The Widow and the Spinster: The Search for Adventure, Enlightenment, and the Quest for Forbidden food - Bacon, Bacon, Bacon, and New TR Link! 4/2

[Alison S]

I cannot believe you actually found the camera shop! You two are adventurous!

 

[jedijill]

As you can see this room hasn’t had much of a refurb since the 70s.

Are you going to tell the story about how we only had tepid water for 3 days in the shower?!?!

We got to the address that she provided and he dropped us off. There was nothing with any kind of sign indicating where this camera place might be. We walked up and down the street a couple times before Jill asked a guy in a jewelry store if he knew "where this place was" as she pointed to her phone. He made gestures that he didn't speak English and called someone from the back of his store. The guy from the back of the store pointed down the street and said, "that guy, more English"

I have to say, even with the language barrier, everyone we met were so nice and helpful. This experience really helped restore my faith in basic human kindness. Two western women stuck out like sore thumbs and the experience certainly could have been different.

The last Uber driver had the windows down and the stench from the traffic and pollution was awful, we were both coughing the whole way back and for about an hour afterwards. Next we stopped at the ATM in the lobby for Egyptian pounds. We tried to change the bills for smaller ones at the Reception desk, but she directed us to the bank in the lobby (which was now closed.)

ATMs give mostly 200 pound bills....we really needed 10's and 20's for almost everything. Luckily the bank opened the next morning so we could get smaller bills.

Jill in CO

 

[franandaj]

I cannot believe you actually found the camera shop! You two are adventurous!

We were pretty amazed that we found it as well!

 

[franandaj]

Are you going to tell the story about how we only had tepid water for 3 days in the shower?!?!

I'm getting there! I don't think you told me about not being able to get warm water in the shower, and you just suffered in silence. It's not until I try to take a bath that I discover it and we have that discussion.

I have to say, even with the language barrier, everyone we met were so nice and helpful. This experience really helped restore my faith in basic human kindness. Two western women stuck out like sore thumbs and the experience certainly could have been different.

Yes! I was amazed at how nice everyone was and how they wanted to help us.

ATMs give mostly 200 pound bills....we really needed 10's and 20's for almost everything. Luckily the bank opened the next morning so we could get smaller bills.

Yeah, better to pay 30 cents (10 pounds) for your two bits of TP and flush of the toilet than $6 (200 pounds)!

 

[DnA2010]

8? if I count correctly different types of fruit! Impressive!

Yum and I love the tiny jam!

Different, but still a good sounding menu. Did Jill like the big ravioli?

What is the white blob in the middle? (Apologies if it's there, and I'm just not remembering now that I'm writing in the quoting

I had the swordfish with potatoes, grilled vegetables and roasted red pepper. It looks like a small piece, but I couldn't finish it. I did eat all my potatoes!

It does look like kinda a small portion, but looks nicely cooked?

His name was Moafa. I remembered it as "like Moana with an f". Jill heard a version that I can't really repeat here on a family board.

Hhehe I laughed out loud at this!

He stopped at a little roadside market and picked us up two 500ml bottles of water.

In reality we were kind of looking for a six pack or maybe more. He told us that the hotel might frown on us bringing our own wine

Well maybe it could have been put in a bag, but completely understand respecting his options

Very clean and shiny!

I love the architectural/cultural? touches of the room! very nice!

ooo looks like a decent tub!

Jill got the burger with beef bacon. With what? What the oink?

Not there, def lack of oink! hehe what the oink

I got the Mezze platter. All kinds of fried Middle Eastern goodness. Lamb Kibbeh, Spinach Fatayer, Cheese Fatayer, Fried Chicken Mosakhan Roll Served With Mint And Yogurt Dip.

Looks like a lot! did you manage one of each?

 

[bcwife76]

Wow, an Adventure indeed! I'm glad Mahmoud is still taking good care of you though ;-)

 

[franandaj]

8? if I count correctly different types of fruit! Impressive!

Yes, I couldn't eat all of it either, just too much food.

Yum and I love the tiny jam!

I don't think I even opened it. There was plenty of jam and butter already on it.

Different, but still a good sounding menu. Did Jill like the big ravioli?

Yes, she said it was good.

What is the white blob in the middle? (Apologies if it's there, and I'm just not remembering now that I'm writing in the quoting

That was the cerlriac salad. I tasted it and didn't care for it much.

