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Customer Feedback & Testimonials about the Middle East and Our Middle East Vacation Advisors
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Feedback from Linda Barber, one of our Exotic destination travel advisors: Red Sea enroute to Aqaba, Jordan, Silversea Cruise
St.Catherines Monastery
Dear All,
4:00 a.m. here in the Red Sea enroute to Aqaba, Jordan. Ok, ok I admit I went to bed a wee bit early but I wanted to get this off to you since we will be on the road for the next 2 days.
First of all I would like to thank those of you at UBC and Beth Novokshonoff (and Dad for suggesting we so this) for miracle working right up until the last minute to gain clearance for Greg and I to have a private appointment with Father Justin at historic and ancient st. Catherine's Monastery.
Turns out that Father Justin is from Texas!
One of many surprises ( good and disappointing) for us this day.
I was expecting to have a language barrier so it was a treat to have someone easy to listen to.
Strong handshake -what else would one expect from a Texan!- but a surprise after a week of "wet noodle" style hand shaking with Egyptians.
Long, long (picture father time) flowing thin black beard with streaks of white, the longest moustache I have ever seen...not long in width but long in length...it was combed perfectly down so that when he spoke you could not see his teeth. The moustache covered his bottom lip melding in with his beard.
Nice black leather dress shoes, dress socks ( I had a good look at these as we followed up and down the many staircases), long flowing black tunic almost to the ground, tunic slit up the sides, long sleeved, black dress slacks, black pillbox hat. He seemed to be in his late 40's. Tall, about 6'4". He had just returned from New York at 11 pm the night before we arrived at the Monastery. He had a meeting with the Metropolitan Museum regarding the Icon Collection at the Monastery. Great big long story behind this and too much to write about here. Dad, put this on our list of things to talk about when we get back.
St. Catherine's Monastery in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt: The site of the Burning Bush that drew Moses to Mt. Sinai. The mountain where Moses received the ten commandments from God. The site of ancient and modern pilgrimmage, prayer and meditation. The site that 1000 people a day make the long journey to see this ancient and historic site. It is half day trip to get there from the coast at Sharm El sheik and the distance is so great that you only get 2 hours once you are there and are on a deadline to return to the ship before it departs. The Monastery is very small and not ready for crowds of people. The flow is through narrow hallways made wide enough for a skinny monk, not backpacking, camera wielding tourists who want to stop and soak in every inch of the place and find
even the doorways a point of interest. Some doors were original from the 1600's, some encased in metal strips grommeted on. The doorways WERE interesting!!
For those of you who have seen The Vatican, the grand churches of Europe, Sagrada Familia of Barcelona, the famous architecture of mosques and beautiful places of religious worship- throw all those thoughts out of your mind and instead picture this: rough granite blocks added to with whitewashed Bedouin style mud bricks, hodge podge stairways, walkways, rooms in odd places, no form, flow or uniformity in building materials, architectural style nor grand plan. This is a collection of higgly piggly constructed buildings that were built as they were needed, a guest room added for arriving pilgrims, a room to put books in, a place to eat, a place to hold worship, a dormitory for the monks, you get the picture. The monks had little time (nor skill) for building as
their days were supposed to be spent in prayer (starting at 4am!).
The Monastery is Greek Orthodox, monks only, no nuns. They hire local Bedouins to help with tourist control which is ironic because at one point in history the Bedouins attacked the Monks and tried to exterminate them, hence the hastily constructed wall surrounding the Monastery for defence purposes and the heavy metal covered doors to the inner sanctuary.
The Church part of the Monastery is very small. It has marble floors only because a patron donated the flooring. It has 2 gorgeous marble carved sarcophagus only because they were donated by wealthy Russian family. Religious Icons in the Greek Orthodox style (some of the most important ones removed from the church and beautifully displayed and lit in the "museum" portion of the monastery), beautiful silver chandelier, many many silver lamps hanging from the ceiling in the small church- all donated. How the manuscripts ended up here, I do not know BUT the ONLY reason they survive is because the humidity is only 20% almost year round, the temperature is not too hot because of the elevation and it only rains 4 days per year.
