Diary: October 2000
Sunday
1st October
Aqaba
Jurg
and I went into the market to get meat and veg for the stew, and amused
ourselves in the spice stall trying different teas and spices. I bought
some saffron and a bag of sun dried lemons, apparently they’re from Iran
and make a refreshing tea drink, well I’m game for anything new!
We
spent the next few hours touring the second hand markets in search of a
strop. No luck, but it was interesting hunting through the aladin’s
caves of piping, bicycle frames and engine parts. I couldn’t really
imagine a use for 90% of the stuff, but they were stacking it high with
the knowledge that some day someone would come to them in search of that
10 pint cooking pot with no handle and a 2 inch hole in the bottom.
We
prepped the stew back at the campsite, then headed into town for a beer
and some E-mailing. On the way into town I noticed a huge ship which was
unloading sheep. Judging by the size of the ship and the number of cattle
trucks waiting to pick up their consignments there must be 1000’s of
animals onboard.
The
stew that night was excellent even if I do say so myself, but we had made
far too much. We gave what we couldn’t manage to Abdu and his boss. Abdu
was a bit concerned that we had put wine in it, but we assured him that
any alcahol would have been “cooked” out by now!!
Mike
and I had a bit of a head to head about my Sudanese visa. I’ve told him
that hassling the Embassy isn’t going to do me any favours, if anything
it may make things worse. What will be will be ( In Shallah!)
A
couple from the Chezk Republic arrived on push bikes, spoke little
English, but we had a brief chat and offered them some fruit salad, which
had turned to sorbet. Left it in the wrong part of the fridge!!
Monday
2nd October
Aqaba
Up
early to say farewell to Jurg. I’ll miss his company. We seemed to hit
it off really well, and he has one of those contagous laughs.
Mike
and Peggy were off to Amman to check out to Saudi transit visa situation.
I had
breakfast in town with my friend from the scuba shop. He took me around
some more scrap yards in search of a strop, but still no success. He
needed a little help proof reading a few letters which I did in return for
his hospitality, and was given a couple of Wadi Rum T shirts for my
services
Back at
the campsite I hade a book shelf for Maggie from some acrylic sheeting I
had liberated from the roadside yesterday.
I tried
out the dried lemons to make some tea, and I have to say it’s one of the
most refreshing drinks I’ve tasted, a bit like a weak lemsip, but much
smoother. Made a Spag Bol and listened to the BBC. Things not sounding
good between Isreal and Palestine. 65% of Jordan are palestinian.
Tuesday
3rd October
Aqaba-Amman
Quick
spin around Aqaba doing E-Mailing etc and Breakfast (Falafel Sanwich) then
off on the desert highway to Amman. An E-Mail from my mother had informed
me that the family dog had passed away, so I got a few beers in, going to
have a wake this evening!
Drive
to Amman was OK had a ferocious tail wind and managed to get 31 MPG out of
the old Gal.
Met up
with Mike and Peggy at the Cameo Hotel. They were busy with their “John
Bull” print set and computer, making letters of recommendation for the
Saudi Embassy. We went out for a KFC then back for a few beers and bed.
Wedneday
4th October
Amman
Mike
and Peggy were up early and off to the Saudi Embassy. I spoke to the Hotel
owner about findinf a Tirfor winch and strop. He pointed me in the general
direction of Madaba street, where he thought I may have some luck. Lots of
winches, but for the price they’re asking I could buy a Warn or Ramsey
winch in the UK. I did however find a car upholsterers who would do my
seats for £40. May come back tomorrow if I have time.
Back at
the Cameo Mike and Peggy had no luck with Saudi Transit Visas “Come back
Tomorrow” the usual response. We watched some American sitcom on
Mike’s TV til 9.30 then I was off to the Airport to Collect Billy. It
took him nearly 2 hours to clear customs. It was great to see him again,
although, and I know he wont mind me saying this he was looking a little
chubby around the chops, still 3 months of travelling and a few cases of
the trots should sort him out!
Back at
Cameo I gave Bill a quick run down on the camping setup and had a look at
some of the goodies he’d brought me. (Marmite at last and lots of it)
Thursday
5th October
Amman-Jerash-Amman
We
treated ourselves to breakfast at the hotel, and it was good value at JD2
a head.
Sudaneses
Embasssy to be told “Try again in a weeks time!” Not too surprised,
I’m giving up hope. I don’t believe they’ve even sent the
applications to Khartoum.
Took
Bill to Jerash for a look around the ruins. I think he may still be a
little jet lagged as he didn’t seem to take it all in. It was still as
impressive to me as the first time I saw it.