It does look like kinda a small portion, but looks nicely cooked?

It was excellent! I just don't have that much of an appetite and I wanted to eat the eclair!

Hhehe I laughed out loud at this!

Yeah, pkondz got it right off the bat. Quoted a character from a movie I never saw, but Jill said, "nailed it!"

Well maybe it could have been put in a bag, but completely understand respecting his options

Even so, everything went through metal detectors so they would have seen it. We did notice that there was liquor store very close to the hotel as we were driving there the second time we stayed, but we were too tired to walk outside and get it. We're more proactive once we get to Egypt.

I love the architectural/cultural? touches of the room! very nice!

It was very nice!

ooo looks like a decent tub!

It was, except that the stopped didn't work very well.

Not there, def lack of oink! hehe what the oink

We would realize the terrible conclusion soon.

Looks like a lot! did you manage one of each?

I ate all the lamb kibbeh, and had at least one of the others, I might have had two of whatever the chicken taquito like thing was.

 

[franandaj]

Wow, an Adventure indeed! I'm glad Mahmoud is still taking good care of you though ;-)

He gave us his number and told us to WhatsApp him anytime we had any questions. He was pretty good about responding back.

 

[pkondz]

Either that or guests with more mobility. I bet there were better restaurants outside the hotel, and those guests with cars or who knew of where to go, didn't have to eat at the hotel.

Good point

Where? I couldn't find it. Googled the lyrics (of which I pretty much thought I knew). I listened to that album over and over again in High school.

No, no, no.
I quoted the line that you wrote. ""Ya can't have any pudding if you didn't eat yer meat!""
While it's not exactly right, it is in Pink Floyd's Another Brick in the Wall

"If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding"
and
"How can you have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?"

I just said "Well don't beat your head against a wall over it." to reference the Wall.

I've always wanted to do that to someone!

OK, that's weird. I have never seen a bird in an airport. Ever.

I'm pretty sure there are some in MCO? (Could be wrong)

Get some sleep.....

Yeah.... I'm on my second midnight shift in a row. Groggy is an understatement.
Actually mentioned that to someone today. I feel like I suffer from jetlag... every week.

overlooking the Nile.

You just toss that in there like it's nothing. "Oh, you know. Had an apple. Watched some TV. Looked at the Nile. You know... the usual."

I may never see the Nile and here it's right outside your hotel!

Everything, including all our bags and carry-ons, went through the scanner before we entered the hotel.

I find that so fascinating... and sad, at the same time.

We hoped that we might get a renovated room. Nope.

poop

As you can see this room hasn’t had much of a refurb since the 70s.

Whoa. Throwback there.

And this is the more upscale hotel??

the two most important things for now, a camera repair shop and where to buy wine.

#priorities

The guy from the back of the store pointed down the street and said, "that guy, more English"

Now don't Americanize the scene I just described. The building is dark and dirty, the door is not made of glass with numbers on it. In fact I’m not really sure if there was a door. There was a wall.

Thanks for that... because that's exactly what I did.

Our new friend pushed a series of buttons that made it go up. I have no idea how many floors, but we were literally watching the walls go past with open doors and then we would hit an opening, and then go up another floor with the wall covering the elevator door until we came to an opening.

Meh. It worked and no one was seriously injured. What more do you want?

Actually... I'm betting there wasn't any muzak, so definitely an improvement.

When our advocate for the people answered the door Jill showed him her phone. He shook his head. We were looking for #53 and he said that he was #47. When I turned around I saw some empty Togo containers on the floor. It looked like one was filled with milk, and I thought "cats here?"

Alison's gotta keep her eyes open for any feline critters.

When my kittens were born six years ago, they were larger than these kittens who were weeks old.

Huh. I wonder if that's a nutritional thing?

Since neither of us had any clue how to operate the elevator we walked down the flights of stairs to street level.

We nodded our heads in agreement. He signaled for us to follow him, and we followed him back out to the street and down to the next building.

Phew!

they were able to communicate to us that the elevator would take us to floor six and we needed to go up one more flight of stairs.

um... what?
I wonder if they added a floor, messed up when they installed the elevator, or if it was broken and couldn't get there anymore.

I’m assuming that we are passing through the 4th floor here.

Or the 4th dimension. It's the poor man's TOT.

When we reached the top of the stairs there was a door with a sign next to it with the business name in a large stylized font in rainbow colors. We had found CamFix!

