Sinai

I write this a few days removed from my hike up Mt Sinai ("Jebel Musa" in Arabic - "Mt Moses"). I arrived in Sinai and found the bedouin camp I was looking for without any problems. There I met a German couple who were looking to hike up the mountain and sleep there. The following day we set out at midday and hiked the hard way - up, over, and through the valley and mountains rather than the steps set out from the monestary. It was a great walk on which we were alone - something I appreciated more the next day as we walked down the 'tourist' way and couldn't get away from people trying to sell us everything; anything. We were joined throughout the night by worshippers of Christ praying and singing about the power of God. There were Nigerians, Japanese, Russians, Koreans, French, Germans, and the list goes on. It was intersting - but to difficult to sleep to - to see and hear the parises of God from so many walks of life and languages. The sunset was beautiful, with the entire mountain range being lit up like fire. From our viewpoint the sun rose between two closely situated mountain peaks, creating the image of the sun as a growing piece of pie, slowly creeping and manifesting into a red disk that hovered harmoniously above the desert mountains (Attn Matt: I think this is where "the rosy fingers of dawn" is most applicable). I have never seen the sun rise in such a manner, and unfortuanetly the pictures do not do it justice. The red sun lit up the valley and its grey/red mountains in a fantastic manner that made me feel as if I was on Mars (from the pictures I have seen of Mars, Mt Sinai is the closest I have ever been to its likeness).

After the sunrise I headed to St Katherine's Monestary at the base of the mountain. This monestary is the oldest working monestary in the world - amazing considered it is situated in the middle of a Mulsim country, surrounded by other Muslim countries. This was, and is, possible because the Prophet Muhammed personally gave his protection of the sight in a written document that is on display in the museum located within the monestary grounds. There is also a decree signed by Napolean Bonaparte himself on display that grants similar protection to the grounds and the people worhsipping within them (I am a sucker for writing, and these two documents floored me; the signatures of Napolean and Muhammed? that is some cool shit). Since St Katherine's is protected by the two most destructive forces in the world (monotheistic religion and the West), I don't foresee any problems for it.

From St Katherine's I headed to Dahab, on the coast of the Red Sea. Getting there was an adventure that involved hitching a ride with a local bedouin man (for a small fee) who was stopped at the police check forty kilometers outside of Dahab, leaving me to hitch another ride with two local bedouins in the most rugged car I have been in on this trip. Don't be fooled - I was in more ghetto cars in West Africa (one in particular was started with a crank by the driver's helper, thus literally 'turning over the engine'), and the cars that took us out into the desert in Mali were certainly more capable, but they were not as rugged as the jeep I rode in with these two bedouins (one of which was deaf - it added a whole new element to not understanding what they were 'saying'). I won't go into the specifics of the car for the sake of my mother (an insurance agent who would have had nothing to do with this car - I could just think what Robert would have said if she tried to bring this one in), but the car and the bedouins were great. Unfortunately for me Dahab was not so great - a tourist place that was three times the price of the rest of Egypt and yet felt nothing at all like Egypt. It was too bad, but it gave me a few days to relax and read a few books. The drive from Dahab to the boarder (on a bus) was spectacular however, winding and twisting along the turquoise shore of the Gulf of Aqaba. I would go back to this strip of beach, just not Dahab.

My arrival in Israel was easy and I am currently staying with a few couchsurfers in Tel Aviv. My University friend from Montreal, Stephen, is in Israel for work/vacation and is staying with his cousin about twenty minutes outside of Tel Aviv (and thus too poorly located to stay with). We are planning a few day trips - he has a car at his disposal - and it will be good to hang out with him in Israel. My girlfriend, Julia, arrives on the 6th and then I will be heading to Jordan to see Petra and leaving Tel Aviv for longer than single days.

Pyramids and Abu Simbel

I am not even sure where to begin with respect to the pyramids. I am blessed and grateful to have experienced something so magnificent with my brother and Heather, two people I have grown quite fond of over the last few months. We rode camels up to the pyramids where we were immediately told that the grounds were closed (apparently they close at 4pm, and it was 4:30), to which we replied with one Ghanaian cedi (one dollar CDN), and we were left on our own. Another bribe to the keeper of the middle pyramid that amounted to about $1.80 CDN and we were left on our own until the police found us climbing the big pyramid around 5:45 and we were escorted off the grounds in the back of the truck. No harm done. We got some of our best photos from the truck as the sun was setting at the perfect height to the pyramids and desert. Although the entire experience was magical, there was a moment when two falcons were hovering motionless at the very tip of the pyramid, with the moon directly above it that captured me and will forever be etched in my memory.

