A couple of
kilometers north of Suez, we take the heavily guarded Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel
underneath the Suez Canal. The traffic passes in single file through its gaping
mouth and as we follow, we are starting to grasp the reality that we are saying
goodbye to Africa.
On the
other side we find ourselves in Sinai Desert. Apart from a few trucks and a
number of nearly unoccupied cars – with goods stacked so high on top of the
roof that we cannot help but wonder if they’re smuggling to/from the Gaza Strip
– we are on our own, with now sandy and then rocky landscapes bordering the
road. It’s very palpable that this is still a sensitive region, witness of
which are the signposts declaring “road forbidden for foreigners” and the
prominent military presence. About forty kilometers before Taba border we turn
right towards Nuweiba, a port town on the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba, and
continue along the winding mountain road until long after dark.
But then we
have some more serious business to attend to: exiting one country and entering
the next. This border crossing will prove by far the worst on this trip, taking
a gruesome 9 hours to complete. From the outside, the Egyptian side of the
border looked more like a holiday resort than a government facility, but some
of the customs officers had taken the holiday spirit all too literally. The
Israeli personnel was very polite, professional and even friendly, but scanning,
unpacking and rummaging through our luggage, questioning Nicolaas on his
private life and business in Sudan and preparing our very expensive insurance
papers kept us waiting for a very, very long time! By midnight we arrive at our
hotel in the resort town of Eilat.
To be
honest, we didn’t expect to like Israel at first sight as much as we did. But
as it turns out, it is a very welcoming country and undeniably a part of the
civilized world as we know it. People are friendly without being nosy, traffic
is disciplined – I never saw so many cars stop at pedestrian crossings in
Belgium – employees act professionally and actually seem to take pride in their
work, infrastructure functions as it was intended to, shop shelves are filled
with everything one might need, parking lots are guarded by automatic cameras
and not by night watchmen, bathrooms don’t scream for a make-over by Plumbers
Without Borders, … Unfortunately this comes with a downside, as everything is
bloody expensive again!
Since our
boat has already been delayed, we have two days including Nicolaas’ birthday to
chill out: swimming in the pool or in the sea, shopping, dinner at the beach
side and snorkeling. The experience isn’t nearly as breathtaking as in Egypt.
For once we agree with Lonely Planet: Eilat’s coral reef is really deteriorating because of all the hordes of tourists.
On the 25th
we ride to Ashdod through the Negev, yet another desert to cross. Apart from
the remarkable signposts indicating firing zones and tank crossings the
surroundings are pretty, but monotonous and after a while: boring. We barely
manage not to fall asleep before we’re checked in into an overpriced but hooker-free
hotel close to the harbor. Fortunately it’s only for one night. Tomorrow we’ll
sleep aboard the MV Fides, if we manage to get through the formalities, that
is.
We start the
tedious process in the main building outside the port, where we pick up our “passenger
manifests” – in English: entry tickets – and our expensive and obligatory customs
forwarding agent. Then we enter the port. The first thing to get through is the
very thorough security check, comprising luggage verification and very
inquisitive questioning, in which no subject is shunned. Privacy is clearly of
inferior importance to presumed national security. After this we continue to
customs, then to a ware house, then customs again, then some other office… By
the end of the day, it dawns on me why one needs an agent, or should I say a
guide. But her most useful interference was perhaps when she persuaded the
immigration department to let us stay in their office until the vessel comes in
and we can actually board. That saves us quite some hassles and an expensive
taxi ride to town.
A strike
amongst the port workers prevents the Fides to dock though, so we have to wait
all evening, staring at the clock on the wall. Luckily the immigration staff
really takes care of us, changing left-over money and buying food in town. Then
at 23h we finally get to meet our floating home for the next week or so. The
bikes will go on tomorrow and by noon we’ll sail to Haifa first and then across
the Mediterranean…
For more pics see album "Out of Africa" |
Hello Guys,
ReplyDeleteWe are also planing a trip from west to east africa and wanted to ask you a few questions concerning visa and security in the congos and other countries. We would also like to know if u think that your route is possible by a 4x4 car. My email adress is thalerandi@hotmail.com - would be happy to hear from u.
Thank u, best wishes Andi