Woot! Success!

And then a man came out of the other room, "Can I help you?" He spoke great English.

Did you faint from relief?

He took it back into the other room to clean it.

Gotta ask... with the sketchy elevator/location... did you have a moment's thought of "I'll never see my camera again"?

The woman saw that Jill was uncomfortable and unplugged the fan from where it was and moved it so that it was focused on Jill. She didn't need to do that, but it was a very sweet gesture.

That's very nice of her!

When he had solved the problem (and cleaned out the camera so my pictures were even clearer), he said it was no charge because it was an easy fix.

Nice people. And the way it really should be, don't you think?

We told him that we felt we should give him something. He asked for $200LE, (which was less than $10), but didn't have any Egyptian pounds, would American dollars work? We offered him a few dollars, but then he said he needed $15US.

um...

You see we had read that Egyptians preferred to be paid in their own currency because they need a minimum to be able to take it to the exchange office. That minimum is around $13-15USD.

...oh! Okay, that makes sense, then.

We found a store called Drinkies that sold alcoholic beverages,

The name of the store makes me smile.

his car smelled like an ashtray,

ew.

The last Uber driver had the windows down and the stench from the traffic and pollution was awful, we were both coughing the whole way back and for about an hour afterwards.

So which was worse? The ashtray car or the windows down car??

I was perusing the price sheet and they wanted just over a dollar per pair of underpants and almost two dollars for a pair of socks. I decided that I was going to wash those in the sink and hang them dry in the tub and save a few bucks.

Good call.
I remember being in a CAA (AAA in the US) and there were undies and socks that were quick drying, made specifically for travel.

I wanted to check out the rooftop bar, but as soon as we got off the elevator something didn't seem right. We followed the hallways to the bar and immediately realized that this was a smoking area. Neither of us cared for the smell of smoke so we turned around and left.

I like the palms decorations.

Each glass cost about the same as the bottle we purchased.

not at all surprised by that.

The Egyptian wines were around $1000LE (about $33). The imported wines started at $4500LE (about $150). We would be drinking Egyptian wine for the duration of this trip.

Yikes! No kidding you'll stick to local at those prices.

We got a nice bread basket and three flavors of butter. Herb, tomato and olive.

mmmm... yum.

Jill ordered the Crab Risotto.

I would have too. I can't resist a risotto.

Here is my Moroccan Cous Cous served in a tagine.

Oh!
I know what a tagine is, but have never had a meal either cooked or served in one.

They served these sauces with it. They said that one was spicy, but I ate all of them, and didn’t find any to be spicy.

hmmm... would you consider yourself someone who handles spicy well?

I ate so much that I was super full. Not quite "bring me a bucket" full, but close.

But it's wafer thin!

Jill wanted to have the Panna Cotta for dessert, but after they brought the meal, it was like we became invisible. After about 15 minutes of being ignored, we decided just to go up to the room.

That really annoys me. The tip goes down exponentially, compared to the length of time I'm ignored.

Oh and if you’re keeping track, this is day #4 in a row eating lamb. Jill started to joke that we should call the trip report, “they need to breed more lamb, cause Alison is eating it all.”

Before falling asleep, we remarked about our American privilege. Earlier that evening we had been in the home of a local Egyptian whom we paid $15US (about $450LE), which was about the same as what I paid for my entree at dinner. I'm sure he was thrilled to have made the money he did, and here we were spending the same on one meal. We would see things and have many more experiences that made us realize how truly lucky we are as Americans, and in our circumstances.

I've had that thought a few times while reading this report.

Turns out two of the three bottles had corks. Only one was a screw top.

Uh, oh...

This night when I woke up in the middle of the night, I grabbed my phone to see what time it was and there was a WhatsApp from my car guy. He had one of the Cougars listed on OfferUp and Facebook Marketplace. The day before I left on this trip I had to vacate a garage in someone else's building that Fran's family had rented since 1991. That garage is where I stored the 1963 Lincoln Continental that Fran and I owned. I drove it up to his shop for storage. He told me the next day that it had a big oil leak, and that he thought we should list it on BringATrailer.com when I returned. Well evidently one of their regular customers happened by the shop that day, saw the Lincoln and fell in love with it. He ended up bringing cash deposit the next day and we would complete the sale when I got back. Well that just eased my mind on spending for the rest of the trip!