Into
Jerash town for a spot of shopping. The Greengrocer I went to tried to rip
me off. £5 for 6 Onions, 4 Tomatoes and 2 Peppers, so I told him where he
could stick it. I find it quite amusing that they struggle to understand
you when you try to bargain with them, but mutter a few expletives in
their general direction and they know exactly what you’re on about!
I
spotted a motorbike in town, don’t know what the law is about bikes in
Jordan, but they’re as rare as rocking horse manure.
With
the failure of my bargaining skills in Jerash I decided that the best
option was to go to Safeways back in Amman.
I
wanted to go to the cinema, but the one we found was showing Arab films,
and the next nearest was in the Downtown area and the traffic was
horrendous so we retired to the Cameo where an overland truck turned up.
It was Duncan and Heather again. I spent the evening discussing options
with them. Duncan is also of the opinion that shipping the cars to Port
Sudan is not a good idea as we may never get them released from the port.
I mentioned my Cape Town idea to Duncan, and he thought it may also be my
best option.
Friday
6th October
Amman-Dead Sea-Aqaba
The
guys and girls on the overland truck supplied us with breakfast, which was
very kind of them.
Next
stop on Billy’s whirlwind tour of Jordan was the dead sea for a bob
around. Roger and Sally had given me a GPS waypoint for a stream that
flows into the sea. (I’d learn’t my lesson last time, and wanted to be
close to some fresh water to wash away the salt) We found it after a bit
of to-ing and fro-ing. After only 20 mins or so a minibus arrived full of
old women and children. The women made it quite clear that this was their
bathing spot, and no matter that we were there first we should clear off.
When their shouting and hollering failed they promptly began hurling
stones at us! Billy was gob smacked, but after 2 months in the middle east
it didn’t come as too much of a surprise to me. Luckily some of the
children spoke a bit of English and were genuinley embarrased at the
situation. They managed to calm down the old women. Even so I’d had
enough so we decieded to move on.
The
driver of the minibus then had the cheek to ask me for some tools to
repair his power steering belt, I was so tempted to tell him where to go,
but his bus was blocking my exit and he hadn’t actually seen what had
gone on. After ½ and hour we had him sorted and we were on our way to
Aqaba. I got to be passenger which made refreshing change and allowed me
to top up the tan on my left arm!
I had
wanted to go to Kerak to show Billy the crusader castle, but we were
turned back by the tourist police. Apparently there was a demonstration
going on in support of the palestenians, and we were told it would not be
a safe place to go! So we turned around and headed back to Aqaba. I had
also been keen to see Husien and find out if he knew anything about my
Sudanese visa application, but I guess this may have been another way of
telling me to forget it!
The
dead sea highway follows the isreali border all the way down to Aqaba and
Elat. It sunk into me here, only 5-6km’s away from the Israeli border,
that we were in the middle of a potential hot spot, and it was time to get
a move on one way or another.
Back at
the Japanese gardens we met up with Mike and Peggy who to my delight had
reached the same conclusion as me, Lets ship to Cape Town and be done with
it!
Took
Billy for a quick snorkel around the coral reef, then into town to ply
Bill with some local grub. (shawerma’s)
Saturday
7th October
Aqaba
Spent
most of the day touring around various shipping agents, drinking tea and
listening to mariner’s tales. They all reffered us back to the same
agent (Amir Kavar) we had spoken to initially. Cape town is only $50 more
expensive than Mombassa, but I’ve heard clearance costs in Cape Town can
be quite horrendous, still wait and see.
Next
problem:- cheap flights to South Africa. Cheapest we’ve found so far is
JD500 to Jo’berg with Egypt Air. Peggy is convinced she can find cheaper
flights in Amman, so they’re off to Amman again to tour the bucket
shops.
Bill
went snorkeling while I made us all tuna pasta. Mike then wanted to go
into Aqaba to do some E-Mailing, but his car wouldn’t start. Air in the
fuel line. By the time he’d sorted it was late so he decieded to leave
it til the morning.
Sunday
8th October
Aqaba – Wadi Rum
Time
for a haircut! I managed to coax Bill into having a crew cut also, but I
think it will be the last time he does. He’s quite shocked at how far
his hair has receeded. I also forgot to warn him about the pulling of
facial hair with a bit of string thing!
A quick
trip to the butchers to get some beef for keebabs, thought it was time to
try something new on the brai.
Mike
and Peggy still had E-Mailing to do so I arranged to meet them under our
favorite tree at the entrance to Wadi Rum. One of the jeep safari’s
turned up while we were waiting. We had to listen to the guide singing the
praises of his Toyota and slagging of Land Rovers, he then tried to talk
us into a race, but I tactfully declined. Maggie has to take me a long way
and I’m not getting involved in some Arab version of the Paris Dakar.