The next day Matt and Heather flew to Madrid, effectively ending our fellowship in Africa. The same day I walked around Islamic Cairo, a fascinating place that seems to be a step back in time, and then I left for Aswan on the second class night train. The second class train was nicer than the regular class on VIA trains in Canada.

From Aswan I setup a day trip to Abu Simbel to see the temple of Ramses II and the temple of Neferteri, and the Temple of Philae. The temple of Ramses II boasts the largest Pharoah statues in Egypt - a serious claim in a country full of incredible monuments to Pharoahs. This trip also offered me a view of Lake Nasser, the largest man-made lake in the world. It was formed in 1971 when the dam in Aswan was built to control the annual flood of the Nile. This is also the day my camera slipped out of my pocket into the Nile at the Temple of Philae. Luckily, I must have been at the shallowest point in the Nile, with the water only about 5m deep. As I stripped down into my boxers to retrieve it (incredibly, my camera is waterproof up to ten meters- too bad it doesn't float though), the police stopped me and told me I was not allowed to get it myself. Instead, a young boy was nominated to retrieve it, and after two tries he returned to the surface successul to a chorus of cheers and hand-clapping (this spectacle turned out to be the highlight of the Temple of Philae for many tourists). In return I gave him the snowboarding goggles I had brought along in case of sandstorms, and a week's wage in Egyptian pounds (about $10 CDN). He seemed most grateful for the goggles - evident by his wearing them proudly as our boat pulled away from the island. The camera is fine.

After Aswan I took a day train to Luxor, again second class. This train was not of the same standard of the first, but it did result in some nice experiences. As there were children all around - many straining necks to get a better look of me reading my book - I passed around my MP3 player for them to listen to. As it was passed around, and smiles were being shared amongst everyone, a lady passed my her baby girl to hold. It did not take long for the baby to start crying at my ghostly complexion and blue eyes - at which point I passed the baby back - but it gave the mother great pleasure to share with me her child for the moment. All of this took place with no verbal communication because my Arabic is extremely limited, and really consists of 'please', 'thank you', 'you're welcome', and 'Sorry, I don't understand'. Nonetheless, we all understood one another and felt better for our time together when I got off the train in Luxor.

It is from Luxor that I write this, having gone to visit the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens today, along with the Temple of Hatshepsut. The Valley of the Kings is where the Pharoahs of the New Kingdom moved all their tombs after grave robbers continued to harrass the pyramids of the Old Kingdom. It is an entire valley within a mountain - chosen because it is so hidden and the mountain tops are similar in shape to the pyramids - that houses 62 tombs. The ticket is only good for entrance into three tombs, but the art and detail in each tomb is painstaking. The Valley of the Queens has fewer tombs and is located in another valley within the same mountain. Less impressive and less exhausting are the two tombs I visited here. Even so, the hieroglyphics inside the tombs are amazing and my favourite part of the Ancient Egyptian sites.

Tomorrow I head back up to Cairo and then on to the Sinai peninsula where I hope to snorkel, scuba dive, and hike up Mt Sinai.

Cairo

Getting out of Ghana proved harder than expected, and two trips to the airport were necessary to get off the ground. I will never fly Roal Air Maroc again. On the positive, the extra day convinced Matt and Heather to come along to Egypt (it was cheaper for them to fly to Egypt and then Europe - but they've hung around in Cairo and we've all had a fantastic time). We are staying with two Americans who are studying at the American University in Cairo. They live in the best location possible, right by the Egyptian Museum, the Nile, and the main Metro station. We are in the heart of Cairo...
Thanks to our Couch Surfing hosts, Dave and Wes, we found out about a place in Cairo appropriately named "Garbage City". It is an area of Cairo consisting of 30 000 Christians who collect Cairo's garbage, sort it out, melt it down and sell it back to the city. We went there on our second day in Cairo and it was, for lack of a better word, a cool experience. The people were incredibly friendly and we were not allowed to pay for anything. We went with a guy named Kieran - a Canadian and a friend Dave and Wes - who had been to Garbage City in December and was remembered by a local man he had spent time with one his first trip. We were sat down for tea and sheisha by the man, Ahmed, after which he brought us up into his home to meet his family. Before I describe the house I must explain that the streets are dirty, but the smell is not as bad as you would think, and below all the houses is where the garbage is sorted and melted down. The houses have electricity and as we found out, some even have computers. The house of Ahmed was immaculate and one of the nicer houses we have entered on this trip, if not the nicest. Although the people make a living off garbage we realized that the community is an immensely proud one. Economically the people are middle class, but socially they are an underclass (their Christian faith does not help). After having fresh juice in the home of Ahmed, and meeting his gentle and hospitable family, we went up to the churches. The first one is said to be the largest in the Middle East, and it is an open air church with the altar and much of the seating carved out of the rock (the whole town is situated on a mountain over-looking Cairo). All around it is carving in the rock depicting anything from shepherds to Jesus to the Ten Commandments written in Arabic. There was also a second church that was completely carved out of the mountain that was more peaceful and enjoyable for me. It was amazing to see what the people of this town were able to do with the garbage of Cairo.
After Garbage City we walked to Al Hazar Park, a park that overlooks downtown Cairo. It is perfectly kept and incredibly lush, creating a stark contrast with the barren rock and sand that surrounds Cairo. It was swarming with people because it was Thursday evening (Friday is the holy day for Muslims, and lots of shops are closed, so Thursday night is the big night). From here we watched the sun escape into the desert, leaving Cairo lit up by the green lights that adorn many of the mosques around the city (green is the colour of Islam). At sundown the call to mosque begins, and as Cairo is known as "the city of a thousand minarets", the call was overwhelming from the park, with the chanting waving back and forth across the city for a several minutes. The call is intimidating to me for many reasons - the Arabic language, the holiness of the sound, and the fervor with which it is obeyed.
Late that night Heather, Matt and I took a felucca (basically a sailboat) out on the Nile so that we could look back on the city from the tranquility of the water. The ride was a beautiful way to spend time on a boat - far removed from the horrors of the pinasse in Mali. It was an incredible day that may only be surpassed by our trip to the pyramids, but we shall see.

