A full month has gone by since I landed in Egypt, and I have to say it has been STRESSFUL! Adjusting to the rather drastic differences in culture, language, and daily life, on top of one of the most intense continuous workloads I have experienced, well, ever, on top of the difficulties of not always having access to the same resources as I’m used to (fast internet, water that doesn’t make you poop everywhere), PLUS the added temptations of exploring new places and meeting new people, have made for pretty constant stress and not a whole lot of sleeping.
So, when we found out that our teachers had a three-day workshop this week and we would be having a 5-day long weekend/mini-vacation from class, in combination with the October 6th National holiday, something had to be done! Like the good, diligent students we are, we began doing our homework….in our travel guidebooks, that is. Ultimately, we ended up with a recommendation from a friend that turned out to be the perfect relaxing getaway. After a 12-hour overnight bus ride after class, Monica, Jordan, Charlie and I found ourselves in Beir Sweir, an area on the Red Sea coast in the Sinai Peninsula. This was actually a pretty appropriate trip to be taking, as on October 6th, Egyptians celebrate their victory in the 1973 war, taking back the Sinai Peninsula from Israel. And boy am I glad they did.
The interior of the Sinai peninsula is very rugged and mountainous…in fact it’s the location of the Biblical Mt. Sinai…where Moses got the 10 commandments from God, and let me tell you, that was no easy walk up a hill. On the coastline of the Red Sea is a completely different story, though. It’s all sandy beaches leading out to some of the prettiest blue water and greatest reefs in the world. There are a few big resort towns in Sinai, like Sharm-el-Sheikh (more like Europe than Egypt) and Dahab (backpacker’s paradise), but in between the towns the coast is made up of small camps along the water. We went to a camp called Al Tarek. It was nothing but sand, water, sunshine, a few huts, and beds along the water. Nothing to do but relax. PERFECT.
So, we relaxed. Hung out with the camp dogs. Woke up for a gorgeous sunrise. Played some poker and dominoes (guess who won). Ate Ful (fava beans…they’re big in Egypt) and Hummus and PBJ and Nutella and Pomegranates that we brought from Alex, and supplemented with fish and salads from the camp owners. We got to be buddies with the owners, who were from Cairo, because we were the only other people there who spoke Arabic…most of the other guests were from Israel, making the short trip down for the weekend, or a few days. The camp is in the northern part of Sinai, where the Red Sea begins to narrow, so you could look across the sea and see a little coastal town in Saudi Arabia, and imagine what life is like over there. WOW! I thought about swimming across, but decided against….didn’t think it would be so well received if I swam up in a bikini. It was crazy to sit there and look to the left toward Jerusalem, look down to the right toward Mecca, and realize how close they are. It was a great time and we will definitely be back. I need to work on my tan if I want to be mistaken for a real Egyptian. (Speaking of which, I got asked for directions today on the tram. Success!)
We got offered a ride home by a minibus driver, who came and picked us up straight from the camp, which was great! The ride home was a bit of an adventure. We were packed into the tiny minibus with 10 largeish Egyptian men, one older Egyptian lady, a guy from Madagascar who didn’t speak a word of Arabic, and an eccentric driver who asked us to take his picture and said, “show it to Obama!” So Obama, if you ever happen to be reading this blog, here ya go. The four Agnaby (foreigners) were crowded into the last row and bounced through the twisty turny mountain highways through Sinai, passing our passports up to the driver at about 10 security checkpoints.
Now I’m back to Alexandria, recharged and ready for a BIG week of papers and projects. I’m working on reading my first complete novel in Arabic! As you guys are all putting on jackets and watching the leaves turn back in the states, think of me hanging out in an unexpected heat wave; it was 99 degrees F today in Alex. Yiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!
Agnabiyya 