If not for these factors, these relics would long ago have succumbed to the damp air and disintegrated. The original Greek Manuscripts here are priceless and there are more of these with the original bindings in tact than there are at the Vatican...they need to be preserved properly. Likewise with the Icons.
There are a few ancient and curios looking manuscripts on display in a newly created "Museum" at the Monastery. The hundreds of others are currently all bubble wrapped in plastic in storage (bar coded and inventoried) because the walls of the room where they are kept (the library) were not stable and they need to do some structural work so the walls and floors do not collapse. So we could only gaze through the locked iron gated door of the hallway to the room where the library was/will be again one day. We though we were going to see a library so it was a bit disappointing considering the amount of effort it took from so many of us BUT and interesting experience none the less.
Industrial steel adjustable shelving was leaning against the walls of the hallway. Judging from what we saw, and how things were constructed...I do not think the library was anything beautiful to look at, only a room to store the books in. I bought a tourist book of the monastery and there are no pictures of the library either.
Father Justin said he will email us some pictures of what the library looked like before the books were removed so we shall get to see what it looked like. I look forward to receiving the pictures!
Father Justin kindly invited us for lunch and a few more hours of exploring BUT we were out of time and had to decline his kind offer....next time I think it best to plan for at least 2 or 3 days and do things at a more leisurely pace.... pressing through crowds trying to see things quickly was frustrating and with the proper timing and a kindly monk to guide, things can be seen in a more serene atmosphere.
Note about the Sinai...this is where Moses led the people out of Egypt...it is ALL rocks/....bare rocks..., no forest, grasslands, the odd occasionally scrubby tree, but no shade except in the shadow of rocks, you can see the Wadi's (dried river beds) that flood dangerously when it rains on the 4 days per year. Only the Bedouin and the monks live out here. If you love rocks you would find the area interesting. I purchased a huge smoky quartz crystal and a sand coloured geode that I was told was dug up in the area. They were in a dusty box that looked like it came from a local area.... a potential rock
hounding trip in the future????
Incidentally, the road is paved the entire distance and is very smooth and comfortable to drive on.
In a few hours we will leave the ship to go see the Rose Colored City of ancient Petra and from there on to the Dead Sea where we will overnight and return to the ship the next day after visiting Mt, Nebo and the oldest known map in the world.
......more later! Linda
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Petra, Ancient Rose Coloured City to the Dead Sea:
Petra, Ancient Rose Coloured City to the Dead Sea
5:00 a.m. at 1320 feet BELOW sea level at the Movenpik Dead Sea Resort Nov 22, 2009.
Departing the Silver Wind in Aqaba, takes 2 hours++ (brochures say 1.5 hours) to drive to the ancient site of Petra.
Petra was Voted in 2007 to be one of the new 7 wonders of the world.
Keeping company with the Great Wall of China, Taj Mahal, The Christ Statue in Rio De Janeiro South America, Chichen Itza Mexico), The Pyramids of Giza and Machu Picchu.
An easy day trip if only doing Petra and returning to ship...of course we wanted to see/do more so have continued on to the Dead Sea for an overnight before returning to the ship.
From Aqaba to Petra the road is paved, relatively straight, smooth, the drivers obey the posted speed limits, drive on the right hand side, a 2 lane highway is respected as a 2 lane highway, the drivers do not honk and wave arms out the window, blinkers are used to pass (none kamikaze style), drivers flash their lights to signal annoyance...altogether a different and much more pleasant driving experience than in Cairo!
Driving to the Dead Sea from the site of Petra...the road is winding, the windiest I have ever been on it is like driving on a go cart track shaped like circle 8's all joined together....think of the shape of ribbon hard candy you find at Christmas, narrow, sinlge lane at times and incredible views of fantastic rock formations. I later found out that this was the short cut and runs so close to the border with Israel that you can see Israel for most of the drive...like driving along a provincial or state border, unless you know it is there you can see no evidence of it being a border until you come to customs.
