the way, loved your website…) Thought you also would like to have a picture of the sunset in the mighty Nile (one of my best shots…). If you ever want to have a picture of a specific site, please feel free to ask and I can burn you a CD with sites – no people – on it. Warm regards, Douglas ___________________________________________________________________ Jeff and Donna Blarr from Buffalo, NY [ [email protected] or [email protected] ] December 5, 2007 This letter is written in support of Mr. Ibrahim Morgan who has recently applied to work with your company. We have know him since 1999 and it is our pleasure to give our opinions of his work experience as we know it and his character as it pertains to our previous dealings with him. We know Mr. Ibrahim to be a professional Egyptologist, tour guide and Arabic Teacher. We have used his services for his experience, knowledge and excellent ability in teaching Arabic. He is demonstrative in his teaching and clearly put curriculums together to best fit our individual needs. He took great care with us as individuals to make sure he was teaching at a rate that was comfortable, as well for us to learn exactly what we needed in order to live appropriately and comfortably while living in Cairo. When we were in need of a tour agent, we found the same care given to us as we used him to lead teams to the various tourist and historic sites in Egypt. He not only had the knowledge of the sites he took us to, his outgoing personality made it very enjoyable. His English language is at a premium and hecommunicates very well with people of various backgrounds. Although, we do not speak German, we were impressed with his ability to carry this language as well. It is obvious when you are with Mr. Ibrahim that he cares as much about the people he is touring as he does for his knowledge about his country and her history. He is professional and detailed oriented. He makes Egypt’s history come alive as he describes it. His love and pride for his country is obvious and it makes you fall in love with Egypt too! Mr. Ibrahim would be a value to any company that wants to see their company grow as there is no doubt that people who use his service once will always return or refer others. We were thankful to know Mr. Ibrahim for the time we lived in Egypt and will always remain grateful for him. If you have any further questions, we are available. Thank you for allowing this opportunity to define our experience with Mr. Ibrahim Morgan ___________________________________________________________________ Sabine from Germany [ [email protected] ] November 28, 2007 Hallo, Ibrahim, nun bin ich also wieder zu Hause. Es ging alles glatt, aber der Flughafen ist schon schlimm. Aber endlich war ich durch und der Flug war dann auch ohne Probleme. Natuerlich bin ich alleine zum Flughafen gefahren,Patricia war wieder oder immer noch krank. Ich hoffe, dass sie sich entscheiden und endlich nachforschen, was sie nun hat. Hier alles wie immer, ob das nun gut ist oder nicht….. Ich moechte noch einmal betonen, dass es mir sehr gut gefallen hat, ohne Sie waere es eine mittlere Katastrophe gewesen. Ich habe mir gerade die Bilder angesehen, die sehr gut geworden sind. Aber wenn man diese Dinge nicht in Natur gesehen hat, sind die Bilder nur halb so gut. Ich hoffe, es geht Ihnen und Ihrer Familie gut. Lieben Dank noch mal, Lieber Gruss, Sabine ___________________________________________________________________ Britta Heusinger von Waldegg [ [email protected] ] January 15, 2007 Lieber Ibrahim, danke für die Grüße. Alles Gute für Sie und Ihre Familie im Jahr 2007. Ich wünsche Ihnen Gesundheit und Glück. Unser Sohn Friedrich spricht noch oft von dem ägyptischen Museum und von Kairo. Es hat, unter Ihrer Führung, bei ihm und bei mir einen bleibenden Eindruck hinterlassen. Viele Grüße, Britta Heusinger von Waldegg ___________________________________________________________________ Kathy Steen [ [email protected] ] November 7, 2006 We hit the ground running early Sunday morning with a tour guide and friend of Mitchell’s, Ibrahim Morgan. . . .Ibrahim was a walking encyclopedia and the kids were fascinated and full of questions. We learned about the myths surrounding the pyramid construction. . .Amazing, truly amazing. We were so fortunate to have Ibrahim during our trip to the Pyramids. He took care of the tickets and kept the vendors at bay. Egyptian tourism tradition dictates a constant barrage of vendors and “tour guides” with limited English and hands outstretched for a little “baksheesh.” You have to have a limitless