Today we had a wake up call at 1am. Monica and I were just grateful we had slept for three hours and weren't molested by the Egyptian men that worked there. They were creepy and our door didn't lock. It barely shut. Anyway I was still struggling with vertigo, but wasn't going to miss this hike. We were offered hot cocoa for breakfast, but we passed. We really had no idea what we were about to do. Our bus drove us to a place where we could get the camels. Even then we walked for awhile in the dark. As we squinted our eyes we could see camels all over. As we stood in line, an Egyptian man would grab us by the hand and lead us to our camel. As soon as I got on the camel I was no longer dizzy. It was definitely a test of faith. It was so dark I couldn't see anyone from the group and talked to random people along the way. Finally I ran into Charlie, but then we passed him. I saw Monica at one point too. After passing them it was me and some older gentleman from South Africa and our guide. My camel's name was Whiskey. I thought he might be drunk at times because he liked to walk right on the edge on the mountain path. This too was a test of faith. Eventually I learned to trust that camel and I loved him for getting me up that mountain safely. Monica made a new BFF named Sala who was her camel guide. She was in good hands up the mountain as well. As for Charlie, he got stuck with a loser camel guide. Eventually we all made it up and then waited for the rest of our group. Then we climbed the rest of the way up 750 steps. It was almost straight up and those weren't exactly what I'd call steps, but thanks to Sala (Monica's camel guide) he helped us up. He carried my backpack and held our hands and pulled us up that mountain. Don't feel bad for him, he got a thrill holding our hands! Finally at the top we rested and watched the most amazing sunrise. Now we understand why Moses stayed up there for forty days. It is beautiful!
We were glad that we took the camel ride and enjoyed the view and the vastness of the mountain range. We did feel sick by the people smoking weed and got tired of hearing the word "Columbia" yelled in the darkness of the hike, but we survived all things.
After appreciating God's creations, it was time to go down the mountain. Monica and I quickly got down the steps and from there pretty much ran down the rest of the mountain. We were the first ones back and even beat the bus. We then waited for the rest of our group and waited as several sick people made it down. We were so grateful we weren't one of those. The good Lord blessed us. After everyone made it down we headed back to our hotel, excited to eat since we were starving. However, we were disgusted at the food that had been sitting out for hours. We forced some food down and then packed to leave. I won't go into the luggage sitting outside the bus story, but let's say some people don't have common sense. Then we drove to the border. It wasn't bad leaving Egypt, but it wasn't heaven entering Israel. We sat in the hot sun and sweated for over two hours. We were tired and hungry and some were cranky. The girls that worked there were so rude and harassed us until Brother Gunnerson yelled at them and asked why we were being treated this way. Finally after getting through a gruesome experience we had the chance to go snorkeling in the Red Sea. Only a handful of us went since we'd had a long day, but it was worth it. The water was cool and refreshing. We were able to swim around the reef and see all sorts of colorful and big fish. The coolest part was when a white eel and a stingray swam directly underneath Monica and me! It was sweet.
Then we went back to our hotel, which was the sweetest hotel we stayed at. It's called the Neptune and it's very modern. We were stoked about it and quickly showered and ate the best food we had tasted in days. We ate a lot that night and were ready to party like rock stars, but we made the mistake of trying out the beds. By 9pm we were out! But mind you we'd been up for 20 hours, hiked a mountain, and snorkeled in the Red Sea. It was a busy day!
Most of you are probably very jealous of what we've done so far, but the best is yet to come!
We were glad that we took the camel ride and enjoyed the view and the vastness of the mountain range. We did feel sick by the people smoking weed and got tired of hearing the word "Columbia" yelled in the darkness of the hike, but we survived all things.
After appreciating God's creations, it was time to go down the mountain. Monica and I quickly got down the steps and from there pretty much ran down the rest of the mountain. We were the first ones back and even beat the bus. We then waited for the rest of our group and waited as several sick people made it down. We were so grateful we weren't one of those. The good Lord blessed us. After everyone made it down we headed back to our hotel, excited to eat since we were starving. However, we were disgusted at the food that had been sitting out for hours. We forced some food down and then packed to leave. I won't go into the luggage sitting outside the bus story, but let's say some people don't have common sense. Then we drove to the border. It wasn't bad leaving Egypt, but it wasn't heaven entering Israel. We sat in the hot sun and sweated for over two hours. We were tired and hungry and some were cranky. The girls that worked there were so rude and harassed us until Brother Gunnerson yelled at them and asked why we were being treated this way. Finally after getting through a gruesome experience we had the chance to go snorkeling in the Red Sea. Only a handful of us went since we'd had a long day, but it was worth it. The water was cool and refreshing. We were able to swim around the reef and see all sorts of colorful and big fish. The coolest part was when a white eel and a stingray swam directly underneath Monica and me! It was sweet. 
Most of you are probably very jealous of what we've done so far, but the best is yet to come!
2 comments:
You are amazing. I got verdigo once while I was pregnant and it was awful. I could barely stay awake much less go on a hike. Sounds like you had a lot of fun though and it was completely worth it
ps. I am trying really hard not to covet.
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