Well, it's that time of the week again - get yourself a cuppa and entertain yourself with my latest antics!

This week has been a mixture of frustration, exhilaration and lots of fun. Starting with the frustration, Egypt is a beautiful, mystical, spiritual land, but as with everything, it has its pros and cons. The biggest challenge to my western sanity at the moment, is the fact that we yet again don't have any water at the house. I'm wondering whether there's a pattern in the Friday-Saturday thing although we haven't been here long enough to tell. On top of the water not being delivered, we have the double whammy of the fact that I got a cleaning frenzy a couple of days ago and was liberally sloshing water all over the house to try and remove the desert and grime and completely emptied our tank. Thankfully now the cottage is finished we can nip in there for a quick cold shower in emergencies and Tristan and over the past few days, as Tristan and I get used to putting water as our number one priority (interesting how the things we think are important in the West drop away when you're faced with such basics!), we have had a full tank every day....

The biggest news so far though, is the camel lessons. Welma and I are getting on just fine - I love her, she seems to like me, but I'll be damned if she will pay the slightest bit of attention to any instructions I give her. My first lesson was to teach her to sit down. You have to make a bizarre sound at the back of your throat - a bit like clearing a big blob of phlegm out when you have a cold - and pull downwards on her rope. When Mohammed did it, she sat down quite happily, but when I do it, she just looks at me and then tries to nibble my arm. So I decided that I need to spend more time with her to get her used to me and to realise that, as I'm the one that now feeds her, I'm worth listening to! So, two days into the experiment, I decided to take her out for a walk on my own. Unfortunately the large door at the back was locked so I had to try and get her out of the small front gate. It's a double door and, knowing there was no way she was going to fit through half of it, I first had to ask a passing Egyptian policeman to help me open the other half (I'm too small to reach!). Once that was done, I thought it would be simple - just get her to walk up the steps and then off for my hot lunch date with Adel, camel in tow! However, I now know that she doesn't like steps - and there's three of them leading up to our main front gate! After a few attempts to coax her up and out, the policeman fetched a bedouin girl from the park across the road to help. She spoke excellent English which was a relief - her name's Sabah - she was making odd camel-coaxing noises and I kept saying 'come on darling' - which I felt was of course making all the difference! In the end I went inside to get some food to see if that would do the trick. But even a banana and some bread wasn't enough - she'd come up a step or two and then panic and go back down again - talk about two steps forward, one step back, this was more like two steps forward, three steps back. So rather than be later for my date I decided to leave her at home and try later....

