Lekker South Africa!

For those interested in reading our blog, we apologize for the lengthy delay in providing updates. Connectivity and transmission speed in Africa, including South Africa, has proven to be rather challenging. As mentioned in our Turkey blog, we did arrive safely, but very tired in South Africa after being on planes for 24 hours. We have titled this blog "Lekker South Africa" because lekker in Afrikaans is slang for cool, great or awesome.

Let’s quickly rewind; the flight from Istanbul to Cairo was thankfully uneventful and this time we did not hear strange sounds coming from the undercarriage. Nevertheless, we think we will not chance it anymore with Egypt Air and will leave flying with them to people braver than us. Also, if possible, try to avoid Cairo airport at all cost, and here is why: Once we disembarked the aircraft, we were ferried into an arrival terminal where we had to complete health cards and underwent a scanning of our retina, although we were only in transit. After much confusion, we were told to wait in a small holding area and not to worry about our bags or the bus to our next terminal – RIGHT!!!! After waiting for about 30 minutes, we were told to catch the next bus which would take us to our designated terminal. The only problem was that the exit doors would not open and there was absolutely no room to squeeze in between the crowds entering the building. After politely inquiring as to where we could exit to catch our bus, we were told to push and squeeze our way through the crowds to exit the building. Using elbows and a few unfriendly words, we were finally out of the building – but which bus to take??? No signs and nobody willing to explain what was going on. We banged on the glass wall of the building we just exited and finally got some assistance. We made it onto a bus.

After driving aimlessly for about 15 minutes, we made it to the international departures building – or so we thought. After explaining once again that Liechtenstein is a legitimate, sovereign state, we demanded to see our luggage, which we were not able to locate, but were repeatedly told not to worry. Our bags were finally produced and instead of checking them in, we were told to hold on to them (btw, there are no carts for your luggage…) and were stripped of our tickets and passports as a security measure, so that we would not leave the confines of Cairo airport. Airport personnel instructed us to show up at 8pm to get our tickets and passports and to take the bus to the right terminal. We now had about 5 hours to spare in a terminal that thankfully had an “American corner”, containing the likes of McDonald’s and Starbucks.

We show up at 8pm and surprisingly, we got our passports and tickets without having to pay some “baksheesh” or tip (aka bribe) and jumped on a bus which would drive for another 15 minutes in the confines of Cairo Airport. We had both flown internationally and seen many airports, but Cairo must rank as the absolute worst to date. After paying the obligatory baksheesh to the driver (which is his job, but never mind), we were at the right terminal and ready to check in our bags. Instead, we were told to leave our bags with a tourist police official, give up our passports and tickets and come back in one hour. OK, that would make it about 9:30pm, with plenty of time to spare before our scheduled departure of 12:30am. At about 9:45pm, Martin made his way back to the tourist police official, somewhat confident that he would get the boarding cards and passports. Instead he was greeted by a smiling, smoking, non-English speaking tourist police and told to come back again in 30 minutes. OK, that would make it about 10:15pm, still with plenty of time to spare. 10:30pm came and went and a smiling and persistent Martin inquired again as to when the boarding passes and passports would be ready. He was told to come back in about 30 minutes, but instead he insisted on waiting. To his surprise, the luggage had now been moved as well, but to where would be anyone’s guess and the tourist police hardly spoke English.

At 11pm (only an hour before departure and almost 3 hours after giving up our tixs and passports the second time around), a friendly, well-spoken Egypt Air official finally handed Martin the passports and boarding cards. He explained that he had put our bags on the plane and that we would not have to worry about our luggage until Nairobi. Cool, off to a short flight to Nairobi… well no not really, we find out at the gate that this plane is flying to Nairobi, via Khartoum, Sudan. At about 3am we safely landed in Khartoum where half the passengers disembarked and many new people came on board. It was a bit eerie to see a UN mobile tank next to our airplane (we guess it was a protective measure) and after an hour on the ground we were off to Nairobi where we changed planes and then went on to Johannesburg. Kudos to Kenya Air! They had clean, modern planes, impeccable service, good food and on-time departures and arrivals.

What do these one and a half pages have to do with South Africa you might wonder? You are right, absolutely nothing, but we thought it would be worthwhile and amusing to mention the confusion, ineffectiveness and frustration governing the Cairo Airport – ahh, Egypt…!

We arrived in Johannesburg in the early afternoon, were picked up on time and transferred to our hotel from where our 18-day overland explorer tour to Cape Town with Drifter’s Adventures would start. Although we barely saw anything of Johannesburg, we did notice the stark contrast of shanty towns and modern, multi-lane freeways clogged with modern cars and the ever present reminder of the 2010 Football (Soccer) World Cup which South Africa will host next year.

After a lovely spare rib dinner at our hotel, we met our guide, Brett, a good humored, twenty-something year old who would later turn out to be a fantastic guide and friend to both of us. To our positive surprise, we found out that the tour group would only consist of 4 people, and this included the tour guide and us. The fourth person was Nanna, a young lady from Denmark whom we met the next day.

We rose early the following morning and were on the road by 6:30am. The poverty and the many shanty-towns which we passed on our way out of Johannesburg left a lasting impression. We stopped for lunch at the artsy and historic town of Pilgrim’s Rest before we visited the Bourke’s Luck Potholes (a river plummeting into a canyon) and the impressive Blyde River Canyon where we got our first glimpse of the small, yet beautiful and cheeky vervet monkey. We spent the first two nights at a tented camp adjacent to the world famous Kruger National Park, affording stunning views over the surrounding bush and a floodlit waterhole.

The next morning we again rose early and went for a 3-hour game walk with a friendly local guide named Joe. We learned a lot, including which animal droppings can be eaten, or squeezed for water to drink (sorry to gross you out, but elephant poop is the way to go for water, and do not eat poop from carnivores, herbivores poop is fine) and which ones are best left alone. We were briefed on what to do if charged by elephants and lions and learned about the significance of the flora in the bush. In short, the bush provides everything, from wood making perfect tooth brushes and ashes for tooth paste, leaves that are perfect to wipe your rear and the marula tree from which a nice drink named Amarula comes from (similar to the better known Bailey’s). We saw many tracks and droppings, the most significant being water buffalo, lion and elephant (three out of the ‘Big Five’). Within an hour of our walk, we encountered our first giraffes which seemed as much at awe with us as we were with them. They quickly determined that we were of no threat and went on munching on leaves only meters away from us. We also saw the massive golden orb spider and the ever present red billed hornbill bird. We soon thereafter made our way back to our campsite and were treated by the sight of zebras and female kudus drinking from the waterhole.

That very evening, we went on an open vehicle game drive and saw zebras, water buffalos, kudus, blue wildebeests (gnus) and impalas. The following day we headed into Hazyview where we visited a snake park and admired some of Africa’s and the world’s deadliest snakes, including the puff adder, snouted cobra and green mamba. We also admired the totally harmless and hyperactive small file snake, known to eat other snakes. The afternoon we walked along a river in search of hippos and unfortunately (or fortunately) we did not see any of them. We saw plenty of tracks and were a bit on edge during the walk as we did not want to see them on land. Hippos are herbivores, but more people in Africa are killed by hippos than any other animal, because they are very territorial.

We left Hazyview early the following morning and drove to the world-renowned Kruger National Park. Due to the size of the truck and the restriction that we had to remain on the main roads, the visit to Kruger was a bit disappointing in terms of wildlife spotting. Although we did see elephants, giraffe, impala, glossy starling (a strikingly fluorescent blue colored bird), woodlands kingfisher and klipspringer, we were once again denied the sights of the water buffalo, rhinoceros, leopard and lion (four of the Big Five).

After spending a night in Kruger, we were on a long drive through Swaziland to get to our next camp near Hluhluwe National Park, famous for its white and black rhino populations. On this day, luck was on our side as we saw giraffes and elephants up close. We were then treated with an extraordinary sight – a male kudu standing in a waterhole, bleeding from its upper right hind leg, with a large chunk of flesh missing, surrounded by three spotted hyenas. What followed was a waiting game, something out of a David Attenborough documentary, where the hyenas circled the kudu and the kudu fended for itself. After observing this for over an hour with no further action (in a twisted way, we were all hoping to see nature at its finest and have those hyenas kill the kudu), we decided to move on. We later found out that the kudu eventually left the waterhole with the hyenas in pursuit, though no word on the final outcome.

