Egypt

Monday, 2 August We took the cab for 25 EGP to El Montazah Par which is supposed to have the best private beach in Alexandria. After so many temple visits and so much culture we wanted to rest and be lazy for one day. The ride, however, was anything but harmonious. First of all, the driver decided that only the loudest Arabic pop music will blast out our ear-drums. Second, he would drive like a mad man with risky passing maneuvers left and right and abrupt stops and lane changes almost crashing into several cars. Third, all windows were open so our hair was flying into all directions. Somehow you couldn't close the windows. And fourth and worst he would constantly eye Burcu who sat in the front while I was sitting right behind him. So while he was eyeing my sister I had my eye fixed on him. When he noticed my squint he quickly glanced away or looked into his over sized rear view mirror which fell off after 10 minutes into our drive. Happy to have arrived in one piece, a little deaf with messy twirled hair but in one piece, thank God, we walked to the Palestinian Hotel from the entrance after paying a small admission fee. The hotel was apparently the better place to spend your day and one of the two that had a private beach. To enter you had to pay another 450 EGP (around $80.00 for the three of us). Coming from Turkey and being used to a certain standard we were taken aback a little by how dirty the water was and that the Hotel didn't even own part of the beach and rather had a swimming pool area from where you could go downstairs into the water. On top of that the Hotel looked quite old and ramshackle from the outside. Across from the hotel you could see the beginning of the public beach with all the women in burkas sitting on their plastic chairs in the heat the whole day having picnics with their husbands and children. This went on for kilometers side by side thousands of people all veiled, none of them would dare to wear a bathing suit. Here we were in our tiny bikinis on our private beach and there they were covered from top to bottom. Some who could afford rented a speed boat and passed by our side and took photos of us. I felt like an object of oddity that had to be gawked at.