Mike
took us on a magical mystery tour of Wadi Rum. With Billy driving I had
the opportunity to hang my head out of the window and take photos. I’m
glad we had the GPS because we were really off the beaten track by the
time we stopped for the night. Mike had found a great campsite high up on
a sand dune which had formed in one of the canyons. The dune took a bit of
negotiating, but with a good run up and a straight line course Maggie made
it first time. Mike wasn’t so lucky, but after a few trial runs he made
it and we set up camp from our dune top view point.
Bill’s
a natural desert driver, going to call him “ Bedouin Bill” from now
on!
Once we
had started the fire for the brai I noticed that we had picked up the
wrong bag at the butchers, and instead of nice big chunks of beef we had a
bag of minced lamb and herbs. We tried to wrap the mince around our
skewers, but not very successfully so we ended up making lamb burgers
instead.
The
full moon that night meant that the night sky wasn’t so impresive. It
also illuminated our vehicles on the sand dune. Not such a good campsite
if we wanted to keep a low profile! To add to our concerns a helicopter
flew by which seemed to spook the local bedouins, their dogs started
barking and flash lights started switching on. We turned off all our
lights and packed away incase we were disturned and wanted to make a hasty
retreat.
Monday
9th October
Wadi Rum – Deiseh – Petra
Bill
and I left Mike and Peggy to their lie-in and we went off to play in the
desert. We met up again a couple of hours later and set off towards Dieseh.
This was about my fifth trip to Wadi Rum, and I still find the scenery as
amazing as the first time. The huge rock formations and constantly
changing colours make it a magical place.
We
infalted our tyres at the garage in Dieseh. And said goodbye to Mike and
Peggy who were off to Amman in search of cheap flights. We headed off up
the desert highway to Petra where we had a quick bite to eat before
retiring to our campsite. A Rotel bus arrived at our hotel campsite. It
was interesting to see the “German Machine” in operation, everyone has
their own set task and it works like clockwork. 10mins and they’re
setup. Glad we got in the showers earlier! There wont be any hot water
left now.
The
arival of the rotel bus means I’ve had to park near the road, It’s
going to be a noisy night!
Tuesday
16th October
Petra – Aqaba
I was
right it was a bloody awful night’s sleep, dogs howling, cars and trucks
racing past and the 4.30 am call to prayer. To add to this it was very
cold. I got up at 5 o’clock and wasn’t surprised to see the Germans
were already heading to the showers. We had a quick “cuppa” and some
of Billy’s fruit salad he’d made last night, then off to the ruins.
We were
through the gate at 6 o’clock and raced off through the site to get to
the Monastary A.S.A.P. The first mile or so leads you through a narrow
passage or “sique”.It’s a natural corridor through the rock which is
approx 20 metres high and varies in width from 3-10 metres. This in itself
is a wonderful experience, but nothing in comparrison to the first sight
you get of the treasury. The passage opens out to reveal this amazing rock
hewn building. I’d obviously read about it before, but it still didn’t
fail to impress. I couldn’t help thinking what the first westerners must
have thought when they first saw it.
The
Monastary is the furthest and probably highest point in the area. I had
been advised to get to the monastary first while it was still cool and
work our way back from there. I’m glad we did as it took us about 45mins
to climb to the top, and even in the cool of the morning it was quite a
hike, but well worth it.
Nearly
all the buildings in Petra are carved into the rock/sanstone cliffs. The
most imprssive ones (Monastary, Treasury and the Tombs) are facades of
roman/greek style temples with simple box rooms behind them. The quality
of the workmanship and the sheer scale of them is mind blowing. The
quality of the carvings and the uniformity of the pillars etc would be
impressive on a fabricated building, but when you think it’s all carved
out of the rock makes it even more stunning.
We had
done well climbing to the Monastary and had the whole place to ourselves
for nearly 2 hours. Bill climbed to the top, but was told to come down by
one of the locals, it’s apparently fobidden and a few people have fallen
to their deaths from the top.
We
spent an hour or so climbing around the nearby rocks, trying to find good
photo viewpoints. I got a bit lost and struggled to find my way back down.
I’m not the best at heights and it would have been a long way down if
I’d come unstuck!
On the
way back down to the main site we faced the constant barrage of
questions:- “Are we nearly there?”, “Is it much further”
from the people still climbing to the top. “Yea, it’s just around the
next corner” I lied to one guy as we reached the bottom.
We
wandered around the tombs and treasury for an hour or so then decieded we
should head up another hill to the “High place of sacrifice” Hell!
what a climb in the midday heat. At the top are some Stone obelisks, and
an alter with channels cut in the rock leading away from it to a huge
pool. (10metres x 20metres x ½ a metre deep) My guidebook said that
animals, were regularly sacrificed on the altar and their blood was
channeled away into the pool. Judging by the size of the pool they must
have dispatched a farmyard at a time!
