Sharm al Sheikh is an incredible place. I have this theory that there are three Egypts: Tourist Egypt, mostly in Cairo and at various other touristy places along the Nile; real Egypt, where the Egyptians actually live and work; and the Sinai, where rich Europeans and Arabs go to sunbathe and scuba dive. For a few days, we got to pretend we were rich Europeans or Arabs. Well, not really, but we did get to snorkel. My goodness, I've never seen anything so amazingly cool in my life. The reefs were set up as though they were a forest of miniature plateaus, maybe 30 or 40 feet in diameter with canyons about 20 feet deep and 10 feet or so wide in between them. The reefs themselves were 15 feet or so below the surface, so the bottom was 35 feet or so (give or take - I'm horrible judging distances in the best of times, and underwater without my glasses on are not the best of times.)
The fish swimming around in the reefs were painted with every color of the rainbow. They were every size and shape. I spent most of the time holding my breath as long as I could so I could swim down in the canyons. It felt like another world. I wish we had a camera we could take under water. The pictures would have been marvelous.
Showing posts with label Egypt. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Egypt. Show all posts
Friday, July 6, 2007
Mt. Sinai 2004
We had the opportunity to go to Mt. Sinai while we were in Egypt for our study abroad. We spent pretty much the whole first day on the bus driving from Alexandria to a hotel near the mountain. Then, after just a few hours of sleep, we drove to St. Catherine's monastary at the base of the Mount, in time to start hiking up the mountain at about 2:30 am. We had to leave that early so that we would get to the top of the mountain in time to watch the sunrise.
About two thirds of the hike up the mountain the path is wide and level. It goes through several long, lazy switchbacks as it crawls it way up the mountain side. However, the last third of the hike is much more rugged. there is a series of stairs that a monk in the middle ages carved into the rock to allow for an easier climb to the top. However, being hand carved hundreds of years ago, these stairs are very steep, uneven, and crumbly. It was a bit of a challenge, but nothing insurmountable.
Then I started to notice what some of the other tourists were wearing. (There were several dozen other people on the mountian - ours was but one of many different groups making the pilgrimage to the top that morning.) Most of the other tourists seemed to be from Russia, and I noticed that a significant number of the ladies in the other groups were wearing high-heeled sandals. I was flabergasted. I mean, sure, the hike wasn't that bad, but why make things harder for you than you need to? Many of them struggled to get to the top in time for the sunrise. There's a lesson for life in there, I think.
Once on top, we only had to wait half an hour or so for the sun to rise. It was beautiful. The land is remarkable for how rugged and lifeless it appears. There is no green - only brown. There are no smooth curves - only rough, jagged rocks. I gained a greater appreciation for the travails of the Israelites as they wandered in the wilderness.
After the sunrise we had a testimony meeting. I'm sure we weren't the first group to do that, and I'm sure we won't be the last, but it felt like something special, to bear testimony and sing hymns on top of Mount Sinai.
Once we got to the bottom of the mountain again, we toured St. Catherine's Monastery
. Highlights of the tour included the burning bush (they claim that it is in fact the burning bush that the Lord used to speak with Moses), a room full of bones (I think they exhume the remains of monks from previous generations when they run out of space in order to have room to bury the newly dead), and a shelf with the remains of the monk who carved out all the stairs to the top of the mountain back in the Middle Ages. Fun stuff.
About two thirds of the hike up the mountain the path is wide and level. It goes through several long, lazy switchbacks as it crawls it way up the mountain side. However, the last third of the hike is much more rugged. there is a series of stairs that a monk in the middle ages carved into the rock to allow for an easier climb to the top. However, being hand carved hundreds of years ago, these stairs are very steep, uneven, and crumbly. It was a bit of a challenge, but nothing insurmountable.
Then I started to notice what some of the other tourists were wearing. (There were several dozen other people on the mountian - ours was but one of many different groups making the pilgrimage to the top that morning.) Most of the other tourists seemed to be from Russia, and I noticed that a significant number of the ladies in the other groups were wearing high-heeled sandals. I was flabergasted. I mean, sure, the hike wasn't that bad, but why make things harder for you than you need to? Many of them struggled to get to the top in time for the sunrise. There's a lesson for life in there, I think.
Once on top, we only had to wait half an hour or so for the sun to rise. It was beautiful. The land is remarkable for how rugged and lifeless it appears. There is no green - only brown. There are no smooth curves - only rough, jagged rocks. I gained a greater appreciation for the travails of the Israelites as they wandered in the wilderness.
After the sunrise we had a testimony meeting. I'm sure we weren't the first group to do that, and I'm sure we won't be the last, but it felt like something special, to bear testimony and sing hymns on top of Mount Sinai.
Once we got to the bottom of the mountain again, we toured St. Catherine's Monastery
. Highlights of the tour included the burning bush (they claim that it is in fact the burning bush that the Lord used to speak with Moses), a room full of bones (I think they exhume the remains of monks from previous generations when they run out of space in order to have room to bury the newly dead), and a shelf with the remains of the monk who carved out all the stairs to the top of the mountain back in the Middle Ages. Fun stuff.
Al Alamein 2004
During our study abroad in Alexandria, the whole group went out to Al Alamein for a day. Alamein is the site of the decisive battle in the North African theatre during World War II. It was the first battle that the Germans lost, and set in motion the events that, in the end, resulted in the Axis powers being driven out of North Africa. There is a very peaceful and respectful military graveyard there, and a neat little museum. There's even a separate grave/monument/mausoleum sort of a thing for the German soldiers.
I was very touched by the rows of grave markers, standing guard over a stretch of land that really isn't all that much to look at - mostly dust and dirt and rocks, with the occasional scrub bush. The men who gave their lives in Alamein weren't anywhere near their homes. They weren't even anywhere that look remotely similar to their homes. But they fought and died nonetheless; the fought for what they believed in.
I was very touched by the rows of grave markers, standing guard over a stretch of land that really isn't all that much to look at - mostly dust and dirt and rocks, with the occasional scrub bush. The men who gave their lives in Alamein weren't anywhere near their homes. They weren't even anywhere that look remotely similar to their homes. But they fought and died nonetheless; the fought for what they believed in.
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