supply of Egyptian 1 pound notes (US$0.17) on hand for every turn. Even trips to the toilet require a tip to the attendant. With Ibrahim in charge, I was able to relax and experience everything like a kid without a care! He even bargained for us a camel ride. Kathy Steen ___________________________________________________________________ Janice L. Musfeldt from Kentucky [[email protected] ] August 26, 2006 Dear Ibrahim, My husband and I are both delighted to learn that you will be visiting the United States next year. Our family had the most wonderful trip in Egypt a few years ago, certainly the result of your excellent planning and previous study in the area of Egyptology. At that time, we encouraged you to visit the States both to further your education and to see the sights. We couldn’t be more thrilled to learn about your upcoming trip (summer 2007). It will be our pleasure to host you and to show you around the Knoxville area, especially the Smoky Mountains National Park. We should also plan a few days in Atlanta to see the Martin Luther King memorial and to hear the symphony. Best Wishes, Janice L. Musfeldt and David E. Bernholdt ___________________________________________________________________ Heinz Schiedemann [[email protected] ] June 26, 2006 Hallo Ibrahim, erstmal viele Grüße aus Köln! Und nochmals vielen Dank für die tolle “saugute” Tour mit Dir in Kairo und Umgebung! Ich denke immer nach an die ganzen Eindrücke zurück. Wann genau wirst Du in Köln sein? Gib mir Bescheid und ich würde mich freuen, Dich zu sehen. Ich hoffe, daß ich dann auch zu Hause bin und nicht in der Luft. Du bist herzlich eingeladen mich/uns zu besuchen. Schreibe mir bitte per e-mail oder eine SMS, vielleicht kannst Du mich aber auch von einem der Telefone Deiner Freunde bei mir zu Hause im Festnetz anrufen. Ich wünsche Dir, daß alles gut klappt mit Deinem Visum und wünsche Dir eine gute Reise bzw. einen guten Flug. Bis bald und viele Grüße auch an Deine Frau und Tochter. Heinz P.S. – Falls möglich könntest Du vielleicht etwas Hibiskustee mitbringen, den welchen man kalt als Eistee trinkt. Es müssen nicht die Blätter sein. ___________________________________________________________________ Britta Heusinger von Waldegg [[email protected] ] May 26, 2006 Lieber Ibrahim, ich möchte mich auch noch einmal ausdrücklich für diesen wundervollen Tag mit Ihnen bedanken. Es hätte nicht angenehmer sein können. Sie wissen so viel, man brauchte sicher Jahre, um alles zu erfahren. Friedrich hat viel behalten und mir auch noch einmal gesagt, wie nett er Sie fand. Ich muß wirklich unbedingt meinen Mann nach Ägypten bringen. Ihr Land, Ibrahim, ist sehr sympathisch und hat sich uns von seiner besten Seite präsentiert. Vielen, vielen Dank für Ihre Mühe, grüßen Sie Ihre Frau von mir und bis ganz, ganz bald, Ihre Britta Heusinger von Waldegg ___________________________________________________________________ Royce Alsop [ [email protected] ] May 23, 2006 Dear ITN, I last submitted an article about 6 years ago, which was published, regarding our two week hiking trip in the fjords and mountains of southwest Norway. I have not been sufficiently inspired by an experience to submit another article until now. Due to a recommendation in a review in ITN about two years ago, we contacted Ibrahim Morgan, a freelance guide in Cairo, Egypt. The reviewer was very pleased with his services, and highly recommended him to other travelers. We emailed Ibrahim and he responded to our inquiry within 24 hours. We subsequently corresponded several times, fine tuning an itinerary satisfactory to my wife, 19 year old son, and I. We left Dallas on May 13, connecting in London, and finally arriving in Cairo at 12:30 AM the early morning of May 15th. We stayed in Cairo until May 20th, when we flew to Sharm El Sheik for a few days. Ibrahim arranged for his friend Haitham to meet us at the airport in Cairo, and help us through the visa, immigration, and baggage collection process. Ibrahim, and our driver, then took us directly to our hotel, where we promptly fell asleep and then relaxed for the remainder of our first day in Cairo. Ibrahim expertly guided us for the next four days and then took us to the airport for our flight to Sharm El Sheik. The fee included assistance at the airport, transport to our hotel, minivan and driver, expert guiding and entrance fees to all sites and museums, and transport back to the airport. Everything was included except for our meals and our hotel. Of course the cost would vary depending on one’s specific itinerary. Our biggest concern