I'm sitting in the hostel at the computer, biding time until I head to the airport.
Last night was a tiring one, more for poor Jenn than for me. She wasn't feeling well at all and barely slept. This morning she and I woke up, she showered and all. I accompanied her to the bus terminal (just around the corner really) to catch a mini-bus to Ramallah. I'm hoping that the trip goes smoothly, especially since she still wasn't well this morning. There are a lot of bumpy roads in this region.
I have removed my belongings from my room, so now I'm kind of weighed down by a large backpack that is stuffed to the gills and my smaller pack. I have 13.5 hours until my flight home, but I'll leave here at 8 p.m. Hopefully, I'll be able to stash my pack somewhere so I can wander out to eat something, maybe take a last walk around old town.
Though I'm sad to see the trip end, being left alone for a day here makes it seem like it's really time to return home. I am looking forward to several things upon my return: my own bed (ugh, did I leave a pile of junk on it?), a washing machine, autumn (I hope there are still some leaves on the trees for me!), some of my regular foods, and of course my friends and family.
So it's almost time to say Shalom/Salaam to the Middle East. I'll be glad to share further stories of this trip, and many more photos with anyone interested.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Jenn & I in front of the Dome of the Rock
So today is the last full day Jenn and I will spend in Jerusalem. Tomorrow morning, she will leave me and catch her transit to Nablus. My flight out of Tel Aviv isn't until after midnight tomorrow, so I guess I'll have a complete day to do as I will. I haven't decided what to do yet.
Unfortunately, our day together today has been marred by the fact that Jenn isn't feeling well. Still we managed to drag ourselves up the Mount of Olives and back down, then over to the new city with it's shopping and it's markets.
Not sure yet what we will do with the evening, but we've both been totally exhausted by evening, so probably not much other than pack and repack.
Unfortunately, our day together today has been marred by the fact that Jenn isn't feeling well. Still we managed to drag ourselves up the Mount of Olives and back down, then over to the new city with it's shopping and it's markets.
Not sure yet what we will do with the evening, but we've both been totally exhausted by evening, so probably not much other than pack and repack.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Trouble in the Holy Land
So I happened to get in to Jerusalem right when there were riots on Temple Mount. Go figure! What timing.
We took a tour of the city today and it included Temple Mount. Everything seemed to be calmed down from yesterday, and there was definitely a huge Israeli military presence in the area. But by and large, everything seemed to be going on quietly. The Dome of the Rock is absolutely beautiful! Unfortunately, it is only viewable from the outside for non-Moslems.
We also saw some other sights, including the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which is huge and so foreign from my concept of a church. It's more of a maze of structures that seem to be slapped together, each marking a holy site where some important biblical event happened. We hope to return tomorrow morning to beat the rush of tourists and pilgrims and enjoy without having to rush through it.
We took a tour of the city today and it included Temple Mount. Everything seemed to be calmed down from yesterday, and there was definitely a huge Israeli military presence in the area. But by and large, everything seemed to be going on quietly. The Dome of the Rock is absolutely beautiful! Unfortunately, it is only viewable from the outside for non-Moslems.
We also saw some other sights, including the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which is huge and so foreign from my concept of a church. It's more of a maze of structures that seem to be slapped together, each marking a holy site where some important biblical event happened. We hope to return tomorrow morning to beat the rush of tourists and pilgrims and enjoy without having to rush through it.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
The Road from Damascus
Jenn and I split from our group this morning, leaving Damascus at 9 a.m. It was a sad parting both because we will miss the people we were traveling with, and because we really wanted more time in Damascus, which is amazing, and in Syria in general.
Damascus is a beautiful city. The old section has so many interesting shops as well as caffes, mosques, houses, etc. I could have just wandered the streets for days on end. The people are also a huge asset the city. They seemed so happy and were always friendly to us. Their catch phrase is "you are welcome here." They seem to enjoy having visitors to their city.
After saying our sad goodbyes, Jenn and I caught a taxi to a bus terminal way on the other side of the city. From there, we caught another taxi, which carried us all the way back across the border to Amman, Jordan. We quickly transferred to yet another taxi, which carried us to the King Hussein Bridge border crossing. A bus there took us into the West Bank where we went through rigorous questioning about or destination, why we visited Syria, etc. Once through this, we took a taxi bus to Jerusalem, arriving at 6-something in the evening...
