I don't think it was the ice . . . as the two inveterate Coke Light addicts in my party were the only consumers of ice, and were the two who never got sick. And each property publicized their use of purified water in the ice. I did eat fruit in the Four Seasons Nile Plaza buffet--a plum, for example. I assumed that at the FS it would have been cleaned with purified water . . . maybe a bad assumption. I really haven't been able to figure out where I picked it up.

So thanks, Ericka and vineyarder, for your Pepto Bismol plan. I'll definitely follow that next time! And for the record, the antibiotic I took (and will also always carry with me in the future) was Cipro (full name: Ciprofloxacin HCL 500 mg tablets), which you take twice daily for three days, and it cleared it up the problem within a day of taking the first dose. No problems with customs.

Raffles, I agree that my review of FS Nile Plaza came off as too harsh--not my intent, since I'd absolutely recommend the place. I was ust trying to set expectations about it being a large, city hotel that isn't impervious to criticism about its lack of cultural atmosphere and ambience. It is, however, very elegant and comfortable, and just what you need after an exhausting day in Cairo. So I agree with your statement that it's a minor miracle that they achieve what they achieve in Cairo, which is quite in dire shape following the country's slaughter of its entire 300,000 swine population a few months ago, completely dismantling their trash reduction system, so the city is even filthier than usual, a really sorry state of affairs.

Revolution, I agree that there's no other resort that could draw me back to Sharm than FS, even given my concerns about the dated rooms. I am sure that when it is less crowded it is lovely, and apparently from the ocean it cuts a startling swath of green, unlike any of the other surrounding resorts.

Kage, you asked about the tours in Cairo. The driver and vehicle were FS, but the guide was independent, arranged via FS. There are probably less expensive ways to do this, but it was nice simply to rely upon the FS to take care of it all, and the guide they provided was quite good, and kept the touts away from us, more or less, and made purchases on our behalf so we wouldn't be charged "tourist rates." The cost for a full-day, 8-hour tour was $170, with a $60 charge for each additional person. We had a group of 4, so we took took a van, which costs $230, plus $60 for each extra person. So this means that for a party of 4, the tour was $410, or about $100 per person. When compared with a round of golf, or an evening at the theatre, we didn't feel that $100 was at all too expensive for an 8-hour tour. Again, I'm sure there are less expensive options with terrific local guides and drivers, but I didn't want to investigate, and found it easiest just to rely on the FS in such a city.

In Cairo, the tours we did were:
1. Full-day: Egyptian Museum (the shabbiest major museum I have ever seen, in total disrepair, with cobwebs and dirt everywhere, little-to-no signage, no real lighting to speak of or air-conditioning--it's just terrible . . . which is so frustrating given the absolute value of its unparalleled treasures. So you've got to see it, but what a shame); Islamic Cairo (the Citadel and two of its mosques, as well as Sultan Hassan's mosque, the highlight of Islamic Cairo for us--simply astounding); Coptic Cairo (which was a great disappointment, total lacking in atmosphere, more touristy than any place we went in all of Egypt--tourist shops everywhere, simply overwhelming any ambience that might once have been in that area).

2. Full-day: Pyramids. We did this in a reverse chronological order, since that's the only way you've got a chance at a ticket to climb up inside the Great Pyramid at Giza, which was a highlight for me. My expectations were low, because many report that it's just a dark empty room, but for me, it was an astounding experience to be in that space, and somehow I got lucky and, for a minute or two, was the only person in the central chamber before other tourists arrive. While the pyramid is primarily of limestone, the ancients built a room of exactly 100 smoothly polished black granite blocks in the center, with air shafts that align with various stars, for whatever reason. Napoleon self-mythologized by claiming to have some sort of mystical experience in it, and Hitler had it reconstructed beneath Nuremberg stadium as a place of meditation prior to his rallies, so it has strange and horrifying connections to more recent history. Altogether, I found the climb to be really fascinating--the feel of all that stone above and surrounding you. At Giza, we did a short camel ride in the sands behind the pyramids, which was hokey but also quite fun. From Giza, then to Dahshur, the site of the Red Pyramid and the Bent Pyramid (we also went inside the Red Pyramid, which I thought was less fascinating than the Great Pyramid). And then finally to Sakkara, site of the first pyramid, the Step Pyramid, which is the oldest stone building on the planet. A great day.

We also arranged a tour through Four Seasons Sharm to climb Mt. Sinai and visit St. Catherine's monastery, and I have mixed feelings about it. Some of my party loved it, finding it a highlight of the trip. For me, it was a low. The only option is to go for the sunrise, and that sounded nice in principle. You leave FS at 11 pm, drive for 3 hours, and then either climb or sit atop a camel for the 2 hour hike to the top of Sinai to watch the sunrise. Then you hike back to the base and visit the monastery with the hordes of other tourists when it opens at 9 am. It sounded like a great experience on paper, but that mountain is just completely overrun. Imagine a single file line of hikers back to back--like being in a traffic jam. So when you reach the top there are just thousands of tourists sitting on every available surface. Several of our party who don't enjoy animals hiked, while several (including myself) rode camels up the mountain. Parts of that experience were magical--the clear night sky, with many shooting stars; the quiet sway of the camel; seeing the trail of flashlights zig-zagging up the mountain above. But overall, it was much more exhausting an experience for me than rewarding. The hike back down the next morning (camels are excruciatingly uncomfortable going down, so they aren't even an option) was grueling, and by the time you reach the monastery you are so hot and tired that you have no energy to battle the thousands of tourists all rampaging through its small spaces and past its priceless collection of Byzantine icons.

And yes, all things considered, I actually felt that Oberoi offered good value for the money, since it's an all-inclusive experience. I did go in September, right at the end of their low season when rates are the best, so it was definitely very, very HOT, unpleasantly so on some of the excursions, so if you can afford it, an early November cruise would probably be ideal if you want the weather warm enough to be able to enjoy the sun deck, but not uncomfortably so.