Mt. Sinai

I don't think words can do this experience justice but I'll give it my best shot.

Mt. Sinai in St. Catherine City has been a pilgrimage for Christians all over the world for years as it is historical sight of the Biblical story of Moses receiving the 10 commandments of God in Exodus Chapter 20. The city itself is not easy to reach as it is about a 3 1/2 hour drive from the nearest town, Sharm-el-Sheik and there are roughly 10 police security checkpoints along the way. Though once you arrive, you reach a restful Oasis as this little town at the foot of the mountain is home to just a few hotels and St. Catherine Monastery, the prayer and worship house of 22 Greecian monks and the apparent sight of the burning bush.

At 1:30 in the morning is when my journey up the mountain began. After arriving at the base, I quickly found a guide, Jarma, a 22 year old Egyptian and he found me a camel that would be my mode of transportation for two thirds of the trek to the top. My camel's name was Samson, and he lived up to his namesake as he was a strong and consequently competitive camel. He insisted on leading the pack and at times when another camel would try and take the lead, he would speed up to a jaunt to keep his lead position. I thoroughly appreciated these traits in him as it was fun for me to be blazing the trail with him. Jarma was a good guide walking alongside us taking photos and offering up tea and water. About 2 hours later we reached the of the stairway where we parted ways with Samson and started a workout that put the stairmaster to shame. There were 750 steps of rocks that were steep as the streets of San Fran. After the first 100 steps we stopped for a break and laid out on the rocks. When I looked up into the sky, my breath was taken away. I have never seen so many stars and so many so bright in all my life. Surrounded by the mountains sheltered from the wind, the silence was overwhelming. Tears welled up as my eyes and ears were overtaken by the beauty of these moments. Ten minutes later we were back on our way, but stopped each break to gaze at the stars and listen to the sound of silence. We arrived at the top of the mountain another hour and a half later and met others who had arrived before and then waited for still others to arrive in preparation to watch the sunrise. The crowd was made up of people from around the world -- Russians, Italians, Chinese, Kenyans, South Americans, and I'm sure a number of other nationalities in the group of 200 give or take. We were spread out around the top of the mountain, some surrounding the Christian chapel with the cross on top and some surrounding the Islamic Mosque. We sat in anticipation for over an hour, cameras ready. Finally the sun peaked out from behind a slew of dark clouds across the horizon. The red light burned through the darkness and we watched it slowly creep up into the clear. When the rays reached the clear sky and beamed across the mountainside, it was almost as if you could hear the angels singing. It was truly glorious. Now that daylight had broken, I walked around from edge to edge to bask in the views and take lots of photos. After another hour or so, I could tell Jarma was more then ready to start the trip back down the mountain so we took off on the 2 hour trek back down.