The Travellist Issue 2 March 2015 | Page 44

Laura Jean Zito • Magnetic Sinai really strenuous, and the Egyptians, too, welcome the extra dollars that tourists bring to their country. The Israelis can be vigorous in their inspections and questioning but this gives one a feeling of great security rather than a feeling of stress. FROM LONDON You can play it safe and fly to Sharm elSheikh, Egypt, from Gatwick, London, on a myriad of charter flights (some as cheap as €35!) and then grab a taxi from the airport into Na’ama Bay. Spend the night as you will arrive too late to get the bus northward to the Sinai towns of Dahab or Nueba, where you are much more likely to find Bedouin, and get the bus the following day. Unless you have already arranged a transfer, taking a taxi to Dahab can be expensive ($100.00) unless you have a few people together in a group. Once I hitch-hiked from the highway in front of the airport through the checkpoint coming out of Sharm on the road north to Dahab, and I telephoned a Bedouin I knew to meet me after the checkpoint and he drove me to Dahab! I would not recommend this method until you get to know people! FROM ISRAEL For the more adventurous, you can take a charter flight to Tel Aviv for discounted fares from just about anywhere; get the train to the central bus station; and from there catch the #394 or #390 bus from the central bus station on HaTemarim Boulevard to Eilat for about 80 shekels. 42 March 2015 You can get the #15 bus to the Israeli/ Egyptian border at Taba if you can reach the Eilat bus station in time for the last bus to the border, which leaves at 11:00 PM except for Friday (leaves at 3:00 PM) and Saturday (at 7:00 PM.) If not, you can take a taxi to the border which will cost you about 35 shekels, about $17.00. You can also find a cheap hotel or hostel, like the one just behind the bus station, and get the bus in the morning to the border. That way you can see where you are going during the day once you arrive in Sinai. AT THE ISRAELI/ EGYPTIAN BORDER You will need some Israeli shekels to pay the border tax in Israel as well as Egyptian pounds to buy the visa ($15.00) if you didn’t organize one ahead of time. To get a carriage to transport your luggage a