In Hluhluwe National Park, we went on an open game drive and quickly spotted rhinoceros from a safe distance. We also saw an elephant skinning tree branches when a massive male in heat chased it away, not far from the road. The male elephant then noticed us and headed straight for us. He did not come within meters of our vehicle, but within inches (see photo at share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8CYtm7Fu5as4A), and we thought he was going to clip the vehicle. Fortunately, we all remained calm and he turned away at the very last moment. This was enough excitement for the day, plus it was pouring rain and cold, we retired to our camp.

The next day we visited a rural Zulu high school and were treated to songs sung by kids with absolutely amazing voices. The rest of the day was rather uneventful as we started the relatively short drive to Durban where we would spend the night at an inn by the beach.

After a night in Durban, we drove to the majestic Drakensberg mountain range, a National Heritage Site. Upon reaching the foothills, we were transferred to a 4X4 vehicle which took us far up into the mountains and a rustic inn where we spent the next 2 days in cozy, but very cold log cabins. We spent time hiking and exploring the area, and one of the highlights included observing the flying skills of the massive, yet graceful vulture living in this mountain range.

The following days were spent making our way west and south towards the coast and we visited the artful little village of Clarens, a farm near Ladybrand, the Karoo interior with its quaint and remote farming villages, including Nieu Bethesda, before reaching the historic town of Graaff-Reinet with its many museums. We then crossed the mighty Outeniqua Mountains, a geological barrier between the dry interior and the lush coastal Garden Route area before reaching the beautiful town of Knysna. Knynsa was rather relaxing and we enjoyed a ride on a custom built tuk-tuk from Thailand, with a local who showed us the main sights in and around town. We also visited an elephant sanctuary near Plettenberg Bay, where we walked and fed the elephants.

After two relaxing days in Knysna, we travelled along the coast before heading inland and around the Hottentots Holland Mountains, following the “Whale Route” to the quaint, touristy town of Hermanus, famous for its whale watching. Unfortunately, we were too early in the season to see the whales and our tour only allowed us to get a glimpse of this cute town before we were off to the city of Cape Town. The drive along the coast from Hermanus to Kleinmond, Betty’s Bay and Gordon’s Bay on the shores of False Bay was absolutely stunning. The interaction of pounding surf, soaring cliffs, fluffy clouds and sun remains unforgettable – truly majestic landscape!

While in stunning Cape Town, where we enjoyed sunshine and mild temperatures, we visited the beautiful Victoria & Albert Waterfront, took the cable car up to Table Mountain where we were treated to fabulous views of the bays, then drove along through beautiful coastal suburbs such as Camps Bay, Hout Bay, Fishhoek, Simon’s Town, Boulders Beach (where we interacted with penguins) and visited the famed Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point – the most southwesterly point of Africa.

On our final day of the tour with Drifters, we visited the world-famous Stellenbosch wine region and took in two wineries and a lunch before heading back to Cape Town where it was time to say good bye to both Brett and Nanna. We did not want to say goodbye to either of them, because this tour felt more like a road trip of South Africa with your closest mates. Our next tour, Cape Town to Victoria Falls, would be a 3-week overland tour with a company called, Kumuka. We learned that it was at 100% capacity in a truck with 22 people, including the tour guide and a driver. We were not looking forward to this tour, given that we shared an 18-seater truck with only 1 person and a guide.

We knew ahead of time that our visit to Cape Town and its surroundings as part of these tours would be too short and that we wanted to see it in greater detail. We will come back after we would be done exploring Southern and Eastern Africa with Kumuka - till then, wait for our next tales of Africa.

Val and Martin

The Highly Underrated Turkey

Hello again! Well, after bragging about beautiful weather and warm temperatures on our last blog, a low front approached Turkey and it did pour on the Mediterranean Coast (Kalkan to be exact) for three days.

This is a rather long blog, so if you are short of time, here is the skinny: great people, yummy food, awesome sights and beautiful scenery – you should make it a goal to visit at some point. For those with more time, please read on.

As mentioned in our last blog, the Turkish immigration officials did not give Martin a hard time and knew that Liechtenstein actually does exist. In fact Val was the one faced with a bit of work this time around because she had not obtained her entry visa prior to going through immigration. Liechtensteiners need no visa to enter – go figure. But not to worry, the visa desk was next door and after paying US $20 for the stamp, Val was officially granted access to Turkey.

We arrived in Istanbul planning to stay for 3 days. There were so many exciting things to do and see in this big city that we did extend our stay by another 2 days and yet we still felt like we had not seen or experienced the city. It was an assault on our senses, but in a positive way. Unlike Cairo, Istanbul exudes a positive vibe, full of life, colors, smells of fresh food, fruits and vegetables, friendly, hospitable people, vendors who do not hassle you, taxi cab drivers who actually use their meters, and excellent cuisine!

Our first encounter with a typical friendly Turk was when we attempted to take the metro train from the airport to Sultanahmet. One guy who barely spoke a word of English asked where we were heading and provided us a quicker, alternative route to the one e-mailed by the hotel. Of course we could not understand what he was trying to tell us however another man who spoke some English joined in on the group conversation and translated the plan of attack for us, which included changing stations midway (thank God we’re back to a place where they use the alphabet we are used to and not Arabic characters). We thanked them for their help and headed for a different train.

Then another guy who was on the same train as us previously and had apparently overheard us talking, offered to show us which train to catch as he was heading to the same neighborhood. He spoke some English and after finding out that Val was American, he pulled out a magazine which had President Obama and Turkey’s president on the front cover. He gave it to Val to read, as the ride would be another half hour to our destination, but unfortunately it was in Turkish. The rest of the train ride through Istanbul was exciting and we could instantly tell that we were back to modernization, lots of shops and cafes, and people walking around. We must also mention that these trains were clean – no smell of piss or graffiti as can be found on metros in San Fran, NYC or Sydney.

We did not realize it at first, but our hotel was smack dab in the middle of historic Istanbul in Sultanahmet, less than a 10 minute walk from the Aya Sofya (Church of Holy Wisdom) and the Blue Mosque. The Aya Sofya has an impressive interior, containing a sublime domed ceiling soaring heavenward and a gallery which we climbed that was full of ancient, splendid mosaics. This ancient basilica was built in the 4th century by Constantine the Great and considered one of the great architectural marvels of all time. It was built as house of worship for Christians, but when the Ottaman Turks conquered Constininpole (what the city of Istanbul used to be called), they converted it to a mosque.

Across the Aya Sofya, over a beautifully manicured garden, complete with a pool and fountain, was the striking 17th century Blue Mosque, notable for its six slender minarets and a cascade of domes and half domes. The interior of the mosque is a luminous blue, created by the tiled walls and painted dome, which gives this mosque its name. In front of the Blue Mosque was the Hippodrome, the scene of ancient chariot races, built in AD 203. The Obelisk of Theodosius is an Egyptian column from the temple of Karnak which we visited during our Egypt adventure. It features 3,500-year old hieroglyphics which together with the minarets and domes of the Blue Mosque forms a formidable subject which we of course photographically captured and included in our photos.

Only a short walk from the Blue Mosque and the Aya Sofya is a beautiful park leading to the opulent Topkapi Palace. While we strolled through the manicured gardens, we couldn’t help but snap pictures of cheeky kids posing behind blossoming tulips. The Topkapi Palace is considered one of the most iconic of Istanbul’s monuments and consists of four massive courtyards and a series of imperial buildings.