The
view from the top was a real “jaw droper”, you get a real impression
of the scale of the site. We could see the main attractions and other huge
tombs and facades that weren’t even shown on our maps or guidebook. I
could have spent hours up there just soaking it all in, but the day was
getting on and we still wanted to see some more tombs etc on the way back
down. I watched a girl riding a donkey down the perilously steep steps.
Rather her than me! It would have been quicker to walk anyway. The
Donkey,Camel and Horse owners are constantly pestering you for a ride, but
the only people I saw actually riding them were Americans and Japaneese.
Need I say anymore! If they treated their animals better they may get more
business.
Back to
Aqaba where we met up with Mike and Peggy at “Tikka Chicken”.
They’ve found some cheap flights to Jo’berg via Milan! (£320) Billy
suggested heading off to Cairo to check out the prices there. Fine with
me!
Wednesday
11th October (My Birthday!)
Aqaba
Bill
made me breakfast in bed! And I awoke to find Mike and Peggy had decorated
Maggie with bunting and baloons from Burger King (Nice Touch I thought!)
Took
Billy to the Egyptian Emabassy to get his visa, then off to the bank to
get some Egyptian pounds. And finally to the port. He had just 10 mins
before the boat sailed, but he managed to get a ticket and clear customs
and immigration just in time. A record for the middle east I reckon!
Drove
back to the Jap Gardens to watch Bill’s boat go past, then back into
Aqaba to do some E-Mailing and get some booze for the evenings
festivities!
At 7
o’clock Mike and Peggy turned up with more booze. The party
begins…….
Thursday
12th October
Aqaba
God I
feel lousy! Mike and I had finished off 1&½ Bottles of rum plus a few
beers. Got up and had breakfast, then decieded it was too much for me and
went back to bed again. I finally surfaced at 1 o’clock and spent the
day pottering around washing seat covers etc.
Had a
burger and O.J. in Aqaba then returned to Jap gardens for an early night.
Bill
text’d me to say he’d found some cheap flights to Jo’berg with
Ethiopian Airlines (£340) with the option of a stay over in Addis Ababa
for a few days if we want, sounds too good to be true!
Listened
to the BBC before putting my head down. Sounds like the Isreal/Palestine
thing could blow up into a full scale war. Time to get moving I think.
Friday
13th October
Aqaba
Still
not feeling 100% after the birthday bash! Popped into town for a couple of
my favorite sandwiches (Egg, Felafel, Homus and salad) they’re only 20p
each and I’ve become rather addicted to them.
I went
looking for Roger and Sally, but no one was home.
Spent
nearly all day snorkeling and reeading. Abdu cooked me Spag Bol. I asked
him to make it spicy, but bloody hell! He grinned as I took my first
mouthful, but I wasn’t going to let him get the better of me, “Mmm,
just the way I like it” ate half and disposed of the rest when Abdu
wasn’t looking. I should have gone to town with Mike and Peggy. They
went to “Ali Baba’s” as a farewell to Jordan treat they said it was
great, but very expensive.
Mike
and I had another head to head. He wants to hang onto his car til the last
minute, whereas I just want get mine in the container, grab the paperwork
and get travelling again..
Saturday
14th October
Aqaba
Got up
early and cut my hair. Into Aqaba to get a new cover made for my foam
matress. Something I’d meant to do ages ago, but you know how things
are!
I found
some great little hooks in an ironmongers that I’m going to use to hang
things off the dog guard.
Met
Mike and Peggy at 11 o’clock and went to the shipping agent (Amir Kavar)
Shock!:-
We
asked him 3 times previously how long it will take to ship to Cape Town
(14-15days) and now he’s changed his mind (35 days) I’m not to
surprised, he never gave me a great feeling of confidence about his
shipping knowledge. Mike and Peggy are mortified. Arranged to meet our
clearance man the next day.
I went
off in search of a car upholsterer to
do Maggies seats. Found one eventually and he’s agreed to do both seats
for £20 He says it’ll take 4 –5 hours so I’ll come back tomorrow.
Had a
couple of Shawermas (OK 4!) with Mike and Peggy then E-Mail a beer and
bed.
Sunday
15th October
Aqaba
Dropped
Maggie’s seats off at the upholsterer, and went off to find some heavy
duty ratchet tie down straps for shipping Maggie. My man at the Scuba shop
says he can help, but that the lashing down should be included in the
shipping costs. He’s shipped a few cars to Saudi before.
The
shipping agent was closed til 3 o’clock (like everything else in town!)
I went for an O.J. and met the guy from the first shipping company we had
been to (Maltrans) It set me thinking!
Finally
met our clearance guy at 4 o’clock. He was very well dressed, and when
he quoted us US$400 to do the job we realised why! Told him we’d look
around and meet again on Tuesday.
