Life's a Stitch

Amman to Cairo

We flew from Asia to Africa in an hour and a half.  It was a 40 minute coach ride from the airport to our hotel, by some very depressing areas of dilapidated apartment buildings that looked to be in ruins, but there was evidence of people living there. 

We checked into the 900 room Ramses Hilton where we had a spectacular view of the Nile accompanied by the roar of traffic paired with the nonstop honking of horns. As we pulled up to the hotel the bomb sniffing dog gave our vehicle the once over. Acts of terrorism at international hotels are not uncommon. We have experienced similar security in Bali, where there were hotel bombings at two sites in 2005. What a world. 

I had planned on walking to an art store as I discovered that although I brought paint and paper with me, I forgot my brushes and pouch of art supplies. Turns out this was not a good walking area so we hung out at the hotel with our new friends waiting for a room. I was glad this would be a one night stay.

We were invited to a fellow traveller's room. Mary from Florida, well into her 80’s, had more energy than any of us. She treated us to tiramisu from the Starbucks in the hotel lobby. The group headed off to a hotel restaurant for dinner.

It was a quick night with an early flight to Luxor. We landed and were immediately put into in tour mode, first stop  was the mortuary temple of Hatshepsut



We learned that statues with crossed arms depict deceased individuals, while uncrossed depicts them in life.

Next stop was the Valley of the Kings, home to tombs of 65 members of royalty and nobility including Tutankhamen  and the sons of Ramses. Elaborate artwork told the stories of the culture in hieroglyphics and lined the tunnels to the tombs. Going deeper into the earth would make you think the temperature would be cooler, but that wasn’t the case. It was hot and still and limited the amount of time we could remain there.

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By mid afternoon it was time to board our Nile River cruise ship.

The accommodation was a bit dated, but comfortable enough for a four night stay.

The sunsets and night time view of the tombs of the nobles.were spectacular .

Seventh day in Jordan - Jerash and Aljoun Castle

The week has flown by. Tomorrow we head to Cairo for the Egyptian portion of the trip. We had a 45 minute ride to Jerash, referred to as the "Pompeii of the east." Covering 200 acres, that translates to 8,712,000 square feet! Be prepared for hot weather and hilly uneven terrain while you trek through well preserved ruins that met its demise in the 700's due to earthquake and were eventually buried in blowing sand. The city of Jerash has been inhabited since the Bronze Age, but the ruins are from a walled Greco-Roman settlement with the typical columned architecture: the Hadrian's Arch built in the second century:

the temple of Artemis:

the oval plaza, the only one if its shape found in a city of this style and era: 

and the Cardo-Maximus, the main colonnaded road.

Some of the additional attractions include a 15,000 seat amphiteatre, the Temple of Zeus, a nymphaeum (public fountain), two theatres, and three Christian churches.

We met a nice vendor at a souvenir stall who took some great photos of Rika and me. We bought some beautiful small pottery bowls from him.

We had lunch onsite, a step up from the typical tourist buffet, and at $21, less than lower quality more expensive one we previously had. I have no sweet tooth, but the warm luqaimat (tiny doughnut balls with sugar syrup) were irresistible. 

The afternoon took us to the 12th century Ajloun Castle, high up on a hilltop with a spectacular view. A narrow road led us to the top and it was the first time we witnessed our excellent drive lose his temper at other drivers.

Upon arrival back in Amman we said goodbye to our amazing knowledgeable guide, Adnan. Trained as an aircraft engineer in the US, the job market was not good  for him in Jordan, so he's been a professional guide for 26 years. On these tours it is traditional to tip the guide and driver at the end of the trip. We were surprised that not everyone did. There is plenty of online information with suggested amounts for the people who take care of you and get you safely from place to place. 

An early morning wakeup call got us going for the trip to the airport and our flight to Eygpt. The highlight was an airport Middle Eastern McDonalds brekkie - a Halloumi McMuffin.  The delicious full meal was $8 cdn. I bet it would be a good seller back home in Vancouver.