Following Topkapi, we headed to the covered Grand Bazaar (Kapali Carsi) for some shopping therapy. We had a difficult time grasping the immense size of the Bazaar, but Val was in her element. It is a hustling and bustling place. A labyrinth sprawling across 65 streets, it includes more than 4,000 shops offering everything from tacky souvenirs to copperware, porcelain, curios, traditional instruments, clothing, and of course, carpets! Needless to say we did not buy any porcelain pieces or curios because a piece of work could weigh over 10 kgs (23 lbs) and Martin did not want to carry it around the country or Africa. Instead, what he allowed Val to do was purchase 500 grams (1 lb) of homemade baklava, approximately 12 pieces of heavenly filo pastries stuffed with either chopped pistachios or walnuts and smothered in gooey, sweet honey. These delectables were to die for and were probably the best baklava we’ve ever had in our lives. As for the porcelain and curios, Martin promised Val that they will visit again in the near future, when she can shop for anything in the Grand Bazaar until her heart is content. Val believes that he’ll keep this promise, because he’ll do (almost) anything for those baklavas!

The next day, we ventured a bit further, crossing the Bosporus River on the Galata Bridge on our way to hustling and bustling Ortakoy. We were there on a Sunday and this elegant suburb next to the Bosporus River was a visual feast. Right on the water’s edge was the decorative Ortakoy Camii Mosque, surrounded by river ferries and fishermen’s boats. The mosque fronts Ortakoy Square, home to many waterfront cafes and restaurants. We wasted no time and got right into business, walking, eating and drinking our way through Ortakoy, all the while enjoying fabulous views of the Bosporus River and the massive bridge connecting Europe and Asia on either end of its shores.

We then visited Taksim, a suburb across the Galata Bridge on top of the hill. Taksim was reached via a funicular, and as we learned, was one of the first tunnels built in the world and the first tunnel in Turkey, used to serve as a secret tunnel to haul gold from surrounding areas down to one of the biggest banks in Istanbul. We strolled the Istiklal Caddesi, a pedestrian thoroughfare, flanked by numerous shops, cafes, restaurants, embassies, mosques and teahouses. Amongst the plethora of sights, the small but colorful Fish Market and Flower Passage (Cicek Pasaji) were a treat.

The next morning we were in the hotel lobby talking to the friendly staff and Val noticed young kids and their grandmother across the street sitting by the open window, observing street life. They waved at us and when we flashed our cameras they got more excited than us. They wanted their photos taken and best of all, grandma joined in on the fun. Then the kids came down and after posing for some awesome photos, they took over Martin’s tripod and camera and actually took some great pics. We then went on to view a nearby mosque, and again, some kids wanted their photo taken and we of course happily accepted the photo opportunity.

We went on to explore the district of Eminonu, again full of shops selling everything from tacky wedding dresses to batteries. This is where we met some of the nicest and funniest people. Martin struck up a conversation with some people working at a bakery and soon took pictures of them hiding their faces behind pretzels. It was not before too long that both of us would wear baker’s hats, posing for photos behind the counter – we had such a great time!

We then headed to the Spice Bazaar (or Egyptian Bazaar), where the air was filled with many enticing aromas, from cinnamon to saffron, mint, thyme and many more flavors which we were not familiar with. Although we had eaten breakfast only a few hours before, we had to try some cashews, nougat, and had some doner sandwiches. Needless to say, Martin was in his element, snapping pictures of neatly arranged, colorful piles of spices, rows of nuts, dried fruits, and men preparing kebabs. It should be highlighted that the Turks have been very happy to pose for pictures and have never turned us down in capturing them – whether it be the guy selling corn on a cob outside the Grand Bazaar, a bread vendor selling his baked goods on the busy streets of Taksim, or a guy preparing a kebab on the corner of a street in Eminonu.

The Spice Bazaar pretty much spit us out in the courtyard of the massive New Mosque (it is not new, it’s just called “new”), right on the edge of the Bosporus River and Galata Bridge. This is where we took a break in the courtyard of the mosque, observing people getting ready for prayer by washing themselves prior to entering the mosque. This is also were we observed a prayer session, and it was a bit of a surprise to see that even during prayer, people tend to check their mobiles – this includes seemingly old and frail man – it made us feel a bit out of touch with technology because neither of us owned a mobile in Australia. That is until Peter Longauer gave us one of his ancient ones, which, we want to add, works perfectly in Turkey – thank you Peter.

Due to the many photos, we split them into 2 sections; Istanbul and the “Rest of Turkey”. Please find both links below.

Istanbul: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8CYtm7Fu5as3e&emid=sharshar&linkid=link5&cid=EMsharshar

Rest of Turkey: http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=0QcN2jJq4YsWVS&emid=sharview&linkid=link5&cid=EMsharview

We decided to rent a car for the remainder of our visit in Turkey. We left Istanbul without any problems, driving southeast towards Gallipoli and Troy. To our big, big, big surprise, we came across a Migros, Switzerland’s largest grocery store chain and probably Val’s favorite past time during her visit in Liechtenstein. Of course we had to stop and check it out.

We arrived in Eceabat, the site of the war at Gallipoli in 1915 which had cost the lives of almost 36,000 Commonwealth, 10,000 French and around 86,000 Turks. Although we did not know much about this war, involving primarily ANZAC forces, it was a somber experience as clouds and sun interacted to provide an eerie atmosphere at Lone Pine Tree where one of the numerous monuments and white grave stones overlook the Marmara Sea. We learned that Lone Pine was a strategically important plateau which was stormed by Australian forces on August 6, 1915 and held by them until the evacuation. The Lone Pine Cemetery contains mostly Australian casualties. Within the cemetery stands the Lone Pine Memorial which records the names of all the Australian soldiers lost in the Anzac area between April and December 1915 and New Zealanders prior to the August Offensive who have no known grave. We drove along the Memorial Way and viewed several interesting monuments and statues before enjoying a spectacular sunset.

The following morning, we took the ferry from Eceabat to Canakkale, crossing the Marmara Sea and started the long drive south to Troy. We decided not to enter Troy because it was too expensive and the only thing of interest to us was the huge wooden horse. We had also found out that the wooden horse is not an original because it’s mythical – no one knows if there was an original wooden horse that hid the enemies that conquered Troy. We continued on to the town of Selcuk, the gateway to Ephesus.

Ephesus is one of the best preserved ancient sites to be found anywhere. We passed through the impressive Gate of Hercules and a mile-long marble-paved street (Sacred Way) lead us past the stunning and beautiful Library of Celsius (the star attraction of Ephesus), the Temple of Artemis and the Great Theatre. A 15-minute drive from Ephesus is the House of Virgin Mary. Those with an interest in history and/or religion might know that after the death of Jesus, St. John the Apostle brought Mother Mary with him to Ephesus where she remained in her house on Nightingale Mountain until her death. In the 19th century, a nun in Germany was in stigmata and had visualized this home, describing its mountain forest location near Ephesus (she had never been to Turkey) and claimed it to be the Virgin Mary’s home. The Vatican recognizes it as her home and both the late Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict have given mass here. As no pictures were allowed to be taken in her home, it can only be described as a tiny wood and stone cottage surrounded by beautiful gardens.

After Ephesus, we headed east for another 2.5 hours towards Aphrodisias, another well preserved ancient city for the goddess of Venus. We had to give it a miss as we reached the site after it had closed for the day. We were now within an hour of Pamukkale, a geological fairyland known for its white travertines cascading down the hillside. These thermal waters have been used for therapeutic treatments since the Roman period. No offense to our Russian friends, but the bus loads of Russian visitors apparently forgot the healing powers of the water, and instead were busy posing for pictures in their Speedos and bikinis despite massive, bulging bellies and slightly out of proportion rears that no doubt would have been less offensive and a bit more photogenic if perhaps they dressed a little more conservatively.

After viewing the travertines and wading through the warm pools, we were off to Fethiye on the Mediterranean coast. We spent the night in Patara and enjoyed an incredible sunset on a 20 km stretch of uninterrupted beach, followed by a great home cooked Turkish meal, served by one of the many hospitable Turkish hosts that we have encountered – again, no offense, but Australian hotel & B&B owners could learn a great deal in customer service and hospitality from these guys.

