Our trip to the Western desert oasis of Siwa was quite an adventure from many different perspectives...just to give you a taste:
- When we arrived to the mall in Alexandria to eat dinner (April 15th) on our way to Siwa, a fight literally broke out around our bus among Egyptian men. When some of the onlookers realized a bunch of foreigners were watching, they started surrounding our bus and the Egyptian chaperones had to escort us into the mall...
- We were eaten alive by mosquitoes...I got the most number of mosquito bites in my life even though I was wearing long sleeves and pants - it looks like I have a rash on my neck and feet !
- A poisonous snake was found in the tent in which we were supposed to sleep - the workers there insisted that this type of snake had not been found at the campsite for over two years...
- Many of us were afflicted with a sickness which usually consisted of general nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, and a weakness of body...fortunately I came down with it on the last day, so I didn't miss out on too much.
- My roommate and I had to bear the smelliest, clogged-up bathroom that I have ever come into contact with...it was truly unbearable!
- A sandstorm hit us while we were safariing in the desert, and since there was no opportunity to shower afterwards, we had to spend the 15 hour journey back to Cairo with sand caked in our scalps, filling our shoes, and in ever other imaginable place.
Despite all of these situations, we saw many amazing sights, did some community service trash pick up, and had a great time together. Not to mention that I got to wear shorts and tank tops a lot, which was wonderful...unfortunately there was no soccer-playing, though!! (picture: jumping off a cement block on the top of a mountain next to our hotel, overlooking one of the salt lakes in Siwa)
Day 1 - April 16:
We arrived in Siwa around 5:30am after leaving Cairo at 4:30pm the day before. Sleeping on the bus did not make for a very comfortable night, but our exhaustion didn't stop us from climbing up a very large, mountainous rock near our hotel/camp. 
The panoramic view was beautiful, and the obvious separation between the greenness of the date-palm trees and the blankness of the desert sand was amazing. An aerial view of Siwa probably shows the Great Sand Sea with the two saline lakes and the small circle of green that are Siwa. In fact, Siwa is so remote from the rest of Egypt that it has developed a very distinct culture and language that other Egyptians cannot understand, and it is closer to the Libyan border than to Cairo. (picture: one of the mountains next to our hotel)
The panoramic view was beautiful, and the obvious separation between the greenness of the date-palm trees and the blankness of the desert sand was amazing. An aerial view of Siwa probably shows the Great Sand Sea with the two saline lakes and the small circle of green that are Siwa. In fact, Siwa is so remote from the rest of Egypt that it has developed a very distinct culture and language that other Egyptians cannot understand, and it is closer to the Libyan border than to Cairo. (picture: one of the mountains next to our hotel)After a long nap in our Spartan rooms and a light breakfast, we set out in the backs of pick-up trucks - which were our mode of transportation around the oasis - to begin sightseeing. 
We visited the site of the Oracle of Amun, which was famous throughout the Mediterranean World and was even visited by Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC. Then we briefly stopped by a mostly-ruined temple and then were able to swim and relax at a nearby bath of spring water called Cleopatra's Bath (even though she never bathed there). When we had passed the bath the first time, it had been overflowing with shirtless Siwan men, but fortunately they had cleared out by the time we arrived, and when they began appearing again near the end of our swim, the security officers kept them out so we could swim as we liked. (picture: mid-way through our tour of the oracle temple)
We visited the site of the Oracle of Amun, which was famous throughout the Mediterranean World and was even visited by Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC. Then we briefly stopped by a mostly-ruined temple and then were able to swim and relax at a nearby bath of spring water called Cleopatra's Bath (even though she never bathed there). When we had passed the bath the first time, it had been overflowing with shirtless Siwan men, but fortunately they had cleared out by the time we arrived, and when they began appearing again near the end of our swim, the security officers kept them out so we could swim as we liked. (picture: mid-way through our tour of the oracle temple)Next on the list, 
we visited the old town of Shali in 'downtown' Siwa. This settlement was built around 1200, and all Siwan residents lived inside its walls because of their fear of raiders, and the settlement expanded upwards (instead of outwards) as the population grew. Its mud-brick dwellings are mostly in ruins now, although a few Siwans still inhabit its walls. (picture: our Siwan guide at the top of Shali; the mountains next to our hotel are visible in the background).
we visited the old town of Shali in 'downtown' Siwa. This settlement was built around 1200, and all Siwan residents lived inside its walls because of their fear of raiders, and the settlement expanded upwards (instead of outwards) as the population grew. Its mud-brick dwellings are mostly in ruins now, although a few Siwans still inhabit its walls. (picture: our Siwan guide at the top of Shali; the mountains next to our hotel are visible in the background).We spent the night back at the hotel, and I watched a soccer match with the Egyptians between the two biggest clubs in Cairo.
