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Published: October 31st 2010
The time finally came round, Erica and I set off on our adventure to south Sinai. We met Maggie for the first time, at Gatwick airport. On arrival we would join others for a unique experience, to learn some drumming and dancing of the Bedouin culture we were visiting, entitled Middle Eastern Music and Dance Camp.
At Sharm El Sheikh Airport, we didn’t suppose that many from the aircraft were en route to encounter an adventure quite like ours.
Arriving at sun set, the two hour taxi journey took us to our destination of Rock Sea camp, and so it was completely dark when we got there. Oh where did I pack that torch? Home made pizza for dinner, and finally choosing our hut at Star side, before falling into exhausted sleep.
It wasn’t until sun rise at 5.20am that we got the full concept of the beautiful place we were staying. Simplistic and natural, yet with style. It felt like a million miles from our modern, hectic, and stressful world. Our wooden hut, or reed roofed bungalow as they are described, was on the beach and the sounds of the Red Sea crashing on the rocks, only
The coral reef
Just below the surfacemetres away. We had surely arrived in paradise, far from any noisy spa resorts with swimming pools and lively bars, what bliss. (Of course, as I well know, a remote place like this can be a lonely place if you aren't with friends, and the music & dance was going to keep us busy, not to mention the other adventures).
To enhance our new found paradise even more, we later discovered that the shady area we could see just below the incoming tide was not rocks at all; it was a coral reef, wild and alive with beautiful plants and fish life. From the restaurant we could wade out along a small channel (guided by a stick at the entrance we could follow the path by change of colour with sand below) and snorkel around the reef. An underworld garden so close to the surface. We were warned to take care, and the lion fish were to be avoided.
Across the water, in the heat haze, we could just make out the rocky shore of Saudi Arabia.
The climate was very different from the one we left behind, beautifully hot with its only drawback being the flies
it attracted, especially at meal times. (No mozzies though - huge bonus). The food was home cooked and delicious, with a breakfast choice that brought about one of the only decisions to make in a day - over the fortnight I think we worked our way through the menu. We could have breakfast up to mid day and such generous portions that it would stay with us until the evening meal.
The sun went down about 5.30pm, and soon darkness came, bringing with it a beautiful sparkling starry sky, every night without fail, it was incredible. The glowing moon was gradually growing each night, from the fingernail size of our first night. A sea breeze drifted over us and the sounds of the waves shifting on the stones. We had electricity until 11pm and after that torches were a necessity. It was reminiscent of childhood, to stumble around, safely, in the warm night with torches, going from Moon side, where the restaurant was, back to Star side.
That walk back in the morning from Star side to Moon side, for breakfast, was one of the most beautiful - a new day in glorious sun shine, sea to the
left and pretty little huts lining the path on the right.
Our first day there was a group meeting and plan of the coming week, some snorkelling and our first drum workshop. The very next day was our first adventure, to climb Mount Sinai. With an early start, we were dressed for a long hike and plenty of water. In the morning we visited St Catherine’s Monastery, a working monastery which is orthodox and is a UNESCO world heritage site.
After a relaxing lunch, which probably was not such a great idea, we started the long climb up Mount Sinai. Our guide had four children with him, only one of whom wore shoes; one was only 4 ½ years old. I reckon they were the main reasons that kept me going. They were such good kids, not a single moan or grumble, singing and chattering happily the whole time. A couple of times I questioned my sanity, wondering ‘why didn’t I just get on a camel’, feeling so unfit and lagging at the back, I missed the sun set from the top, by about 20 mins. As I was stumbling up the last 750 steps, some people had
seen it and were already on their way back down. I did however watch the sun drop between the mountains, as I made my way to the 2285M top for 6pm.
We took some photos and immediately started the decent. Those dodgy steps had to be taken just within the last light of dusk, afterwards the long walk back down under the stars. We made it to the bottom by 9.30pm; it was almost as difficult walking down, with tired legs and slippery sand, concentration had to be maintained. The little 4 ½ year old boy finally dropped on his feet, and dad carried him on his shoulders for the last few hundred yards.