So on Saturday afternoon I decided to take her out again. Mohammed was out, so it was just Welma and me. The walk at the start of the week with Mohammed had passed without any 'bouncing' (Mohammed had warned me that she's has quite a lot of energy and is still quite young so gets quite excited when she goes out sometimes), so I was feeling confident and very 'ethnic', wandering through the bedouin village with my very own camel (see photo attached!). Pretty soon I bumped into a lovely girl called Zaha who I'd met at the house before I decided to move in. So she and a few boys walked with me. We kind of understood each other with a mix of Engliptian and sign language and lots of laughter. We decided to take her down to the beach - apparently camels quite like swimming. As we got nearer the sea Welma's mood seemed to change - and I experienced my first 'bounce'. Now, camels are not small creatures, and most of them is legs, so when a camel bounces, there's a lot of legs flying around in all directions. By the time we reached the sea, I probably had about ten bedouin kids in tow, laughing and making a lot of noise. Which of course didn't do anything to help calm Welma down. The first time she bounced, she kicked me slightly and I was very glad to find that their feet are actually pretty soft. So we walked and bounced and walked and bounced and when we got to the sea, we walked, bounced and splashed, walked, bounced and splashed until I was completely soaked and the kids were laughing even more hysterically. It was great fun, although I was aware that she could do a lot of damage if she wanted to as she was rearing up on her back legs, splaying her front legs out at wierd angles and then doing the same to the back. Zaha was so little I was worried that she'd get kicked and meanwhile the boys were trying to wind her up with sticks which I very firmly stopped, although I know it's normal here and camels are probably almost immune to them. I tried to tell the kids to be quiet and to walk more slowly, but they just thought I was odd, I think! Anyway, it was all going well, but the boys then started to ask for money or tips - baksheesh. I tried to explain the concept of working for money but it seemed that Engliptian isn't the best language for that kind of thing! So, on the way back up to the house, after Zaha had climbed right inside one of the bins and come out with a full lettuce and a bag of bread, which all the kids had great fun feeding to Welma, I decided to stop at the shop, buy a box of water and get the boys to carry it home for me, so I could buy them a sweet each in return as payment to demonstrate my point. Anyway, as we stopped in front of the shops, now with 20 bedouin kids following me along (Pied Piper of Hamlyn kept springing to mind!), Welma got very frisky, did a huge bounce and knocked me over. So, after Adel having told me to keep a low profile around town to avoid tempting crime, there I was, a white girl sitting on her arse, in a skirt with legs akimbo infront of the shop and police station, with 20 over-excited bedouin kids and a bouncing camel, who was now merrily bouncing off down the road on her own, closely pursued by the kids! Despite panicking that I'd managed to lose the camel on our first outing, I did manage to see the funny side in it all. Thankfully she bounced off into the bedouin village and soon came to a stop and we all managed to catch up with her. Finally, I got her safely in the house, and tied up again. And then had the kids to deal with. They were all waiting outside the gate so I took them back to the shop and asked the shop keeper to get them to line up, smallest at the front (couldn't have been more than two or three) to the largest (about seven or eight) at the back, counted them and then bought them all a sweet. The were all good as gold while I was paying, but once the sweets were in my hands they were like a hoard of starved animals around a kill. I managed to extract myself from the muddle and got the main little boy, Mohammed, and his friend to carry the water home, although they dropped the box on the way home and it was all I could do to stop all the kids grabbing a bottle each and running off with it. They seemed a little disappointed by their baksheesh, but I don't want them to think I'm a soft foreigner they can milk for cash whenever they see me.

When Mohammed came home I told him the story and he was really cool with it, and got Saleh, the boy who used to own Welma, to come over and give me a proper lesson. He showed me how to put her saddle on - you have to tie her bridle to her leg so she doesn't stand up as soon as you get on (apparently that's an automatic camel reflex - could be awkward if you're half way on and she stands up!) - and then you put the saddle on, a bit like with a horse. However, he seemed to pull the girth so tightly and each time he pulled she sort of squeeked which made me feel like we were hurting her. But, once it was on, I got on - still in my skirt - hardly the most suitable camel-riding attire - and walked round the garden a couple of times. Saleh lives just over the back, so I'm going to have regular lessons with him until I'm confident that I can ride her on my own - and pray that she doesn't decide to bounce while I'm on her back!!! Hopefully once I start exercising her every day she'll have less energy - Mohammed's been too busy to walk her while he's been working on the house and she's a pent-up bundle of energy right now, which needs a little diffusing.... Maybe a long ride up to Ras Abu Gallum for some diving (about a six hour ride, I think!) might do the trick!

However, if that weren't enough camel-excitement for one little lady for one week, on Monday evening, she was really restless, pacing round and round, and actually managing to drag the huge lump of concrete serving as her 'stake' across the garden. It took both me and Tristan together to move it back - she's one strong three year old!!! Anyway, I was really concerned at how restless she was when I went to bed, but hoped that she'd settle down a bit, despite bouncing on the end of her rope in the garden. A good night's sleep it wasn't to be - at 3.30am I became vaguely aware of a loud rustling noise in the garden, and as I gained consciousness realised Welma must have dragged her rock and found her food bags round the side. However, when I looked out of the window the rock was there, just no camel!!! So I wrapped a sarong around me, and ran out into the garden, only to find her happily munching away on a bag of cement, which she'd found, and managed to rip open! She'd pulled so hard on her rope, she'd snalled the chain!!! She was quite calm once I got out there, and once she saw me, she walked to the back gate and stood looking expectantly at it. Then she circled back and nuzzled me under my arm, and then went back to the gate, each time giving me the most doleful looks with her huge gentle eyes. She did this about five times, each time my heart breaking as I knew she desperately wanted to get out, but knowing I couldn't take her in the middle of the night in case I lost her again! In the end I fixed her rope and tied her to her other stake nearer the gate and she seemed quite happy with that.