The flight was smooth and we got a sneak peak of a couple of the pyramids. 

 

Three castles in the morning and the afternoon at the Dead Sea

Qasr al-Asraq was out first stop, about 60 miles from Amman. To give you and idea of it's location, these were the choices at the main crossroads.

On the way we passed a UN refugee camp that housed 40,000 Syrians in a model consisting of four villages of prefabricated buildings, not the tents you see frequently in the news. Families live together in one room. There are schools with classrooms of 75 students, a hospital, health clinics, a solar power plant, 390 shops, and community centres. 100 babies are born there monthly. There are income generating programs for refugees as well as the availability of 1300 work permits for employment outside of the camp. I'm sure it's not as rosy a picture as the one painted on the UN website. After a career in community social services I found it fascinating.

The Asraq fortress was built by the Romans and was in use in the 13th-16th centuries and again in 1917-1918 where the real Lawrence of Arabia based his operations. It was strategically located geographically and had access to water from a nearby oasis that no longer exists.

The second stop was Qusayr 'Amra, built in 743 A.D., as a royal retreat including a bathhouse. The amazing feature of this castle was the extensive artwork - the frecoes covering the walls and ceilings.

Next up was Qasr Harrana, a 60 room castle built in 710AD, and there is debate as to its use: accommodation for caravan travellers, military fort, a Crusader's Castle, and the one use all historian agree upon, a meeting place for Bedouin leaders. 

It was interesting to visit three castles each with unique architecture. At all three stops, though, our guide noted the lack of tourists as ours was the only bus in the parking lots that day.

On to the Dead Sea. Again, the location was disconcerting given the state of the world, 6 km from Israel. We noticed hazy skies and suspected drifting smoke from Gaza or from farther away Beirut, but tour guides assured us it was "the hot weather."

We floated in the Dead Sea and slathered ourselves in the mud. You would think that the high salt content would dry your skin to a crisp, but the mud was very moisturizing. Our photos aren't very good as they were taken through a plastic bag. Afterwards we spent time at the pool prior to heading back to Amman.

Wadi Rum

Nope, not a brand of alcoholic beverage, especially in a strict Muslim country. Wadi Rum is a place in the desert, that in Arabic, translates to a vlley iof high places or a valley of sand. It's also known as the valley of the moon. You might recognize it a a location for movies: Lawrence of Arabia, Indian Jones and the Last Crusade, Aladdin and Dune. 

We piled into a caravan of 4x4's to get to our quite luxurious desert camp for a one night stay. Dinner was cooked underground - lamb, chicken and veggies buried in a vault covered by sand and heated underneath by coals from a wood fire. I was still not feeling well from my Little Petra experience, but I made sure I tasted a bite of both delicious meats.

There was an optional sunrise tour by camel that we passed on, having done it in Morocco, but Mack and Rika's photos were amazing.

 

An adventure of a lifetime: Jordan and Egypt

It was over a year ago that we booked our trip to Jordan and Egypt with Mack and Rika. Between then and now the Middle East changed dramatically. Between assurances from the travel company that our itinerary was safe and the fact that cancellation would involve a 70% penalty off we went. It did feel safe, but there was a definite lack of tourists. Petra normally has thousands of daily visitors. There were 200 on the day we were there.  

Petra is a city carved into the rocks, that reached its peak population of 20,000 in the 1st century AD. Petra has a long and interesting history and you might recognize it from the last Indiana Jones movie. We spent the day walking in the heat through the beautiful rock canyon then through the ancient the city and back. I'd post more photos, but as usual, Typepad is having uploading issues. One of these days I'm going to host my own blog, but the transfer of data from 20 yers of blogging scares me, given Typepad's track record of technical difficulties. I'm going to go ahead and post a photo sideways, as I get a proxy error when I try to rotate it. But you have to get an idea of the beauty of the vast canyon through which we walked.

