I left Jordan’s Wadi Rum and immediately met two French cyclists, Jean-Marie and Jean-Francois. They rode from France to Jordan via the Adriatic then through Turkey. They were also headed to Egypt. One big difference–they were also rock climbing, so they had all their climbing gear with them. I could not imagine. Anyway, we rode together to Aqaba. Their web site (in French) is:

http://jmmeuret.unblog.fr/

They have some excellent photos too.

The next day we took the ferry to Nuweiba in Egypt. Advertised as a one hour trip, it basically took all day. We left late and by the time we disembarked  and got through immigration it was almost dark. See the map for my route.

I met yet another cyclist on the boat, an Italian guy named Marco who was cycling around the Mediterranean. We ended up in Nuweiba at the same camp so we spent a few days hanging out together. It was cool. He has a great job–he runs a training center for bicycle racers for six months in the summer, then takes the next six months off to travel. He is extremely fit, despite being a smoker.

The camps at Nuweiba are just great. You get a small hut with a mattress and pillow. The hut has a light bulb. That’s it. But it is only $5 with breakfast included. You are right on the beach. I spent four days just lazing around.

Some views of the beach at Nuweiba. Highly recommended. I stayed at a place called Soft beach.

Here is Marco and his bike outside his hut.

A couple Bedouin kids stopped by every day to sell their crafts. I could not resist buying  several bracelets.

After Nuweiba I rode south around the Sinai peninsula, encountering some tough hills along the way. As I turned the corner north I was also hit with a ferocious head wind. The wicked wind of the north, I called it. For three days I battled the wind, barely making 10 kph. Finally I gave up. At the rate I was going I would never make Cairo in time to meet my sister on the 15th. I took a bus for two hours. It was amazing: just sitting there relaxed while we sped by at 80 kph. It would have taken me three days to cover the same distance.

A town in south Sinai. Where I come from you have stray dogs or cats scrounging around dumpsters. In Egypt you have camels.

Sunset over the Red Sea. Are you sick of the sunset pix yet? I have more.

Campsite, western Sinai.

The road north, western Sinai.

The Suez Canal. I must admit I was a little disappointed. It really ain’t all that.

Next stop: Cairo and the pyramids.