So I realised I have to take her out more often and get more confident with her. So today I finally managed to take her out - a nice long walk to the Blue Hole and back with Saleh. I had hoped to ride her, but he thought she'd be too bouncy for me first time, so he said I should ride his camel. I was a bit upset as I really want to bond with Welma, and was even more disconcerted when I saw Saleh's camel - it was twice the size of Welma and I could hardly get on even when he was sitting down. But he was well-behaved and I had a nice easy ride up. Amazingly, considering what a water-baby I am, today was the first time I've been in the sea - I went for a quick swim at the Blue Hole. The corals are blooming so visibility is a bit cloudy and there are loads of jellyfish around, but it's fascinating to see that even the sea has seasons, just as we watch the flowers bloom in spring back home. I tried to ride Welma on the way home but she was really frisky and I didn't want to fall off, so I swapped with Saleh again. She's so young, she still needs some training, and I'm obviously not the right person to do it. Imagine a three year old child, how much energy they have, then times it by at least 100 to get an idea of my three year old camel - quite a handful! But, back home after her first long walk, she seemed very happy, although she's got a bit of a dodgy tum at the moment, probably from her nocturnal cement-eating session!

Moving on, every encounter here brings me such pleasure. The Egyptians really are such friendly people. Even if the men are sometimes a bit over-friendly, the majority are simply trying to earn a living and are delighted by any attempt to speak their language. When I went to find Saleh to talk about Welma-training, he wasn't there and his mum, Hadra, invited me in for tea. Talk about a reality check. She speaks no english so her twenty year old daughter translated a bit - when I first saw Hadra I thought she was about late 40s. I found out she's 37 and has 9 children!!! It's so humbling to see how my lifestyle has enabled me to do so much. But I was equally aware of how happy she seemed with all her children around her, spending her days looking after them and living an extremely simple lifestyle. They invited me to stay for lunch and I found myself eating the most delicious rice and fish straight off a tray on the floor - with my hands!! I'm not sure my table manners were up to much, but it was such fun!!!

Arabic classes are going well. I've mastered 'I live in the house opposite the park in Mubarrak' - which, incidentally, is also my address - they don't do street names and numbers here!! I finally feel like I'm starting to retain some of the language when people speak to me. For instance, last night I wanted to go shopping in town, but found a fruit and veg can parked outside my house. However with my very limited Egyptian, and the owners' (amazingly!) even more limited English, they had to call over a passerby that they knew spoke English to translate. I now know the Egyptian for cabbage (kromp) and beans (fazolia), made a delicious coleslaw and have a few new friends into the bargain. It's these kind of exchanges that really make me feel alive - I'm learning a new language, having new experiences on almost an hourly, let alone daily, basis, and constantly feel blessed by the warmth and hospitality of everyone I meet.

So, what else.... I'm loving living in the house. The cleaning frenzy was cut short by the second water stoppage, so I had a couple of days off from that, which was actually a blessing as I literally couldn't move my arm after I'd finished on the first day (started at 6.30am through till 12.30pm, off for lunch and then 4.30pm - 9.30pm!!!). I tried to do Reiki on myself but actually both shoulders were so sore that it hurt to try and cross my arms to put my hands on my shoulders so I guess those aches will just have to subside on their own. But I've finally finished cleaning the big house. There's still a few bits to do on the small house and it will need cleaning once it's all done, but I think I might get someone to help me! Still on a cleaning theme, Tristan started cleaning the bedouin tent to try and prevent mozzies out there at night but has also had his activity cut short by nature. As he was removing some of the carpets to clean them, he found the nest of kittens, which the mummy cat moved a few days ago. The five of them are still growing and are really cute, but can't miaow properly yet, so when you go to stroke them, they open their mouths and try to hiss, but end up sounding like they've got hiccups, rather than anything even vaguely resembling a threatening warning. Each one fits into the palm of my hand - and I've got tiny hands! Bless! The bird on the roof has just hatched one of her two eggs so that's two youngs families growing up in our wonderful garden. We're just hoping that they don't actually meet, as I don't think they'll be great neighbours.