when we were planning the trip was dealing with an individual, not an established, well known company with a lengthy reputation. All we had to go on was one two year old recommendation by a prior client. Now that the original recommendation has been confirmed, hopefully future ITN readers can proceed with more confidence and less anxiety! I think the most significant statement I can make is that if Ibrahim says he will do something, he will do it! He was on time, every time. Even if we arrived 5 or 10 minutes early, Ibrahim was there waiting on us. Ibrahim speaks multiple languages, and he speaks English fluently, knowing many words and phrases that demonstrated a thorough understanding of the language. His vocabulary was outstanding, and his pronunciation was impeccable! The depth of his knowledge on a multitude of subjects was quite impressive. This was no ordinary guide, or even just a good one! We have traveled independently and frequently for many years. We hire private guides and drivers when we are in an area where we do not want to drive and public transportation is inadequate, or when we feel the history of the destination is significant and we want to know more about it. We have used private guides in Greece, Morocco, Turkey, Malta, Thailand, Philippines, etc. Ibrahim was the best all round guide we have ever used. Although we had an agreed upon itinerary,Ibrahim was very flexible, and we made changes periodically as we went along. Sometimes circumstances would prompt the change, sometimes we would prompt the change based on our interests and desires. This was never a problem and Ibrahim emphasized on multiple occasions that this was our vacation and our money! He asked for feedback frequently, such as are we going too fast, too slow, too much or not enough detail, speaking loudly enough, and summarizing at the end of the day with “what should I have done differently”? We had expressed an interest to go places and see things off the beaten track. Ibrahim certainly accomplished this and those experiences were some of the most interesting and enjoyable of the trip. Of course, we were concerned about safety and security, but we never once felt threatened or unsafe in the areas that he took us. We were very much the center of attention at times, because we were in areas where they seldom if ever see tourists! The children in particular were curious, and often spoke to us in English, and our son briefly kicked a soccer ball back and forth with another boy half his age! Ibrahim gave us options to choose from for lunch most every day. The restaurants were always first class, with excellent food and or location, such as being on the Nile. The restaurants were always clean and we never had any intestinal issues. Ibrahim asked early on if there was any specific shopping we wanted to do. He took us to quality places for the shopping we wanted and never took us anywhere else to shop. We had been to Cairo 23 years ago, and we were somewhat disappointed in the Sakarra pyramid site at that time. (This disappointment being relative of course, because how disappointed can one be with any 5,000 year old structure)! Not so on this occasion! Sakarra was one of the highlights of this trip, and demonstrated the enormous difference that a quality guide can make. Although this was the first time for Ibrahim to work with our driver, Hussain, they worked together as if they were longtime friends. Hussain spoke very little English, but Ibrahim translated frequently so we could converse and joke with him as easily as if he did. Hussain never got lost, he drove cautiously, avoiding potholes, and slowed down for all speed bumps. While Cairo driving could have been a very nerve racking experience, we never felt uncomfortable, and only one time, through no fault of Hussain, did he have to brake abruptly! We thought that was amazing, and is a tribute to his caution and driving skills. The minivan was almost new, and in very good condition. It was always clean, both inside and out, which was no small feat! The air conditioner worked well and had separate controls for the back of the van. The day time temperature averaged in the mid- 80s for the duration of our stay. Ibrahim’s email address is [email protected]. He has a mobile phone and he will give you the number when you arrive, telling you to call him at any time if necessary, 24 hours a day, seven days a week! We have cancelled our plans for a trip to Egypt twice in the last several years over concerns of safety and security. We gave it thought again due to the recent bombing