The Egyptian Red Sea

Happy Thanksgiving!

Chloe and I are back in Cairo, once being hosted by the most awesome Paul and Katheen. Not only that, but we are cooking a good ole American T-Day meal, complete with butterball turkey and pumpkin pie. How lucky are we?!?! What a great way to close out our time in Egpyt; tomorrow we fly to Athens!

We spent the last week in Dahab, on the Sanai Peninsula. It's a laid back tourist town known for it's world class diving and relaxation. Can't say we have a ton of stories to tell, as took it real easy. You known you have a tough life when the biggest decision of the day is whether you will lay around at the pool, or along the rocky beach:

On our 3rd day, when we thought we might actually break our fast from doing...anything...and go snorkeling  Dahab was hit with a crazy hail storm! Apparently it only happens like once every 4-5 years. There were hail stones the size of ice cubes falling from the sky, and rain that pelted the arid land. So much rain fell so quickly there was flash flooding all over town. Being so arid, buildings really aren't prepared for rain, and we had water coming in through the ceiling to our room and the stairs in the hotel were flowing like a creek. As Chloe put it, it felt like we were on the Titanic as it was going down. Once the skies cleared however, the floodwaters were beautiful.

But do not worry, the next day provided the best snorkling I've ever seen at the Blue Hole dive site.

Into the Red Sea we go....

More snorkeling awaited the next day

It was crazy being in such a seemingly barren landscape on land, and how much life was revealed immediately upon entering the water. It was indeed a whole new world.

Just about 1 week to go!

Much love,
Matt

Egypt and the Nile: Luring tourists for thousands of years

Greetings from the land of Pyramids, Pharaohs, never ending sun, and of course touts,

We have completed our journey up and back along the Nile, a tourist track that has been followed since the Greeks first infiltrated this land in the waning years BC. It is an interesting feeling to be around things that are so old. In our culture, when we think of things that are old or historical we think on the order of hundreds of years. Everything is an order of magnitude grander in Egypt, as most sights are many thousands of years old. Not only that, but they are incredibly unguarded and accessible. The liberty bell in Philly is a couple hundred years old and behind protective glass casing, in a locked down building, etc. But here, we are able (but try to resist the urge) to get right up next to walls and run our hands along hieroglyphics that were chiseled by hand over 5000 years ago. Peering with our own eyes, not just in a textbook, so far back into our human history is a very foreign and cool feeling.

Despite our fears, largely fueled by the western media's tendency to sensationalize any fear or unrest in the Middle East, Egypt has been most welcoming and in all our experience, quite safe. In truth, the biggest problem has been fending off the touts. They are everywhere. "Come into my shop, looking is free! I make you good price, special price, just for you. Let me help you spend your money." They can be quite cleaver, doing whatever they can to get your attention. My favorite, yet most creepy... "Hey mustache! I knew you would come by my shop, I dreamed of you!"  Although both Clo and I agree that they are easier to deal with here than elsewhere in our travels. Perhaps it's the truth or perhaps we have just grown used to it along our journey.

Our introduction to Egypt was made much easier and pleasant thanks to the incredible hospitality of Paul and Kathleen, ex-pats living in Cairo and working with US AID whom Chloe made connection with before we came. It was so great to get the perspective and help of locals who know the city. From giving us tips on where to eat and how to getting around, to hooking us up with a trusted and honest guide for the pyramids, they were invaluable. Certainly helped dissipate our fears of danger and get us in a better mindset for our travels.

We spent 4 days in Cairo, first visiting the Grand Egyptian Museum, The place is huge and is by far the most unorganized and least protected museum I've seen. Rooms and rooms just packed full of antiquities, few marked or explained and most all readily touchable. I gawked and marveled as I touched pyramid capstones, examined incredible statues and inscriptions from just inches away, and was blown away by the treasures of King Tut. Despite the lack of protection, cameras are not allowed, so I have no pictures to share but the memories will suffice.

