Blogs from Sharm el-Sheikh, Red Sea, Egypt, Africa - page 2

We are now at the Red Sea/Sinai Peninsula resort of Sharm El Sheik and it is 6.30pm as I start trying to catch up on the last couple of days. It looks as though we might get a decent internet system here, even though it is very expensive so I’ll try to get this typed up and cut and pasted onto the website tonight – if the internet works out!! To say we are both physically ‘shattered’ is probably putting it mildly as the schedule has been just crazy over the last 2 days. I left things last as we waited on Sunday night for a call from a doctor to give Joy her B12 injection. WELL, that didn’t work out!!!! After sitting up late waiting I went down to reception at 11.30pm to discover that ... read more

Burgers come in a fairly standard shape and I don’t know about you but when I see a big ‘un my stomach groans in protest. Now unless you’ve had THE Pirate Bar burger you ain’t seen nothing. This thing is MASSIVE! No joke at a guesstimate I would place her at about 15cm in diameter putting her at numero uno for mahussive beasts of a burger. I witnessed (but did not try!) this extraordinary treat last week while having dinner with some guests. Afterwards we decided to venture to Camel Bar. If you’ve ever been to Sharm you would have heard about Camel. According to the intructors it used to be this great diver hangout, the kind with peanuts covering the floor, dingy lightening and of course footie but alas that is long gone! With cocktail ... read more

Said to be one of the most famous wreck in the World, the Thistlegorm is indeed simply an incredible museum piece. 126 meters long, lying at 30 meters in the Gubal Straits (West of the Sinai Peninsula), she offers plenty of possibilities when it comes to its exploration. Wreck diving gives a large space to history as it is precisely history that you get to witness once underwater. A few words about the Thistlegorm The story of the Thistlegorm, a British armed freighter started in April 1940. During that year & the first part of 1941, she went to US to collect steel and aircraft parts, then to Argentine for grains and finally to the West Indies to bring back Rum to England. The Last Voyage started in the midst of the Second World War, when ... read more

Diving I did my Open water and Advanced in Malta and have since dived in Turkey (aka sea of nothing) and England (brrrr....is the only way to sum that up!) so my diving has been quite limited. Lets just say the Red Sea is 'summing else!' I dont even think my imagination could create the amazing reefs I've been diving recently. The fish are in abundance and the temperature beautiful. The first 3 days of my trip I spent doing my Rescue and EFR course, the latter which mainly consists of the phrase 'Hi I am X, I am an emergency response handler, May I help you?' If my Grandma was having a heart attack on the floor that is NOT the first thing I would start my rescue with thats for sure! I would more ... read more

The past two days have been amazing! My brother Stew organised a luxurious boat trip on the Red Sea off Sharm el-Sheikh for 15 mates (mostly Aussies & Brits) and what a trip it was! I had heard that the snorkeling and marine life on the Red Sea reefs were top notch and so my expectations were high. Fortunately all expectations were exceeded as soon as we arrived at our 5 star three story boat. Once we set sail, the incredible landscape and blue blue waters were magical. We were situated just off the Sinai Peninsular between Saudi Arabia and Egypt in international waters and together with 9 staff we were treated like royalty for two days. Amazing meals were cooked for us, drinks were served to us and we had three massive balconies to sun ... read more