at Doha in the Sinai. Ibrahim assured us that the Egyptian government is doing everything within its power to assure the safety of travelers to Egypt. The largest source of their income is tourist dollars, and it is imperative that it not be disrupted. We saw security everywhere, including an abundance of Tourist Police, military personnel, ordinary police, and plain clothes security personnel, all armed. While this might be a little unsettling at first, we never felt personally threatened, and as far as we were concerned, the more security the better! The Tourist Police are at every hotel, most restaurants that would be frequented by tourists, at all the tourist attractions, and it seemed at almost every intersection. When Ibrahim picked us up at the hotel in the morning, he would give the Tourist Police our name, where we were from, and what our itinerary was for the day. When we arrived at major tourist sites, he would give the police our name, origin, and what hotel we were staying at. How effective all this was is unknown to us, but as stated before we felt safe and secure at all times, and were extremely happy to have made the trip. We also look forward to returning to see additional sights we missed in Cairo, as well as all the other major sights throughout the country. Ibrahim is a licensed Egyptologist, a licensed guide and a licensed historian, and thus is able to guide throughout the country. There is no doubt in our mind that we will utilize his services the next time we visit Egypt, which hopefully will be soon! Royce Alsop ___________________________________________________________________ Laurene from Bethesda, Md. [[email protected] ] November 6, 2005 Dear Mary, It is so kind of you to think of us. We just returned from Egypt last week, and we had an absolutely wonderful time. Even the weather cooperated completely.Ibrahim was terrific. He smoothed the way, even in one somewhat ‘dodgy’ situation. (Our grandson had brushed his teeth with tap water the night before, and he felt too ill to travel. We were all scheduled to fly to Abu Simbel in the morning and return to Aswan in the eveing to check in for our Nile cruise. In about 10 minutes Ibrahim arranged for him and his father–who had seen Abu Simbel before–to check into their rooms on the ship, and for all of their luggage to be dropped off. He also handled refunds for the two unused airline tickets. Our grandson was only ill for several hours; otherwise no one had even so much as a tummy rumble…) Ibrahim was a marvelous resource, steering us to the most important items in various museums and at the various temples and other historic sites. The grandchildren (ages 10 and 13) were positively enthralled, and so were all the adults. Ibrahim was bombarded with non-stop questions, and I think he enjoyed that. All the drivers he engaged were wonderful; every van was immaculate and was equipped with a refrigerator filled with bottled water and sodas. Since our trip was during Ramadan, we were a little concerned about whether we would have difficulty finding restaurants open during the day, and about how schedules (e.g., museum and bank hours) would be shortened during the holiday season. We need not have worried; Ibrahim took care of everything, and we were able to do everything we wanted to do. It’s hard to decide what we liked best, there were so many highlights: hot air ballooning over the Valley of the Kings at dawn, horseback riding from Giza to Abu Sir at daybreak, cruising the Nile, the felucca ride and delicious fish dinner prepared by our captain’s wife, Abu Simbel, the sound and light show at Philae, sipping gin and tonics on the balcony of The Old Cataract Hotel, Karnak, the Citadel, Hatshepsut’s Temple… and on and on. Our family will always have wonderful memories of our Egyptian adventure, and I know we have Ibrahim to thank for making it so personal and so meaningful, as well as so hassle-free. Without him we would have had to do a lot more coping, and I know the trip would have been much less enjoyable. Thank you so much for recommending Ibrahim to us. Sincerely, Laurie Church ___________________________________________________________________ Mary Belton [ [email protected] ] July 18, 2005 Hi Colin, Sorry for the delay in responding but I’ve been on holiday in Italy since the first of July. We used Ibrahim during the Christmas holidays last year. It was my first encounter with him, but my friend’s second time. He was so impressed with “Abe” the first time that he insisted we use him again. We found him to be a very knowledgeable