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30 artmosphere the art perspective
Vintage
Egypt Voyage
“Ladies and gentlemen...welcome to the Old Cataract Hotel! Wait. Hold on...
I had to pinch myself. I could hardly be- lieve I was in Egypt!
My entire life I had been trying to get to Egypt and for one reason or another the trip always got cancelled..
Now that I was here, my first stop would be The Old Cataract Hotel.
Built in 1899, it’s magnificence has pla- yed host to the likes of Winston Chur- chill, Howard Carter, Princess Diana and many interesting characters over the years.
With little time to unpack and freshen up, I rush to pull myself together to meet the rest of our group for cocktai- ls followed by our formal dinner. While this does not normally sound daunting, it quickly becomes so when the adventu- re you are going on is a vintage themed excursion set about 100 years ago, 1920’s to be exact.
Vintage clothing required.
This was the era when glamour and ele- gance reigned supreme and people took time to dress (something I had precious
little for after my long flight from New York City). I slipped on a black beaded vintage flapper dress, satin gloves, long jewelry, stockings (forgot how awful it is to wear those) plus extra eyeliner to crea- te that 20’s vamp look.
As I entered the lobby, the sound of ice cubes rattling in a shaker led me through Moorish arches to the grand bar where guests from our group were sipping cock- tails in their finest evening attire.
This is where our time travel begins.
Our group of 25 people made our way to the beautiful terrace to enjoy drinks whi- le taking in the warm desert breezes and watching the sun set over the Nile. It was like something out of a dream, almost as if Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon would appear from around the corner. Once the amber sun disappeared, it was time to dine at the Hotel’s famed 1902 restaurant. The massive beautifully car- ved doors opened to reveal a most grand ballroom where we would dine on sump- tuous Egyptian delights. Hot jazz played in the background and our hosts Dr.’s Colleen and John Darnell took to the floor, which they effortlessly comman- ded....The fabulous Darnell’s are the epitome of elegance.