The Sinai

Long time, no post. We have been thriving nonetheless.
Currently, for the first time on this trip, we are taking a few days to enjoy a typical 'vacation'. Our current location is Dahab, Egypt. Which is situated on the Sinai Peninsula fronting the Red Sea. A once sleepy town that is a mandatory stopover on the backpacker circut, is now slightly more developed with a few more oceanside resturants specializing in new age chillout music and heaps of beduin style cushions. We have been kicking our feet up for the last couple of days for some much needed 'designated' relaxing. The extend of our activities include snorkeling, (I am also doing at least two scuba dives), eating and reading while watching the sun move across the sky. The diving here is world renowned and after our forays into the sea I would have to agree with this grandiose claim. They call this the Thai Islands of the Middle East, and you can see how easily people get stuck here for much longer than they had originally planned. We will be pushing on Saturday for a ferry to mainland where we will then gearup for Egypt's famous ancient landmarks.
Prior to the shores of the Red Sea we were in a wirlwind of contrasting people and places. When I last reported we were leaving Jordan's Petra for Wadi Rum, the land of great redrock sandstone uplifts rising out of flatbottom deserts like great geologic dinosaurs from a time long since past. This is the traditional home of the beduin, but now instead of riding donkeys around, chasing their livestock they ply the great sandy expanses with modified open topped Landcruisers ferrying sunburnt tourists to and fro. We lucked out and had our own rig (a Landcrusier with a whopping 430,000 desert km on it) , driver and camp to ourselves. We stayed out in a 'beduin' camp that was of beduin style but not a working camp. These sandstone monoliths provide excellent hiking opportunities. After topping out on one following just the right mixture of routefinding and length we found ourselves topping out on what may have been my personal landscape highlite of our trip. I had many a flashback to previous trips out in Southern Utah with friends and family. It was so great to be out in the wide expanses of the real desert again.
Then, flash... a few hours after waking up in the beduin tent, we find ourselves answering questions at the Israeli border as to who we are, what is my father's name, and why did we go to Syria? How long were you there? What was your business there? We were told it is all formality because of our Syria passport stamp. Regardless and hour or two later we were buying tickets for a bus. And that evening, walking through Jaffa gate of the old city of the holiest city in the world, Jerusalem. Without going into details, we saw lots of holy sites, including churchs, tombs, various places of worship and lots of sites that are sacred to three of the worldest largest and most influential religions. It is mind numbing to think that Christianity, Judaism and Islam can all lay claim to Jerusalem as their foundational birthplace. The old city is divided into 4 quarters and each one is so unique, so individualistic it is like walking into a different country, literally. While we admitably are not holy people ourselves, we stood in silence at these places trying to absorb the reverence that so many people hold dear.
This is also the birthplace of much conflict that has plagued the region and the world for much of the last 4000 years, and most recently for the last 60 years (since Israel was formed as an independent Jewish state in 1948 on the former lands of Palestine). It is here, in a country with only 7 million people and smaller in area than the state of New Hampshire, that has been the flashpoint for global political landscapes, global foreign affairs and needless death and suffering all over the world. The wars and terrorism that has plagued the US (and many other countries) for the last decade can be indirectly linked to US support of the Israel state.
We felt like had to go. We could not come to this region and not go Israel.
On a much more positive note, we felt very safe the entire time in the country. We did not have to show our passports anywhere, which is a positive sign of recent stability. The norm is numerous checkpoints and police/army randomly asking people for proof of identity. We saw lots of police and army officers all toting machine guns, and plenty of video survalience, all out on the streets and highly visible. Security is taken very seriously in this country and it shows. This is nothing new to the average Israeli/Palestinian.
We were unfortunately only able to stay in Jerusalem for 2 nights, 3 days before we pushed on. Israel was a side trip, a bonus that wasn't originally part of the plan. It was very worthwhile sidetrip and we look forward to seeing more of the country at another time.
Okay, enoegh for now. Hope all is well wherever this post finds one. We look forward to putting our packs back on and exploring this country of Egypt. I think we can say we will also look forward to boarding the plane in 9 days time, after what has been an very enjoyable venture through this intriguing region. -CB