Day 1: Mt. Sinai

What a busy few days. We left Cairo Sunday morning at 5 am, and began the journey across the Sinai. The Sinai trip was long, but not too bad and Amir did great. He slept for most of it, and though we were incredibly cramped in the bus we survived and made it to St. Catherine's, the oldest functioning monastery in the world located at the base of Mt. Sinai.

We had a little time to rest before our ascent up Mt. Sinai, which we began at the hottest part of the day. The hike was much, much more strenuous than I had pictured, so we made it part of the way then fell back and gave up (I was hot and overheated, and so was the baby) with the pregnant couple and the older women. We still were able to experience some beautiful views of the valley where the Israelites supposedly waited for Moses while he ascended Mt Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments. At first I was thinking the Sinai would be a miserable place to wander for forty years, but it actually was pleasant. The night cooled down considerably, and it even rained a little after we returned from our hike - we were ecstatic at the sight of precipitation, having not seen a drop ALL summer. The rain made everything smell pleasant and fresh. I forgot how much I love rain.

We stayed in little hovels located near the monastery. They weren't the poshest accommodations (bugs, no A/C, etc.) but they were quaint. After the rain we went outside in the wonderful evening lighting for a family photo shoot.