Picked
up my car seats on the way back to Jap Gardens. Lovely job I’m very
pleased.
Mike
and Peggy are not happy with our shipping agent (Amir Kavar) They’re
right, he’s told us a load of bo****ks
so far. We’re a bit concerned that the US$400 will suddenly
increase once the cars are boxed! I mentioned having met the guy from
Maltrans today, and perhaps it might be worth paying him a visit.
Monday
16th October
Aqaba
I’d
been planning again all night, perhaps the Sudanese visas had arrived,
must check again. I also want to check the price from MSC (the shipping
company) Will ask Richard Hepper for their Head Office phone number.
Into
town. Phoned Sudanese Embassy “Try again in a week!” (Bo****ks!)
Phoned MSC in Geneva and they confirmed the price we’d been quoted. I
went to meet the guy from Maltrans who said he may be able to put us on
the same ship for less! He can US$ 1700 all-in. I like him he’s a
genuine guy, very helpful and appears to know he shipping inside out. He
told me that we may have had problems with Amir Kavar (the people he sent
us to weeks ago) as all their shipping experts were in Amman and the
Office in Aqaba was purley a commercial operation. What a crazy idea to
have your shipping people 400km’s away from the port.
Mike
and Peggy arrived and we all agreed to go with Maltrans. Not only are they
cheaper, but we feel we can trust them. A major consideration in the
Middle East.
Back to
Amir Kavar to tell him we’re going with someone else. Just the sort of
response I expected:- “suit youself!”
I went
back to the upholsterer to get my “cubby” box lid covered. It looks
very tatty next to the new seats. Had a nice chat with the guy, and a few
cups of tea. Needless to say he didn’t charge me.
Had a
few beers back at Jap Gardens and chatted to Abdu about Egypt. He said he
would like to come with me and show me around for a week or two, but his
work permit expired in 12 days and he needed to in Jordan to re-new it.
Shame it would have been fun.
We ate
at the Jap Gardens that night. First time in a month. The food was
excellent, and loads of it, but a Saudi guy barged in half way through and
spoilt the evening.
Tuesday
17th October
Aqaba
I
wanted Maggie stored in a good condition so I was up early to do some
spring cleaning. Cleaned all the cooking gear, fridge etc. re-proofed the
Mozzie nets and sterilised the water jerry cans.
Mike’s
not well. Can’t have been last nights food Peggy and I are fine, and he
said it started last night, that’s a bit too soon I think.
Into
town to Maltrans where we handed over lots of paperwork, including US$700
(each). While chatting to the boss I mentioned the live stock ships I’d
seen at the port. He said they deal with them and that each ship can
transport 180,000 sheep! Phew that must take a bit of mucking out!
Abdu
and the boss invited us for a last supper (grilled fish) it was wonderful
and we all had a very plesant evening apart from when the boss left and we
had to kiss him goodbye. Boy he needs a shave!
We all
got an early night as we had to be at the shipping office bright and
early.
Wednesday
18th October
Aqaba
I got
up and took the tent off the roof. It would be the last night I would
spend on the roof for a month or so. Maggie would have fitted inside the
container with the tent on, but I felt it was more secure locked up out of
sight. Usual Felafel sandwich for breakfast and off to Maltrans. Our
clearance guy took our carnets etc and we arranged to meet him again at 3
o’clock.
Went
into town to find a hotel for the evening I chose the red sea hotel in the
centre of town it was cheap, £6 certainly not the ritz, but it would do
me for one night.
Met up
with clearance guy again and we did some last minute running around with
the paperwork before we went off to find our container.
The
container was huge. We had calculated that with our two cars and Mike’s
tent on the floor we should have had 1 metre left, but there was enough
room to get another Landy inside. I don’t think they do 60 ft
containers, but I’m sure it was bigger than 40ft.
Customs
wanted to look inside Maggie, but JD10 in the customs officers back pocket
seemed to persuade him that looking at pots and pans was not a good use of
his valuable time!
Putting
the vehicles in the container, lashing down and disconecting batteries etc
took about an hour. It was like an oven in there. I dread to think what
it’s like working inside one of those containers at midday in the height
of summer. One things for sure you’d loose a few pounds, perhaps I
should take it on as a summer job!
Back to
the Hotel, a last shawerma and off for a beer at the dolphin bar. Mike and
Peggy arrived later. One beer was enough for them. We said our goodbyes
and arranged to meet again in Cape Town in a month or so time.
Mike
and Peggy are going to Milan, then back to Holland for a month hoping to
get some work for a while. Then back to Italy to catch their flight to
Jo’berg. I must say I’m a little surprised. Unlike me they have a
deadline for their travelling. I’d want to pack in as much in as
possible, but they’re not keen on backpacking. Still each to their own.
