Bas: 57 Lena: 23

We totted up our world travels this morning and discovered that one of us clearly has an overused passport. That would be the Dutch half of our global union, who weighs in with an impressive 57 countries. I'm not doing too badly myself with 23 -- and in my own defense, coming from Europe gives Bas a bit of an advantage -- but I clearly have a lot of catching up to do!

And not only with travel -- we've been woefully out of touch on our blog since February. Sorry for that, folks. We've just come out of one of the busiest times in our young lives and it is only now, a good 3 months or so later that I'm finally able to catch up with all of you.

So what's the latest from Dubai? Well, as you can see above, our most exciting news was from our trip out of town (my first exit since India in November!).

Thanks to a very generous invitation from a flower grower, Bas and I got to fulfill the common lifelong dream of walking with the pharoahs. The flight from Dubai to Cairo is quick--just 4 hours--and our first stop was the Egyptian museum. My friend Elizabeth had prepared us last year by saying that it was unorganized at best. What meets you went you finally go through security is a complete jumble of Egypt-related everything: stones, cats, mummies, boats, dolls, inscriptions--you name it, its crammed up next to something from a different era. The thing that got me was the labeling--you can see the passage of time (and perhaps, administrations) as the neatly typed and aging index cards are gradually replaced by hand-written scribbles on note paper, and finally (though more rarely), laser-jet print outs attempt to explain the random artifact you are standing in front of.

While it was all fascinating in an Indiana Jones meets Willy Wonka sort of way, the absolute highlight was the mask of King Tut. This gold and lapis lazuli masterpiece is an icon if there's ever been one. Now, when I was growing up in the tiny town of Laurel, Montana, I spent hours obsessing over this image and many many others. To be right in front of it was extraordinary and breathtaking.

And then there were the pyramids.

Nestled alongside one of the "more rustic" sections of Cairo and protected by a fair amount of security, the pyramids are just as incredible as you can imagine. We climbed around one on of them and actually got to go inside of another. And after cracking my head on the low ceiling of the tunnel, I can understand why these structures have been standing for 5,000 years...

It was a whirlwind weekend that was actually very peaceful, which surprises everyone else who's been to Cairo. But we loved it.

These last few months have also been a working whirlwind. We've hardly had a chance to see one another at the pace we've been running, which is one reason we're particularly happy about our upcoming honeymoon. We'll take two weeks in July to visit Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam (for those of you keeping score, that will bring Bas to 59 countries and me to 26--he's been to Thailand before). While I don't think it will necessarily be cooler than Dubai (I heard on the news last night that they're projecting Summer 2008 to be the hottest one in years...), it will certainly be a nice change of pace.

So now that I've mentioned our honeymoon, I bet you'll be wanting pictures now. :) Next post, I promise!