May 6th, Mount Sinai

I left my bed at the unholy hour of 2:00 am and started the 20 minute walk down the quite road towards St. Katherine's monastery. The brightly shining moon was still just above the mountain line and did away with any need for a flashlight. When I finally got to the base camp just below the monastery there was a group of European travelers getting ready to go up the mountain. I decided to try and piggyback along with their group so I would not have to pay the required 85 pound fee for me own Bedouin guide. I was caught just as they were about to head up the trail and was forced to get my own guide. Very annoying, but not that big of a deal.

I am not very good at describing beautiful scenery, so I won't try. But I will say this much, the trail was dark and the stars were absolutely incredible. I need to get out of the city more often. My companion kept getting mad at me because I insisted on walking most of the trail with my flashlight off so I could see the stars better. But hey, whose trip was this anyway? I was on my own for most of the trail until I got to the stairway near that top where all of the wimpy touristy peoples were struggling their way up with their fannypacks on and a ski pole in each hand for balance. (geeze) The stairway is the last leg of the trail that leads to the top. It consists of 750 rock steps called the "Path of Repentance" made by some monk in the middle ages. I went about half way up the "Path of Repentance" nut was getting frustrated with the slowness of the other travelers. So I decided to shortcut the "Path of Repentance" and hopped ff the trail and ran up the boulders along the side of it. I made it to the top in a fraction of the time it took the others and I was able to choose the perfect spot to watch the sun come up. Right on the very eastern face of the Mountain there was a little chip out of one boulder that made a perfect bench for one person. Nobody was in front of me because there was basically nowhere for them to stand. The sun came up and I sat there and read Exodus 19 when the Lord first wanted to bless the House of Israel with the Temple Covenant and 1 Kings 19 where Elijah learns about revelation on Mt. Sinai.

On the way down I was able to go through St. Katherine's Monastery, one of the oldest Christian Monasteries in the world and look at "the burning bush." They pushed everyone through the place so fast I could barely see anything. As a result, not very cool, not much to tell. I spent the rest of the day sleeping and wandering around in the wilderness just outside town. A very relaxing and enjoyable experience. I love it here and hope to be able to come back with some people and do some more trails here. But who knows when that will be. Now I need to catch the one and only bus to Cairo at 5:30 in the morning. Once I get to Cairo I catch a train for Luxor.

Sam