Great!
And just for fun I took a look... Either the cougar is sold, taken off of OfferUp, or it's not selling from around where you live.

 

[franandaj]

No, no, no.
I quoted the line that you wrote. ""Ya can't have any pudding if you didn't eat yer meat!""
While it's not exactly right, it is in Pink Floyd's Another Brick in the Wall

"If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding"
and
"How can you have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?"

Ooops, I didn't google and I haven't heard that one in a while. But I was close!

I just said "Well don't beat your head against a wall over it." to reference the Wall.

That's what I meant by it took me a while to figure out where you were going with that. You didn't actually quote a lyric from the album, but you referred to "the wall".

I'm pretty sure there are some in MCO? (Could be wrong)

Jill says they have them in Denver. I guess that's why she wasn't so amused by the little bird. I thought it was quite the novelty.

Yeah.... I'm on my second midnight shift in a row. Groggy is an understatement.
Actually mentioned that to someone today. I feel like I suffer from jetlag... every week.

I don't know how you do it. I can't have a crazy schedule like that.

You just toss that in there like it's nothing. "Oh, you know. Had an apple. Watched some TV. Looked at the Nile. You know... the usual."

I may never see the Nile and here it's right outside your hotel!

I was pretty stoked when I took that picture the first time we were driving on a bridge over the Nile. The specialness was not lost on me. Especially when we were cruising on it.

I find that so fascinating... and sad, at the same time.

It's amazing how quickly you become acclimated to certain things. I need to work in the assault rifles.

Whoa. Throwback there.

Right?????

And this is the more upscale hotel??

I think the reviewers were looking at restaurants, amenities, and location, not the specific rooms.

Thanks for that... because that's exactly what I did.

I realized that most people would westernize the the scene when I said "building". These buildings are very different than what we are used to. The hotels are similar, but where the residents live and do business are very different than where the Western people go.

Meh. It worked and no one was seriously injured. What more do you want?

Actually... I'm betting there wasn't any muzak, so definitely an improvement.

Yes, there was definitely no muzak.

Huh. I wonder if that's a nutritional thing?

I think so. When I tell the story of Natasha, the first thing that I noticed about her, was she ate like there was no tomorrow. We thought it was because she was afraid that every time she got fed she thought it would be the last. But that wasn't it at all, she was eating for six!

um... what?
I wonder if they added a floor, messed up when they installed the elevator, or if it was broken and couldn't get there anymore.

I think that the elevator only serviced even or odd floors.....

Or the 4th dimension. It's the poor man's TOT.

Gotta ask... with the sketchy elevator/location... did you have a moment's thought of "I'll never see my camera again"?

No, everyone was so nice and helpful. Besides, what was he going to do? Jump out the window?

That's very nice of her!
Nice people. And the way it really should be, don't you think?

Yes, that was one thing we took away from this experience. Everyone was so nice and wanted to help. We had to stand out on that street, two obviously western women who spoke no Arabic. We were dressed completely differently than all the other women there. Even if they wore slacks and a T-shirt, they still wore a headscarf.

...oh! Okay, that makes sense, then.

Yeah, I'm glad we had read up on tipping and cash practices so we understood.

The name of the store makes me smile.

Yes, it was a chain. There were quite a few around Cairo.

So which was worse? The ashtray car or the windows down car??

The open window car, definitely. The other one didn't smell great, but it didn't cause us illness.

Good call.
I remember being in a CAA (AAA in the US) and there were undies and socks that were quick drying, made specifically for travel.

They were selling quick dry socks and undies?

I like the palms decorations.

That was a nice touch. Perhaps that was part of the "more upscale". We never visited the other Hilton, although I think we did pass it when we took an Uber.

not at all surprised by that.

Yeah, drinks are always more expensive in the bar.

Yikes! No kidding you'll stick to local at those prices.

Yeah, we considered the imported wine for about a second until we did the conversion.

I would have too. I can't resist a risotto.

They also had an asparagus and mushroom risotto.

Oh!
I know what a tagine is, but have never had a meal either cooked or served in one.

That was a first for me as well. I usually make my cous cous in a standard pot like you would boil your turkey carcass in.

hmmm... would you consider yourself someone who handles spicy well?

No, not at all.

But it's wafer thin!

That really annoys me. The tip goes down exponentially, compared to the length of time I'm ignored.

Unfortunately wait staff is not one of those positions that is tipped in Egypt.

