Pilgrimage

I’m not sure what constitutes an “official” pilgrimage these days, but on Saturday I joined a group of 20 or so from St. Andrew’s in Cairo for a pilgrimage of sorts to the monasteries of St. Anthony and St. Paul, two of the world’s oldest monasteries located in Egypt’s eastern desert inland from the Red Sea.

Our drive (on a comfortable, air conditioned bus!) took us from central Cairo east to Ein Suknah and then south along the Red Sea. The monasteries are located inland many kilometers from the Red Sea in the desert mountains. Here’s some of what I saw along the way:

1. Streets filled with all kinds of people at 6 a.m. (!) on a Saturday morning walking, riding and driving to work. The Metro, which I thought would be empty, was not. Thankfully this meant that my favorite falafel stand next to the Metro was open as well so I could have a falafel sandwich for breakfast.
2. “Protesters” encamped at Tahrir Square, which we drove by on our way out of Cairo. I saw a variety of tents, signs and people. After clashes with the police earlier this week, news reports indicate that 5000 or so gathered on Friday to protest and re-establish their base. Those responsible for the 25 January Revolution are calling for renewed protests beginning on Friday, July 8. (I’m scheduled to leave that morning.) Some of the folks from St. Andrew’s had stopped by the square on Friday after church. They said the atmosphere was more festival-like than revolutionary. In true Egyptian fashion, people have set up stalls and are selling t-shirts, posters and bumper stickers.
3. Stands set up alongside of the road where men had coolers filled with fresh fish, presumably the morning catch from Red Sea.
4. An enormous wind farm, and by enormous I mean gigantic. It went on and on for miles and there were thousands of wind turbans. Further research leads me to believe that is was the Zafarana Wind Farm. It stretches from the city of Suez to the Hurghada, some 250 km. Wind is one of Egypt’s abundant resources, sun is the other.
5. Mile after mile of resort developments in varying states of completion with names like Cancun, Malibo, Hollywood Beach, and my favorite, Amexco. Most of these developments were on a narrow stretch of land between the highway and the Red Sea. Many of them appear to be intended to be high-end resort developments. While there were some enormous resorts and hotels along the way that were completed, fully developed and occupied, there appears to be thousands of resorts units under construction. It’s hard to believe that there are enough people in the world, to say nothing of Egypt, to meet the demand for Red Sea resort villas that developers believe exist. If you’re in the market for a partially-completed resort development, this could your chance.
6. A gorgeous mountain desert landscape in varying shades of red and white. With the deep blue of the Red Sea on one side, the rugged mountains on the other and a brilliant blue sky over the two it was pretty spectacular. At one point driving along the desolate road to one of the monasteries we crossed through a stretch of desert with a single tree growing in the middle of a wide expanse. As I saw it I was wondering if it was an example of a broom tree like the one that an exhausted Elijah sat under when he asked to die. As I continued looking I noticed a camel sitting in the shade of the tree. Despite what people think, camels are not a common sight in Egypt, except in tourist areas. I wish my camera had been out.
7. A brilliant sunset as we made our way back into Cairo. The entire expanse of western sky was shades of red and pink.

And that was just on the drive! More to come.