After a long day of driving we arrive at the parking lot of Petra...almost there!!
The pictures of Petra that you see of the high rock walls is just what it looks like except that from pictures you do not have the sense of proportion. The canyon walls are 200 feet high up to 400 feet high in places. To get into the main site of Petra you walk for a long way in the fantastic narrow canyon.
The sunlight on the walls looks grand canyonesque in the layers, colors, rain over the years has streaked the canyon walls and eroded away most of the ancient carvings, you can still see some bits where a camelcaravan had been carved into the rock.
The tomb entrances are all that remains and you can go in but there are no frescoes to see , just carved out square rooms that were the tombs, anything of any value has been robbed in antiquity.
In the main square the ancient roman amphitheater remains, and there is an interesting mix of centuries of different peoples havng inhabited the area and leaving some signs of their passing.
The Romans were here at some point in history and you can see some of the roman paving stones with chariot wheel grooves on the main walkway.
The Romans seem to have built everywhere...almost every country near the Mediterranean that we have visited has remains of the clever Romans and their structures.
In the walk leading to Petra there is a water pipe carved into the rock,lined with clay pipe pieces, to capture rain water. Where it was stored I do not know. When it rains it is dangerous to be here because of flash flooding. A few years ago a tour group of French tourists got caught in a rain storm and 20 of them were drowned.
The hard facts about getting to the site...what the guide books don't tell you and why I like to experience things for myself:
You have to walk far.
Wear closed toed, sturdy comfortable shoes.
A gentle slope going in, a gentle slope coming back up.
Doable if you are in half decent shape and take your time especially if you are going April - October as the heat will be intense.
Even this late in November the temperature was 84 degrees F, 30 celcius. We were there at the hottest part of the day. Try to go earlier if you are heat sensitive.
Being in a deep canyon the shade is a plus.
A nice breeze is forced through the canyon and the lack of humidity all help to make it more comfortable.
Once down in the main area there are bedouins selling water, juice, sodas and snacks so you do not have be a camel and bring a ton of water with you in the beginning.
We are told that the walk is 700 Meters (ha!!)...in actual fact since you have to walk in from where the bus parking lot is the roundtrip walk is 2.5 miles (note the miles, not kilometers) and this doesn't include walking around in the main area once you are in.
If you can't walk this far you can take a horse drawn buggy ride, horse back on an arabian stallion, or a donkey. Oh please do not ride the donkey!! People look so comical sitting on them as they are so short your feet almost touch the ground...very funny to watch!
None of these options are very comfortalbe but the best option is to take the buggy unless you are a horsey person and would love to ride the stallions!
The drivers ride hard, and when you get to the roman paving stones it very bumpy and people hang on to the roof to keep from jouncing out of the buggy.
It looks very romantic but very uncomfortable!
I asked one lady who took the buggy on the return up the slope and she said it was a lifesaver for her as she would not have been able to cope with the distance on her own...not the best option BUT if you want to see Petra it makes it possible for those not in the best fitness. She said it looked more uncomfortable than it was. Padded seats with armrests but everone I saw was clutching on to the roof for dear life!
If you have allergies to dust, horses, donkeys,hay, horse poop,...be warned.
Imagine what it is like with all these horses, donkeys, buggys racing up and down a narrow canyon where the animals are pooping/peeing, people walking, the dust created is horrendous. And guess what the dust is?? Poop, horse hair, hay, rock dust...we were filthy when we got out of there and I was wishing at time s I had a mask to breathe through. My throat is still a bit hoarse from all the dustiness ( read as airborne horse poop).
Is it worth it?
YES- it is a spectacular site not to be missed. Private guide would be the best option if you want to take your time and have a tea or coffee once you arein the main area, relax, enjoy the ambiance...maybe even buy a few trinkets.
DEAD SEA:
After Petra we drove on to the Dead Sea.
A very interesting experience...people say that you float in the sea but I say that you are suspended in the sea!! Quite an interesting sensation as you couldn't sink if you wanted to!
