Photos from Egypt

Here is another try at photos. If successful you will see the sunrise behind the sea wall in the Suez Canal,That photo did not make the up load, in stead see the Feluccas that we sailed on the Nile, Eileen raising the Egyptian flag, the Pyramids, Sphinx, and the outside of the Cairo Museum. Cameras are not allowed inside.

Well the up load went on twice, but I cannot edit the photos so just enjoy them twice.

We just went to the movies here in the marina. Oceans 13! Well, the English choices were not great. Later, Dick

Resting in Herzliya, Israel

Resting in Herzliya, Israel.
After Egypt and the tours, food and parties, we need a rest. The EMYR has been a 6 week fun filled and informative tour of the Middle East. We have gone from the Roman ruins of 2000 years ago to 4-5 even 10,000 year old civilazations. Current history is in the making here and we daily, hear, see and read about the things going on around us which make us appreciate our blessings. If you think scanners at the airport are a neusance, try banks, groceries, shopping malls post offices. I cannot describe the level of security we have experienced, but the governments are determined to not have incidence occur that effect tourism, a big national income for many of the middle eastern countries. Eileen will fill in more details in future blogs,
I'm trying to add photos so be paient! Fair Winds, Dick

Triumph in Suez Canal

Thursday, 14 June 2007

Triumph sailed overnight to Port Said, Egypt, and then anchored at dawn in the holding basin while the rest of the fleet (47 boats) arrived. At 0700 we circled the boats and waited for the Suez Canal pilot to escort us through, all boats fully dressed in colorful flags flying from our mast heads. The canal was closed to commercial ships while we went through single file. It was quite a thrill.

We are now berthed in a Navy facility in downtown Port Said. We just returned from an overnight tour to Cairo, where we spent three hours in the Cairo Museum. It was amazing to see so many treasures in one place, especially the King Tut exhibit. The Egyptian treasures are quite different from the Roman ruins and Crusader castles we have seen in other countries. The tour included a night in a five star hotel with pool and view of the nearby pyramids, dinner with belly dancer, and a gigantic breakfast.
Then we spent several hours visiting the pyramids and sphinx. We had to pinch ourselves to be sure we were not dreaming.

We are safely back aboard, having been escorted by soldiers wearing helmets and flak vests and carrying sub machine guns. These vehicles drove ahead of and behind our buses. We also had two huge body guards packing mini kalishnikovs onboard the bus. I have never seen so many armed soldiers, police, and uniformed personnel in one country. Yikes.

Tomorrow we set sail for Herzliya, Israel where we will tour Jerusalem and many holy sites, and have our grand finale rally dinner. We may take a four-day land tour to Jordan from there, depending on the political situation.

Triumph in Ashkelon, Israel

Tuesday, 12 June 2007

We're in a good marina with electricity and water, restaurants and showers. We had our usual welcome cocktail party (with dinner, actually, if you could wait until their dinner hour of 10:00 PM). The next morning Frank, Gail and I were on the all-day bus tour to Masada and the Dead Sea. Dick stayed onboard to recuperate from his cold.

Masada, (World Heritage Site, 2001) was the mountaintop fortress and palace of King Herod, where the Jews made a desperate last stand against the Romans in 72 AD. They held out for two years, then most of them slew their families and themselves rather than submit to slavery. Another very impressive site. Our guide holds a degree in Peace Studies, and provided fascinating insight into the history of the Middle East, especially modern history. We all felt we understood the situation a little better
after the tour. Most of us took a dip in the Dead Sea, where the salt concentration is so high that you float easily. We took many pictures of the "swimmers" sitting on the water and reading the newspaper.

Today was a much needed day of rest. We leave for Port Said, Egypt at 5:00 AM tomorrow. The Suez Canal will be temporarily closed to commercial traffic as our 50+ boat flotilla sails through single file just after dawn on June 14. We are all excited at the prospect.

Triumph Visits Haifa, Israel

Sunday, 10 June 2007

We've been ruined! The ancient ruins continue to impress us, but we are on sensory overload. The sights, sounds, music, food, language and customs change every three days as we move further into the Middle East.

We moored at the Carmel Yacht Club for three nights while we toured the Haifa area. We toured the City of Haifa on our arrival day, enjoyed a full day tour of Galilee, Nazareth, Jordan River, and Golan Heights with lunch at a kibbutz on the second day, and a tour of Acre (World Heritage Site) and up the coast on our last day. A special highlight was dinner in the home of Musa and Aya, who are Carmel Yacht Club members. They prepared a lovely dinner for all four of us in their apartment overlooking
the sea. What a rare treat to be guests in a local home for shabbat.

We are presently approaching our next port, Ashkelon, Israel after another easy, overnight sail. We'll tour Masada and the Dead Sea tomorrow, then sail on to the Suez Canal and Egypt on Wednesday, June 13.

Triumph Outside Beirut, Lebanon

Monday, June 4, 2007

We are in a luxury yacht club in Jounieh, Lebanon (a suburb of Beirut). All the rich and famous of Beirut come here to swim in the fabulous, Olympic sized swimming pool, play tennis, and dine on fine French food. Lots of French speaking yuppies with kids and nannies.

We enjoyed a wonderful tour of Byblos today. Phoenicians developed syllabic writing (an improvement over hieroglyphics, which was one symbol per word) in Byblos in about 1000 B.C. We also saw a Crusader castle, Egyptian temples, a Roman amphitheater and a Phoenician royal necropolis. Incredible.

Tomorrow we will enjoy a quiet day aboard, catching up on boat work and rest. We set sail for Haifa, Israel on Wednesday.