The next day we probably drove a total of 20km and got hooked on Kalkan. Kalkan is arguably the most picturesque and photographed of the coastal towns along the western Mediterranean. Historic Kalkan is a beautiful tangle of narrow streets, cobble stones, lined with pretty wood-and-stone houses, tumbling down a steep hillside to an even prettier marina, full of open air restaurants. We spent four nights in Kalkan waiting out 3 days of rain on the Mediterranean Coast (it’s probably the best town to stay at when there’s lots of rain, because it’s still warm and beautiful even when it’s grey and cloudy) and can highly recommend a great pension (guest house) to stay at should you visit stunning Kalkan (http://www.kalkangulpansiyon.com/) - a must if you do travel to Turkey.

The next day was rather uneventful as we were trying to head as far east as possible to see sights of Cappadocia and Nemrut, the latter being the site of colossal size statutes and heads of kings and gods. We arrived in Side just in time to view and photograph the beautiful Temple of Zeus, situated right on the beach, making for a beautiful panorama with the white pillars of the Temple against the blue of the sea.

The following day, Martin decided to take some morning photos of the Temple, and as he approached it, he was offered beer at 7:45am by the owner of the restaurant adjacent to the Temple. As a token of appreciation, he had a glass of the local Turkish beer, Efes – this sort of behavior (drinking before breakfast) took him back to his teenage years when no time was a bad time for a drink.

After a hearty breakfast, nicely embalming the Efes, Martin was ready for a long drive and we stopped at the walled city of Antalya for a stroll along the beautiful promenade and a quick lunch before dashing off and stopping again at the fortress in Anamur on the Mediterranean coast.

It took us two full days of driving to get close to Nemrut from Kalkan. We took pictures of wide valleys near Besni on our way to Kahta to see Nemrut Dagi. We spent the night in Kahta, a rather dirty town, thriving only due to its proximity to Nemrut Dagi. Luck was once again on our side as we scored a king suite at the Zeus Hotel, and after some whining, we got the room for 75% of its advertised price.

After catching up on some sleep, we started the very steep and adventurous drive to Nemrut Dagi, taking the scenic roads from Kahta to Cendere where we saw an ancient stone bridge, then on to Arsameia, and a steep climb to Horik from where we enjoyed more valley views before reaching the historic site of Nemrut Dagi.

Nemrut Dagi consists of two terraces, the east & west terraces. Originally, the statutes and heads of kings and gods were about 8-9 meters (24-27 feet) tall. We spent little time on the East terrace were bodies are in good shape, but not the heads, whereas on the West terrace, heads are in pristine shape, but bodies are not. The West terrace is the spot to view the sunset, so we spent most of our time there combating the heavy winds and freezing weather (temps dropped quickly down to 5 degrees Celsius or approximately 40F when the sun went down). Both the East and West terraces contain a lion and an eagle and the heads of five gods: god king Antiochos (no beard, crown), Tyche von Kommagene (fruit basket for head decoration), Zeus Oromasdes (beard, frown lines on forehead, bushy eyebrows), Apollo Mithras (no beard) and Herakles (beard, but no frown lines). Around 18 AC, Kommagene was integrated into the Roman Empire and moved the royal family to Rome – the kingdom then disappeared.

The next day was spent driving virtually all day and we passed through several mountain passes and shot nice photos of snow covered mountains near Nurhak and Elbistan before finally arriving in Goreme, Cappadocia where we spent the next three nights amidst the famous fairy chimneys.

While in touristy Cappadocia, we visited the underground city at Kaymakli , the Pigeon Valley, the castle at Uchisar and Goreme’s open-air museum of cave churches. After spending 2 nights in a beautiful hotel which we thought was in a cave, we decided to actually find a hotel built into one of the chimney rocks and after a bit of negotiation, we scored the “penthouse cave suite”, with wonderful views of other chimney rocks and the town to the west.

After breakfast we dashed off for the 600km drive to Kutahya (a town known for its porcelain) to bring us closer to Istanbul. Perhaps the only real interesting feature on this trip was a massive volcano-shaped mountain near the town of Aksaray. We were once again lucky in that we got a double room, delicious and very filling dinner and breakfast for 2, all for 60 Turkish Lira (roughly the equivalent in Australian dollars).

We took a stroll around Kutahya and this is possibly the friendliest town in all of Turkey. We walked into a store to buy a hair headband for Val and it turned out that the young owner had lived in Germany for a couple of years and as he found out that Martin was from Liechtenstein, he was excited to speak German and invited us for tea. In addition, Val’s hair accessory was given to her as a gift and he would not accept any money. If you ever happen to be in Kutahya, make sure to stop at “Pasha” for accessories or perfume and see the very friendly owner Kazim (http://www.pashabijuteri.com/). We then went on to find desert and for 2 Lira we got 4 scoops of ice cream dipped in chocolate and nuts – what a steal! Even the security guard at the local super market was excited about Martin’s presence and Liechtenstein nationality (as if he were some sort of town celebrity) and promptly showed him a SMS on his mobile, received from his girlfriend in Zurich – a small world indeed.

The next day we made it to the ancient city of Aizanoi, and in particular, the Temple of Zeus with the bust of a female figure immediately in front of it before stopping at Izmit, about 1 hours drive east of the Ataturk International Airport. This pretty much marked the end of our Turkey trip as we were now heading back to Istanbul for our flight to Cairo, then on to Nairobi and on to Johannesburg to join the first of our four African tours.

We arrived safely in South Africa after a 24-hour ordeal that included an 8-hour layover in Cairo and change of planes in Nairobi, but only after a stop in Khartoum, Sudan, in the middle of the night – all part of the flight itinerary, so nothing to worry about, but more about this in our next blog.

Warm greetings from rather cool South Africa!
Val and Martin

Jordan

Last time we wrote to you, we were in Aqaba, at the southern tip of Jordan. We both felt a little bit under the weather shortly after we got to Jordan, and then Istanbul has been so exciting that we could not find the time to type the blog till now.

We also forgot to mention a couple of things on our Egypt blog: Firstly, we wanted to acknowledge Cathy’s photographic contribution to our blog and secondly, we forgot to mention that Amelia scored the first goal when we played football (soccer) in Aswan – brilliant effort Amelia!

Not to rub it in for any of you who are either preparing for another busy season or for those who just came out of a busy season (you know who you are), but we are writing this blog from the shady rooftop terrace of our hotel in Kalkan on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey where we are enjoying beautiful weather, warm temperatures (30 degrees Celsius or around 90 Fahrenheit), amazing hospitality and great food. Anyways, back to Jordan…

Aqaba, and our accommodation in particular (International Arab Divers Village), turned out to be a nice little gem. Abdel, the owner and a retired naval officer, was an extremely friendly and gracious host; Lucky, Abdel’s limping white puppy lab was absolutely adorable; and we enjoyed 24-hour free WiFi. On our second day in Aqaba, we decided to explore the town and as we were walking down the hill from our hostel, we scored a free ride to town from two electricians, who were working on the neighboring property. On the ride to town, they pointed out Eilat (Israel) and Taba (Egypt), all within 15 kilometers across the Red Sea. We spent a fairly uneventful day roaming Aqaba, surfing the web and organizing a trip to Wadi Rum, a famous desert in the south of Jordan.

The next day we took a taxi to Wadi Rum Village from where we joined a six-hour 4WD tour with a non- English speaking guide and a Spanish couple (mostly non-English speaking as well). Most of the day was spent pointing at sights and trying to figure out the historic importance behind it – Lawrence of Arabia, who’s he again? We also saw wild camels, which when viewing our photos, you will notice were an awesome subject. In the late afternoon we arrived at our Bedouin camp. The tent was comfortable and big (we got a 4-person tent to ourselves), but the non-flushing toilets and lack of a water bucket to assist with the flushing were a bit challenging. We got some good sunset photos, but overall we had to conclude that Wadi Rum was not nearly as exciting as expected, perhaps because we had previously seen fantastic desert scenery in the U.S. and Australia. Here is a link to our photos in Shutterfly or on Picasa (same album on both sites): http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8CYtm7Fu5as24&emid=sharshar&linkid=link5&cid=EMsharshar

or

http://picasaweb.google.com/valandmartin2009/JordanBlog?feat=directlink

The following morning we were crammed into the back (literally) of the jeep and found ourselves wedged between bags as we were rushed back to Wadi Rum Village. This is where we probably made the biggest mistake to date – we listened to our host rather than our gut, prior to booking accommodation in Wadi Musa, the town next to Petra. Mohammed (the owner of the Bedouin camp) suggested staying at the Petra Gate Hotel, which supposedly is far cheaper and better than most other budget hotels in town. Upon consulting Hostelworld.com, it sounded like a bargain as this hostel was voted #1 by travelers. Mohammed made the booking for us and off we went on the 2-hour ride on a public minibus to Wadi Musa. The drive was fine, but the blaring local music, the seemingly psychotic bus conductor and the winding, twisting ups and downs of the road made us a bit edgy.