The water temperature wasn't warm but also not cold. Dead Sea Mud slathered everywhere...fun to do.
Bring water shoes as the entry into the sea is rocky, no sandy bottom. Just rocks. Once in to your knees just lay down and turn over onto your back,
If the red flags are up, this means the water is too rough so make sure the green flag is up.
Lifeguards on duty.
Look for the clay pots of mud at the plank entry into the sea and slather yourself up!
Gotta run, hope our bus makes good time as we must catch the ship before she sails away without us!!
p.s.-Harriet, the tipping for guides, $5 per person per day for driver, $10 per person per day for guide. Wages are average $700- $800 per month we are told so this is plenty.
Same for Egypt and JOrdan.
Love to all,
LB
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Red Sea between Eritrea, Africa and Saudi Arabia: Feedback from Linda Barber, one of our Exotic destination travel advisors: Silversea Cruise
Dear All,
Greetings from the Red Sea between Eritrea, Africa and Saudi Arabia en Route to Salalah, Oman (drag out the old atlas and
take a look!)
Returning late to the Silver Wind after our Dead Sea and Petra Adventure in Jordan.
Our small group of 10 people in a mini bus were the last to arrive back in port after a race from the Dead Sea to get back
before the ship sailed... our respective Butlers standing at attention dockside to receive us and take our luggage....we
arrived just in time for the ship's departure and the crew literally rolled up the gangway as we entered the ship and Captain
gave the order for immediate departure bound for Safaga, Egypt. When we got to our suite, our Butler had laid out candles,
flower petals, a light snack and had drawn a bath....oh, la dee dah isn't life aboard a luxury ship just grand!!
The next morning upon arrival in Safaga,Egypt we boarded a 47 passenger bus with 6 of our shipmates, ship tour escort, our
local guide and driver to head off to Luxor. A long drive through the Eastern Desert (all rocks and a few scrubby bushes here
and there)....takes almost 4 hours of driving so is worth to stay overnight once you are in Luxor on the banks of the Nile
.......Dandara Temple, Valley ofthe Kings, Temple of Karnak, Rammeseum, Collosi of Memnon,Deir al Medina, pastoral scenes of
farming along the Nile where the donkey's pull the rickety carts, oxen pull the plow....sugar cane is cut by hand, grains
flailed by hand. I is easy to imagine what life was like 100 years ago as things are still done in large part the old
fashioned way.
The people along the Nile still live in mud brick houses, dirt floors, animals coming and going, sticks laid across the tops
of the brick walls for shade, water pumped out of the Nile for irrigation, drinking water...gag! I you have ever seen the
Nile you will understand this. The Nile is a giant dumpimg ground for garbage, dead bloated animal carcasses, toilet,
although I must say there is less garbage laying around since we were here in 2006.
Egypt has changed in other ways...for example:
The cost for entry tickets to get in to see Monuments/tombs is much higher than it was a few years ago. I would say that the
cost has doubled.
Cameras previously were allowed inside monuments..sometimes for a fee and somtimes for free.
Now we are told to leave our cameras on the bus and you are no longer allowed to take pictures at a lot of places.
If you sneak and try to take photos you will have to pay a fine for each photo you took and the authorities often will
confiscate your camera.
This is new so be warned that if they say no photos, you do need to respect this or be prepared to pay the consequences.
The cost of trinkets has also skyrocketed...what you could get for 10 egyptian pounds now costs 50 Egyptian Pounds.
All in all Egypt is still great value but does cost more.
I wanted to tell y'all about the new terminal 3 airport in Cairo (opened a few months ago). It is stunningly beautiful with
the shiny granite floors and walls, very modern, bank exchange booths/visa purchase point before you even get to the customs
area so it is easy to buy your entry Visa. I didn't stop to buy our visas because on our last visit to Egypt our guide took
care of it for us AFTER we went through customs. Now you must purchase your visa BEFORE you get to customs. When we finally
got our turn at customs we were told to backtrack and purchase our visa first.
When you get to customs, have your passport opened to the page showing your visa stamp.
