Day 105 (postscript)
[A section that I meant to add to the end of day 105, but forgot and then there was no internet for ages and you all read it in that time]
Egypt has been a real mixed bag. There are some excellent things (Red Sea diving, the history, the incredibly well preserved architecture, the humour of the people) and some awful things (the police, the hassle, the greed). Since Luxor it’s been difficult and at times actively unpleasant. The culture has been poisoned by the assumption that tourists are walking ATMs, and it seemed to be a part of almost every interaction we had. This kind of thing makes me put up my guard and shut out people who may well just be being nice. Ironically the police often helped with all this, as they would deter people from trying to hassle us or rip us off. But having a police car follow you all day, and tell you where you can sleep, takes all the freedom and spontaneity (ie the best bits) out of bike touring. In summary: I’m glad I saw Egypt, but now I’m glad to be leaving it.
As this feels like the end of a chapter (we spent a month in Egypt (despite our visa only being for 30 days WHOOPS)) I’ll do the customary reminder that you can donate to my excellent cause, IHCC, here. They have just changed their name to the inspiring Let the Children Hear, which neatly sums up their aim and is also much easier to find on google. Check them out. A big thank you to everyone who’s donated already, we’re up to an amazing £1,259 already, but still a way off my target of £5,000 so please dig deep.
Egypt has been a real mixed bag. There are some excellent things (Red Sea diving, the history, the incredibly well preserved architecture, the humour of the people) and some awful things (the police, the hassle, the greed). Since Luxor it’s been difficult and at times actively unpleasant. The culture has been poisoned by the assumption that tourists are walking ATMs, and it seemed to be a part of almost every interaction we had. This kind of thing makes me put up my guard and shut out people who may well just be being nice. Ironically the police often helped with all this, as they would deter people from trying to hassle us or rip us off. But having a police car follow you all day, and tell you where you can sleep, takes all the freedom and spontaneity (ie the best bits) out of bike touring. In summary: I’m glad I saw Egypt, but now I’m glad to be leaving it.
As this feels like the end of a chapter (we spent a month in Egypt (despite our visa only being for 30 days WHOOPS)) I’ll do the customary reminder that you can donate to my excellent cause, IHCC, here. They have just changed their name to the inspiring Let the Children Hear, which neatly sums up their aim and is also much easier to find on google. Check them out. A big thank you to everyone who’s donated already, we’re up to an amazing £1,259 already, but still a way off my target of £5,000 so please dig deep.
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