I've had that thought a few times while reading this report.

Yup. It hit us nearly every day.

Great!
And just for fun I took a look... Either the cougar is sold, taken off of OfferUp, or it's not selling from around where you live.

Yup, the cougar sold about a week after I got back! I've got another (two) Cougars and a Ranchero, but I might keep the first cougar that we bought. We will see.

 

[DnA2010]

The coffee here was really good. Nice and strong, good flavor.

Well we know that weak coffee on a vacation is def not great

Mmm- are those peaches in the background?

They were made of corrugated metal, and other scraps, pieced together with whatever was on hand. It made me sad to see all these little "towns" that were littered along the side of the highway.

I remember this sort of thing in some of the travels I did pre-kid- it's tough to see

A lot of these pictures made things look very quiet indeed- did your driver have any insight?

This bunch in the middle of the road were a fun sight!

Just chillin like villians!

When you pass through the cities on the highway you'll traverse three to five bumps as you pass through town.

I want these in my neighbourhood lol - people drive too fast

I would have taken pictures, but there was a sign at the entrance reading "All photography prohibited".

Hmm I wonder why!

The terrain became a little more interesting as we continued south.

these shots kinda remind me of here in a way- kinda..like the hill part...oh I don't know

it's weird how they are just standing around- like does someone own them, or have they been abandoned etc?

Looks to be in ok shape?

This is the main dining room where meals are served.

Super cool!

Very bright and pretty!

Looks huge!!

 

[franandaj]

Well we know that weak coffee on a vacation is def not great

The worst!

Mmm- are those peaches in the background?

Yes! Those are peaches.

I remember this sort of thing in some of the travels I did pre-kid- it's tough to see

Yeah, somewhat depressing.

A lot of these pictures made things look very quiet indeed- did your driver have any insight?

I didn't ask him, he didn't have a ton of answers for things.

Just chillin like villians!

I want these in my neighbourhood lol - people drive too fast

LOL!

Hmm I wonder why!

Possibly because they had artwork in there, not exactly sure.

these shots kinda remind me of here in a way- kinda..like the hill part...oh I don't know

I can see that, this was a lot more dry than your neck of the woods.

it's weird how they are just standing around- like does someone own them, or have they been abandoned etc?

I think I explained that later, but they do belong to someone.

Looks to be in ok shape?

Most of them looked OK at first glance, but a lot of them had sores and stuff when you looked up close.

Looks huge!!

For a tent in the desert it totally was!

 

[pkondz]

Ooops, I didn't google and I haven't heard that one in a while. But I was close!

That's what I meant by it took me a while to figure out where you were going with that. You didn't actually quote a lyric from the album, but you referred to "the wall".

I don't know how you do it. I can't have a crazy schedule like that.

I don't know how I do it either.
It's brutal.

It's amazing how quickly you become acclimated to certain things. I need to work in the assault rifles.

I realized that most people would westernize the the scene when I said "building". These buildings are very different than what we are used to. The hotels are similar, but where the residents live and do business are very different than where the Western people go.

I'm beginning to see that

I think that the elevator only serviced even or odd floors.....

That's even stranger.

No, everyone was so nice and helpful. Besides, what was he going to do? Jump out the window?

Good point.

Yeah, I'm glad we had read up on tipping and cash practices so we understood.

Smart that you did that. Read up on it I mean

The open window car, definitely. The other one didn't smell great, but it didn't cause us illness.

Thought you might say that.

They were selling quick dry socks and undies?

Yes. For travelling light. You can wash your socks and undies at night and they'd be dry by morning.

They also had an asparagus and mushroom risotto.

Asparagus probably not, but mushroom, yes.

That was a first for me as well. I usually make my cous cous in a standard pot like you would boil your turkey carcass in.

Ah!
I've never cooked cous cous. Not a huge fan.

No, not at all.

Huh. Odd they'd warn you about it, then.

Unfortunately wait staff is not one of those positions that is tipped in Egypt.

Really?
I guess that explains the waiter not worrying too much about you.

Yup, the cougar sold about a week after I got back!

Great!

 

[DnA2010]

We had our first introduction to public toilets. In most every situation, a public restroom has an attendant who keeps the place clean, and makes sure that there is toilet paper, either by keeping the stalls stocked or giving you two or three sheets when you enter, after you pay, of course.