My personal Cairo highlight however, was our full day tour of the "pyramid trifecta," emcompassing a variety of pryamid types. While the pyramids at Giza are the most famous and well known (and therefore chocked full of tourists) there are 2 other incredible pyramid complexes near Cairo. Our first visit was to Dashur, and its Bent and Red Pyramids. The Bent Pyramid was one of the first large smooth-sided pyramids to be built and provided the learning blue print for the famous Giza complex. Built by the Pharaoh Sneferu, and begun at an angle of 54 degrees, the Bent Pyramid became unstable as it went up, and thus the upper portion was finished at an angle of 43 degrees. (Notice Chloe, very small, in the foreground)

 

After this pyramid, all smooth-sided ones were built using the proven 43 degree angle. Also built by Sneferu and next to the Bent, is the Red Pyramid, the first to use the 43 degree mark. Although not particularly stunning itself, we were allowed to go deep inside and check out the burial chamber. We were lucky enough to be there early in the AM and thus were the only ones inside. Very cool and surreal! Also included in our tour was the complex of Saqqara, where the Step Pyramid was built. Before the advancement of smooth-sided pyramids, most all were built in "steps" like this. (pyramid being restored)

Also in Saqqara we went into some tombs of nobles and priests.

Last but certainly not least, we headed back to Cairo's Giza neighborhood/area to see the most famous of them all.

Although a very touristy and goofy thing to do...camels were indeed ridden. 

Otherwise our time in Cairo was spent checking out different neighborhoods  and getting our bearings. A mosque in Islamic Cairo:

We took an overnight train up the Nile and moved onto the fabled land of Luxor. On the East Bank we visited the Temples of Luxor and Karnak, and on the west bank the Valley of Kings (again no pics allowed), Temple of Medinat Habu, and Temple of Hatshepsut (pictured).

After a couple days we caught another train and continued up the Nile to Aswan. In Aswan, a 4am departure time (required to join a mandatory police lead convoy, never found out exactly why) had us on the road to visit the very large temple of Abu Simbel. It was built by the great Ramses III in praise of himself and to warn all those traveling into Egypt from Nubia (modern day Sudan-ish) of his power and might. It is quite remarkable, as the entire temple was dismantled, moved and rebuilt in the late 60s as the rising waters of the artificial Lake Nassar, created by the High Aswan Dam, would have submerged the temple at its original location.

We also visited the similarly rebuilt/relocated Temple of Philae, located on an island, built in honor of the god Isis. We got pretty templed out, and to relax and reset we hopped on a 3 day, 2 night sail boat trip down the Nile aboard a felluca (traditional Egyptian sailboat). With little current we zig-zagged back and forth, tacking from bank to bank to harness the winds which inconveniently blow in the opposite direction.

Easy days, an interesting group of shipmates, and nights sleeping out aboard the boat provided the R&R required to...you guessed it, see more temples on the way back to Luxor: Kom Ombo and Edfu.

Typical temple reliefs:

All and all traveling up and down the Nile was a great experience. Being "tired" of all the sightseeing (tough life, I know) Chloe and I have made it to the Red Sea resort town of Dahab, on the south eastern Sanai. Here we will take it easy, relax and check out some of the worlds best snorkeling before our return to Cairo and our final destination, Greece.

Best wishes to all friends and family back home.  Belated Happy Birthday wishes to my uncle Wally, and upcoming to my aunts Christine and Shelia. Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, eat lots of Turkey for us!

Home in just about 2 weeks,

Matt

Madagascar - The Highs and Lows of "Don't You Wish You Were Me?"

Salama to all my friends and family out there!

So so sorry for the lack and delay in blogging. The internet situation in Madagascar is pretty rough, and when rarely available it's quite slow. But anywho, here is what Chloe and I have been up to in the last 3-ish weeks. 

So the first thing to say about Madagascar is it's quite a large island, and the infrastructure is quite poor. Before French colonization, a Malagasy King had proclaimed, "If I make roads, the white man will only come and take my country. I have two allies: forest and fever" And the French didn't much help...Distances between sites are large, roads in poor condition and it takes days to travel between them. Chloe and I had much to see on our list and thus were forced into a quicker travel pace. Coupled with our lack of local language skills (the native Malagasy, or French from colonization), and the locals constant attempts to rip us off (although I do understand as most are very very poor), our experience was at times pretty stressful. However, once reaching our goals and destinations, the sights were simply awesome. 

After just a couple nights in the capital of Antananarivo, we set out on a 8 day journey by car, mini-bus, pirogue boat, 4x4 and foot with the eventual destination of the Tsingy de Bemaraha. On the way to the River Tsiribihina we passed through typical Madagascar landscapes of rise fields.