Afterwards we escaped the heat in the Cave, one of the only bars in Petra, carved into the mountain.  Hmm it seems I have fewer issues with photos shot in landscape mode.

The view from our hotel in Petra:

The next day we visited Little Petra, located in a community of Bedouins, traditionally nomads, who have settled in a small community. A market is at the entrance to the ruins. There are no photos, and this time it's not Typepad's fault. Shortly after our arrival and initial history lesson, I wasn't feeling well and let the group go on. Chuck stayed with me. Good thing, because when I got up I fainted onto the desert. Other tourists and people who worked at the market came to my assistance. I was well taken care of and we offered the Bedouin stall owner a gift of money in thanks and he refused. Turns out, although I drank plenty of water, I was dehydrated, as the highly filtered bottled water contained no electrolytes. From that day on I faithfully added electrolytes to my water bottle. 

Summer of '24 - Part 2

Note: I am going to publish this post despite the fact that only two photos would upload. I tried on three devices to no avail. I'll try again another day, but for now this is all I have.

Our monthlong camping and visiting trip was delayed by a day due to refrigerator failure. A six year old Whirlpool fridge, already repaired once, deemed not good enough to sink another penny into. Really? As it's a secondary refrigerator, we replaced it with a decent looking cheap one from China and added a five year warranty for $215. The good news is that if you don't use the warranty, you get the premium back in the form of store credit.

We had scheduled two nights with Mack and Rika in Kamloops and a night on the road to meet up with Elina and family  at Pembina River Provincial Park in AB. We reduced the visit to one night and drove all the way to AB in a 10.5 hour day, defying my usual limit of 4-5 hours when pulling the trailer. There were magnificent views around every curve on the Yellowhead Highway.

We camped right on a river that worked out well fishing-wise and enjoyed our traditional steak dinner. 

After two nights we followed them home to Sherwood Park. 

Next stop was the Burn in the Forest Festival, the AB regional Burning Man yearly event, where we met up with Mari, KC, Bryant and Sammy. If you've ever thought of attending Burning Man, but it feels overwhelming, I highly recommend looking into your regional festivals. this one with 1300 participants was much more manageable than 70,000+. BC's version, Burn in the Forest has 3000. The smaller festivals follow the ten principles of Burning Man and include the traditional man effigy burn and some semblance of a temple burn, a solemn experience. 

Fulfilling the principle of participation, we set up a crokinole table and offered free lessons.

The principle of gifting required the giving of something with no expectation of return. We met our camping neighbour, a delightful young man, who was the designer and builder of the festival's man. Sometimes us older folk can be treated dismissively by some younger ones. Not Blake, he was truly interested in us and called us by name every time he saw us. I decided he would be the recipient of my gift. I did a painting of his man's burn and gave him the choice of being surprised or seeing a photo in advance, the option he chose. I shipped the painting on a Friday.  After seeing the photo on Saturday, he told me the captured moment gave him goosebumps and he’d treasure it. It would not be for long. The next day, Sunday, this healthy 41 year old passed away from a cardiac event. A real loss of an ingenious, creative young man who never saw the real painting. I was determined to get it to his mom, and though it took a long time and a bit of anguish, thank goodness it's finally in her hands as of this week. I wanted to gift a painting that would be special to the recipient. Despite the circumstances I think it fulfilled its mission.

To be continued...

The Summer of '24 Part 1

It seems I’m always in a state of catching up. Why did I think retirement would be different? It’s been nine years and I’m nowhere near caught up!

Covid behind me, off we went to Minnesota and Wisconsin to visit Chuck's midwest family.

We headed up to Petenwell Lake to the new lake house.

Where we took part in feasts:

(although I don’t drink them, they sure know how to make a Bloody Mary in WI, appearing to be a meal in a glass)

and we saw our share of wild beasts:

Back in Minnesota, there were opportunities for the Boesen family to get together:

One evening grandniece Kirsten didn't want to miss out on the Boesen action and initiated a family face time where she and Ben could be included to announce their engagement, which occurred at the moment of totality in the recent solar eclipse. How romantic is that? 

