Holy Moses!

It took 2 hours by minibus to reach Mt. Sinai. We arrived around 1:30 this morning and began our climb up shortly afterwards. It was pretty dark outside, the half moon only providing some light. With Mark and Karen, a couple from England, and 2 other Americans, we made an unplanned 'detour' through St. Katherine's monastery at the bottom of the mountain before finding what we hoped was the correct path and started ascending the 2285m high mountain.

We first noticed the camels when Nigel nearly ran into one sitting down in the middle of the path. It sounds funny to say, but it was dark and the camel did look like a big rock. Looking around, we saw at least 40 other camels laying around, waiting to take passengers up the mountain. Being the only ones around and the first on the trail, it was hard to believe that so many camels would be needed. But then we remembered all of the tour buses arriving just as we set off and thought that, just maybe, these would be some busy camels today.

Mt. Sinai, where God delivered the Ten Commandments to Moses, is a gorgeous, rocky mountain set amid a desert full of rugged mountains. As we walked, the stars were brilliant, and the moon shed just enough light to give us a hint at the scenery to come at sunrise. Along the way there are a series of small huts to buy drinks and snacks. Surprisingly, it wasn't the easiest climb. It took 2 hours to reach the top, and the last 40 minutes were straight up a rock staircase, bringing back fond memories of the Great Wall of China.

At the top, it didn't take long for the sweat under our clothes to quickly turn us into shivering popsicles. Why the hell didn't I bring our sleeping bag??? We had asked if it would be cold at the top and were told it shouldn't be. But I'm smarter than that, and can't understand why we listened to those fools. Sure I would miss the sunrise in two hours because my eyes would be frozen, we paid 10 pounds to borrow a blanket from one of the local Bedouin guys at the top. We tried to bargain with him but he wouldn't have any of it. Mark lasted the longest, but eventually we all broke down and paid the 10. The word 'blanket' doesn't do much to describe this thing. More like 'skin from a camel that has been dead for 3 days.' It was pretty disgusting, and I can't believe I sat curled up in this thing for 2 hours, but they say that hypothermia can make you delirious.

Around 5:30 we began to see some pink and orange on the horizon and the cameras came out. It had been a pleasant wait, but unfortunately the masses from all of the tour buses had finally caught up. It wasn't quite the serene, peaceful setting we had imagined, with people yelling at their kids, sending & receiving text messages on their mobiles, shoving people aside to get photos and just about ruining the whole experience. There was one buff tour leader working for Travelco (big tour group type company we are regularly badmouthing) that was showing off to his group by standing on the edge of the cliff and being a tool. It was when we started taking photos of him that he finally got the idea that he might be in our way, so he went off to bother some other camel riding tourists. Nevertheless, as the sun slowly came up, the mountains changed from black to orange to pink, the light accenting their ruggedness and the deep cracks. It was breathtaking...or maybe that was the skanky blanket.

It was amazing how quickly we went from being frozen to being quite warm to being hot. Really in just a matter of about 30 minutes. Since no one was in a hurry to leave, we all waited at the top, chatting while all of the other people went off down the mountain on foot or on their camels (which were not allowed up the stair part). We had a quick wander around the Greek Orthodox chapel and mosque at the top, but they were both closed. It didn't take nearly as long to walk back down, even though we stopped a few times to take photos. We were at the bottom before 8:00, and St. Katherine's monastery doesn't open until 9:00, so we sat and waited along with the rest of those who stayed to go inside.

St. Katherine of Alexandria was tortured on a spiked wheel and then beheaded for her Christianity. He body was supposedly transported by angels away from the torture device (which spun out of control and killed the onlookers) and up to the top of Mt. Katarina, the highest mountain in Egypt and only 6km from Mt. Sinai. Monks from the monastery found her body about 300 years later. St. Katherine's was built as a sanctuary for Christians fleeing from religious persecution. It is a cute place, almost Spanish or American southwestern. Inside the complex is a gorgeous church where the remains of St. Katherine are interred. Nearby is a bush descending from the original Burning Bush from which God spoke to Moses.

Just before 10:00 a.m. everyone from our minibus was ready to leave, so we set off on the 2 hour drive back to Dahab. Arriving back at our hotel in only 1 hour and 20 minutes, we changed to an air-conditioned room, took a shower and went straight to sleep for a few hours. We then had a late lunch, spent some time on the internet, then went off to meet Mark and Karen for some 5 pound beers. About 4 hours and several beers later, we all headed back to our hotels for bed.