Plenty of Rum but no Jungle

The Dahab escape committee finally got their act together on Monday and sprung us out of the lounging area outside the Morgana restaurant. The journey to the port of Nuweiba was not quite as smooth as we'd hoped as our cab let us down when the other people we didn't know were meant to accompany us failed to show up (if that makes any sense). Once at Nuweiba things got marginally worse. The check-in procedure was a bit of a farce which meant I ended up having to dash from the brigadier's office (a very nice man) to passport control with a uniformed guard in tow in a bid to get stamps to say we've left Egypt. It was a mad rush to get aboard the ferry for 2:30 but luckily we managed and with only two and a quarter hours to spare! (We think the ferry was due to leave at 3ish but, in Egypt, who knows?).

The ferry was crammed with people by the time it left, all armed with bags of grub, electric kettles(!) and cookers, on full alert for the moment the day's Ramadan fast ended just after 5 o'clock. I discovered a hidden EP50 note which allowed us to get cold drinks and chocolate from the snack bar which we wolfed down when everyone else started eating. Our respect was rewarded with 2 lots of dates from our fellow passengers.

I'd like to try and forget the fact that we landed in Aqaba at 7:30pm but didn't get off the boat for another 3 hours. One day that may happen but only hypnotherapy will erase the memory of the on-board toilets (why is everyone rolling their trouser legs up? Ah...)

Aqaba feels very different from Egypt; the streets are cleaner, the roads have markings, the drivers are less toot-happy and the traffic lights seem to be there for a reason. However, Jordan is a lot pricier than Egypt but nowhere near as bad as Western Europe so 25JD (about 21GBP/47 AUD) gets us a nice hotel room with air-con and a great view of the harbour but no turn-down service or choccy on the pillow.

Yesterday we went to Wadi Rum, Lawrence of Arabia country, and spent a day bumping around in the back of a pick-up truck marvelling at the desert-and-sandstone-mountain scenery and stopping to ride a camel (which did an awesome Chewbacca impression) and take lots of photos. It's a fantastic place and, despite the fact that there are plenty of other groups in jeeps knocking about, one that really feels big and empty. Our evening was spent tucking into a delicious Bedouin meal of chicken, spuds and rice in a big tent made of blankets and watching the stars. (Galleries will follow when we find a place to upload the pictures.)

We are now back in Aqaba and head off to Petra on Sunday with a bit of luck.

Blimey, I managed a whole Jordan post without mentioning Winston Churchill and the back of a taxi.