December 2006 Archives

My first YouTube submission - following darin through the terrain park at Silver Star (trying very hard not to bite it myself while boarding holding a camera). At least I'm getting better at riding switch.

I've uploaded the remainder of my favorite shots from the trip - this one being my favorite:

all national geographic-y
Link again to the whole set: http://flickr.com/photos/zackb/sets/72157594416867572/

Best bit about coming home - coming home to no power from massive wind storms. I notice some "hotels closed due to power outage" postings. Riding in the shuttle to my car the driver and the front passenger are discussing losing power. I turn to the guy to my left and say...
Me: What's with all of the power loss?
Him: (duh) from the storms.
Me: storms?
Him: You know, worst storms in 50 years... where have you been, Africa?
Me: Yes.
Him: Oh...

Classic.

This post is two posts. It was going to be titled "peeling back the layers" and talk all about my morning wandering the bazaars in cairo before all of the tourists showed up and getting lost where the real people shop. It was meant to document the fun I had trying to buy spices and canopus jars - I made a man say I was trying to do the impossible and that his children would hate him if he sold it to me for LE 100 but for LE 110 we can do business. Then being crammed in cheek by jowl in the back alleys where normal people buy normal things in unusual ways. Dolls? they come in three packs. Bras? root around in the pile-o-bras and find something that will work for you. It was really quite a nice time. All fun and cheery. Then, of course, the afternoon happens.

Now the post has a sub title. It is now: "Peeling back the layers: careful, you might not like what you find - or - oh jesus christ what just happened?".

It goes like this...

I've just had probably the most emotionally surreal experience (is that even a thing?) while traveling if not ever. So it works like this: Taxi drivers take you where you want to go, but they also try and take you to their shop, or their brothers shop, or their friends shop, whatever. I knew this, figured they got a few bucks, no biggie. I went to the papyrus store - the one I wanted to go to - by lying to the driver that I'd already bought it and was just picking it up so he'd stop trying to sell me on these other stores. He follows me into the store to wait while I pick it up when in actuallity I'm buying it. Now the screaming starts. They're all yelling in egyptian but I know it involves the fact that I just bought something. I leave the store, the driver is pissed, tells me that they end up getting about a 30% commission on any sales they bring and he's not getting it because he didn't say he'd brought me (see previous lie on my part). In and out of the store a few times. He's obviously upset, I imagine I would be too, he asks me to go back in and tell them he was the driver the first time I came (he wasn't) so he can get his money. I'm not keen on big lies, though I had previously lied about purchasing, so I go in and settle on telling ambiguous half truths (I was with a tour company, I think he was the driver). They don't buy it, or sort of don't, it's hard to tell - he tells me they do but the owner is a "bad man" (probably more lies). Driver is really pissed, we're leaving anyway and he's cursing the family of the shop owner (though not me, just sad I lied). We've previously talked of his daughter so this comes to my mind immediately. The average salery of working class comes to mind too and I realize I've probably just cost him anywhere from 1-10 days worth of income. Figuring my choices are to go to hell or try and rectify I hand him a bill. The man actually starts crying. He does a little... whatever, "sign of the cross" but for islam, over and over. Grabs my hand and kisses it. He's happy now, though this is less of a commission than he would have gotten if I'd just told the truth to begin with. We talk a lot now, he wishes blessings on my house, tells me to stay with his family the next time in egypt - no hotels for me. Gives me a CD of the singer that his daughter is named after (asala). Getting near my hotel he pulls to ask directions and the person he asks waves and smiles at me (turns out he works in the hotel) and the guy says I'm an angel in disguise. Personally I feel more like a tormenting devil since I've just put him through hell and back over what amounts to very little. Anyway, I've packed it all up now and am just wandering the streets and typing away.

The funny thing is, I don't even really know if I want the damn papyrus scroll any more. I mean, it's big and cool, not as swank as some of my other big souvineers, but it's got all of this history tied to it now. But is it good history? Is this a good story, blessings from above on his family and mine by proxy? a lesson to just tell the damn truth? or is it shitty that I put him through all of that and every time I see the scroll that's what I'll think of?

Okay, well, yeah. there you go, now you get to see what my last day in cairo is like :) Do I do full contact exploring or what?

Oh yes, plus there was getting extorted on the ride to the airport this morning, that was fun.

The general itinerary for this trip was cairo -> aswan -> luxor and then back to cairo on my own for two days. But that's just no fun, right? So I tagged along to the Red Sea for a day today to go scuba diving - yes, I am nice and sunburned - and will return to cairo tomorrow for some last minute fun in the bazaars.

One thing to note, however, is you must either 1) possess great faith or 2) not value your life all that much to join a desert convoy from luxor to Hargada (the sea side city I'm currently in). There isn't a speed limit - well there is, it's just ignored - but in a police escorted convoy the police enforce a certain "hurting along" to keep themselves amused (or at least one assumes). It's nice because they block off any intersections so we cruise through the few towns there are, but it also leaves the drivers of the various busses somewhat bored. They solve that problem by constantly overtaking eachother for no particular reason. We're riding in a tiny 8 person van, running about 4 inches behind a giant passanger coach and, in turn, have another coach riding right behind us. Our guide put it best when she said it's really best to not open your eyes for most of the journey.

