Janet Jackson’s “When I Think of You,” thumps along as I sit inside the Movenpick Hotel’s internet cafe, just a few hundred feet from the sands of the Red Sea. We’re here for a couple days of relaxation and also probably to take in one of Egypt’s larger sources of revenue, the tourist resort of Sharm el Sheikh.
We arrived yesterday via a flight from Cairo. A modern looking and bright airport waited for us in Sharm. From there we went to a jetty where we boarded our own private boat for the Fulbright participants and headed into the sea. We were all amazed at the crystal clear water, its turquoise appearance near the shore and the deep blue color of the water further from shore. The waves were pretty calm, and those of us who wanted to snorkeled at three sites. I was among the snorkelers and jumped off the boat each time to swim next to the fish and coral. The coral was beautiful with growths in shades of purple, pink, yellow and green. Fish of as many colors swam around us. A school of over 1,000 fish swam beneath us as one sight, and a guide dove down about 30 feet toward them. They changed course and arranged themselves differently. I saw eels, both transparent and thick and black. The reef at one location dipped down like a flat wall for about thirty feet. Some very
large fish could be spotted beneath us–their oxygen tanks indicating that they were actually just divers!
We were fed on the ship and lounged like royalty for several hours until returning to shore and checking into our hotel. We ate dinner at an Italian restaurant, and I was thrilled to be able to use my Spanish with the Italian owner to help us order! We had Naples-style pizza from a brick oven overlooking the “promendade” full of many glitzy bars and shops, styled after Las Vegas and Cancun-like tourist traps. I can’t say I’m comfortable in that environment, but I managed to pull myself into the Buddha Bar here and have a very expensive martini. We got a glimpse of the nightlife here, which apparently thumps along all night until sunrise. My roommate and I went back to the hotel before 1 and slept until 11 am, only to be awakened by the man who wanted to clean our room.
I spent the day on the beach outside our hotel and dodged cigarette smoke along the beach between my efforts to swim in the amazing waters. The smokers aren’t just locals but Europeans and Russians who travel here as well. I remind myself that this is their vacation as well and they should be able to enjoy it how they’d like.
Tonight we leave for a middle-of-the-night hike to Mt. Sinai (yes, as in the 10 Commandments). I will take a camel 2/3 of the way and hope that it’s not too uncomfortable. I hear camels are far less comfortable than horses. After sunrise, we will go to St. Catherine’s Monastery.
Unfortunately I’ll have to late-post my former blog entry that is waiting on my laptop. It’s all about education in this country and what I’ve learned about it so far.
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