How to survive an Egyption horse ride

I love Egypt, the history, the people I met, the food, the culture, the dancing. I enjoyed it all.  Another thing I enjoy is horseback riding.

So here I was in Egypt, and the idea of horseback riding through the desert past the pyramids, was just too enticing to pass up! I mean I have rode horses many times, trotting around different locations in the world.  Having always been a pleasurable experience,  I figured, ‘Why not?!’.  We were introduced to the horses whom were going to be so kind as to take us on a nice little desert riding excursion,  and off we went through the dirt covered roads.

None of us quite aware of the ride we were actually in for……. Just as soon as we so gracefully entered the open desert on our fine cavalry and began to enjoy the spectacular view of the pyramids, our guide starts to get the horses to trot a bit faster.  ‘Ok, ok, I got this, I do enjoy a bit of speed’, I was thinking.  Well I was also thinking he was just going to keep it at a nice pace.   Suddenly though, the horse just went faster, and faster, and well, FASTER! And I found myself no longer enjoying the scenic view, yet purely focused on hanging on for dear freaken life!! I didn’t know my body could become a clamp until that exact moment.  But once I got past the initial shock of it all, I was able to relax and enjoy the moment, yet still hanging on as tight as I darn well could!  Like a monkey to a banana tree. The feeling though was incredible, full speed galloping, wind and desert sand in my hair(and not so pleasantly in my eyes and mouth), the majestic pyramids standing tall and proud in the distance, and the vast open desert space that our horses were just flying through.  It was incredible.  We galloped and galloped for quite some time, and then finally we raced up to a little shack, which is where we stopped, and disembarked.  Let me tell you, I didn’t know you could  have such an adrenaline rush from simply riding a horse. It was insane, when I got off, I could barely stand as the adrenaline was pumping so heavily through me that my legs were shaking, not to mention, hanging onto that horse, took more muscle then I even knew existed in my body.  However, we still managed between getting our baring’s, loving the insanely awesome feeling from the amazing experience we just had, to look calm, cool, and as if standing was no problem, in order to pose for some photos:) Mandatory, of course.

It ended up not just being any shack in the middle of nowhere, it was a little tea shack, like your typical everyday coffee shop on every corner, or a truck stop.  Except in this case, there ain’t no truck coming by, just horses and camels. The tea was just the refreshing, and relaxing thing that I needed at that moment.

I think the unexpectedness of the full speed galloping absolutely made it more memorable, and more ‘pinch your arm worthy’, to make sure you just survived that. Of course I rocked the gallop on the way back, as I was mentally in the game at that point.  There is nothing like a good natural dose of adrenaline for my little inner adventure adrenaline junky:) And yes, the next day, it was almost impossible to walk. Who knew clinging onto a horse as tight as you could, would use that many muscle groups?! An epic experience and a workout. Two of my favorite things. Egypt nailed it for me that day.