Nuweiba - Day Three...Still

After four hours of jeeping in the desert and hiking the Coloured Canyon, it was time to move on...as best as we could with our parched bodies and aching feet. Ahmed did the pass off with us to Mahmoud. We were smoothly transferred at the entrance to Nuweiba, a Bedouin town on the Gulf of Aqaba. Famous for it's fabulous shopping. I wouldn't quite use the word fabulous to describe the shopping conditions but, there were things that we managed to pick up at a bargain. Donna and I were very aware of the fact that Egyptian women on the streets, or in the shops, or in the hotel were non-existent. We did see a few out early in the morning walking to market or tend the goats. These photos were taken quickly from the car. Mahmoud said that they don't like to have their photos taken.

We were starving when we arrived. The hotel had packed a box lunch for us to take on the road. Mahmoud found this seaside restaurant that we could sit and eat. The breeze was magnificent and our lunch was, not so much. We each got a sandwich with one slice of cheese and another sandwich with what looked like a single two x one slice of beef jerky, maybe camel meat, who knows. It was undecipherable. There was a whole cucumber, a whole tomato, and a whole orange. Oh yeah and a bottle of water. We ate reluctantly dreaming of the dinner that we would have later at the hotel.

The jig is up Bush.

After we ate Donna and I took off for the strip mall. Dale decided to just sit and enjoy the ocean breeze. Not sure who had the best that Nuweiba could offer, him or us.

I bought more scarves. By now, I could practically open up my own scarf and pashmina shop.

Word spread that tourists were in town. The only tourists within miles were in town. And the little girls came up to see if we wanted to buy some of their jewelry. They carried little hobo bags filled with bead necklaces and bracelets. I wouldn't buy at first....the little shisters wanted 20 pounds per necklace. I KNOW. But their so cute, and so poor. I said, "lah, shookrahn", no thanks and cold heartedly walked away. I KNOW, I'm a sleazeball. By now, my bargaining skills are extraordinary. But, so were theirs. They followed me saying, in very broken English, "how much you want to pay". I looked at Mahmoud, he looked at me. I said, 10 pounds, that's it. We struck a bargain. I sat down in the dusty road and chose one necklace from each girl. They were happy, I was happy.

The pink sisters.

She was the more serious of the lot. Her necklaces were different than the others also.

She waited patiently for her cut.I barely could get up off of the dirt road at this point. It was really hot, did I mention that?? And, because of hiking the Coloured Canyon only an hour before every time my legs had a chance to rest they quit working all together. I left the girls with my necklaces and they left with my money. Donna and I continued to peruse that shops. When we were leaving the girls were sitting on the steps eating candy.

An Egyptian cat!

This was the end of our quick two days in the Sinai. We got out a few pounds heavier and a few pounds lighter.