Three Countries, Three Days

An Egyptian mother and her son in the countryside.

To try and some up the last few days into a few short paragraphs is next to impossible, thankfully Nathan has been working full-time on the photo end of the blog and has some work to show off. We last left off in Cairo, where we saw the pyramids. Since then we have followed the route of the Israelites during the Exodus out of the Nile delta and into the Sinai desert. After a long bus ride with several stops at significant sites–Wells of Moses and the oasis of Elim–we arrived at Mt. Horeb. This is the proposed site of Mt. Sinai; where Moses received the ten commandments. 

Looking smashin' at 5am Kevin!

The church on top of Mt. Sanai.

We the ascended the mountain at 1:30 in the morning to capture the sunrise on Nathan's D7000. It was not fun to hike 3 hours by flashlight but by the time we had reached the top and took in the amazing view of the landscape those discomforts instantly faded. The rest of the day was a blur of monastery's, bus rides, and border crossings. After leaving the base of Mt. Sinai we travelled to the southern most tourist town of Jordan called Aqaba. 

After a pleasant stay in a three week old hotel we started begun another full day of site seeing. The lost city of Petra, aka Sela,  was on the agenda. This city of tombs is carved out of the rock faces it inhabits. If you have ever seen Indiana Jones: The Last Crusade you have see the most recognizable tomb at the site. As impressive as the mile long crevasse serving as the cities entrance is, Nathan and I found the hillside over looking of the valley gave a more complete picture. 

A chariot making its way down the road to Petra.

A portrait above the tombs. 

Finally after all this excitement we stayed over night in Amman, the capital of Jordan. The next day we awoke early to see Mt. Nebo, where Moses overlooked the promise land (Deut. 34). Unfortunately, crossing the Jordan river into Israel marked the end of the Arab country part of the tour, but it was an acceptable trade when we arrived at our hotel on the Mediterranean Sea. 

Now in Israel for the remanded of the trip I am able to look back on Egypt and Jordan and realize I must go back at some point in my life. The curse of travelling, the more places you see, the more you realize there are even more that must be seen. 

Well that is all for today, please excuse me as I go check out the sunsets on the Israeli coast. 

-Kevin