Wonderous Wadi Rum and Aqaba, Jordan

Back on our trusty truck again, we headed for Wadi Rum, the obligatory Jordanian desert stop. Boarding old landdrovers we headed off into the desert with our (decided young looking) local drivers. Another distinctive environment, the rock formations and sand dunes kept Lawrence (of Arabian fame) captivated here for years. After some sand boarding, some dune climbing and a fair bit of driving we were off to Aqaba, our departure point for Egypt. Being on the red sea, we were able to squeeze in a quick dive (the Cedar Pride wreck) between sitting by the pool and sipping cheaper Egyptian beer. Easily in the top five dive sites in the world, the red sea did not disappoint, especially when I found a 500 Saudi note, worth around $150AUS, ten meters down next to a piece of coral!

In theory, that night we were to board an overnight ferry that would carry us (and our truck) over the seas to Egypt. Egyptian transport and customs being what they are, a 40 km journey became a 11 hour epic as we waited for Egyptian customs to clear the truck for at least 5 hours. During the wait we treated the locals to a game of backyard cricket, utilising the parking lot as the pitch. Finally the man with the correct stamp had been located, showered, and driven leisurely to work, where he could use his stamp on the trucks paperwork. A new set of numberplates for use in Egypt had arrived and we had completed our medical by walking through a room occupied by one guard and an Egyptian official. Egyptian customs satisfied (and educated on the finer points of cricket), we headed for Dahab, our splendidly relaxing location for the next 3 days. (Photos - Wadi rum)