The following days I ached so much, everyone else admitted it was a challenge, but I was the only one who ached so bad, so much so that I didn’t make it to the Coloured Canyon trek on the Thursday, I have included a couple of pictures though, Erica went and the photos look truly amazing, too good not to include.
In between we had our drum workshops, practicing the various Egyptian rhythms of Maqsoum and Malfouf, Masmoudy and Wahda.
Towards the
end of the week we got a 3 hour return taxi to the nearby Big Dunes beach, good to soak those aching leg muscles without getting too caught up in the coral reef. It was a funny sight to watch camels also soaking their limbs.
We had some music jamming nights, the local Bedouin guys would come and play for us in the candle light, with cricket sounds keeping rhythm in the warm night air, reminding me very much of another trip and NZ.
There were some new additions to our group including our dance teacher. Maggie left and returned to Gatwick on the Saturday and we started our dance workshops. The drumming was starting to get complicated by this time, with experienced drummers who needed advanced tuition. Our energies switched to learning some new dance routines in the dome tent, specifically set up for such. I found it a little difficult to concentrate and keep up, in each 2 hour session, which can only be described as dancing in a sauna. As the week went on, we found the coolest times were the evenings after sun down, and the dome sides were slightly re-organised to let in
the sea breeze.
The newcomers had their trip to Mount Sinai, while Caroline, Kath, Erica and I took a taxi to Dahab for the day. What a memorable day, shopping in those hassle ‘free’ shops, some swim and snorkelling and quite a lot of eating, so many restaurants. It was very busy and quite windy the day we went. Diving seemed to be very popular, United Nations wandering around in wet suits with heavy canisters on their backs. Some took the easier route and had the canisters moved around by trolleys. We finished up the day with a marvellous meal of fish, which was presented on an enormous platter.
In order to help us with dancing camels, we went on a camel trek, both Erica and I were very apprehensive about this adventure, neither one of us had been on one before. We were taken by jeep to a massive canyon, which looked like a huge quarry, where we met our camels and Bedouin herdsmen. One by one we were shown to a camel, struggling to straddle it and sit comfortably, before it lifted us to great heights. Once we got going though it was quite amazing and
fun, we walked through the strange quarry, along what looked like a dried up river bed. The surrounding rock fascinated me, sandy in colour but up close, granite of varying colours and patterns, sparkling in the sunlight. It was a relief to get off our ‘rocking’ camels and walk a bit through the narrow parts.
Eventually we arrived at our resting place for the night, an oasis of greenery. Blankets were laid and food cooked, we ate, danced and slept on those blankets under the starry sky, listening to the heavy breathing of our camels, or perhaps that was the group’s varying snores. Up at sun rise and breakfast soon prepared for us, superbly done and with a choice, packing up done we had to move soon, as the heat was already becoming overwhelming. Those rocks seemed to project it like the stones in a storage heater.
Arriving back at Rock Sea found us all making for the ocean to soak those limbs again, and more snorkelling before the evening dance workshop.
Somewhere in between these activities, Erica and I walked along the peninsula, picking up shells and pretty stones, some of the shells were enormous. Some
of the camps we passed were similar, but not such nice huts as ours, looked deserted, almost as though they’d been left in a hurry. One inhabited site, Mohamed came down to meet us and invited us to have a drink. Later, he eagerly showed us his huts and hotel rooms, in case we should wish to move from Rock Sea. However we didn’t think the breakfast menu looked so appealing.
The week ended with the dancers showing off their new routines to the music of their fellow group members, who played drums and nay perfectly for them. Everyone’s efforts came together in a wonderful finale -
What an amazing time, adventure, new skills and new friends, not forgetting that all this took place in paradise. It was really tough to leave the hammock and our amazing hut behind. Yet tougher was to arrive home to the cold British weather, and the need of a hot water bottle to keep warm at nights. Hard to believe we’d slept with windows open and the sounds of the ocean drifting in.
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Erica
non-member comment
Good times!
Fantastic! This has brought back so many memories I think I can almost hear the sea... no wait.. that's rain.