Day 2 - April 17:
In the late morning, we visited the 'Mountain of the Dead,' which is a small hill filled with ancient tombs that were reused in Roman times and were also used as bomb shelters by the Siwans during World War II. We went in some tombs that still had a few painted reliefs intact, but the mummies have all been moved to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. The guide did show us a stash of human bombs that had been cleared out of the tombs and put in a small, hidden cave out of the way...kinda creepy, especially when one of my friends accidentally stepped on a femur!
We briefly toured a new water factory, which was actually interesting - I had no idea that waterbottles start as miniature, cylindrical tubes of thick plastic with the cap at one end, and then they expand somewhere in the process!
We did our first community service today, which consisted of picking up trash around one of the springs, so it wasn't too strenuous. 
The spring itself was the best one we went to in Siwa...the cool, clean water felt wonderful after being out in the hot Siwan sun. The drive back into town was pretty amazing because we passed by a salt lake whose surface looked like icy because of all of the white salt piled up! (pictures: the NSLI-Y year students in front of the spring (one guy was sick/back at the hotel); the group posing behind all the garbage we gathered at the spring!)
The spring itself was the best one we went to in Siwa...the cool, clean water felt wonderful after being out in the hot Siwan sun. The drive back into town was pretty amazing because we passed by a salt lake whose surface looked like icy because of all of the white salt piled up! (pictures: the NSLI-Y year students in front of the spring (one guy was sick/back at the hotel); the group posing behind all the garbage we gathered at the spring!)We enjoyed a Siwan party later tonight after dinner
...about 15 Siwan men were sitting in a circle, singing, playing a flute, tambourine, drums, and they were clapping and dancing. So we sat around and enjoyed the atmosphere, and we did a bit of dancing, too, although couldn't replicate the Siwan dancing, which was animal-like and a bit erotic at times, as well :) (picture: Siwan men dancing, clapping, and playing instruments.)
...about 15 Siwan men were sitting in a circle, singing, playing a flute, tambourine, drums, and they were clapping and dancing. So we sat around and enjoyed the atmosphere, and we did a bit of dancing, too, although couldn't replicate the Siwan dancing, which was animal-like and a bit erotic at times, as well :) (picture: Siwan men dancing, clapping, and playing instruments.)When we returned to the hotel, some friends and I climbed the mountain again, which was illuminated by spotlights. The aerial view was really interesting because we could see some areas that were completely black and knew that was the beginning of the desert, and all I could think about was how utterly dark it must get at night.
Day 3 - April 18:
A lot of people were sick today, so our schedule had to be rearrranged, unfortunately, and we were unable to go to the Siwan Museum and some sewing factories.
Instead, we spent the first half of the day at this spring, cleaning up and hanging out by the water, while one of the chaperones was finding medicine at one of the two pharmacies in town. After that, we ate lunch and did some more cleaning in the middle of town, and my group cleaned Shali, which wasn't too bad because we took some neat pictures of the sun setting. (pictures: overlooking Siwa from the top of Shali; getting ready to pick up trash with our plastic gloves)
Instead, we spent the first half of the day at this spring, cleaning up and hanging out by the water, while one of the chaperones was finding medicine at one of the two pharmacies in town. After that, we ate lunch and did some more cleaning in the middle of town, and my group cleaned Shali, which wasn't too bad because we took some neat pictures of the sun setting. (pictures: overlooking Siwa from the top of Shali; getting ready to pick up trash with our plastic gloves)After we finished, we had about half an hour of free time, so my friends and I rented bikes, and we did a quick tour around town, which was fun, although there wasn't much to see because the town is pretty small. I bought some small gifts for my host sisters and a kilo of dried dates for about $2 for my host family because Siwa is famous for its production of dates - it seemed like nearly all the trees in Siwa were date palms!
We packed up our belongings quickly at the hotel, piled into the back of the pick up trucks, and went to our 'campsite' for our last night in Siwa. 