Thursday
19th October
Aqaba – Newebia
Up at 8
o’clock for a last stroll around town. I had enjoyed my time in Jordan
(Aqaba esp!) I was there for much longer than anticipated. I knew Jordan
would be where I would have to make big decissions as to which way I went
from there, but I hadn’t anticipated it taking me 6 weeks to get going.
I suppose 50% of the delay was my doing in being indecisive and the rest
was down to beaurocracy especially the Sudan visa thing. I’ve still got
this bee in my bonnet about Sudan. Hopefully I’ll be more successful
when heading north.
I
arrived at the port an hour before the fast boat set sail and bought my
ticket. (US$30) But by the time I’d cleared Immigration and Customs the
boat was full. I went balistic! First guy to take the brunt was the ticket
salesman. “Why did you sell me a bloody ticket if the boat is full?” I
then proceeded to go round all the officials one by one questioning their
inteligence and competance. I knew it was futile, but I felt much better
for it. At one stage I thought I was in luck. I bumped into the manager
who I’d spoken to before about taking Maggie to Egypt. He made me a cup
of tea and said he’d see what he could do, but it wasn’t to be my day
and I had to take the slow boat (4 hours) along with approx 20 other
backpackers. Apparently the boat was so full because of the troubles with
Israel. Everyone was getting out of the area.
Eventually
got on board at 2 o’clock. We had to do some Egyptian Immigration
paperwork first of all. One girl (Sannelie) a South African didn’t have
a visa for Egypt (turns out the Lonely Planet said she didn’t require
one) They said they’d still take her, though she may be turned back.
After a
lot of shouting and hollering on our part. (Especially one Irish girl) we
were given cabins with showers as a goodwill gesture for missing the fast
boat. I shared a cabin with Sannelie we had a few beers and I picked her
brain for some travel tips on South Africa.
I got
my passport back with a one month stay. Sannelie wasn’t so lucky. She
was told she’d have to see the Immigration officers in Newebia. I could
see she was very apprehensive about it, and by the time we had docked it
was dark. I’d heard some awful stories about lone female travellers in
Egypt and offered to stay with her while things were hopefully sorted out.
As we
walked off the boat an Immigration officer coming the other way looked at
Sannelie and said,
“You
from South Africa?”
“Yes!”
“You’re
in for a very long night!”
Ah! I
thought that must be the wonderful “Welcome to Egypt” line I’d heard
so much about.
We were
bussed to an area of park benches outside what looked like a prison. It
later turned out to be offices. Looks like glass is in short supply in
Newebia and iron bars have to make do. Still it all added to the feeling
that we were in for a tough time. I made sure it was OK for me to wait
with Sannelie,
“You
escourt, no problem” Phew at least something was going right. I could
see things turning around and finding myself in a tricky situation.
It took
3 hours of toing and froing, but eventually Sanellie got her visa. The
Immigration officer who had given us the nice “Welcome” earlier on
turned out to be quite a reasonable guy after all. I think he may have
seen how distressed Sannelie looked and toned things down a bit.
It
later turns out that Sannelie would normally have had no problem entering
Egypt, but South Africa had just made a large donation of arms and money
to Israel. This meant that the rules had changed over night and she now
required a visa. Welcome to Africa Colin!
It was
gone 9 o’clock by the time we left the port and we’d missed the bus to
Dahab. Time to consult the Lonely Planet (Loony Pamphlet or Lost and
Paranoid as I’ve come to call it). We took a taxi to a beach camp north
of the port. It appeared a great spot at night. Have to see what it looks
like in the light of day. Had a few beers and spent the night sleeping on
the beach. Idylic.
Friday
20th October
Newebia
This
place is paradise. We have a reed hut 2 metres from the water’s edge and
the rest of the camp is deserted. The place is normally full of Israelis,
but what with the current troubles we’re the only clients. There’s no
electricity (not worth running the generator for 2 people) so the candles
come out when the sun goes down.
We
spent all day sunbathing, snorkeling and just generally lazing around. The
snorkeling was even better than Aqaba.
I think it was here that I rekindled the idea of doing a Scuba
course. When Sannelie said she was considering doing a course in Dahab it
made my mind up.
We took
an evening stroll along the beach to work up an appetite. Had baked
potatoes for supper, and sat
on the beach til 12 o’clock waiting for the moon to come up.
Saturday
21st October
Newebia – Dahab
Breakfast,
and another day of just lazing around and swimming. At 3 o’clock we got
a cab to Newebia to catch the bus to Dahab.