Good old fashioned midwest thunder storms produced amazing sunrises.

Next up: The Summer of '24 Part 2: The monthlong circle trip of camping and visiting.

 

 

 

Paint Out Retreat

I finally tested negative for Covid, just in the nick of time. Once a year our art society sponsors a three night non-instructional retreat and I was afraid I’d be missing it. The other good news was that Bryant, Sammy and Chuck, as well as visitors Blogless Marsha and David all escaped contagion. I was the only “lucky” recipient.

 

It’s an opportunity to gather with fellow artists, in a beautiful setting, to give and receive feedback and learn from each other. I used it to finish neglected paintings as well as to create a new one.

 

At Look Lake Lodge and Retreat Centre, we were a group of mostly grey/white haired women and one man. Reminds me of the European art study tour I took between grades nine and ten, two nuns, 42 girls and one boy (the nephew of one of nuns).

 

I painted a statue of a horse, 11x14 watercolour,  a technique learned from David and Susan Avis Murphy (YouTube). It’s just the head of the statue as this steed’s rider is not an admirable historical figure:

Inspired by a photo I took from the Pacific Coast cruise earlier this month, I finished two small paintings of a lighthouse near Cape Disappointment, WA. During daylight:

Then I painted the same scene at night, still mesmerized by our recent Aurora experience. Both lighthouse paintings are 8x10 watercolours:

Already looking forward to next year's retreat.

 

Aurora Borealis!

Note: once again, depending on my phone for posting, the typeface and photos are glitchy. 

While in Iceland, it was a disappointment to miss the Northern Lights by 15 minutes. I had seen green aurora previously in Edmonton from a distance and was hoping for something more impressive. Who knew it would be so spectacular, just 15 minutes from home.

On the 10th of May, still in the throes of Covid I had an outing.  We drove to a nearby isolated bluff in a more rural area and parked facing north. A little while later we were joined by another Aurora seeker on the other side of the street. At 10:39 I heard a car door open and he was outside facing south. Deciding to do the same, I noticed swirling clouds above us. He took a photo with his phone and they were tinged with pink. Then the show began. It got brighter and thicker. At one point it was a dome raining down pink and green streaks of light.

 

When we arrived home at midnight, we

could still see it from our deck. If we hadn’t have faced south we would have missed the best part of the show. Who would have thought, given the name Northern Lights.

 

Ever practical C, summed up his thoughts: this sure saved us a lot of money as we don’t need to return to Iceland to chase the Aurora. 

 

Post cruise covid

The dreaded C-word caught up with me despite seven jabs of the vaccine. Of course I was in a high risk area, a cruise ship. Thank goodness it didn't hit until several days afterwards or I could be writing about cruise quarantine, but no there's doubt as to its origin.

We made the decision to cruise home from California, rather than fly, which despite my current state was an excellent idea. Bryant and fiancee, Sammy, accompanied us and although we were worried about their experience with the typical passenger demographic being several decades older. The young people on the ship seem to find each other and in San Diego and San Francisco they were able to meet friends in port. B described the trip as life changing, as cruising is now a vacation goal for him.

B & S boarding the ship:

San Diego: we were lucky to land on the weekend of the MissionFed ArtWalk, a huge free street art festival within walking distance of the pier. We had our photo taken at the colourful Sarah Stieber Gallery.

San Francisco: the view from our balcony that included all the highlights: the Transamerica pyramid building, Telegraph Hill. the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz.

View of the ship from Astoria, Oregon

Pulling in to Victoria, BC. Washington’s Mt.Baker looming large in the distance.

Back home in our beautiful city of Vancouver.

Disembarking:

The weather was beautiful, the seas were calm with the exception of one day and a good time was had by all.