Egyptologist and easy to understand. His English is excellent and he has a great sense of humor. He arranged for everything, including our driver for the week. He took us by train to Alexandria and to places most tourists never have the opportunity to see. He will not overwhelm you with information and lets you take time to absorb & enjoy the sights and sounds of ancient Egypt. He keeps you on track and on schedule, knowing that you will want to see as much as you can, however, he does not rush you through the sights. He is proud of his country and wants you to actually “learn” about Egypt and does an excellent job of explaining the culture, religions, and history of the region. We found his fees to be reasonable and he exceeded our expectations in his flexibility to work with us on what we wanted to see and where we wanted to go. We found more than a guide in Abe, we found a wonderful friend that we still periodically stay in touch with. I’m sure you will find a friend in him too!! If you would like more information don’t hesitate to let us know – we’ll be glad to help in any way we can. YOU WILL LOVE EGYPT AND BE IN AWE AT WHAT YOU WILL SEE….. Mary __________________________________________________________________ Becky Fortin [ [email protected] ] July 9, 2005 I am more than happy to vouch for Ibrahim. I first met him on a group tour sponsored by my husband’s company. Since then I have used him on two occasions — when my daughter visited Egypt, and last week, when my son visited. Ibrahim speaks excellent English (and German), has studied for six years at the University in Alexandria to become and Egyptologist, and knows more about Egypt than anyone I have encountered (and I have lived here almost two years.) His knowledge is truly amazing whether you are visiting Pharonic Sites or modern marvels, such as the Library in Alexandria. Whether you have an idea of what you want to see, or you just want to leave it up to Ibrahim to plan your visit,you will not be disappointed. For example, I took a tour of Coptic Cairo with a different guide. When I took a tour of Coptic Cairo with Ibrahim, I was amazed at the difference — I learned so much more. Ibrahim never rushes, and you can ask himanything. He also knows good places for lunch — just let him know if you want to be served or go through a buffet line. His service is all about helping you get the most out of your visit. Ibrahim is also very good with children. I know of another family who brought 2 children (10 and 15) to Egypt, and they all had a great time. Please let me know if you would like more information. One last recommendation — I would not even think of going to the Cairo Museum without him! Hope you enjoy your visit to Egypt. Becky Fortin ___________________________________________________________________ Chuck and Donna from Stuggart, Germany [ [email protected] ] July 9, 2005 Hi Colin, We found Ibrahim’s services wonderful. I recommended his services to 3 of my friends who went to Egypt and loved it. He makes the trip educational and exciting. He provided transportation services, arranged for meals during the day, and picked us up and brought us back to our hotel daily. I felt completely safe in his care. I told him what our family wanted to see and he made all the arrangements. I never felt uncomfortable with my surrounding and he maneuvered my family to all the right locations. My friend’s parents recommended him to me. She’s an executive in Cairo, and her company uses him to entertain VIPs and guests that are in town. You are getting the best. For any other questions you can call us. +49 0711 4409268. We live in Stuttgart Germany (6 hour time difference) and we can answer all of your questions. Chuck and Donna Lazar ___________________________________________________________________ Joe from Washington D.C. [ [email protected] ] Anyone still unconvinced can feel free to send me an e-mil and I can tell you about Ibrahim. He has been my close friend ever since he gave me a tour back in 2002. Ibrahim is one of the most interesting people in the world, and will give you one of the best tours you can find. I had two tour guides while in Egypt and was wasting my time with the first one. He had such a thick accent that you could barely understand what he was saying half the time. Talking to Ibrahim is like talking to your best friend in the States. That, combined with Ibrahim’s intellect, witty personality, and in-depth knowledge of Egypt makes Ibrahim the best (and perhaps only) reasonably-priced English tour guides in Egypt. Sincerely, Joe |