We arrived in Wadi Musa and checked into the Petra Gate Hotel – an absolutely awful hostel that won best hostel 2008 of Petra (there are about 6 hostels in the area). For a measly 25 Jordanian Dinars (about $50 AUD), here is a quick summary of what we got: tiny room that barely fit our backpacks, a busted bathroom door, a broken plastic toilet seat that eventually fell off the toilet, and at night there was a scorpion crawling on our wall which was swiftly killed and removed by one of the very nice hotel employees who slept on the floor of the lobby. Needless to say, first thing in the morning, we transferred to the hotel across the street and for just 3 JD more, we got a much larger and cleaner room with a TV - oh and almost forgot, it had a toilet seat too – what a convenience! We should however point out that Nasser, the owner of the Petra Gate Hotel, and his staff, were very kind and wonderful hosts. Most impressive to Val was the Filipina who worked at the Petra Gate Hotel and spoke Arabic fluently. Nasser even drove us to Petra’s entrance gate in his own car, free of charge.

Petra is considered the most important archeological site in the Middle East and is renowned for its rock-cut architecture. The Nabateans constructed it as their capital city around 100 BC. In 1985, Petra was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. For you movie buffs out there, one of the Indiana Jones movies was filmed here and a huge billboard boasting Harrison Ford can attest to this fact. Petra was the star attraction of Jordan. The narrow 1.2km-long canyon, known as the Siq, opens up the most impressive of the Petra sights, the striking façade of Petra Treasury (Al-Khazneh) and its stone façade turns into an eerie orange/pink at sunset. Our full day Petra excursion also saw us hiking to the Royal Tombs, the Street of Facades, the colonnaded street and the Monastery (Al Deir) as well as The High Place of Sacrifice, reached by a 45-minute climb from the Street of Facades, offering unparalleled views across the valley. Just for completeness sake, we watched in awe as one rather aroused donkey was trying to copulate with another donkey, unsuccessfully. This went on for at least 15 minutes before one of the farmers took care of the donkey’s urges by throwing rocks at him and dragging the female donkey away. As we were leaving the site around sunset, the cutest puppy followed us out the gates, and had it not been for a naughty teen that chased after it, the puppy would probably have followed us to our hotel room.

The following day we organized a full-day taxi ride from Petra to Madaba (about 30 minutes south of Amman) with a taxi cab driver from Aqaba named, Mousa. We quickly noted that Mousa practically has friends from all over the world. He proudly showed us a guest book with comments from previous customers, all speaking very highly of him – as we soon noted, rightfully so. He was a real character, spoke to us in 3 different languages, he was very accommodating, always smiling and trustworthy. As part of our full day 250km odyssey, we visited the crusader castles in Shobak (where he posed for a photo with us) and Karak, the Dead Sea (had to give it a miss because it was too expensive for us considering that we were only going to be there for about an hour); and Mount Nebo where Moses is said to have seen the Promised Land. Unfortunately, the Moses Church with its impressive and well preserved main floor mosaic measuring 9m by 3m was under reconstruction for the Pope who visited a week after our visit.

Our final stop and rest point for the next 2 days was Madaba, best known for its superb, historically significant Byzantine-era mosaics. Particularly impressive were the many mosaics and paintings in the 19th century St. George's Church, though the supposedly impressive Mosaic Map was a bit of a let-down as it was faint and in rather poor shape. On our walk to the Church of the Apostles, we were stopped by a local electrician/TV repairman, who once served with the Jordanian Air Force and obtained his high school diploma from El Paso, Texas in the early 80’s. It was rather interesting to get his perspective on the world order, America and the Iraq war. What was supposed to be a 5-minute chat turned into a 1-hour discussion in his repair shop and carried on in his neighbor’s convenience store where we snacked on Cheetos and sodas. No matter what the opinion was, he was a genuinely nice guy and was only interested in peace and the welfare of his family – fair call!

We then went on to Amman where we spent the next 4 days. It would have been way too long had it not been for Musa Al-Ramahi’s fantastic friends, Mirvat, Rami, his wife Tala and their daughter Talia who showed us around Amman and offered continuous hospitality. Rami (Musa’s best friend) took a full day driving us around Amman, showing us the various neighborhoods before we met up with his good friend Mirvat, who according to one of her 5th grade students, is a sophisticated, yet complicated woman. She is hilarious, full of stories and jokes – we love her! We stopped for refreshments and treats at a local bakery before we went back to Rami’s house were we met his wife, Tala, and beautiful daughter Talia. Tala treated us to tea, coffee and a plate of freshly baked banana muffins where each of us grabbed more than one (we won’t disclose the number of muffins eaten…). After that we went on to see the historic downtown and enjoyed a simple, yet delicious late night treat, being freshly baked sesame bread rolls, cream cheese and herbs.

The following day we visited the King Abdullah Mosque which welcomes non-Muslims and then roamed historic downtown Amman, including the 6000-seat Roman Theatre, the 500-seat Odeon and Hashemite Square. On our way back to the hotel room we stopped at a barber so Martin could get a haircut. It was impressive and quite an experience when at the end, the barber put a lot of full-strength, wet-look gel on Martin’s hair and he came out looking like a local. Not to worry, Martin is mostly back to his normal looks now! We caught up one more time with Rami and Mirvat and went to their favorite hangout, Casper & Gambini’s in an affluent suburb called Abdoun. Unfortunately, this evening meant goodbye to our new Jordanian friends as we were heading to Jerash the next day and had to fly out of Amman at 6:40am the following day. We do however look forward to catch up with Rami in Kuala Lumpur next February.

The ruined city of Jerash, about 48km north of Amman is considered to be an archeological masterpiece. We reached the site after a hair-raising taxi ride from our hotel to the bus station and after enduring a 1.5 hour wait in a hot bus (buses only leave once they are full and unfortunately, our timing was such that we were the first passengers…).

Jerash is considered one of the most important and best preserved Roman cities in the Near East and is sometimes misleadingly referred to as the "Pompeii of the Middle East or Asia", referring to its size, extent of excavation and level of preservation (though Jerash was never buried by a volcano). This site was rather interesting and the ruins that we saw, the Triumphal Arch (Hadrian's Arch), the cart-rutted Cardo Maximus, and the Oval Plaza or Forum (one of the most distinctive images of Jerash - 56 Ionic columns surround the paved limestone plaza) were all memorable.

The next morning, we had to rise at 3:15 as we were picked up to go to the airport at 4am. We warmed up over hot tea and warm pita bread as we both showered in cold water – not very pleasant as Amman during this time of year is still rather cool, but a sure way to wake up!

The flight to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines was pleasant and uneventful and we arrived in Istanbul on time. Kudos to the Turkish immigration officials who, for the first time during our trip, did not question Martin’s home country and stamped his passport without any dramas – thank you Turkey! We have now been in Turkey for a bit over a week and are truly enjoying ourselves. We will provide you with a further update closer to our departure at the end of May. Hope all is well with you and we continue to look forward to your e-mails and comments.

So long,
Val & Martin

Yalla Egypt!