Terminal 3 is only used by the Star Alliance group so if you are flying any other airline you will be in terminal 1 or 2,
these are very old, dumpy, chaotic and filthy airports. If the old procedure holds true then visas will be purchased after customs but at any rate tthey will tell you for sure what you need to do!
Pirates:
The buzz of the ship!
One of my shipmates and I got together and made a bunch of newspaper pirate hats which we will wear at dinner tonight to make
light of it.
The crew had a briefing this morning and the passengers will have our breifing from the Captain at 4:30 today so it will be
interesting to hear about what precautions are being taken.
Already the crew has sheathed the dining rooms windows with steel panels, some experts came aboard while our ship was docked
in Safaga, and of course everyone has heard bits and pieces so the ship is awash with speculation...oh, how Agatha Christie!!
Will fill y'all in later!
Hugs and love,
LB
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Cairo, Egypt feedback from Linda Barber, one of our Exotic destination travel advisors: Egypt, Nile River Cruise, Cairo
Quick note to let you know we arrived safely into Cairo late last night.
Today, walked around the Giza Plateau, soaking in the enormity of how special it is to be standing in the shadow of the Great Pyramids, even for the third time the effect is still one of incredible appreciation for what we are fortunate to experience.
Went in to see the solar boat, it was worth the 40 Egyptian pounds to see all the historical documentation of the excavations and see the original workings now encompassed by the museum building.
Hours in the Museum of Cairo, an entire floor almost totally dedicated to the marvels found in King Tut's Tomb...weaponry, sandals, foods,jewelery....a shower head, boomerangs, medical equipment.
Staying at the Four Seasons Nile, overlooking one of the most historic rivers in the world...it is very lush and green, papyrus plants, palm trees (short ones with beautiful fronds), flowers, sculpted shrubs, our huge balcony overlooks a very interesting view of an old abandoned mansion across the river- overgrown with greenery....looks totally intriguing to us...cheap riverfront property????
Feluccas, dinner cruise boats, zodiacs, could sit here all day watching the goings on...very fun!!
Learning lots....there is a Geological Museum here....did you know that dinosaurs once roamed here in Cairo and the bones are in the museum? Whales trapped in the inland when the land suddenly rose up, they eventually died when the sea dried up and there are over 600 petrified whale remains here in the desert? Interesting stuff!!
Early day again tomorrow to do site inspections on hotels here in Cairo.......operating on too little sleep so signing off for tonight!!
Be well!
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Feedback from our Dubai, Maldives, Seychelles, Tahiti Specialist: Dubai
Mike - Please be advised that our vacation was outstanding. You are the best and I am looking forward to you planning our next vacation. Everything was the best. I felt like a queen for 10 days.
Doc Green – have a happy holiday weekend.
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Testimonials about Sharon Walters, Middle East and Exotic Vacation Specialist: Jordan
Hi Sharon,
We had a great time in Jordan. Everything went well, the arrangements
were excellent. Jordan is terrific. The Karma House reps and driver were nice and very helpful, I would book
with them again. Thanks for everything,
Thanks, MLHey
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Testimonials about Middle East and Europe Vacation Specialist: Israel
Hey! - We just got back from Israel and had a really wonderful time. We have nothing but accolades for the way in which everything was handled. Our guide was wonderful - and a very safe driver! We were met promptly by everyone at every moment that was necessary, including our return from Eilat to Tel Aviv and then through formalities etc.
I would recommend your agency without reservation to anyone who was travelling.
The only thing we did not realize was that we would be paying for our guide's lunch every day. Not that we objected. However, just as a point of information I think it would be important to include that piece of info to people who have a guide. Obviously, it was perfectly fine and we enjoyed Ruth's company immensely. She is a delightful woman and we had a more thorough understanding of many things via her knowledge.
Again, I wanted to let you know what a great trip we had.
Best regards, Marguerite
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Feedback from our Dubai, Maldives, Seychelles, Tahiti Specialist: Dubai
Hope you are well - just wanted to drop you a note and let you know that we have had a brilliant time in Dubai. The Burj Al Arab was perfection and we were lucky enough to have two terrific guides from Arabian Adventures for the week. We are now in the airport waiting to leave for the Maldives - can't wait! so far - we feel very lucky!