But yes, here I am in the red sea and yes it is quite salty. Some bouyency problems for a few divers (too hard to sink) and generally an unremarkable dive but at least I can say I've done it.

The temple of Karnak back in Luxor was incredible, as was the valey of the kings. Too much history to put here, but just the thought of folks building 50 meter tall columns with basic machines at most is almost too massive an undertaking to believe. We rode donkeys out to the valley and donkeys apparently have three speeds: walking (comfortable), trotting (not), and gallup (comfortable again). Mine was stuck in trott. Then again I think my donkey didn't like me since he kept veering left into oncoming traffic. Every now and then they'd all break into a little race to see who could be out front, which was kind of fun, but most of the time they just stared at the ground and slowly moved us up the desert roads. But again, something I can now say I've done.

A few bits of amusement:

Jackie (the dark haired woman in the pictures) and Janine (the short haired blonde) had some sinus problems and needed to clean them up for diving today. Jackie hands out some pills and they both gulp them down. It's then that she notices the unopened box of sudafed and the now very open, rather empty, box of high power laxatives. Thankfully in the battle between Stop and Go apparently Imodium can win. It was fun to watch them run around though.

I now enjoy haggling quite a bit, and find the "fixed price" shops to be rather boring. Laughing at their first offer, walking out of the store or cab, and putting together "package deals" seem to be the most effective tools for me so far.

The hot water should now be back on ("only 5 minutes" has been easily 30) so off to catch a quick evening shower before a 4:00am wakeup call tomorrow.

Just a quick post because this keyboard doesn't like the letters T, C or F (and I'm quite fond of them). A quick smattering of pictures:
http://flickr.com/photos/zackb/sets/72157594416867572/

I'm sitting in an internet cafe that is quite litterally a hole in a wall. They've managed to wedge three computers in here but you have to duck under and then step over the various cables and wires to get to a place to sit. After haggling for a good rate, well, here I am.

The luggage finally arrived, it'll be a while until I wear that shirt again :) It was interesting to listen to the depths of lies that the company responsible for getting it to me would go to to avoid being in any way responsible for the delay. The "field rep" just stopped answering our guide's calls. We had someone else call from a different number, they answered, as soon as he said "luggage" they hung up and switched off their mobile. The "home office" said they phoned the tour company in cairo (where it doesn't exist) and talked to the boss (who also doesn't exist) and had sent the luggage on to Luxor. Eventually they caved and gave me my clothes, but with now only 6 days on the tour left I've definiately packed too much :) My guide is a little bored now though, she doesn't have anything to hunt down any more.

Bribery and corruption are pretty much the name of the game here, but thankfully the cost of living is so low that you don't really notice it. Our guide got us into the temple of Horus a half hour early for the equivalent of about $4. Not bad really. The temple was spectactular (no photos just yet, see previous comment about state of cafe), anti chamber after anti chamber, walls covered in battles of gods, it was a truly awe inspiring place to spend the morning. Plus I got yelled at by guards again for hugging Horris. Apparently the hawk god isn't really that affectionate.

Abu Simbel, another temple less spectacular than horus but more well known since it was moved by hand up the side of a mountain so as not to be burried under the flood waters the new nile dam brought, well Abu Simbel was reallly more eclipsed by the well oiled machine that is Egypt Air. Set off the metal detector? just come on through, there's a long line. Have a ticket for a different flight? well you have a ticket so that's good enough, come on board. I kind of wish security at Sea-Tac were that easy to get through.

Other things from my notes (not necessarily in chronological order)

A group of tourists walk along the pier by our boat, one is dressed in full traditional egyptian garb. Not unusual. Smoking and wearing deeply tinted sunglasses - still not far from the norm. Sporting a classic full Mullet. A little different.

If you want to be a drug addict, prescription drugs at least, come here. Vicodin is an over the counter medication. While stopping in to a chemist to buy some sun screen a man in a black leather jacket walks in and surruptitiously hands a blue post it note to the man behind the counter. I glance and see a word that is six letters long, starts with a capital V and has a G in it. I work out he's buying Viagra, which isn't hard to do since he's standing right underneith a rotating oversized box of it advertising the wonders to the world.

I have a harram and apparently a well deserved one. Since everyone else in my tour group are women, whenever we're all in a bazaar and they stop at a shop one of the peddlers will invariably come up to me and say, "you have three women? very nice. you are very good my friend". So far I have done nothing to correct this impression.

If you ever are offered the chance to be bathed with hybiscus oils... well yeah, you should probably do that. However, if your bathing choices of the day are, say, Comet or "Gentle Breeze Hybiscus scented soap" (which, in point of fact, smells like hubba-bubba bubble gum) - go with the comet. That smell does not leave you for a LONG time.

