Well, I’m excited. Finally, after several attempts, I think I’m actually going to be able to post. I’ve typed up and then lost many posts in the last several days, so here’s hoping this one will get published!
So – in case anyone was wondering :D, it is possible to cross Egypt in 8 days by bicycle. We left Cairo on Jan. 14 in a convoy, and 9 days, 8 of which were cycling, we arrived in Aswan. Total distance pedalled in Egypt was about 970 kms.
My last post was about the frustrations, and well, dangers of cycling through Egypt. Apparently the rock throwing wasn’t a problem last year, so I presume it has something to do with the revolution of last year.Anyway, a few of us cycled with a Canadian woman who is a teacher living and working in Cairo. She speaks some Arabic, and her strategy was that, as soon as she saw a group of kids ahead who had rocks in their hands, she would slow down and engage them in conversation, i.e., “What’s up?” and “good morning (sabal el kheir).” They would put their rocks down and smile and respond.
Once we figured this out, we were able to continue on without incident, and it actually turned out to be quite a nice experience. All of the villagers were friendly, shouting out Welcome! and Hello!! as we passed.
Before I lose this post as well, I’ll publish it & start another one – stay tuned for the adventures of crossing Lake Nasser into Sudan!
NolaOn2Wheels 