Egypt was an incredible journey into a world of ancient temples, modern cities, vast deserts and the most famous river on earth, the Nile. The adventure started for most of us at JFK, where we recognized one another by our Egypt trek name tags. Conversation flowed easily, Michelle and Donnie were warm and welcoming - and I knew right away this was going to be a great trip.
We landed in Cairo Sunday morning and had our first meeting with our three mentors, Bill Durrence, Steve Simon and David Tejada. We were also introduced to Waleed, Michelle’s Egyptian counterpart, who facilitated forty trekkers, three mentors, two guides and Michelle and Donnie through airports, hotels, a Nile cruise and a hot air balloon without losing his smile and sense of humor.
The next nine days were a profusion of fantastic photo ops: The Pyramids and The Sphynx, life along the Nile, medieval marketplaces, camel drivers, an exquisite mosque, famous burial temples including Karnak, Abu Simbal, Philae, and Edfu, and an extraordinary day in the black and white deserts where off-road vehicles drove us to the rarely seen chalk rock formations for a sunset shoot, followed by a Bedouin dinner.
On this trek, we divided up into three groups and the mentors rotated daily, so we all had ample opportunity to work closely with all three mentors Steve, Dave and Bill. One of the best aspects of the trek was how available these three uber-photographers were to everyone, no matter how basic or advanced our questions. Their passion for photography and great teaching skills exceeded our wildest expectations.
There truly is no better way to see the world than on a Mentor Series trek. You meet great people from all over who share a love of travel photography. You get to photograph places and people you couldn’t easily see on your own. And you come home a much better photographer than when you left.
Terry Berenson
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