Cairo is a massive, sprawling metropolis of some 20 million people and after having learned our lesson from our “rip-off” horse ride tour to Giza, we were totally discouraged in exploring the city on our own, other than making frequent trips to the internet café and excellent Alfa supermarket (they had the whole Hostess line of goodies – Val had her first Twinkie in 4 years!). This time, luck was on our side and we met Tom and Bess, a lovely Australian couple in their twenties, at the internet cafe. We had seen them during our “rip-off” tour to Giza the day before and started talking to them. We quickly felt a little bit better when we found out that we had not been the only tourists scammed. We learned that Tom and Bess were on the same Gecko’s tour as us and with safety in numbers and a renewed confidence in not letting “them” rip us off any longer, we decided to head to Khan El-Khalili, a massive maze of bazaars and to Bab Zuweila, a fort-like wall from where we enjoyed spectacular views over Cairo from the twin minarets. With our confidence level ever-growing, we took a local taxi from the bazaars to the spectacular 12th century Citadel of Salah ad-Din al Ayyub… except the taxi wouldn’t start. Tom and some local shop keeper on the street had to help the cabbie push the vehicle in order it to start. We were all apprehensive riding in the cab, but we made it to the Citadel alright and intact.

That same night, we met with Ramy Adly, our tour leader for the next two weeks. Ramy deserves special mention as both of us previously avoided organized tour groups like the plague. This tour turned out to be one of our best adventures ever. Ramy was simply outstanding in everything he did, from being organized, honest, funny, informative and a genius by upgrading us from a 3-star to a 5-star Nile cruise AND upgrading our rooms from regular to balcony, beach-view rooms in Dahab. We think he would also make a perfect boyfriend for all our single-lady friends in SF and Sydney….you know who you are! We should also mention here that we could not have possibly asked for a better tour group – it felt like travelling with the best of friends and family…special mention to the” Yalla-Banana” Crew: Ramy, Michael, Pam, Cathy, Debra, Tom, Bess and Amelia who made this trip so very enjoyable! We miss you guys already and hope that all of you had a safe trip home or to Greece (we might meet you there Tom & Bess).

Our first activity with the group was a night, sound and light show of the Giza Pyramids….it was alright, but we all expected a bit more. The next morning took us back to the mighty pyramids at Giza where we explored the pyramids and the nearby Sphinx. We then headed to the truly outstanding Egyptian Museum where one of the highlights was the golden mask of King Tutankhamen and his numerous other treasures. In the evening we took the night train to Aswan in the south of Egypt (a 12-hour rattling, full blasting air conditioner adventure).

Although largely sleep deprived, we got our hotel rooms in Aswan, cleaned up and boarded a bus to visit the stunning Temple of Isis at Philae Island. After the temple, we ventured to the Nubian bazaar - a long and colourful street that snakes through the centre of town. This is where Martin paid his first bribe to take a photo of an elderly man smoking a sheesha pipe. That evening we boarded a felucca sailboat, a wooden boat without an engine, and relaxed on the Nile, enjoying great views, wonderful company, Stella beer (not Belgium’s Stella Artois, this is Egypt’s beer), mint tea and biscuits. We were then treated to a Nubian dinner, complete with song and dance. This is where we met some locals of the west bank part of the Nile River. Val wanted to adopt the lovely 18-month old Haleema who loved to dance. Martin fell in love with 5-year old Osama who was after candy. The dinner and the subsequent dance and song provided excellent photo opportunities, the results which we have included in the attached link to Shutterfly (remember you do not need to become a member to view the pics): http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8CYtm7Fu5as2a&emid=sharshar&linkid=link5&cid=EMsharshar

The following day we were up at 3am and took a police convoy to travel by road to Abu Simbel, one of the most impressive temples ever built and certainly one of Martin’s photographic highlights. We were not sure what was more impressive: the temples themselves, the feat of moving the temples stone by stone from its original location to avoid being flooded by the massive artificial Lake Nasser, or the fact that we were only 45kms (less than 30 miles) from the Sudan border. The temples were fantastic and Martin ended up with over 70 photos in less than two hours. For the most part we all slept on the bus back to Aswan where we boarded our Nile Cruise boat, the Ra II, which we called home for the next three nights. Much to our delight, Ramy and Hassan (another Gecko’s tour leader) managed to upgrade us from a 3-star boat to a 5-star boat – way to go guys!!! This was definitely another highlight of our trip and the buffets made us feel like being back in Vegas – unfortunately, the waistline was not as impressed with us. We tried to exercise it off one night in Aswan, by playing some soccer against Hassan’s tour group, but Martin managed to injure his knee during the 1st half (a reoccurring knee injury, but nothing too serious). Val felt guilty given that we had to climb Mt. Sinai in less than a week and she was the one who encouraged Martin to be a team player and play soccer too. Nevertheless, Team Ramy tied the game with Team Hassan at 3-3 with one less player, since we had no substitute for the highly talented Martin (yes, Martin did insert this part). Good job team!

Cruising along the Nile was a very relaxing experience from the past few busy days and allowed Martin to heal his injury by sitting on the sundeck rather than limping around temples in 40 degree (100 degrees F) heat. We hung-out at the sundeck and watched the locals go about their business on the banks of the Nile. It was really cool to hear all the kids scream and wave hello to us. Even more rewarding were the smiles and the increased yelling and enthusiasm when we waved our hands and said hello to them – it was as if we were celebrities.

Our first stop on the cruise was at Kom Ombo to visit the Temple of Sobek, a Greco-Roman temple overlooking the Nile. At sunset we stopped at Edfu where we explored the lit and well-preserved Temple of Horus, considered one of the finest examples of temple construction. The next day we arrived in Luxor and took a horse-drawn carriage to the massive temple complex at Karnak, built over a period of some 2000 years, and one of the greatest temples ever constructed. In the evening we explored the bazaar in Luxor and relaxed at an outdoor café within the bazaar before retiring to our cabins on the Ra II for the last night.

The following morning we once again rose early as we signed up for a hot air balloon ride – a first for both of us. The sunrise, accentuated by the ever present pollution, made for a fantastic experience. We cruised at a maximum altitude of 500 meters (1500 feet) which allowed us to observe farmers and life below us. After about 50 minutes we landed in a sugar cane field and were greeted by kids who wanted money for taking photos of donkeys and dogs, which of course, they claimed were theirs. They didn’t stop asking until we boarded our van…a 10 minute walk from where we landed.

We were then transported to the Valley of the Kings were we visited several impressive tombs. We completed our visit by 9am for which we were very grateful as the thermometer was already in the mid-30’s or 95 degrees F. What follows will probably be one of the most memorable experiences ever – a donkey ride along Luxor country.

Everyone on the tour, but Ramy, was hesitant riding the donkeys in the middle of traffic. Ramy told us that there is not much direction needed for these donkeys, they knew where to go…yeah, sure. You do become confident and comfortable, shouting out commands to speed-up or go to the left/right, just after 5 minutes of riding the donkeys. We all wanted them to go faster, so we would shout “yalla-yalla,” which means “let’s go, let’s go” but that didn’t make them go any faster. These donkeys have a mind of their own and as much as we didn’t want to believe Ramy, he’s right, the donkeys knew where they were going. What we didn’t like was when they went fast in spurts then suddenly slowed down…”Did we tell you to speed up donkey? What made you do that?” Then Bess shouted out “banana” which made her donkey go faster, so we all followed foot and shouted “banana”, then “yalla-banana”, which made them go slightly faster. The locals probably thought we were out of our minds shouting out “yalla-banana!” but from then on, it became our group’s cheer. We are happy to report that both our donkeys were well behaved and did not cause any accidents or traffic congestions. This also meant that this was the conclusion of our southern Egypt odyssey and that evening we boarded the night train back to Cairo (9 hours of rattling and excessive air conditioning).

Back in Cairo, we wasted no time and Ramy took us to the awe-inspiring 9th century Mosque of Ibn Tulun and then to the fantastic El Fishawy Café, which reputedly has the best Turkish coffee and mint tea in town; and yes, we can attest to this. Lonely Planet should also mention that the place from which we ordered falafels is probably THE best in the country. Unfortunately, today meant the completion of the Egypt adventure for Pam, Michael, Debra and Amelia, but not before we had a fantastic “last supper” at Deals Restaurant in an upscale neighborhood in Cairo.