We weren't truly 'camping' in the desert because there was a building with a kitchen and bathrooms (thankfully), and we were on the edge of the desert. There was also a small hot spring that was really nice, especially at 2am! We spent the evening hanging out around the fire, talking with each other, looking at the vast array of stars, and relaxing. A poisonous snake was found in the big tent that had been set up as our sleeping shelter...it had been hissing in the ear of one of my friends who was resting in there because he was sick...so everyone ended up sleeping on blankets in the sand. (picture: sitting down for dinner at our campsite in the desert)
We weren't truly 'camping' in the desert because there was a building with a kitchen and bathrooms (thankfully), and we were on the edge of the desert. There was also a small hot spring that was really nice, especially at 2am! We spent the evening hanging out around the fire, talking with each other, looking at the vast array of stars, and relaxing. A poisonous snake was found in the big tent that had been set up as our sleeping shelter...it had been hissing in the ear of one of my friends who was resting in there because he was sick...so everyone ended up sleeping on blankets in the sand. (picture: sitting down for dinner at our campsite in the desert)Day 4 - April 19:
Our last day in Siwa was a safari into the desert in Landcruisers! 
I was feeling a little sick, but I enjoyed everything nevertheless from my front seat view in the car. The vastness of the desert was unimaginable, but the landscape was more varied than I had imagined...many dunes of course, but there were small rocky mountains as well. We picked up trash a a hot spring, but of course no one wanted to get in because we were already sweating from the heat! We spent a lot of time at a cold, fresh-water lake, swimming, eating lunch...and picking up trash, too. The chilly water was the perfect temperature to offset the beating sun, and the setting seemed so surreal because this was the only patch of green in sight. A permanent covering had been constructed on the beach and we took advantage of the shade it provided. A large group of Italians invaded after a couple hours, so it wasn't quite as peaceful after that, but a sandstorm started soon thereafter, so we had to move anyway. (picture: the wonderful cold lake!)
I was feeling a little sick, but I enjoyed everything nevertheless from my front seat view in the car. The vastness of the desert was unimaginable, but the landscape was more varied than I had imagined...many dunes of course, but there were small rocky mountains as well. We picked up trash a a hot spring, but of course no one wanted to get in because we were already sweating from the heat! We spent a lot of time at a cold, fresh-water lake, swimming, eating lunch...and picking up trash, too. The chilly water was the perfect temperature to offset the beating sun, and the setting seemed so surreal because this was the only patch of green in sight. A permanent covering had been constructed on the beach and we took advantage of the shade it provided. A large group of Italians invaded after a couple hours, so it wasn't quite as peaceful after that, but a sandstorm started soon thereafter, so we had to move anyway. (picture: the wonderful cold lake!)During the sandstorm, the sky was more overcast (or maybe the sand was just blocking the sun more) so at least it wasn't as hot, but the blowing sand was going everywhere. 
We decided to go sandboarding anyway, so that was a crazy experience! We drove the the top of this huge dune and the drivers parked the Landcruisers, straddling the crest of the dune right before a huge drop off! The sand was blowing off the crest of this mountain and made for quite a site, and it really hurt my bare skin, too!! I could barely open my eyes, too, and I managed to take a few pictures from inside the car before I got out. I went down, sitting on the sandboard once, which was pretty fun, although I had to close my eyes, and I was chewing on sand for the next hour or so! I didn't have the energy to climb back up the steep hill, so I enjoyed watching everyone else come down and wipe-out occasionally. I would've loved to go down standing up - only a couple guys tried and only one did it successfully - so it probably would not have been a good idea while I was sick. (picture: one of the Landcruisers traversing a sand dune)
We decided to go sandboarding anyway, so that was a crazy experience! We drove the the top of this huge dune and the drivers parked the Landcruisers, straddling the crest of the dune right before a huge drop off! The sand was blowing off the crest of this mountain and made for quite a site, and it really hurt my bare skin, too!! I could barely open my eyes, too, and I managed to take a few pictures from inside the car before I got out. I went down, sitting on the sandboard once, which was pretty fun, although I had to close my eyes, and I was chewing on sand for the next hour or so! I didn't have the energy to climb back up the steep hill, so I enjoyed watching everyone else come down and wipe-out occasionally. I would've loved to go down standing up - only a couple guys tried and only one did it successfully - so it probably would not have been a good idea while I was sick. (picture: one of the Landcruisers traversing a sand dune)We didn't have enough time to shower before our trip back to Cairo, but I did get in the hot spring back at the campsite to clean off the layer of sand, but it didn't help very much. We left Siwa at 10pm and arrived in Cairo around 8am, April 20th...all I wanted to do was shower and sleep! I spent the next few days recovering the trip and my sickness, which was pretty miserable, but the previous four days in Siwa made up for it!
I'm climbing Mount Sinai and visiting St. Catherine's Monastery (at the base of Mt. Sinai) tomorrow (April 30-May 2), so I can't wait for that!!!
Talk about an eventful trip! Hope you're all better, and that you have a great trip to Mount Sinai :)
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