Everyone is selling something. While I sit on our boat waiting for those who elected to travel by bus to return I see a man pushing along a cardboard box full of small appliance boxes. He stops and talks to a guard outside of our boat, the guard is apparently interested in a stereo. At this point the chef comes trundling out from below decks and starts inspecting a toaster oven. A crowd of about 7 people forms and eventually one man buys a blender. They disperse and the first man continues pushing his box of goods down the pier.

That's it for now, we're docked in Esna since the locks are closed and will make our way by bus to Luxor tomorrow. There the temple of Karnak, a trip to the valley of the kings, and one of the oldest and largest bazaars outside of cario where I've been told if I'm diligent I can find cursed artifacts though unfortunately no monkey paws (they're only in turkey).

Lets do the roundup thing, it's always fun. Landing in london was a little bumpy - turns out a tornado either touched down or very nearly did in the heart of london. The tall lanky egyptian man in front of my did not handle this news so well, doubled over, clenching himself and rocking slowly back and forth. Eventually we land and wait. Wait for 20 minutes to be told that the plane that is at our gate is not going to be moving any time soon so we head off to a "free standing" terminal. Another 20 for the stairs to show up, 20 more for the busses to take us to the real terminal and my nice leasurly layover in London is now down to 15 minutes. Hooray, I make my flight!

My luggage, however, gets to visit Turkey. I'm currently on Day 4 of this black t-shirt. Thank goodness it's the quick drying kind and I had a spare set of socks and boxers in my backpack so i can at last cycle those while they dry. The sink that does't drain means I get to wash them in the shower, which means EVERYTHING gets wet. At least I'm still laughing. Huge nod to the parents that taught me travel with spares though.

But on to more amusing things...

When you hear someone speaking french don't say "I speak a little french" if that is, in fact, ALL the french you speak. Nod, nod, laugh politely, hope I haven't just agreed to something horrible. Likewise, when trying to dodge pushy suvineer salesmen you may think it's a good idea to just answer in german - you would be wrong. You'ld think someone who could speak 5 languages could do better than hauking postcards at the pyramids.

Speaking of the pyramids, they freaking HUGE. You really don't have any sense of scale until you get up next to them. we missed out on visiting the burial chamber of the great pyramid but did get to go into the chamber of the second (middle) one. All in all kind of unremarkable until everyone else leaves and you grab a quick lay down in the carcophogus. Thousands of years empty and it's still creepy as hell.

Back outside the haukers have recuited their younger proteges to be cute and amusing and grab the occasional feel from the three female companions (oh yes, did i mention, the group is only 4 people in size?). I move from being amusing male distraction to bodyguard and bouncer. Pastey white guy is less funny when he grabs you and moves you away but at last the point got across. i am now the official "husband" for the group whenever an excuse is needed :)

We visit the Papyrus institute which is like every other institute on these travels, a quick show and then a bid to get you to buy their stuff. Some of it is beautiful, a lot of it is tacky, and the one showing two grown men smiling while they're circumsized is a little disturbing.

The taxi drives around make me think of rome - lanes and traffic lights are more just an unobtrusive suggestion rather than any kind of "law". Flashing lights are substituted for horns though so it is a somewhat quieter journey. I really wish i understood more egyptian since when a smaller car tried to cut us off he started with rude hand gestures then rolled down his window and started screaming. Our driver starts screaming. then they seem to take turns, having a screaming conversation. finally they both laugh hartily and wave goodbye and we part ways. Strange conventions indeed.

So now I'm in Aswan trying to find socks until my luggage hopefully arrives tomorrow. The 14 hour train ride here really showed a lot of the poverty of the second class citizens in the country though. huts built on top of huts like huge lego appartment buildings (a few have empty floors for future expansion) the bricks falling through and no on caring. Donkeys and farmers alike site and watch as our train slowly trundles past. I wish I could have gotten a picture or two that did it justice but no such luck.

Tomorrow is Abu Simbel - I elected for the 30 minute flight rather than the 6 hour police convoy of busses - then sailing down the nile. provided I have clothes at that point it should be quite enjoyable.

No pictures right nw since my card reader is one of the things still in my luggage, making its merry way around europe.

I take off in a little over 6 hours for cairo - a fun little 18 hour jaunt in my favored method of transportation and I'll get to see one of the original 7 wonders of the world (yeah that's right "new wonders", I'm looking at you). I'm looking over my documentation and I keep thinking I'm going to be so screwed when it comes to haggling. They'll invite you in for tea and then the screaming starts - all with numbers I can't read. I'm actually sort of looking forward to it.

There are supposed to be an abundance of internet cafes, and what with the recent conversion to all digital I'm hoping to be able to post some fun shots. Of course finding an internet cafe with a keyboard that isn't covered in hieroglyphics may be the harder challenge, we'll see.