This post is costing me a small fortune. In Petra (made famous by Indiana Jones & the lost temple or whatever that movie was). This place ius mind blowing. ruins of so many civilizations, cultures and histories are set in coloured sandstone. The carving and architecture goes back to Assyrian times, with numerous other influences over the years.
We ended our time in Cairo - a remarkable city - and headed out over the eastern desert. 8 hours or so past the Suez Canal (or rather under it) and through the Sinai desert. We arrived at St Katherine's monastery at the base of Mt Sinai. Quite a place. St K's is the oldest continuous monastery in the world. It is a place of contrasts - as all Egypt seems to be. Nearly 1700 years of monastic life, and a throng of pilgrims, tourists, seekers, and who knows what else - all gather here from time to time. The bedouin tribe that lives on the grounds was given the commission of protecting the monatery by Justinian in the Roman Empire. Climb up Mt Sinai in the dead of night - sunrise on the top. There is an alternate route back down called the "stairs of repentance" - I was the only one in the group who wanted to try it - but it was quite breathtaking - in every sense of the word.
Another day travelling in the desert - spending some time with the bedouin - many of whom still live much the same life their ancestors did. We followed the basic route of the Exodus.
Out of Egypt and into Jordan, where I am now, but am heading off in a few hours for the border to Israel. My time on this HP is running out fast.
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