We spent 3 days and 2 nights navigating the clay ridden waters of the River Tsiribihina, with hot days in the sun interspersed with an impressive waterfall grotto, and nights camping on giant river sand beaches. 

Our tour group was quite diverse, with 3 Frenchman, and a couple from Spain. Oddly enough, the most common language between the group members was Spanish. So throughout the 8 day trip I was able to exercise my Spanish skills in order to communicate with the others. It was super cool to get the foreign language experience although I don't speak any of the tongues native to Madagascar. The Frenchman who spoke Spanish and acted as language liaison to the 2 others from France, Danielle, was quite a character  Only after 5 days spent together did he reveal that he does all the French voice overs/dubbing for Liam Neelson in American flicks, crazy!

Upon leaving the river we were taken by Zebu (oxen) cart

  and then 4x4 to what was called a "Ferry" but was nothing more than a couple boats attached via cross planks

but somehow, some way it got us to our destination: the Tsingy de Bemaraha! Tsingy is used to describe the  formations that were left after the seas receded from Madagascar and acid rain has eroded these incredible limestone pinnacles. We spent a full day exploring all the sights within both the Grand and Little Tsingy. 

Our journey to western Madagascar ended with a trip down the Avenue de Baobabs. The Baobab tree is known for it's ability to grow very old and hold large amounts of water in its truck to endure long droughts.Local folk lore describes how when god made the baobab, he planed it upside down. While the baobab is not endemic to Madagascar, they do have some of the most impressive examples.

After a very long and trying journey via public and what was supposed to be "private" transport, Chloe and I made it to the distant and impressive Andringitra National Park. Andringitra sits along the mountainous backbone of Madagascar and is dominated by its large granite massifs and sacred waterfalls. We did 3 days of trekking through areas named "moonscape" in the Malagasy language.

I was interested to learn, that while we were not in the complete southern end of Madagascar we were darn close; and that if you don't include some very tiny islands out in the Indian ocean, the south of Madagascar represents the 'antipode' of the US northwest. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antipodes) In short, Andringitra was nearly as far away from home as we could possibly be, and the vibe and energy there reflected that as it felt very foreign and mystical.

Another very long journey via public transport brought us to the east of Madagascar where we went to visit Peace Corp volunteer named James living on the edge of a forest reserve. James was a fantastic host and friend to us. We got to eat with his local villagers and get a tour of the forest where we came face to face with the largest of the lemurs, the Indri. 

So that brought us to our final chapter of Madagascar and the name of this post. I know she'll be embarrassed but...years ago, when she was just a kid, my sister was all dressed up for a formal occasion, complete with poofy dress and earrings. When she emerged from her room fully decked out, she twirled around and muttered the phase  "don't you wish you were me?" Our family still finds this quite funny. 

This phrase became the spoiled motto of our last days in Madagascar. To finish off our time there, Chloe and I splurged and made it to the Isle de St. Marie and its tiny sister island with no cars and only reachable by boat, Nosy Nato. Now we had thought Zanzibar was great, this just may have topped it. More tropical, more untouched, and a serious dream experience. We rented a scooter to explore Marie, discovered remote beaches, circumnavigated Nosy Nato on foot, swam, snorkeled, relaxed, had a fantastic Halloween with no semblance of the American holiday, and simply enjoyed ourselves. We joked for 4 days, "don't you wish you were me?"

 If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend going. 

Thanks so much for reading and keeping up with our travels. We wish everyone back home the best. I hope to provide an update on our initial adventures in Egypt very soon (the pyramids are huge and the Sphinx isn't!). 

Happy trails,

Matt

Tanzania – Pole Pole….Fresh

Jambo! Welcome to the land of the Lion King, where we see Simba, Mufasa, Rafiki, Nala, Puma and people really say Asante Sana (thank you very much), Hakuna Mata (no problems), and rafiki actually means friend. Few things have a set price and bargaining is the norm, you drive on the left side of the road with little care or restraint, and you frequently get called out for being white skinned (interesting to also be a definitive minority).

It’s barely been three weeks but feels like so much more. We have been to and seen quite a lot. The trip was almost too good to believe at first.

