Sharm el-Sheikh, Suez Canal, Egypt

April 6^th

Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt

Only a 5 hr. stop-over today, so we went on a caravan camel ride. The Bedouins have tribes all over the Sinai Desert and still follow their traditional lifestyle. They still use camels as a major form of transportation, but times have changed and ATV’s are becoming more popular. The wealth of a tribe is still measured in how many camels and children they have. After driving 45 minutes into the desert and the Bedouin camp, we (I should say I) then very nervously decided to ride a camel. It was optional, and I still was not sure about this whole process, but in the end decided to get on one for the 15 minute ride to the tents. First of all the seats are very hard and there are no stirrups to put your feet into. Once you get yourself on, the camel then gets up with his back-legs first-leaving you holding on for dear life so you don’t go over head first- and then the front legs go up. After a very precarious balancing act, you move forward. Camels are very picky about who they carry. We saw a few spit and have a fit about who got on them. After a very hot, slow, bumpy ride, the camels then go down front legs first…again almost throwing you over their heads…and then back legs down into a laying position. Whew! An experience I will never again repeat, but will always remember. We arrived at the Bedouin tents, had some tea and they showed us their traditional dances. Ok, another mustache story…..One of the local men was very intrigued with Bruce’s mustache and had to take a picture of him with his cell phone. He didn’t speak any English, but we think he said it was very Egyptian. Now, either he was taking a picture to show his friends the white “infidel” or he really did like it. After that he was Bruce’s new BFF. We should have charged him a dollar for a photo.  The desert was surrounded by the Sinai mountains, with Mt. Sinai just a three hr. drive away. They say that the “burning bush” is still there and stays green after fires have devastated the area and there in no water. Sharm el- Sheikh is located on the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula on the Red Sea. It was under Israeli control up until 1982, when The Peninsula was returned to Egypt. Tourists come here for the beautiful waters and beaches. Diving, snorkeling, gambling, and high end resorts and shops are what drive the economy here. We drove through the city and it is very beautiful. Resorts, casino’s, high end shopping, beautiful beaches…I can see why people want to vacation here. Bruce would love to come back here and do some major diving. The resort areas still have major security and fences, since the car bombings a few years ago. Kind of getting used to men standing around with machine guns………

Sinai Mts.Resort

 

 

April 7^th

Suez Canal Transit

Woke up a little sore this morning….Anyway, started our transit at 6 am. We had to wait at the entrance until a convoy was arranged. Traffic in the canal is only one way so ships travelling northward sometimes must wait until traffic is cleared in the opposite direction. I did not know that….Now I understand why our Captain was so anxious to get there on time. We were scheduled to lead the convoy and he did not want to miss his window, otherwise we would have to wait until the next day. The Canal took 11 yrs. to construct and was completed in 1869. The Universal Company for the Maritime Suez Canal controlled and operated it under a 99 yr. agreement after which Egypt would then be in control. The length is 118 miles with no locks because there is no sea-level difference and no hills to climb. The average number of ships that pass through a day are about 50, with the max being 80. Each ship pays an average of $205,000. Our ship paid $250,000…..wow. The average transit time is 15 hrs., but we were through in about 8. It was way too hot to sit outside for long, so we watched from our window and the upper inside decks. Sometimes the canal was very narrow. The whole way through was just sand banks on both sides with the occasional security checkpoints every 10 miles or so….with machine guns at the ready, and about 12 small cities along the way. People do fish in the canal, so every so often the Captain had to blow the horn to warn these very small boats, in a very narrow passage to move out of the way. Sometimes they had to paddle for dear life, and were not very happy about having to move. Their hand gestures were most enlightening. A very interesting experience. Arrived at Port Said, and the Mediterranean about 4 pm.

Banks along the Suez