More to come.
Damascus is a beautiful city. The old section has so many interesting shops as well as caffes, mosques, houses, etc. I could have just wandered the streets for days on end. The people are also a huge asset the city. They seemed so happy and were always friendly to us. Their catch phrase is "you are welcome here." They seem to enjoy having visitors to their city.
After saying our sad goodbyes, Jenn and I caught a taxi to a bus terminal way on the other side of the city. From there, we caught another taxi, which carried us all the way back across the border to Amman, Jordan. We quickly transferred to yet another taxi, which carried us to the King Hussein Bridge border crossing. A bus there took us into the West Bank where we went through rigorous questioning about or destination, why we visited Syria, etc. Once through this, we took a taxi bus to Jerusalem, arriving at 6-something in the evening...
More to come.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Petra-Fied
So today was Petra day. Petra was definitely a highlight.
The group went down to Petra at 7 a.m. We all went our own ways once there. After entering the front gate, we walked down a long canyon corridor which was very beautiful with many colors of stone. Jennifer and I made our way down through the crags when suddenly the treasury "building" (in the picture). It was one of the most spectacular features of Petra, though the whole place was very impressive. It's amazing to consider how people a couple thousand years ago could have carved a city out of stone.
Besides the ancient carved-out buildings, there were many local Bedouin vendors selling their wares. There was a lot of beautiful jewelry, but Jenn and I refrained from buying. Jordan is more expensive than Egypt by a long shot, and from what we have heard, much more expensive than Syria, so we're holding out.
Altogether, we spent about 10 hours wandering through Petra. We did two long climbs over the city which offered great views. During one of them, we walked up up up to the highest peak above Petra. There was a young Bedouin guy up there who spoke English and sold tea. He lives up there in isolation in a little hut selling tea an other beverages. He was extremely laid back, a real character. We hung out with him for about 20 minutes before continuing on our way.
Tomorrow, off to the Dead Sea. I have several bangs and bumps on me, so I'm a bit nervous about the salty water, but it's a must do!
The group went down to Petra at 7 a.m. We all went our own ways once there. After entering the front gate, we walked down a long canyon corridor which was very beautiful with many colors of stone. Jennifer and I made our way down through the crags when suddenly the treasury "building" (in the picture). It was one of the most spectacular features of Petra, though the whole place was very impressive. It's amazing to consider how people a couple thousand years ago could have carved a city out of stone.
Besides the ancient carved-out buildings, there were many local Bedouin vendors selling their wares. There was a lot of beautiful jewelry, but Jenn and I refrained from buying. Jordan is more expensive than Egypt by a long shot, and from what we have heard, much more expensive than Syria, so we're holding out.
Altogether, we spent about 10 hours wandering through Petra. We did two long climbs over the city which offered great views. During one of them, we walked up up up to the highest peak above Petra. There was a young Bedouin guy up there who spoke English and sold tea. He lives up there in isolation in a little hut selling tea an other beverages. He was extremely laid back, a real character. We hung out with him for about 20 minutes before continuing on our way.
Tomorrow, off to the Dead Sea. I have several bangs and bumps on me, so I'm a bit nervous about the salty water, but it's a must do!
Monday, October 19, 2009
Flight from Egypt
OK, the departure from Egypt wasn't so dramatic as a flight. But I'll get to that shortly.
The visit to the Coloured and White Canyons was beautiful. Jenn and I were picked up by our driver and our guide at 8 a.m. last Friday and joined a small group in a minivan. There was a Dutch couple, a Belgian Flemish couple, a Kiwi and the two of us as passengers. We visited the Coloured Canyon first. The canyon starts wide and becomes very narrow so that we had to walk through some very narrow fissures, climbing up and down the rocks in several places. It was refreshingly cool because it was shaded.
The challenging part of the day was the long drive from the Coloured Canyon. From there we drove for over two hours through the heat until we got to a small Bedouin community at an oasis where we were fed lunch (meat stewed with vegetables, served with rice and flat bread) and rested before hiking the White Canyon.
