I arrived back in Cairo quite refreshed after the trip from Luxor on the overnight train. We dumped our gear back at King Hotel and headed to the old part of town.
This part of Cairo has many churches of various religions. The Coptic church (Christian) was very beautiful.
Next stop was a Synagogue then a really large mosque. Females need to cover up to enter, so we donned bright green polyester robes, took off our shoes and headed on in.
It was call to prayer while we were in the mosque. It is Ramadan so many people make it to the mosque for their prayers. And apparently you get more points from Mohammad if you make it to the mosque.
After all these dips into religion it was time to check out the markets. The tourist market is on the edges and the real locals market is in the middle of this crazy place.
As I'm a homeless vagabond I didn't purchase anything, but had fun looking at what was on offer.
This market wasn't the craziest in town.
Quite pleased I didn't venture in to that crazyness!
The last part of my Egypt adventure was taking on the Sinai Desert. We were supposed to go to Mt Sinai but due to the many tourists being kidnapped recently the Egyptian government have closed these roads to tourists. I was a bit sad about missing this - not the 6 hour climb to the top but I had great visions of re-enacting Moses receiving the 10 commandments. Oh well, I was off to the Red Sea so I guess I could part the waters.
The trip across the desert takes around 10 hours, give or take a few hours depending on the number of police stops and the hassle they give. We were held up for ages at one stop. Ahmed the trusty (and usually very jolly) tour leader lost his cool and a big argument erupted. Now I can't speak Arabic but I knew he was pissed. Anyways, whatever he said worked, they let us continue our journey.
I was so excited to get to the Red Sea. We stopped in Dahab for a night instead of Mt Sinai. We got a fancy hotel with a beach front pool. Dahab is quite touristy with loads of ocean front restaurants. We thought it would be rude not to give one a try.
Next morning was all about the water. We climbed into the back of a jeep and headed to the Blue Hole for a morning of snorkeling. It is a desolate place but the water is amazing.
After a cup of tea to wash away the very salty water, it was off along the coast to the remote Sawa Beach huts, home for the next two days.
My hut is the first on the right with my trusty black havaianas out the front.
I had landed in Lynne paradise.
I must admit it was very difficult to sleep the first night. I'm sure it didn't dip much below 40 degrees and there wasn't a lick of breeze to speak of. But I found loads of ways to keep cool.
Ahhhhhhhhh the serenity.
- Posted from somewhere round the world...
This part of Cairo has many churches of various religions. The Coptic church (Christian) was very beautiful.
Next stop was a Synagogue then a really large mosque. Females need to cover up to enter, so we donned bright green polyester robes, took off our shoes and headed on in.
It was call to prayer while we were in the mosque. It is Ramadan so many people make it to the mosque for their prayers. And apparently you get more points from Mohammad if you make it to the mosque.
After all these dips into religion it was time to check out the markets. The tourist market is on the edges and the real locals market is in the middle of this crazy place.
As I'm a homeless vagabond I didn't purchase anything, but had fun looking at what was on offer.
This market wasn't the craziest in town.
Quite pleased I didn't venture in to that crazyness!
The last part of my Egypt adventure was taking on the Sinai Desert. We were supposed to go to Mt Sinai but due to the many tourists being kidnapped recently the Egyptian government have closed these roads to tourists. I was a bit sad about missing this - not the 6 hour climb to the top but I had great visions of re-enacting Moses receiving the 10 commandments. Oh well, I was off to the Red Sea so I guess I could part the waters.
The trip across the desert takes around 10 hours, give or take a few hours depending on the number of police stops and the hassle they give. We were held up for ages at one stop. Ahmed the trusty (and usually very jolly) tour leader lost his cool and a big argument erupted. Now I can't speak Arabic but I knew he was pissed. Anyways, whatever he said worked, they let us continue our journey.
I was so excited to get to the Red Sea. We stopped in Dahab for a night instead of Mt Sinai. We got a fancy hotel with a beach front pool. Dahab is quite touristy with loads of ocean front restaurants. We thought it would be rude not to give one a try.
Next morning was all about the water. We climbed into the back of a jeep and headed to the Blue Hole for a morning of snorkeling. It is a desolate place but the water is amazing.
After a cup of tea to wash away the very salty water, it was off along the coast to the remote Sawa Beach huts, home for the next two days.
My hut is the first on the right with my trusty black havaianas out the front.
I had landed in Lynne paradise.
I must admit it was very difficult to sleep the first night. I'm sure it didn't dip much below 40 degrees and there wasn't a lick of breeze to speak of. But I found loads of ways to keep cool.
Ahhhhhhhhh the serenity.
- Posted from somewhere round the world...
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