Bernie - Signing Out

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Trip Start Jun 26, 2010 Previous
Entry Trip End Aug 16, 2010

  Dahab, Red Sea and Sinai, Egypt
Monday, August 16, 2010

I'm sure you will all be very sad to learn that this is my last post before returning (well actually, I'm going to write a piece on tips and advice for women traveling solo, but that's when I get back and probably not too interesting for the general reader). I'm currently sitting in Dahab, nicely positioned on land and away from any sharks. My exploration of Egypt can not really be named as such, as I have pretty much stayed in one place, mostly eating and reading. All good travel experiences begin and end this way. Beginning with my wonderful family in Turkey with a week to lounge around next to a pool, spending ten minutes deciding whether to eat, swim or sleep and ending with a similar scenario. Sometimes traveling (especially by yourself) can be exhausting. If you rush around seeing all the big sites, making connections, lifting a 20kg bag every time after a couple of weeks you always need to set up camp somewhere. Put the bag down, look at it and think "great, I'm not picking you up for at least three days!"

 

Traveling around the Middle East has been a fascinating and incredible journey. I have met an almost unbelievable amount of fantastic people, whose hospitality and friendship never fails to impress. As usual traveling outside of the country where I live provides a renewed sense of appreciation for some of the things I take for granted in Britain. Equally, it provides me with some dark feelings of embarrassment and contempt. For instance our coldness to foreigners and travelers. Our arrogance in often only being able to speak English, not accommodating for those whose English isn't perfect yet refusing to learn even the simplest of words when we travel abroad. Britain's not bad, but it has its problems. At times it can be fantastic, for instance we have an incredible amount of freedom to live as you like in Britain (spare the health and safety regulations). You can walk down a street in London and wear a banana skin dress and no one would look twice. Okay, they might, but my point is that there is a level of freedom of expression that I admire and I haven't found anywhere else. But our views of the Middle East are often embarrassing. The terms Islamic, Arab, Islamist, terrorist often occurring in the same sentences and a blurring of definition often occurs between these terms. Our often ignorant and at times bordering on racist view of a land many have never traveled to and if they did, they could see for themselves that it is one of the most welcoming places in the world. 

 

I have loved speaking to people about politics here, it's been incredibly interesting to hear their views of my government and their own. Their views on women's rights, on Islam and all those other hot topics. To deconstruct even by own stereotypes and expectations.

 

The scenery has been incredible, the people fantastic, the food spectacular but the weather was definitely too hot. I have learnt to love and fear that big menacing fireball. For the past two months, my life has often been planned around it.

 

So a little round up...

 

Favourite City: Aleppo

Favourite Food: One of the oldest restaurants in Damacus

Favourite Site: This is really hard to say. Crac des Chevalier, Palmyra, Petra and Wadi Rum are all sites that deserve a mention. But my best day was perhaps in Saladin's castle. Running alone through an castle set in incredible scenery.

Favourite People: The Syrians in general, the welcome you receive there isn't matched by anyone else! I loved the people I met in Aleppo. Karim in Damascus, A Canadian girl in Quinetra stole my heart too.

Worst City: Latakkia. It's a good spot to start from to get to Saladin's Castle. But it's ugly and smells bad.

Worst Food: It isn't really food but I'm giving this prize to the dodgy tap water across the board in the Middle East.

Worst Site: There really isn't one!

Worst People: Would-be Romeos don't float my boat...

Best Moment: Perhaps lying under the stars in the desert, falling asleep under shooting stars

Worst Moment: Seeing my phone bill, from receiving calls from a certain French boy.

Scariest Moment: For sure, that near shark attack.

Place I could live in: Aleppo or Damascus.

The Most Pointless Thing That I took: My mosquito net. There aren't any mosquitoes here, despite me thinking I was attacked by them, i now realise that it was probably ants.

Most Useful Thing That I took: First Aid Kit. Almost didn't take it. "How would I get hurt?" Coral. Coral cuts bloody hurt and can be extensive...

 

Well, there it is. Bernie apparently CAN travel solo around the Middle East in the blazing hot summer and have a fantastic time, spare a few cuts and an electrocution. Thank you all so much for your support and for giving my a reason to write. I hope you've found it enjoyable, perhaps even at times it's made you giggle, or maybe a pang of jealousy too? Enjoy the rest of the summer, and I shall see you all very soon in that funny little place we call home, to check out this British summer you've all be raving about!!!

 

Absolutely loads of Love :)

 

Bernie XxX

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