We left Egypt in our truck on Saturday. We drove to an ugly port city on the Gulf of Aqaba and took a ferry ride, about three hours, to the city of Aqaba in Jordan. We spend the night camping outside of town, then we drove to the Wadi Rum the next day. The Wadi Rum is a beautiful dry area with great rock formations. We took a three-hour truck ride through it yesterday, climbing rocks and exploring deep cuts into the rock.
Last night we camped in the Wadi Rum, then this morning we drove here to Wadi Mousa. Tomorrow we will visit the ancient city of Petra, which I anticipate will be one of the highlights of the trip.
The visit to the Coloured and White Canyons was beautiful. Jenn and I were picked up by our driver and our guide at 8 a.m. last Friday and joined a small group in a minivan. There was a Dutch couple, a Belgian Flemish couple, a Kiwi and the two of us as passengers. We visited the Coloured Canyon first. The canyon starts wide and becomes very narrow so that we had to walk through some very narrow fissures, climbing up and down the rocks in several places. It was refreshingly cool because it was shaded.
The challenging part of the day was the long drive from the Coloured Canyon. From there we drove for over two hours through the heat until we got to a small Bedouin community at an oasis where we were fed lunch (meat stewed with vegetables, served with rice and flat bread) and rested before hiking the White Canyon.
We left Egypt in our truck on Saturday. We drove to an ugly port city on the Gulf of Aqaba and took a ferry ride, about three hours, to the city of Aqaba in Jordan. We spend the night camping outside of town, then we drove to the Wadi Rum the next day. The Wadi Rum is a beautiful dry area with great rock formations. We took a three-hour truck ride through it yesterday, climbing rocks and exploring deep cuts into the rock.
Last night we camped in the Wadi Rum, then this morning we drove here to Wadi Mousa. Tomorrow we will visit the ancient city of Petra, which I anticipate will be one of the highlights of the trip.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
The Blue Hole
Most of the group went snorkeling today, including me. The location is called The Blue Hole. It's very beautiful and very popular. There was variety of very colorful fish and other sea life to be viewed. Unfortunately, I had problems creating a seal around my mask, I think because of my facial hair, and I ended up breathing in a lot of salt water. Ick! There was a second round available, but I opted out to sit on the shore in a caffe' and drink overpriced beverages (about 3 times the price being asked in Dahab).
The place was very busy, and most of the divers around seemed to be Russians with a lot of money and very little taste. In fact, there seem to be many Russians around the Sinai from what we've seen so far.
The Jeep drivers took us back into the city in three different vehicles. Our driver chatted with us. He seemed like a very likable guy. Driving Jeep is is second job. He is also a school teacher. He told us that his state salary is about 400 Egyptian pounds per month, which works out to about US$20. Many people in the group seem put off by the Egyptians who are constantly trying to make money by charging for things such as rest-room use etc, but I don't blame these people. I somehow doubt that anyone is getting rich by charging two Egyptian pounds to use the loo.
Tomorrow Jenn and I go on a Jeep ride to the two canyons mentioned earlier. If the ride out there is anything like the ride we experienced today, which was a cross between a drag race and obstacle course adventure, I will probably have sore knuckles from gripping tight to the "oh shit" handles, if the Jeep has those.
The place was very busy, and most of the divers around seemed to be Russians with a lot of money and very little taste. In fact, there seem to be many Russians around the Sinai from what we've seen so far.
The Jeep drivers took us back into the city in three different vehicles. Our driver chatted with us. He seemed like a very likable guy. Driving Jeep is is second job. He is also a school teacher. He told us that his state salary is about 400 Egyptian pounds per month, which works out to about US$20. Many people in the group seem put off by the Egyptians who are constantly trying to make money by charging for things such as rest-room use etc, but I don't blame these people. I somehow doubt that anyone is getting rich by charging two Egyptian pounds to use the loo.
Tomorrow Jenn and I go on a Jeep ride to the two canyons mentioned earlier. If the ride out there is anything like the ride we experienced today, which was a cross between a drag race and obstacle course adventure, I will probably have sore knuckles from gripping tight to the "oh shit" handles, if the Jeep has those.
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