CAIRO - For Egyptians the Pyramids plateau is mostly associated with the childhood memories as one of the sites visited on school trips. However, not many Egyptians return to the place, which is for a large number of foreign tourists a lifetime dream. Mahmoud Wagdy and Eslam Shaker, a dentist and a graphic engineer respectively, have a particular passion for the Pyramids, the desert and horse riding, which is very popular in the area around the Pyramids and the desert nearby. Wagdy says that they believe that the Pyramids and the desert are very beautiful, but there isn't a suitable, organised way to encourage people to discover this beauty. They felt disappointed that this beauty is not sufficiently highlighted. "Shaker and I have been friends since we were at school, and riding horses is our common hobby," explains Wagdy, one of Remal Valley's owners. "Both of us have horses and we love riding them near the Pyramids. Every time we ride our horses in this magnificent place, we realise how beautiful it is," he adds. Their love for this place and their passion for horses pushed them to launch the Remal Valley project near the Pyramids, where people can discover the magic of the five thousand year-old site. In Remal Valley, as they have named it, they now have 18 horses, so people can ride round the Pyramids and the neighbouring desert. Wagdy and Shaker are quite convinced that the beauty of the Pyramids is very different when viewed from the desert plateau. "We began the project with our four personal horses. We wanted to do something different and used our interest to do so," Wagdy explains. He says that they started from scratch, working hard to achieve their dream, allowing people to discover Egypt in a new, different way. They spent six months getting everything ready, before opening to the public last summer. Wagdy and Shaker painted the place by themselves and furnished it with some simple handmade accessories. The word 'Welcome', created from horseshoes, is written over the entrance. They also stand the teapots for guests on beautiful rests made out of horseshoes, while they are in the process of constructing chairs made of saddles. "We are trying to make everything ourselves to give the place a natural flavour inspiring by the environment, so that our visitors can better appreciate the atmosphere of the desert and the beauty of the horses too," Wagdy explains. "Everything in Remal makes people feel the genuine atmosphere of the Bedouin and the desert. We have worked very hard to make this place close to perfect. We aren't sure whether our project will take off, but we are very hopeful." They have created a Facebook page to let the world know all about the project, allowing people to reserve their places at Remal Valley. “We started with horse rides round the Pyramids, but we have now developed more activities, including camping for 10 hours in the desert, where our guests can enjoy drinking Bedouin tea and Arabian coffee, as well as a horse show, playing volleyball and football, and colour fighting [a popular pastime with colour powder in Egypt]," he told the Egyptian Mail in an interview. Wagdy and Shaker have taken advantage of the desert around the Pyramids to provide entertainment that was never there before. Other activities they have launched include an ‘Indian Day', allowing people to spend their day in the Bedouin atmosphere, yet having an Indian dinner. They also organise candlelit trips to the Pyramids in the moonlight and many other events, with photographers there at the guests' disposal. “We have also introduced parasailing, with our guests ‘flying over the Pyramids' at a height of up to 600 feet, providing them with unique views of the desert and the Pyramids," Wagdy continued. “We also offer camels and beach buggies to people who don't like riding horses; we cater for Egyptians too, not just foreign tourists." None of this would be possible without the helping of their faithful friend Mohamed Rohiem, their administrative manager, who spends most of his time at Remal trying to offer their visitors the very best they can. Wagdy and Shaker do not ignore children in their programme. They organise wonderful birthday parties for them, as well as other special events for families as marriage and engagement parties. They also provide riding lessons, teaching not only children, but also adults, to ride their horses, so that they can enjoy the desert to the full. Despite prevailing chaos and instability, the two young men are determined to entice more Egyptians and foreigners to make day use of the desert. Wagdy hopes that the Government would improve the security in the country, because it is a great loss for tourists not to experience the magic of Egypt. "We would like though to have more competitors, to give people the chance to learn more about the beauty of the Egyptian desert." Nine months since Remal Valley opened, Wagdy and Shaker, still only in their twenties, have really succeeded in making a name for themselves and their project, which they are hoping to make even better. "We are preparing to launch a sandboarding event, for the first time, in the coming weeks," Wagdy said. They have chosen Abu Sir, a pyramid site, located between the Giza and Saqqara Pyramids, for the event.