After an emotional good-bye the following morning, our shrunken group consisting of Tom, Bess, Cathy and us were on our way to Mt. Sinai. The Sinai Peninsula is an untamed wilderness, with jagged pink granite mountains punching up into clear blue skies. After 7 hours of driving and going through a tunnel under the Suez Canal, we arrived in St. Catherine were we checked into our hostel and then once again wasted no time in starting our hike up Mt. Sinai with our friendly Bedouin guide, Hussein. Thankfully Martin’s knee injury had mostly healed. Climbing the mountain, where Moses is said to have received his Ten Commandments, was not as strenuous as we had assumed, but it was no walk in the park either. The changing light and scenery were truly dramatic and we had plenty of time to enjoy the sunset.

We corrupted Hussein into eating Twix, Pringles, Oreos and other junk food which probably helped him understand why we were always falling behind on the hike up. At one point, Hussein told us that we would have only 20 minutes up to the top, but for this group, make it 30. Anyway, we made it to the top around the 2.5 to 3 hour range. He was an adorable guy, posed with us for a group photo and even proudly carried Martin’s tripod down the mountain. The scramble down in the dark was a bit scary, but we survived to tell the tale. All would have been fine at the Morgenland Hostel, but after a failing air conditioner and a losing battle of killing an ever growing number of mosquitoes, we surrendered to the fact we would catch little sleep and wake up with several bites the following day. Thanks Debra for providing us with citronella mosquito repellent bracelets. Not sure if they worked effectively as we both got bitten, but interestingly not around our wrist area.

The following morning we were off to Dahab on the Sinai Peninsula and only about 19 kilometers across the Gulf of Aqaba from Saudi Arabia. We enjoyed a bit of snorkeling at a spot called the Blue Hole and spent the rest of the day eating, drinking and of course, the obligatory smoking of sheesha. Dahab is a beautiful, laid back little ocean side town on the Gulf of Aqaba. Our final day was spent sleeping in, shopping for souvenirs, writing postcards, doing laundry and relaxing some more before having a great last dinner at Al Capone’s Restaurant on the shores of the Gulf of Aqaba.

The following morning was one of the most emotional days as we had to say goodbye to our friends Cathy, Bess, Tom, and our ever gracious tour leader Ramy. Suffice to say, we are planning a reunion when we return to Australia in February 2010 – Cathy and Ramy, book your flights NOW! We spent the rest of the day depressed, missing our new found friends and running errands.

The following day we were picked up at 10am for a 1 hour drive to Nuweiba from where we caught the ferry to Aqaba, Jordan. We had been warned that the ferry departure can be up to six hours late, or in the worst case, not show up at all. I guess we were lucky as we departed Nuweiba in Egypt at 6pm, when the departure was scheduled for 2:30pm – 3.5 hours late is not all that bad. We made some new friends on the bus ride to Nuweiba and while waiting for the ferry. In particular, we met Jamie, an Australian archeology student doing projects in Jordan. Most impressively, he spoke Arabic very well and we look forward to catching up with him when we are in Amman.

Anyway, does everybody remember Martin’s problems when traveling to new countries? Well, add Jordan to the list. When boarding the ferry in Nuweiba, Egypt, all tourists get priority, i.e. they can board first prior to anyone else. The Jordanian customs official was nice enough, but we don’t think he ever located Liechtenstein and after about 30 minutes of explaining where the country is located (it is between Switzerland and Austria, no, not Australia, Sir), he frustratingly waived Martin through. Thankfully, a Pakistani lady was also questioned as the local crowd grew increasingly frustrated and the angry looks actually started to make Martin nervous as they could not board the vessel until he was let on board.

We finally made it to Aqaba and experienced an interesting taxi ride. Firstly, we thought that once we agree a price, we leave. Nope, there was one more seat left in the cab. Having been delayed for 4 hours on our ferry ride, we were in no mood to wait for a taxi to fill-up. As we started to unload our bags from the trunk, the cab driver finally agreed to leave, but it was not long before he picked up some random guy on the side of the freeway to make an extra buck. He also headed north into town, instead of south to our hostel. Long story short, he spoke no English, we spoke no useful Arabic and so what was supposed to be a 7 km, 10 minute ride, turned into a 45 minute goose chase which, at some point, got us within 5 kilometers of the Saudi Arabian border. When we finally did reach our hostel, he had the nerve to ask for more money. Thankfully the hostel was a nice surprise, clean room and friendly owner (a retired naval officer and former UN delegate who served in Croatia) who made us feel right at home. We liked it so much that we added another day before we set off to explore the many sights of Jordan. Good bye for now and we will update you once we get to Amman, Jordon or to Istanbul, Turkey, the 4th country on our trip around the world.

Masalam,

Martin & Val

P.S. - Please let us know if you are having a difficult time viewing our pics on Shutterfly and if so, can you recommend another website where we can load our pictures for next time. Shokran (thanks)!

And Away We Go....

Happy Belated Easter/Passover everybody. We're currently in Egypt and there definitely was no Easter feel here in Cairo, given that Sundays are the equivalent to a Westerner’s Monday.

After a stressful few days of packing boxes and selling our furniture, we finally moved out of our apartment on Friday, 4 April. Jason Siu was kind enough to let us crash in his apartment for a couple of nights –THANK YOU JASON! We then headed off to Melbourne to attend our friend’s wedding and returned to Sydney on Monday night.

On the morning of our flight (Tuesday, 7 April), we finally figured out how to fit our life into one backpack. Upon check-in we were delighted to find out that both backpacks weighed under 20 kgs (45 lbs), only to find out that our stress was unnecessary because with a RTW ticket, we have the same luggage allowances as the US, i.e. 2 bags at 23 kgs per piece. It would not be feasible to travel the world with 2 bags at 50 pounds each, although it would have made Val happier to have some cuter clothes and shoes and look less like a “backpacker”.

It was sad to say goodbye to Australia, the country we called home for the past 2.5 years. Our journey starts on our smooth flight to Kuala Lumpur with Malaysia Airlines. They were really nice and we enjoyed their in-flight hospitality. From KL we took the redeye to Dubai and arrived there at 4am. This is where the fun begins for Martin....

Who has heard of an American passport? Everybody! Liechtenstein passport – “please follow me sir.” We were taken away from passport control to a room in a side office. The passport official did his own thing in the system and could not locate Liechtenstein. He told Martin that he needs a visa. Martin explained to him that Liechtenstein has the same visa requirements as Switzerland (no need for a visa in Dubai), however this official didn’t want any of it and sought assistance from his colleague. At this point, Val got a little annoyed given that she only slept a total of 4 hours during the 20 hour journey to Dubai and quietly tells Martin “you should really convert and become a Swiss citizen or have your tiny country join the EU.” Twenty minutes later, the second official completed his due diligence and finally welcomed Martin to Dubai with a big smile. Martin was then told that he is the FIRST person from Liechtenstein to visit Dubai. Martin has vowed that he will verify this with all of his 32,000 fellow citizens when we get to Liechtenstein in September/October. As it turns out, this cycle will repeat itself in many other countries…more about this later.

Now about Dubai – it reminded us of what Vegas probably looked like 20 years ago, one massive construction site. We were most impressed with its blending of cultures and religions. We found it to be one of the most diverse cities that we had ever visited, with a huge concentration of local people, and most notably Indians, Pakistanis, Asians, Russians, Americans, Europeans, Africans and lots and lots of Filipinos. By the way, driving a Mercedes in Dubai is so not impressive (no offense Jurai) as Maseratis, Ferraris, Bentleys, and Rolls Royces were the norm on the roads. Where do these folks get their money to drive these cars??? Dubai is big and spread out, but rather orderly and clean. Despite people looking fierce in the street and staring us down, once you say hello and smile at them (typical Martin), a smile is returned.