Over
the next month Sannelie and I would look back on those few days we spent
in Newebia wishing we had stayed longer. It really was magical. The
deserted beach, snorkeling on the coral reef, candlelit evenings, sleeping
under the stars. We mentioned several times afterwards that perhaps we
should go back, but I think we both knew that we just happened to be in
the right place at the right time. It was one of those moments that
couldn’t be repeated. Enough of the nostalgic interlude cut to the
chase…….
The bus
to Dahab was £2 and only took 45 mins. I met Billy at his hotel. It was a
really tidy place, but after the beach hut in Newebia Sannelie and I
wanted to search out something similar. Sannelie had been told about a
camp called “Alaska”, but it was now under 3 foot of mud. A landslide
2 weeks before had wiped the camp out and killed 3 people! We found a site
outside of town (Eldorado Camp) it was nice, but not a patch on Newebia.
Still it was cheap and we decided to stay. Bill arranged to join us in the
morning.
Into
Dahab to check out the night life and buy Sannelie a beer (I lost a bet!)
We bumped into some of the other backpackers from the ferry, they’re off
to climb Mount Sinia. Food was now the order of the day. We settled for
“Kershery” a mix of rice, pasta, onions and tomatoes. It’s cheap
(40p) and filling. It was to become a part of our staple diet during our
time in Egypt.
Back to
Eldorado to sit on the beach stargazing.
Sunday
22nd October
Dahab
Bill
arrived at 9 o’clock. Sannelie and I wanted to check out diving courses
and left Bill to his book.
We
stopped at a restaurant called “Friends” for a breakfast of fruit and
yogurt. “Friends” was to become our second home for the next week or
so.
Knowing
which diving school to use turned out to be a major trauma. They all say
the same things, and all the equipment looks exactly the same. Sannelie
has changed her mind about doing the diving course 4 times in as many
hours (Women eh! They’re the same the world over, sorry Sannelie!)
We’ve
finally opted for one of the cheapest courses (US $185), not through our
own observations, but from recommendations. I think the fact that the
instructor, Chris is South African may have played a part in it. Sannelie
can share a few jokes in Afrikans, and at my expense I’m sure.
I can
see why some people arrive in Dahab for a few days and end up staying for
weeks if not months. It’s a beautiful spot, and the atmosphere in the
beachside café’s is strangely addictive. It’s a hippie haven. Bob
Marley and Bob Dylan seem to
be the DJ’s artists of choice. Grass is easier to get hold of than
toilet paper. Tattoo artist and hair braiders line the roadside, but
what’s nice is that there’s no “hard sell” as we would find
everywhere else in Egypt. If only the rest of the country was a welcoming
and relaxing as Sinia we would have had a far more enjoyable stay in
Egypt.
Fell
asleep on the beach under the stars. Awoke at 3 o’clock and stumbled off
to bed.
Monday
23rd October
Dahab
Strange,
but I’m not missing Maggie at all. I’d been warned I’d find it
difficult not having a vehicle, but I’m enjoying not having the
resposibility of looking after her!
“Friends”
for breakfast again, and off to book our diving course. We signed our
lives away and were given a manual to study and digest. So much for a
relaxing beachside holiday!
Sannelie
and I went to cash some Travellers Cheques. While we were waiting Sannelie
spotted a kitten with a fishing hook in its mouth. We tried in vain to
remove it. I found the owner who assured me he would take it to a vet.
(Bo****ks! what Vet?) There wasn’t a lot we could do, but I may come
back tomorrow with some pliers!
Bill
and I went for a snorkel at what we believed was the “Blue Hole”. The
sea was quite rough, and we had a few scary moments getting out over the
coral reef. The swell lifted us
up and slamed us down on the reef, knocking the wind out our lungs. This
however was minor in comparrison to the feeling of vertigo you get once
past the reef. The reef ends in a vertical wall of stunning candy coloured
coral which drops down out of sight. You are left floating above an abyss
of the most intense blue. It was a truly amazing experience. We would have
stayed longer, but the water was cold and we were both concerned about
getting back over the reef, and with some justification. The backwash over
the reef was very strong and we had to hang on to the reef at times to
make our way back through the ripping tide.
Back at
Eldorado the strong wind made studying our diving manuals awkward to say
the least. After a brief committee meeting we found ourselves back at
“Friends”. We studied our books for 7 hours with the odd coffee and
food break.
Tuesday
24th October
Dahab
First
day of diving course. Lectures, watching videos and tests. Ajourned to
“Friends” to put our heads back in the books. Studied til 11
o’clock, then back to Eldorado for coffee and bed.
Wednesday
25th October
Dahab
Breakfast
at “Friends” before doning our diving gear for our first confined
water dive. I’d tried Scuba before, but it’s still a strange
experience to be breathing underwater. We did a few practice drill, mask
clearance, regulator recovery, buddy breathing etc
“Friends”
again! to do our “Bookworm” thing.
