We got up around 7:00 am this morning and got downstairs to breakfast at about 7:45 am. Since we were flying out of Cairo later in the day, we had only a quick breakfast, so we could make the most of the morning.

Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Breakfast.
Breakfast.

At 8:30 am we hopped into a taxi for the short ride to the Egyptian Museum, where we had planned to spend the morning. When we arrived, we waited in a long queue just to get through the security checkpoint and into the outside grounds of the museum.

Once inside, we purchased entry tickets and headed to the museum entrance. Having gone only a few steps, we were approached by a local guide named Khalid, who offered (for a fee, of course!) to take us around the museum. Since we had only limited time, we took him up on his offer. Khalid turned out to be a great guide and, with him, we managed to navigate the museum very efficiently. In hindsight, it would have been overwhelming to do on our own, and we would have ended up wandering aimlessly without much of an idea about what we were looking at. Khalid had a great sense of humour and was very knowledgeable, so it was well worth engaging him to guide us around the enormous museum.

Sarcophagus of Imhotep.
Sarcophagus of Imhotep.
Wooden sarcophaguses (which fit inside each other).
Wooden sarcophaguses (which fit inside each other).
Andrea in the Egyptian Museum.
Andrea in the Egyptian Museum.
Sacred golden ram.
Sacred golden ram.
Unfinished head of Nefertiti.
Unfinished head of Nefertiti.
One of the galleries in the Egyptian Museum.
One of the galleries in the Egyptian Museum.
Gold-covered sarcophagus.
Gold-covered sarcophagus.
Andrea in the Egyptian Museum.
Andrea in the Egyptian Museum.
Anubis, god of the dead.
Anubis, god of the dead.
Pharaoh's chair.
Pharaoh's chair.
Painted limestone head of Queen Hatshepsut.
Painted limestone head of Queen Hatshepsut.
Keith and Andrea in the Egyptian Museum.
Keith and Andrea in the Egyptian Museum.
Keith in the Egyptian Museum.
Keith in the Egyptian Museum.
Khalid (our tour guide) and Keith.
Khalid (our tour guide) and Keith.

We left the museum around 11:15 am and hopped into a taxi to get back to the hotel. Our taxi driver didn’t speak English, but we had a piece of paper with the hotel’s name in Arabic on it, so we were able to communicate our destination to him. When we got back to the hotel, we finished packing, checked out, and got into a waiting car to take us to the airport. We had a very nice driver and a pleasant (for Cairo!) drive to the airport.

The check-in and security process at the airport was relatively smooth. Thankfully, Royal Jordanian is far more civilised than Royal Air Maroc (an airline we’re not in a great hurry to travel on again anytime soon) when it comes to suitcase weight, so we didn’t have to go through the re-packing rigmarole that we endured flying out of Casablanca to get to Cairo.

Having checked in, we headed for the lounge, where we relaxed for about an hour. We boarded our flight around 3:00 pm and departed at 3:30 pm.

Our plane for the trip from Cairo to Amman.
Our plane for the trip from Cairo to Amman.
Our meal on the plane.
Our meal on the plane.

After a flight of about 90 minutes, we landed in Amman around 6:00 pm (having moved one hour forward in time zone).
We were escorted through immigration by an agent who managed all of our paperwork for us, and we headed to the carousel to claim our suitcases.

With suitcases collected, we went outside to meet our waiting driver. Our vehicle was not exactly what had been promised, and it was clear that it was going to be too small for accommodate us and our luggage for the next week. Nonetheless, we managed to get everything into the car for the drive to the St. Regis Hotel in downtown Amman.

By the time we got to the hotel, checked in, and got to our room, it was about 7:45 pm.

Our room at the St. Regis Hotel in Amman.
Our room at the St. Regis Hotel in Amman.

For dinner, we took the least path of resistance, and ordered room service.

Freshly baked bread.
Freshly baked bread.
Spaghetti bolognese.
Spaghetti bolognese.
Banana smoothies.
Banana smoothies.

We retired to bed at a reasonable time, ready to start our exploration of Jordan tomorrow.