I've visited the Fayoum 3 times now and every time I love it more and I feel I get another layer to it. It's a great day out and one day I just might stay in the camp too. We took a boat out onto the lake this time.. lovely!Lake Qarun, located about 80 kilometers southwest of Cairo in the Egyptian Fayoum not far from the Nile Valley, is one of Egypt's most treasured natural landmarks and a resource that has helped support human culture for some 8,000 years. It is the only natural contemporary lake of any size in Middle Egypt. It is therefore rich in both natural and archaeological resources.Lake Qarun is the third largest lake in Egypt and the second most famous one after Lake Nasser in the Southern part of Egypt. It lies some 45 meters below sea level and occupies the lowest, northern section of the Fayoum depression. People in Fayoum believe that if one has not visited the lake then one has not visited the Fayoum.Within the Fayoum, it is simply referred to as the Berka, which means "the small lake" in Arabic. The lake has the most beautiful picturesque views and taking a small boat on the lake is a wonderful experience.The lake has an interesting history and there are some fascinating theories about how it came to be known as Lake Qarun. The lake and the nearby Qaser Qarun are said to take their names from the Greco-Roman city of Karanis to the east. However, the lake was known in the thirteenth century, some eight hundred years after the abandonment of Karanis, as Birka El Seid, or "the lake of fishing"