I arrived a true fresh-off-the boat mzungu (white person), jet lagged and far from fully functional but very happy to see the one and only Chloe Ross. I can’t say that my first hours experiencing Africa was exactly overwhelming, but it was certainly a lot to be taking in all at once. Some quick decisions had Chloe, her good friend and fellow Peace Corp volunteer, Kara and I on the ferry to the striking island of Zanzibar.

We spent time in Stone Town, Zanzibar exploring its old streets, markets and House of Wonders Museum. We spent nights on beachside restaurants watching the sunset, traditional dhow boats in motion.

We went on a very cool spice tour to learn all about how different spices and fruits are gown and cultivated, complete with delicious tastings.

However it was our trip to the east coast of Zanzibar that was truly a dream-like experience. The town of Peja provided the idyllic beach experience that only seems to exist in a post card.

Huge shallow tides provided kilometers of walking through waist deep waters dispersed with reef life.

We ate, we drank, we were most merry. We danced late into the night at both a beach disco just a stone’s throw from the water, and at a local hang out. It was very cool to visit a village house to learn to cook a traditionally Swahili meal, complete with breaking coconuts to mix into the rice and curry. The experience was so good it never quite seemed real. Our first afternoon I held the biggest shit-eating grin on my face…”This doesn’t suck.”

It did eventually come to an end, as we returned to my arrival point of Dar Es Salaam, bidding goodbye to our travel group. Kara to return to her Peace Corp post in northern Malawi, and the other Peace Corp friends of Allegra, Ben, Matt and Allison to Kenya. The allure of Zanzibar life was missed, but awesomely transistioned into a visit to Mr. Shea Patrick in Dar. Chloe and I crashed at Shea’s JVI (Jesuit Volunteers International) community house, and it was so great to see and spend time with Shea! The Seattle community is eager for his return!

Chloe and I moved on to the northeast of Tanzania and spent days in the Usambara mountains. We went trekking through mountain villages, jungles and landscapes. Camping on the cliffs overlooking north central Tanzania’s Maisai Steppes was certainly a highlight. Chloe harnesses the sunset:

Adventuring on, Clo and I made it to the town of Moshi and the slopes of the roof of Africa, Mt. Kilimanjaro. It’s pretty much always in the clouds so you almost don’t know it is there. Unfortunately the only hour the mountain came into view I did not have my camera, but I can confirm that it is indeed a very large mountain. Visiting the mountain village of Marangu had us exploring villages, markets, caves, tribal museums, and waterfalls.

Leaving promptly at 5am the journey was on, safari to the parks of Tarangire, Ngorongoro Carter, and the legendary Serengeti. It was a once in a lifetime experience, and certainly provided everything you would expect it to: animals galore in variety and abundance, never ending landscapes, and a sense of wild. Although truth be told, the budget safari experience got the job done but didn’t leave me crying for more. Our Spanish friends and safari partners, Jose and Lucia, and our guide Osman (with our muffler…)

But I am most thankful to have seen some amazing sights.

In the Masai language, Siringet means the land that doesn’t end, and you can see why. It goes on forever, but still manages to hold some amazing wildlife even now in the dry season.

After these wonderful Tanzanian adventures we are off to an even more mystical land, the giant island of Madagascar. We hope all are well back home and know that you are in our thoughts.

Wishing you Safari Njema, good journey,

Matt

Summer Endings and a New (York City) Beginning

Thanks to you for coming to check out my blog. I'll do my what I can to keep it updated as best as possible with the highlights of our African Adventure!

As I embark on this trip, the summer is now officially over. I want to thank all of those who helped make the best moments what they were. From the Middle Fork Salmon and time on the Oregon Coast, to rocking out at Lollapalooza, it was a good summer indeed. With graduate school sorta kinda almost over/taking a "sabbatical"....I'm just about on my way to Africa and a brand new adventure. 

I've been in New York City enjoying time with family and friends and spending my last days in the good ole USA. Many thanks to my Aunt Christine, who helped me greatly with last minute logistics and needs. 

Having visited numerous times as a kid, I have enjoyed experiencing NYC as an "adult." So much food, fun bars and things to see and do. 

 The nosebleeds of the New Yankees Stadium


On our 3rd try, Mary and I won the lottery to get $30 tickets for Front row center! seats to the Broadway show Book of Mormon! Great show, good times!

Until the African continent....

Matt