We
returned to Eldorado for a Calamari supper. Halfway through Billy suddenly
dashed off to the toilet! He wasn’t well. Wanting to leave Bill in
privacy I decieded to spend the night sleeping on the beach under the
stars.
Wednesday
25th October
Dahab
Slept
very well on the beach, but Bill was still suffering with a bad case of
the “Dahab Dumps!” He says he can’t put his toothbrush in his mouth,
so a scuba regulator is a definite No, No!
Sammelie
and I had breakfast at…….. yup you guessed it “Friends”
Another
day of confined water dives and lectures in the classroom. There’s now
four of us on the course. Me, Sanellie, and Simon and Lee two English
guys. Simon was having troubles yesterday “equalizing” (popping your
ears), and as his ears are his living, (he’s a musician) Chris didn’t
want him to force things, luckily today he seems to have solved the
problem through some unorthadox head and jaw movements!
Lee,
(I’m sure he wont mind me saying) was having problems with the mask
removal drill. When Chris told him if he couldn’t do it the course would
be over. He turned round, said “F*** it!” and did the drill straight
away. We all thought this was great, especially Chris. If you’re reading
Lee, well done again mate, great stuff. That’s how to conquer your
fears. We all really admired your courage.
The
nitrogen levels were having an effect on us all, and we nearly slept
through the evenings lecture.
Thursday
26th October
Dahab
Bill’s
back on his feet again, and it’s our last day of the course.
One
last confined water dive, then off to the “Coral Gardens” to do some
open water diving.
We had
a bit of a problem on the way to the dive site. Simon was snapping away
merrily on his camera when we approached a police checkpoint. I’d just
tapped him on the shoulder and warned,
“Hey,
go careful where you’re pointing that thing!”
It was
too late. The police officer had spotted him. It wasn’t the usual
security concerns that were worrying him. He thought Simon would sell the
photos to a western “porn” magazine. Oh come on mate, you’re
flattering youself a bit.
At the
dive site we did all the drills again. The last exercise was a CESA
(controlled emergency swimming ascent) It’s quite an experience. You
have to exhale all the way to the surface, as your lungs are expanding as
you go up you find you still have breath when at the surface.
We’d
all passed the practical side of things, it was just the theory to do now.
Despite her convictions that she’d fail Sannelie got 96%. (Me 98%) We
were now qualified divers. I was elated, I hadn’t done the course so
much for the diving, although I knew it may come in very useful in my
travels. I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it.
One
celebartory beer and bed. I had a streaming cold coming on.
Saturday
28th October
Dahab
Bill
finishes his course today, and Sannelie is of diving. My cold means I
can’t go, bloody pissed off to say the least!
Spent
all day sunbathing and trying to burn off my cold. Sent a few E-Mails and
bought a Dahab T shirt.
Sunday
29th October
Dahab
Carbon
copy of yesterday!
Monday
30th October
Dahab – Sharm El Sheik
Breakfast
at “Friends” followed by a quick photo shoot with the staff.
Met
Simon and his friend Hugh at the bus station. They’re off to Israel to
catch their flight back to the UK. Also bumped into Ben (one of the diving
instructors) and his girlfriend Juliet. Ben has to go to Sharm to have a
mole removed from his leg. (Ben hope everything went well for you)
One and
a half hours to Sharm. Gee, what an expensive place! Had a coffee at a
beachside café and deceided to take the bus to Hurgada.. The fast boat is
E£165 and the bus only E£65. It takes 10 hours, but what the hell!
KFC and
met up with Ben and Juliet again. Chatted with them until it was time to
catch our bus.
The bus
left at 6 o’clock. I had a quick game of Gin Rummy with Sannelie which I
lost, it’s not surprising
she was making up the rules as we went along! Still it cost me a G&T.
Tuesday
31st October
Sharm El Sheik – Hurgada
Bus
pulled into Hurgada at 4 in the morning. It was bitterly cold, so we
sought refuge in a coffee shop until the sun came up. The “Loony
Pamphlet” recommended the “Hotel California” As soon as Sannelie
mentioned it the tune started playing in the back of my head, I knew it
wouldn’t stop til we found it. Eventually stumbled across it after an
hour or so, It was still early and I had to wake the owner from his
slumber to show us to some rooms.
Straight
to bed. We’re all knackered!
The
reason for stopping in Hurgada was to go to a diving site just outside of
town, but I’ve still got the flu and Bill’s not so keen. We left
Sannelie to do her investigations and went to the cinema to watch a Jim
Carey movie “Me, Myself & Irene” what a load of crap!
Sannelie
met up with us at the flicks. The diving site is a long way off, and
there’s no cheap accommodation there, so she’s going to give it a
miss.