Well good to know someone was cleaning them! Did you tuck any extra TP from other bathrooms into your pocket after you knew this? I probably would, just in case

Soon our guide for the jeep tour arrived and gave us the basics on how to climb into his truck.

Nice looking truck! Looks relatively new and reliable

Our guide told us that ten years ago there were only about four of these kinds of camps, and now there are over 200.

Over 200, wow! did it seem crowded on your various expeditions?

Lawrence of Arabia's home was located.

One of D's favourite movies, he loved these pics

This is the image of King Abdullah I of Jordan carved out in the rocks of Wadi Rum desert. It is said that this was done during the Arab Revolt of 1917–18 when King Abdullah passed through this desert several times.

So cool it's still there!

I asked to try the local tea. He told me that it would be too much sugar, but actually I found it quite pleasant. The other tea was pretty bitter.

What style of tea? black tea? or more spicy like chai?

Love these shots!

It seemed to me like something out of Blazing Saddles.

hehe I laughed at that!

These drawings were about 5000 years old.

:jawdrop:

“Oh good, they keep it locked so that it stays somewhat clean.”

I could not have been more wrong.

There was no way I was putting my butt down on that toilet!

I wasn't going to touch this, but OH MY GOD!!! sounds horribly awful!

Those are fantastic!

I think we had ice on two occasions in the entire two weeks.

I thought about you and the ice situation

Remember my butt took a shower without the benefit of a towel dry?

!!!!! man oh man!!!

I wasn’t going to be one of those idiots with my shoes filled with sand climbing around up there!

I immediately thought "my shoes would be full of sand" but know D would want to go up

One of these is taken with my DSLR, the other my cell phone, can you pick which is which?

I'm going to guess this is a trick question (and I haven't read the replies) so guessing the 2nd one is phone?

 

[franandaj]

I don't know how I do it either.
It's brutal.

I'm beginning to see that

For the remainder of the trip, we are pretty insulated in our bubble. We only see the poverty etc. from afar.

Smart that you did that. Read up on it I mean

I'm very glad we did. Tipping over there is an entirely different culture.

Yes. For travelling light. You can wash your socks and undies at night and they'd be dry by morning.

Mine we pretty much dry by morning as well.

Ah!
I've never cooked cous cous. Not a huge fan.

Really? Why not?

Technically I don't cook the cous cous in the pan where I cook the meat & vegetables.

Really?
I guess that explains the waiter not worrying too much about you.

Yeah, and there are some later instances where we tip and it's not evidently normal.

 

[franandaj]

Well good to know someone was cleaning them! Did you tuck any extra TP from other bathrooms into your pocket after you knew this? I probably would, just in case

Jill had actually bought some portable TP that came in small rolls, and in a plastic container so you could carry it in your purse. The problem was I didn't think to bring my purse on a jeep expedition in the middle of the desert. Especially since we were leaving from our camp. Later I did take some from the hotel room and fold it up in my tiny purse.

Nice looking truck! Looks relatively new and reliable

Yeah, we take this for granted today. Not the next day.

Over 200, wow! did it seem crowded on your various expeditions?

This was our only expedition in Wadi Rum. You saw the pictures, I don't think it looked crowded.

One of D's favourite movies, he loved these pics

So he's reading along with you as well?

So cool it's still there!

It's amazing that lots of old stuff is still there!

What style of tea? black tea? or more spicy like chai?

I really wouldn't know, I'm guessing just standard black tea.

hehe I laughed at that!

Well it seemed weird like that.

I wasn't going to touch this, but OH MY GOD!!! sounds horribly awful!

it was.

I thought about you and the ice situation

Yeah, I didn't really miss it because there was cold water everywhere, but it's nice to be home with my icemaker.

I immediately thought "my shoes would be full of sand" but know D would want to go up

Yeah, neither Jill nor I are big beach people for the main reason that we don't enjoy the sand. This trip was a stretch for us, but we toughed it out.

I'm going to guess this is a trick question (and I haven't read the replies) so guessing the 2nd one is phone?

Not a trick question, and you got it correct. The second one was from the phone.

 

[juniorbugman]

I have been reading along on your journey I just don't comment much but I did have to comment on this.

They were selling quick dry socks and undies?

Yes we do have a company Tilley Canada that sells quick dry socks and underwear. In fact I took them on my trip to Australia back in 1991 and you just rinse them out, press in a towel and hang to dry and they are dry by the next morning. