The travel day was long, 18 hours or so, and the atmosphere in the last plane from Cairo, Egypt to the coastal town of Sharm El Sheikh was hot and surely a test group for “Old Spice”. As we 
walked down the aisle some folks were definitely “deodorant” and others definitely “Antiperspirant.” Pearse looked at me, raised his eyes, cocked his mouth to the side and if you couldn’t understand what he was thinking then the thumb and forefinger he used to pinch his nose pretty much said it all. As we sat on the tarmac all we could hope for was that the flight would leave “on time.” Seamus summed it up “You think they can turn on the air?” Imagine his disappointment when I said “It is on!”
We touched down in Sharm El Sheikh and the new circus like canvass topped airport was glistening. This Red Sea beach resort is an unscheduled and only slightly planned stop. We left the Italian Alps 5 days early and decided to squeeze in this trip to Egypt for some R&R or at least to give us a chance to melt away the 4 months of the Alps winter that still chilled our bones. Can you really say you need R&R if you’ve been on an adventure for 9 months away from home and work? I think not!
walked down the aisle some folks were definitely “deodorant” and others definitely “Antiperspirant.” Pearse looked at me, raised his eyes, cocked his mouth to the side and if you couldn’t understand what he was thinking then the thumb and forefinger he used to pinch his nose pretty much said it all. As we sat on the tarmac all we could hope for was that the flight would leave “on time.” Seamus summed it up “You think they can turn on the air?” Imagine his disappointment when I said “It is on!”We touched down in Sharm El Sheikh and the new circus like canvass topped airport was glistening. This Red Sea beach resort is an unscheduled and only slightly planned stop. We left the Italian Alps 5 days early and decided to squeeze in this trip to Egypt for some R&R or at least to give us a chance to melt away the 4 months of the Alps winter that still chilled our bones. Can you really say you need R&R if you’ve been on an adventure for 9 months away from home and work? I think not!
Our resort is fabulous, the warm breeze with that distinctive smell that is salt water air titillates the olfactory senses and as we pass by the outdoor bar the 2 statuesque belly dancers/singers, tan, beautiful, and scantily clad have the 2 teenage boys looking at each other saying “Oh yeah
, we can handle this!” When were we in the Alps?” Our walk to the room is easy since we don’t have any luggage. We’re in Egypt and the 7 bags that contain the “Life of Glavin” are in Rome. I wonder if the Pope needs an extension cord, some Gatorade powder, access to our traveling pharmacy or a body pillow that is stuffed in the suitcases. If he looks hard I am sure he’ll find an olive wood rosary from Israel tucked into one of the bags. I should be careful, I was told not to mention Israel and Egypt in the same sentence.
From the 2nd floor hotel room we can see Saudi Arabia across the Red Sea. It’s not quite the same as seeing Camden from Philadelphia but it will certainly do for the next 4 days. The Sinai Desert butts up against the Red Sea and one can’t help but think of one’s days in Catholic grade school where phases like “The parting of the Red Sea,” “Wandering the Desert for 40 years” “I am Who Am” and “The 10 Commandments” ring in your subconscious. The red hued desert is surprisingly mountainous and a not so subtle reminder that my geography and understanding of the world’s topography is not what it should be for a man my age.
One of the highlights of the trip is the sunset 4x4 Quad ride through the Sinai desert. The 4x4’s are lined up as we arrive and the guides are wrapping scarves around the heads of the riders
. Eamon and Seamus are ecstatic when they count the number of bikes for Team Glavin at 4 which, by quick calculation, mean that they each get to drive their own ATV. After I take a quick vote for “Am I dad of the year?” and the quick reply “YES”, you grab these moments when you can, we are off to the sandy and rocky terrain of the Sinai. The kids are wrapped in Bedouin black and white checkered scarves and they look like the Irish PLO in sunglasses. You can’t hide all that Irish skin, try as we might. The engines roar to life and like most things on this trip, we have to “figure it out as we go.” There’s no safety lesson, no guide to “hold your hand.” Basically it is “You signed up, follow the motorcycle guy, have fun and don’t get killed.” Naturally they said all that in Arabic so we didn’t get too much of it, actually we didn’t get any of it!
We bop up and down rumbling in our seats and occasionally I hear Pearse scream to his brother’s, “This is awesome!!” He is smiling from ear to ear and leans right and left hoping to bury the turns and get to the spot, whatever it may be given that we’re in the desert, before anyone else. The red-yellow sun is beginning to tuck its way behind the mountains and the temperature begins to cool. As the 4x4’s come to a brief stop, for Bedouin tea, I look at Ann and she sums it up, “Can it be any more beautiful?” It is a desolate beauty that is one of the few spots on this journey that belies the phrase ‘You gotta see it to believe it.”
As we make our way back from the mountain pass and see the lights of the city of Sharm El Sheikh, I chuckle as I know we are making a bee-line towards the Red Sea. I can’t help but recall during this time of Lent and the annual airing of the epic film The 10 Commandments with Charelton Heston that the Pharaoh, Ramses, would have had a better chance of catching Moses before the Red Sea if he had our 4x4’s instead of his chariots. That’s for sure!
, we can handle this!” When were we in the Alps?” Our walk to the room is easy since we don’t have any luggage. We’re in Egypt and the 7 bags that contain the “Life of Glavin” are in Rome. I wonder if the Pope needs an extension cord, some Gatorade powder, access to our traveling pharmacy or a body pillow that is stuffed in the suitcases. If he looks hard I am sure he’ll find an olive wood rosary from Israel tucked into one of the bags. I should be careful, I was told not to mention Israel and Egypt in the same sentence.From the 2nd floor hotel room we can see Saudi Arabia across the Red Sea. It’s not quite the same as seeing Camden from Philadelphia but it will certainly do for the next 4 days. The Sinai Desert butts up against the Red Sea and one can’t help but think of one’s days in Catholic grade school where phases like “The parting of the Red Sea,” “Wandering the Desert for 40 years” “I am Who Am” and “The 10 Commandments” ring in your subconscious. The red hued desert is surprisingly mountainous and a not so subtle reminder that my geography and understanding of the world’s topography is not what it should be for a man my age.
One of the highlights of the trip is the sunset 4x4 Quad ride through the Sinai desert. The 4x4’s are lined up as we arrive and the guides are wrapping scarves around the heads of the riders
. Eamon and Seamus are ecstatic when they count the number of bikes for Team Glavin at 4 which, by quick calculation, mean that they each get to drive their own ATV. After I take a quick vote for “Am I dad of the year?” and the quick reply “YES”, you grab these moments when you can, we are off to the sandy and rocky terrain of the Sinai. The kids are wrapped in Bedouin black and white checkered scarves and they look like the Irish PLO in sunglasses. You can’t hide all that Irish skin, try as we might. The engines roar to life and like most things on this trip, we have to “figure it out as we go.” There’s no safety lesson, no guide to “hold your hand.” Basically it is “You signed up, follow the motorcycle guy, have fun and don’t get killed.” Naturally they said all that in Arabic so we didn’t get too much of it, actually we didn’t get any of it!We bop up and down rumbling in our seats and occasionally I hear Pearse scream to his brother’s, “This is awesome!!” He is smiling from ear to ear and leans right and left hoping to bury the turns and get to the spot, whatever it may be given that we’re in the desert, before anyone else. The red-yellow sun is beginning to tuck its way behind the mountains and the temperature begins to cool. As the 4x4’s come to a brief stop, for Bedouin tea, I look at Ann and she sums it up, “Can it be any more beautiful?” It is a desolate beauty that is one of the few spots on this journey that belies the phrase ‘You gotta see it to believe it.”
As we make our way back from the mountain pass and see the lights of the city of Sharm El Sheikh, I chuckle as I know we are making a bee-line towards the Red Sea. I can’t help but recall during this time of Lent and the annual airing of the epic film The 10 Commandments with Charelton Heston that the Pharaoh, Ramses, would have had a better chance of catching Moses before the Red Sea if he had our 4x4’s instead of his chariots. That’s for sure!
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