Escape to Siwa Oasis

We thanked our hostel receptionists for all of their help although I was still bitter with them for screwing us over on the first night. We managed to get a cab to the bus station for a pretty good deal although it was not the station we had picked our tickets up from. This one was a ways away from the mall on the side of the road. The cabbie insisted that it was the correct bus station but we were so confused. Other people waiting for buses and the ticket counter man assured us that our bus to Mersa Matruh was coming to this stop. We agreed to stay and paid the cabbie.

Our bus was on time and we were on our way to Mersa Matruh around 10am. The ride was 5 hours long and once we got to Mersa Matruh we had to get on a different bus to get to Siwa. I couldn’t help but cringe as we passed the pyramids as we drove by. Damn you Mohammad and Mahmud! The entire drive was pretty boring but I couldn’t believe all of the construction going on outside of the city. It looked like condos and resorts were going up everywhere. There would be random blocks of fancy looking condos with lawns and ponds out in the middle of the desert.

Once we were in Mersah Matruh we had about two hours to kill before we had to board our final bus to Siwa so we talked a cabbie down to take us to the beach and come back for us after an hour so we could get lunch and then bring us back to the bus station. The beach was amazing! We had no expectations coming into the city and had no idea how white the sands were and how blue the water was. It was a treat indeed. We sat and read for a while and Ramsey and I went for a swim. The water was the perfect temperature.

It was tempting to stay in Mersah Matruh instead of going to Siwa but when our cabbie showed up we decided we would get back to the bus station. We bought some falafel and ful before going back to the bus station. I love Mediterranean food! It is simple and so delicious. My new favorite. We found a spot on the curb away from the local people so they didn’t have to watch us eat. We were trying to be respectful since it was Ramadan and they couldn’t eat.

It was well passed dark when we arrived in Siwa. It was nothing like I imagined it to be. Considering it was an oasis I had the image of palm trees, springs, and little huts everywhere, but Siwa is basically a small city. All the buildings and paved roads were a surprise to me. We got directions to a hostel and walked. It was about one kilometer from the bus stop to the Cleopatra Hotel and was well worth the walk. It was very cheap only costing us 30EP for all three of us for three beds and our own bathroom. We got showered up and went for a walk to the souq.

We found a small restaurant that seemed like it would suit our fancies. We met some nice travelers at the restaurant as well. There was Jimmy and Jan who were from the U.K. traveling with some friends through Egypt . They had been to Egypt a few times and said that Alexandria was their favorite places. There was also Lisa who was our age and lived near Rossendale. She was amazed that we had been to Helmshore and stayed for so long. She was traveling with a friend but she was back at their hotel to rest after their day's safari. There was also Mario. Oh Mario. He appeared to be a cool guy on the surface. He was from Australia and a doctor. He was traveling through Egypt with his Egyptian mother. We talked with him at the restaurant for a while and said farewell after we were getting antsy to move elsewhere.

We found a spot in the souq to sit and smoke sheesha and enjoy the night atmosphere. We attempted dominoes as well but couldn’t remember the correct way to play that damn game. Mario showed up within 15 minutes of us sitting down and joined us. He declared that it was rude to not offer sheesha to someone who you invite to sit with you. I was annoyed by this because he had literally just sat down and we didn’t even invite him. We gave him some anyways.

We began talking about how we wanted to take a desert safari but we hadn’t looked yet. Mario said he had talked to a couple guys about it and was able to negotiate 800EP for a two day safari. We came up with a game plan and decide we would talk to the guides Mario had already spoken with and Mario would go talk to another guide he hadn’t seen yet. The first guy was a s alt carver, who took salt blocks from the salt flats and made figurines, bowls, etc… and sold them in his shop. He was missing an eye as well which was a little disturbing to look at but he was a very nice man. He wanted to charge us 800 EP and no less for a full day out and one night in the desert. We would get to see the Shiata salt lake, the Roman tombs, the world’s oldest footprint, cold spring, hot spring, Bir Wahed lake, on old coral bed fossils in the middle of the desert. It sounded pretty good but we wanted to way al of our options first.

We then went to Mohammads shop. I took a liking to this guy right away. He was only 24 years old but had been giving tours for a while. He had his own tour company, his own shop, and his own restaurant, although it wasn’t open yet. He even showed us the restaurant after we got to talking with him for a bit. It was an awesome place with palm trees and sand everywhere and several small tables and cushions for the customers to sit on. Mohammad showed us how to shake a palm tree and collect the dates. Ramsey and I caught a few in our shirts and then walked with our guide back to the shop. He said he would give us the same tour for 600EP for the four of us. We were happy.

When Mario showed up though things got intense. Mario couldn’t believe that we talked Mohammad down that much. He said he was concerned about the knowledge that Mohammad had about the sites we would be seeing. He wanted to have the most educated guide there was. Mario had a discussion with Mohammad in Arabic (Mario knew Arabic from his mother) even though we couldn’t understand Arabic. Mario was seething with arrogance. Mohammad told him twice to speak in English since we didn’t know Arabic but Mario insisted on playing translator for us. I thought it was extremely rude. Mohammad eventually got mad enough that he said he would not do the tour because of Mario. We were real annoyed. Mario told us we could still do the tour with the other guide for the same price which we wanted to do anyway. We told him we would discus t in the morning and waved him off as he went to the hotel.

Mohammad was pissed but not at us. He offered to take us out into the desert for a good look at the stars and to just sit in peace for a bit. We were ecstatic. He was so nice to us there was no way we could turn him down. He told us we would individually pay the same price as if there were four people going on the tour, if we told Mario not to come. He would not be in the same vehicle with such a bad guy. We didn’t like Mario that much anyway so that was fine with us. The desert was amazing at night. Everything seemed so muted and so clean. The sand was like a warm comfortable cushion beneath us and we laid out under the brilliant night sky for hours. We talked with Mohammad about his childhood and about where we come from. It was an awesome night. I could wait to see the desert in the daylight. Mohammad dropped us off at the hotel and said he would be by around 9am to pick up our passports and that we should meet him at the shop around 10am. It was already 3am at this point so we went straight to bed.