Sinai

Ok, after taking a short break from blogging, I'm attempting to get a little more done. There are just so many pictures and stories from my trip that it's overwhelming!!! So, on April 29th, Celia and I arrived by bus from Eilat, Israel at the Rock Sea Resort in Nuweiba, which is on the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. The Rock Sea is a German-run eco-lodge on a rocky beach right on the coast of the Red Sea. This place was absolute PARADISE. After a short cab ride from Taba (at the Egyptian border with Israel), we arrived and were settled into a cozy hut on the beach. Looking into the turquoise blue water you could see massive coral reefs, and across the water, Saudi Arabia. It was the most amazing place to relax that you could possibly imagine. Relaxing was basically all we did while we were there, with the exception of some snorkeling. :)




open air huts for lounging, and closed huts for sleeping in


that's Saudi Arabia!!!




Celia relaxing in the open-air hut that served as a living/dining room for everyone

The first evening we arrived we weren't sure what to expect as far as food goes, since each resort along the coast is pretty much isolated from any major cities. The menu was full of delicious-sounding choices, and I chose fish, not expecting anything fancy. It turned out that the food at Rock Sea is amaaaaaaazing.


very fancy...

We hung out in the communal area and smoked sheesha with some Germans until we went to bed. The next morning we ate a tasty breakfast of eggs, tahine, flatbread, veggies & a soft white cheese that was to die for. I have no idea where those Germans got all their fresh ingredients, but some of the best food I ate was at this resort. We spent the entire day reading, swimming, sunbathing, and playing board games.




our Jesus sandals that we bought in Jerusalem. :)








I told you there were cats everywhere




These things were all over the tidepools


Celia enjoying the hammock



So after a day and a half of complete relaxation, we went to Mount Sinai to watch the sunset. Most people start the hike up around 2am to watch the sunrise, but we had heard that it was very cold during that time and thought it might be better if we went for sunset and then could be on our way back to Cairo in the morning. Our cab driver ended up hiking up with us, along with our 14 year old guide that we were supposedly required to take with us (I think this was a lie...). We got there in the afternoon, and the weather was perfect for getting some great photos on the hike up.


St. Catherine's Monastery at the base of the mountain






Right after I took this picture I was trampled by this camel



When we reached the top of the mountain, we had almost an hour until the sunset, and it was very cold. We came as "prepared" for the cold as possible, but once again we hadn't exactly brought warm clothes on this trip. We made do with what we had. :)


Celia will probably hate me for putting this up. :)



The sunset was well worth the cold wait. As usual, I took about 47 million pictures of the sunset and they probably all look the same, and I'm having a REALLY hard time narrowing it down for this blog, but I will try my best.


our cab driver atop Mt. Sinai






playing with my camera


again :)













After the sunset, we became kind of frantic about getting down the mountain as fast as possible, because we were too cold. However, not having a flashlight kind of posed a problem, as it became pitch black within what seemed like minutes... Since I am one of those people that stumbles around and crashes into things in the dark, even in my own bedroom, I didn't do so well on the way down. I rolled my ankle at least 8 times and was really struggling, until our cab driver illuminated his cell phone for me. A lot of good that "guide" did us without having a flashlight!! Ah well, things like that just add to the adventure, I suppose.

When we got back to the bottom, we took our cab driver out for dinner at a kind of sketchy road-side/someone's house "restaurant." On the drive home I waited to see if the food made me sick, and by some miracle it did not. :) In the morning we left our beautiful paradise beach to return to the hustle and bustle (and pollution) of Cairo.

The 9 day trip was PERFECT.