The Ocean and Its Sparkles

Green Turtle Lodge turned out to be the closest thing to paradise we have experienced in Africa. We spent a relaxing eight nights reading many great books, walking along the beach, eating good food and checking out the nearby fishing village. The place ran on solar power and was full of travellers and volunteers from all over the world, all looking to relax and hang out. It was a recipe for a good week...

Most nights the sky was alight with lightning and I would take these opportunities to sit on the beach and watch the water come in. I enjoyed looking out over the dark sea - a menacing black horizon - and watching the waves form and crest out of nothingness. It was neat to sea the white foam begin and then run a hundred or more meters in one direction instantly, and finish with a boom as the water crashed down on itself. It reminded me of a cartoon bomb fuse being lit and running the length of itself - leaving in its path grey ash - and inevitably ending with an explosion (often in favour of the RoadRunner). Watching the waves come at me after others had gone to sleep and the music could no longer be heard was relaxing and wonderous.
The only thing that could have made this experience better was if the sand sparkled - and it did. Allow me to explain: In the damp sand there were significant deposits of phosphorous (or so I was told), and when the sand was flicked or kicked, the phosphorous would momentarily light up as it was disturbed. It looked like tiny night stars were being created and destroyed in the blink of an eye by the flick of my wrist or foot. This was only visibly at night, but added another element to the visual I was already experiencing. It also gave me a feeling of omnipotence (a great word that I still remember my father teaching me when I was young) to create entire galaxies with my foot or finger. Although I know the moment was fleeting the image in my mind is permanent.
Other than our night watchings we enjoyed the wtaer immensley - it was the first time we were actually able to venture into the sea since we began travelling beside it over a month ago: the undertow was safe and the water was clean. We all went in to check out the village as well (a ten minute walk). On one of the days I was invited by two other travellers to go with them for a lunch at a omen's house they had met the day before. When we arrived at the courtyard we were greeted by numerous children who were thrilled at the opportunity to see themselves via digital cameras and just talk and play with the "obrunies". After a few minutes we were introduced to the elder women of the compund, then aken aside by the lady who invited my friends the day earlier and served fufu with a bean and fish sauce. The food was great, but the serving was monstrous. We struggled to try and finish because it is slightly offensive not to eat all the food given to you, but wound up coming up short nonethelss (the meal was cooked for four people and we were only three). The lady let us eat alone, but returned upon our being stuffed and we discussed the life and times of village life in Africa. We also discussed God (people here are devotely religious), food, education, and marrying (the lady offered her nephew to the young lady in good humour). It was a great experience that was made better because the lady - named Mercy and thus dubbed "Mother Mercy" - wanted nothing from us in terms of money or goods. She just wanted to sit us down, feed us and show us hospitality. The same rang true for the whole place as we were not asked for anything from the time we stepped into the village until the time we left - except for the few times we were asked to dance, to which we happily obliged.
Coincidentally, our last night was also a concert/dance/bonfire on the beach at Green Turtle Lodge. Many of the locals showed up to provide the singing and music, and the children showed us how to dance the way Africans do. Not a person around wasn't smiling and enjoying themselves. It was a fitting end to a great week.
Tonight I head to Egypt and then the Middle East. Heather and Matt will be heading to Senegal in a day or two. I am sorry to those who have been following along for the sake of Matt and Heather, as I will not be seeing them for sometime now.