This weeks PhotoFriday theme is one you’d think I have many possible choices: “Travel.” I note that a few of the earlier entries are pictures taken while travelling which I don’t think is quite the same thing.

My entry is about the process of travel, the open road, the destination being far away. This is also a sort of timely image, since it was taken in Egypt, a country that’s currently very much in the news.

It’s spring in the UK so you can only imagine the difficulty I had finding a suitable recent image for this weeks PhotoFriday, “Sunshine.”

In the end I went back a couple of years to when we were in Egypt. This picture is from a rather stormy day in Alexandria. As you can see, the sun broke through the clouds with spectacular results.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Wheels.” I’m entry number 193.

This image is sunrise from the top of Mount Sinai after a night climb with people of all ages, Young and Old. This is not just a coincidence as this is this weeks PhotoFriday theme.

Please also vote for the previous challenge¹, “Cameraphone Shot.” I’m entry number 95.

This slightly understated image, taken around dusk, is one of my favourites from my trip to Egypt last year. At first glance it’s just a sunset taken over a “generic” city, but a more comprehensive look reveals the pyramids, meaning that it must be Cairo.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Black.” I’m entry number 226.

We climbed Mount Sinai at night, our torches illuminating just a few metres around us and the vastness of the surrounding landscape shrouded in darkness. Just after six in the morning the sun started to rise allowing us to see the Beauty of the area. “Beauty,” of course, is this weeks PhotoFriday theme.

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Awful!” I’m entry number 91.

[](http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephendarlington/10817487986/ ““No Camels & Horses” sign, Dahab, Egypt by stephendarlington, on Flickr”)

When you first step foot abroad everything seems fascinating and new. After a while you manage to acclimatise to most of the sights, sounds and smells, yet occasionally something still makes you feel “Far from home.” (Which is this weeks PhotoFriday theme.) In this case, a seemingly normal sign on a beach in Egypt stands out when you note that camels are banned from enjoying the surf.

This weeks PhotoFriday theme is “Sunrise.” Here is my entry. This was taken after a night-time climb up Mount Sinai in Egypt. Hard work but worth it in the end!

Please also vote for my entry in last weeks challenge, “Primitive.” I’m entry number 68.

Today we do the famous parts of Cairo: the pyramids and the Egyptian museum which includes remains from various burials, most famously Tutankhamen. (I always think of a cartoon: a pyramid door with a horn and the sign “toot and come in.”)

The traffic makes itself known again, making the journey across town take some time. But the pyramids appear suddenly behind other much newer and less grand buildings. That’s the first surprising thing: you hear that they stand right next to Giza but you don’t realise just how close.

The funny thing about Alexandria is that the all the things that it’s famous for are no longer in one piece; it’s a city famous for what it was.

First stop are some Roman ruins, a small but well preserved amphitheatre. One spooky part is a spot in the middle where your voice gets amplified, you hear back anything you say with a slight delay.

Next stop: catacombs. These were the tombs of a rich, egyptianised Roman. Most interesting was some of the art work which combined Roman and Egyptian style, sometimes with errors (deliberate or accidental?), such as only three jars next to the mummy (there are supposed to be four for the internal organs of the deceased) and the dead having head-gear normally reserved for gods.

As we approach the capital I feel my life hovering in front of my eyes as the near-death experiences merge into one.

The bus continually lurched from lane to lane, overtaking on which ever side seemed the most convenient at the time, braking and accelerating heavily as obstacles loomed and evaporated. At one point we’re overtaking on a blind corner only to find a man in the middle of the lane carrying a tire towards a broken-down car. The look of horror on his face is going to stay with me for a long time. Our driver is unfazed and laughs as he flicks the bus over into the next lane. Honestly, I’m not sure whether it’s the best driving I’ve ever seen or the worst, but either way it’s surprising that you don’t see more Egyptian Formula 1 drivers.