Greetings from the Holy Land!

As the sun began to rise over the hills surrounding the Valley of the Kings, we knew that it was going to be a scorcher. Situated on the Nile, Luxor is one of the most significant areas in Egypt for ancient Egyptian sites. It is also the hottest place I've ever been. With highs between 115-120F and not a single cloud in the sky, the heat is just plain indescribable. This climate's only saving grace is that it is so dry that sweat instantly evaporates making it somewhat more bearable than the dank wetness of South East Asia. In any event, nothing could have prepared me for the feeling of being slowly baked alive while trying to appreciate archaeological sites that I remember reading about in 1st grade.

The importance of the Nile to Egyptians of old (and now) cannot be understated. The Nile Valley is surrounded on both sides by huge expanses of nothingness. We witnessed oceans of sand and rock on our approach to Luxor from the Sinai Peninsula making the scenery devoid of substance yet oddly intriguing. The transition from a beige Mars-ish landscape to one of lush green fields of corn, papyrus and other crops happens abruptly as one ventures within 10 miles of the Nile. One can't help but marvel at all the Nile makes possible in one of the harshest climates on earth.

And now for something completely different... Alyce and I's arrival to the Holy Land could hardly be described as graceful. It is a long story that I'll have to tell another time. Either way, once we were both on the ground in Jordan, we quickly headed to Petra and spent a couple days exploring countless unbelievable structures carved out of the many sandstone cliffs in the area. It was awesome in the purest sense of the word. From there we headed to Egypt.

The process of taking the ferry from Aqaba, Jordan to Nuweiba, Egypt across the Red Sea could best be described as a clusterfuck. One has to wait in line and visit practically 15 different windows before being given their ticket. Once you have a ticket in your possession, the waiting begins... Apparently, the ferry leaves "whenever" and nobody quite knows what's going on (not even the ferry company staff). After a few hot hours of waiting, a mad rush happens to board buses so that you can ride about 2 minutes down the road to the boat. After vehemently fighting the request to throw our packs into these giant trailers containing hundreds of unmarked suitcases, we finally had to relent. At least we were able to board the vessel. But even then, we had to wait for a couple more hours before the 1.5 hour trip across the sea began. That is right, all of this hassle for just a one and a half hour trip. The ferry was actually quite pleasant while we were moving but the disaster that awaited us on our arrival to Egypt was just unreal. I don't think I can adequately describe the insanity, inefficiency and plain ass-backwardness of the Egyptian arrival process in a way that would come close to doing it justice. And then, to add insult to injury, all of this can be yours for one easy payment of $85... Yes, almost $100 for an 8 hour ordeal that should have only taken 1.5. Well, I guess it is just another crazy experience to add to the pile... An experience I'd rather not repeat.

This is getting long so I'll just end things here. Alyce and I are heading to Cairo tonight and then to Turkey shortly thereafter. It's been great so far and though the Middle East has its share of frustrations, I've had worse (and better for that matter). Best of all, there is no plain fried rice to be found for thousands of miles.