We stayed in a fairly nice hotel in Deira, called the Flora Grand. Deira is the old town Dubai and due to its historical importance, there are no plans to modernize it. Highlights of Deira included an abra (wooden boat) ride on Dubai Creek; a visit to the Gold Souk where Val almost shortened our trip’s budget because she found the most beautiful, perfect, diamond engagement ring for Martin to buy her – but Martin prevailed this time; the Spice Souk, the atmospheric wooden-latticed arcades of the Old Souk and Textile Souk with its narrow lanes and Arabian influenced architecture. The following day we experienced the hyper-modern Dubai where we saw the Emirates Towers, the Dubai Financial Center, the brand new Dubai Mall (holds over 1200 stores and seemed to be at least 4 times bigger than the Mall of America in Minneapolis…to put it is simply, you can spend a whole day in here, but have only seen a portion of it in a rush), Burj Dubai – set to become the tallest building in the world but still in construction and the intricately detailed architecture of Jumeirah Mosque.

Our last day was spent viewing the Burj Al Arab (the world’s only 7-star hotel, slightly out of our price range at $2000 per person per night minimum), sitting on its own island, and the Madinat Jumeirah, an attractive market, enchanting hotel, shopping and entertainment complex, but highly touristy. We then met with Val’s long-lost family friend Mirasol and her fiancé. Mirasol’s family lived next door from Val’s grandma’s house in Cebu, Philippines, and they were pen pals from grade 6 onto high school. Val had not seen her since 1989, so this was truly a special occasion to catch-up with a good friend. We had dinner at the Mall of Emirates with views of people skiing and snowboarding in the artificial ski slope, Ski Dubai. Mirasol and Jerry will be marrying next month and we wish them all the best for their future together. Mirasol, let’s not wait another 20 years to see each other again.

Unfortunately, we had to say goodbye to Dubai, but we plan on returning once construction has been completed and we have financially recovered from this trip. Flying Egypt Air was a pretty scary affair. While taxiing on the runway, there were noises that sounded like it come from the under carriage, clonking noises that almost sounded like a bang on a gong. These sounds would come up often, except no one on the plane seemed concern except for us. When we took off, we heard more sounds, like sand running off the front of the aircraft towards the back. This time we noticed surprised looks from other passengers. Long story short, we made it to Cairo safe and sound. Everything went smoothly until Martin had to go through passport control. Again, he was asked to step aside and after some Q&A on Liechtenstein, he was finally granted entry into Egypt.

Here is a link to our photos http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8CYtm7Fu5as10

When we stepped out of Cairo Airport, we were aggressively approached by taxi drivers, like flies attracted to horse manure. Surprisingly, even the Egyptian tourist information official appeared to be in collaboration with these hawkers. Kudos to Val who stood her ground and negotiated a 75 Egyptian Pounds (approximately $20) fare for what turned out to be the 1 hour ride of our lives to our hotel. If you have not heard about Cairo’s traffic, everything they say about it is true. We are just lucky to have made it here alive as there are absolutely no traffic rules. What is supposed to be a 3-lane road becomes a “wherever you can squeeze in and dodge other cars,” which translates to anywhere between 5 to 6-lanes of traffic. Every car has its nicks and dents. Cars were stalled left and right. They love to honk their horns, mostly to warn the men walking across the busy freeway. It is pure chaos and we’ve never seen anything like it before.

We have spent our days doing nothing much, except running small errands like picking up bottled water at the store, dodging the excessive amount of hawkers who continue to welcome us to Egypt while trying to sell us discount cards to their friend’s restaurant or tours of Egypt, and going into the bank to break our higher denominated currency into smaller denominations. Interestingly enough, one is to tip everyone here including the person who picks up your tray from your table at McDonald’s.

Today we braved Cairo and hired a private taxi from the hotel. We soon figured out that they all collaborate together and what was supposed to be a $50 day turned out to be a day where we spent a couple hundred dollars, considering horse rides around the Great Pyramids of Giza, entry fees, souvenirs and tips, tips, tips and more tips - lesson learned! Should you ever want to come to Cairo, make sure that you stick with a tour group arranged from your home country. We should not have ventured...only 1 more day till our tour starts with Gecko Adventures.

The Itinerary

It is finally here, the itinerary that Martin has been working on for the past year! Unfortunately (or fortunately) it is still open for some changes. For example, our travels throughout Europe and Asia are flexible - we know where we want to go, we just do not know what city we will be in on whatever day. Also, the around-the-world tickets have been booked and the places where we fly in and out of have been determined, but dates are flexible to change.

Here is what our adventure for the next 11 months will entail. Please let us know if you would like to join us in any part of this trip, we would love to have the company!

April - May: Middle East
7 Apr: Sydney to Dubai (via KL, Malaysia Air MH122 and MH30)
11 Apr: Dubai to Cairo (Egypt Air MS913)
14 - 26 Apr: Nile & Sinai Revealed Tour http://www.geckosadventures.com/Middle-East/Trip/Itinerary.html?trip=Nile-&-Sinai-Revealed-&tripid=3407
27 Apr - 31 May: Jordon and Turkey
31 May: Istanbul to Cairo (Egypt Air MS738)

June - August: Africa (various overland tours with Kumuka)

1 June: Cairo to Johannesburg (Kenyan Air KQ321 & KQ762)

2 - 19 June: South Africa Discoverer http://www.kumuka.com/South-Africa-Discoverer-Dossier.aspx

Countries visited: South Africa and Swaziland

21 June - 29 July: Cape to Equator http://www.kumuka.com/Cape-to-the-Equator-Dossier.aspx

Countries visited: S. Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania and Kenya

30 July - 6 Aug: Kilimanjaro Climb (Rongai Route) http://www.kumuka.com/Kilimanjaro-Climb-Rongai-Route-Dossier.aspx

Countries visited: Tanzania and Kenya

9 - 26 Aug: Kumuka Tour - Gorillas and Game http://www.kumuka.com/Gorillas-and-Game-Dossier.aspx

Countries visited: Uganda and possibly Rawanda (depending on where the gorillas are)

26 Aug - 9 Sept: Drive around Cape Town, S. Africa

September - October: Africa and Europe

1 - 9 Sept: Cape Town, S. Africa

10 Sept: Johannesburg to Amsterdam (KLM KL592)

11 Sept - 14 Oct: We will be travelling throughout Europe: Amsterdam, Belgium, London, Paris, Milan, Rome, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

October: Europe, Seattle, Tokyo and Nepal

1st weekend of Oct: tentative plans to attend Oktoberfest in Munich.

1st half of Oct: Travelling throughout Europe.

14 Oct: Amsterdam to Seattle (Northwest NW33)

18 Oct: Seattle to Tokyo (Northwest NW7)

22 Oct: Tokyo to Colombo (Sri Lanka Air UL461)

23 Oct: Colombo to Mumbai (Sri Lanka Air UL141)

November: Nepal and India

Travel around Kathmandu, Delhi and Mumbai

25 Nov: Mumbai to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia Air MH195)

26 Nov: tentative flight from KL to Bangkok

December to February 2010: S. E. Asia

Dec: Thailand and Laos

Jan: Cambodia and Vietnam

Feb: Vietnam and Malaysia

11 Feb: Kuala Lumpur to Sydney (Malaysia Air MH 123)

Last week of Feb: tentative 3-week campervan trip in New Zealand

We tentatively will start the second leg of our world trip in mid - March 2010. We plan on visiting Asia (China and Japan), come through the US to see you guys (Hawaii, SF and Vegas) then down to S. America.

Where did January and February go?

Thank you for visiting our blog.

We are still here in Sydney and are not due to fly out of here until 6 April. Time is going by very quickly. There is still furniture to sell, boxes to pack and ship and many friends to say goodbye to. It is hard to believe that we have lived in Australia for more than 2 years. We have both seen so much of this beautiful country, probably more than what we have seen in our own respective countries. And as much as we are looking forward to going on this "once in a lifetime" world trip, we will miss Australia.

We will try our best to keep this blog updated with tales of our adventures and lots of pics. Our first stop on the itinerary will be Dubai, followed by Egypt, Jordon and Turkey. Speak to you then!

Take care!