Egypt #4 - Sharm El Sheikh and Petra, Jordan
Photos taken November 25, 2009 - November 28, 2009

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This is a photo of our luggage strapped to the roof of our taxi transferring us from Sharm's airport to our hotel. We were a bit nervous about it, but saw it happening a lots so just went with the flow.
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Look at the densely-packed school of fish, right along the beach.
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Starbucks Coffee in Sharm El Sheikh
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We got to play some two-on-two volleyball, and then later we played some four-on-four when a group of four (non-English-speaking) Russians came along. Kelly and I were very happy to get to play!
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The view of Sharm's Naama Bay from our hotel's pool deck.
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Sharm's Naama Bay
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The pharmacies in Egypt sold all kinds of drugs over the counter that you need prescriptions for in the US -- ranging from amoxicillin, penicillin, to yes, viagra, cialis and steroids.
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Our hotel's (the Iberotel Lido) pool deck.
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An eel scattered the school of fish pretty good!
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Underwater photos!
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Dad Klocke
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no comment...
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Jay and Kelly
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Kevin
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Mom Klocke
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Kelly
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Kevin
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That's a lionfish along the bottom of the coral reef!
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Kevin posing like all of the Russians on the rocks by the sea right in front of us
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Mom Klocke taking her turn at posing.
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The arrow you see was painted on the ceiling of our hotel room. Every hotel we stayed at in Egypt had an arrow like this. We finally figured out that the arrow was pointing you to Mecca, so that Muslims would know which direction to face when performing their prayer rituals.
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We took a day trip to Jordan to visit the ancient historical site of Petra -- it was amazing. Our flight was chartered via the Petroleum Air Services and landed in Aqaba, Jordan.
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The row of seats that Kelly and I sat in ended up with another couple facing us - was a bit awkward but didn't prevent anyone from sleeping given the 5am hour.
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We landed in Aqaba at King Hussein International Airport
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Our prop plane!
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Across the sea in the background is Israel.
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See the windy road that goes through the town, that's the route we're taking. Just through the mountainous desert and small villages like the one you see.
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At the entrance to Petra was an Indiana Jones gift shop! The plot of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade centered around the holy grail which in the movie was housed in the biggest temple in Petra. (In real life, it's not, unless it's still a hidden treasure.)
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Beginning our 1 mile hike to the best sites.
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Petra features many burial temples of the Nabataeans around the turn of the millenium. They carved elaborate facades into the mountain-side and small niches into the mountain for their burial tombs.
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The entrance to the Siq up ahead. The Siq is like a gorge. In ancient times, an earthquake split the mountain in two, leaving a gap that winds through the mountain for about two-thirds of a mile. The gap is 10-20 feet wide in most places
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Hiking through the Siq.
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Just at the end of the Siq is the Al Khazneh (the Treasury). This is the most impressive of Petra's ruins. It's amazing to see, directly coming out of the Siq.
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Yes, that's a camel drinking a bottled water! We saw this camel perform this trick with two whole bottles - was fun to see!
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That's the end of the Siq, as seen from standing at the base of The Treasury. Gives you a good perspective of what we came out of and how narrow it was.
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Guards blocking your entryway into Al Khazneh. Apparently, that grand facade only has this one room that goes back 30 feet (unlike in Indiana Jones where there is vast chambers and booby traps and the like).
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Showing the natural colors of the rocks.
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A good example of a series of burial tombs.
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All the color in the rock you see is naturally created, not painted.
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It rained just a little bit on our bus ride back to Aqaba. Noteworthy because it only rains in Jordan four days a year!
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On our flight back home. Looking out at the Red Sea from Sharm.
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