Many Thanks and Kindest Regards, Summer
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Testimonials about Sharon Walters, Middle East and Exotic Vacation Specialist: Jordan
Dear Sharon,
We all had a wonderful time in Jordan - a truly amazing country.
Everything worked out perfectly with the hotels, guides and other
arrangements.
Thanks you so much for all your timely and professional support and
assistance, we are currently thinking about our travel plans for
December/January and if we decide to do a similar arrangement, we will
certainly contact you.
Best regards
Bjorn & Family
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Testimonials about Linda Barber, Middle East, Asia, China Specialist
Dear Linda,
The trip was fabulous (no problems with entry visas!)
Our guide, Ayhem, and the driver were both great and
we particularly appreciated Ayhem's deep knowledge of
the historical sites, perfect French and mischievous
sense of humour.
All the sites were breathtaking and Christine had a
field day with her camera. We loved the people who
were all very welcoming and the food was excellenet
everywhere although the vast quantities were too much
for us. We always felt perfectly safe in Syria.
The best museum is in Palmyra.
The hotels in Damascus and Aleppo were extremely good
with Aleppo truly outstanding, it is a real gem (as is
the city). We changed the night in the bedouin tent to
an extra night in the Aleppo hotel because it was so
cold and we couldn't face sleeping in the desert!
We didn't like the hotel in Crac des Chevaliers, it is
a new monster that is not yet finished but even when
it is I wouldn't recommend it. The hotel is true
kitsch which is disappointing because the fortress at
Crac is well worth the visit.
The Zenobia Cham Palace in Palmyra would only be a 2
or 3 star in Europe, adequate but dull.
The Silk Road representatives met us on the last night
and we gave them this feedback.
Thanks for arranging the trip for us.
Best regards,
Peter
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Feedback from our Dubai, Maldives, Seychelles, Tahiti Specialist: Dubai
I hope Belize was great! Did you go to Ambergris Caye? I've seen pictures and it looks gorgeous!
Anyway, it was the best vacation I've ever been on! Dubai was fantastic (I'm so glad we were at the Ritz C) and Oman was really special. We had enough time to relax but we saw everything we could so the pace was great, and the service was better than first class everywhere we went. We loved it that we had our own driver and car and had individual attention. And, we were wisked through the airport like celebrities! That was one of the highlights - we loved not having to stand in a single airport line! It was great!
SO, thank you very much! You did a great job! And Arabian Adventures was fabulous, too! Zahara would get a 10 out of 10 if the guy in the hotel office was better, but their tours were terrific.
Now we are trying to figure out what's next :-) Any ideas for great, adventurous and first-class travel? What's "hot" now (like Dubai is)? If any great ideas pass over your desk, please pass them on!
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Testimonial about Travelwizard.com: Exotic Tours & Luxury Cruise Specialist
Thank you so very much!. I knew you could pull the rabbit out of the hat. I am certainly happy!
Daisy
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Testimonials: Europe, Exotic Tours, Luxury Cruises and Vacation Specialist:
We had a wonderful time despite the issues. I would definitely
recommend this trip to others. Without your help though I don't think
it would have been as great. We found ourselves really bummed out a few times and in a panic as well!! Luckily you were always there to take our calls and work things out. Thank you so much. You are the BEST! Private client
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Dubai, Maldives, Seychelles, Tahiti Specialist
I want to thank you for the amazing job you did with our trip. It was truly one of the most magical trips I have ever taken. I will contact you this week with the details. Hope all is well.
Thanks again.
Fondly, Rosina
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Testimonials: Europe, exotic tours, luxury cruises and vacation specialist:
Hi Guys, We had the times of our lives. AMAZING. We will talk soon. Sooooo tired. Gotta play with my dogs. Thanks again! We can't thank you enough. We're gonna be sending everyone we know your way when its time to travel.
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