Mohammed has now left to spend some time with his family in Cairo before flying to England, where he has a house in Cambridge, and then on the the States to see his girlfriend/wife. Apparently we should be connected to the main water mains before too long, and also be hooked up to a more powerful electricity supply, which means I can get air con installed for the summer, which I think is going to be a bit of an essential, rather than a luxury, from what everyone else has told me. Apparently it's fine as long as we have a northerly breeze off the sea, but as soon as it switches to a southerly, you get the wind straight off the desert and it's like 'having a hairdryer blowing in your face 24 hours a day' according to a guy who was here last summer.

As far as things with Adel are concerned, living apart seems to work for us both. He's exhausted from work most of the time and just wants to chill and I'm delighted to have my own space and be able to just potter and do my own thing and see him here and there at the dive shop (where I'm teaching yoga and also helping with some marketing) and around town. I had a beautiful lunch date with him on this day off a few days ago. He's worked solidly since I arrived and so it was a real treat for us both to have some time together during the day. We went to a little italian place on the beach, which is run by a lovely italian family - mother, son and daughter - and does by far the best pasta in town. Really scrummy. The next day I decided to cook for Adel and rustled up a veggie stir fry and a strawberry cheesecake as the first meal in the new house - yummy! We sat outside in the tent (unaware that we were almost sitting on top of the kittens!), totally chilling - really beautiful. The tent really does have the ability to take you out of everyday life in an instant and transport you to somewhere where there are no worries or troubles or stresses... Amazing... Maybe if I come back I'll set some up on Oxford Street and in Leicester Square and see if they have the same effect! It could be the next Starbucks!!! It won't be long before we start sleeping out there under the stars in the fresh air (maybe get some mozzie nets brought over from the UK to rig up inside the tent to at least attempt to not be eaten alive!). Once the website for the yoga hols gets done (the web designer is out here at the moment, hopefully meeting this week) and I start teaching my local classes, and the house is finished, then I'll be able to kick back a bit and take some time out. I'm going to start diving again (can't believe I've now been here for four weeks and haven't been yet - seems silly not to if I'm getting it for free!) or at least go on the dive trips out of town to snorkel, chill in the sunshine, read and sleep. I haven't really relaxed since I arrived and am really starting to feel it - the adrenalin's been going non-stop to get my life sorted out and to make me feel settled. I'm going to schedule in at least two days of doing nothing and possibly even get away so I actually CAN'T do any work or cleaning!

The only bad news, and it's really rather sad, is that we got George's biopsy results back and he's got a very malignant form of cancer. Adel has already found another tumour and his options are limited. There aren't any decent vets in Egypt, so he can either fly to Dubai with Adel when he goes to visit family at the end of the month (although that may already be too long) or I can take him to Tel Aviv (Adel obviously can't go as he's Palestinian). Both options will be mega-stressful and treatment (chemo or radiotherapy) will take longer than either of us can spend away from Dahab so he'd have to live at the vets, which would be a very unloving environment for him when he's so sick. We're not sure what we're going to do, but if any of you can send healing vibes his way, they will be very gratefully received.

The weather's really hotting up now. I actually look forward to a cold shower each morning and evening (and at intervals during the day sometimes) - which is a good job considering the boiler in the big house has just packed up and we only have cold water!!! But the temperature outside is still just right - sunbathing, lazing around, exploring etc... And of course yoga! I finally got the ball rolling and taught my first class on Monday. I only had two takers, but they seemed to enjoy it, and I've heard that more will be coming tomorrow. Enshallah!

And, if you've made it this far, congratulations! I hope I haven't bored you, but there's just so much to tell about living here. I hope you're all well and I can't wait to start having visitors soon - do come and see me!!!

Sending warm sunshine wishes from Dahab - the name (it means 'gold') says it all!!! I hope you like the first pictures....

All my love

xxxx

Sara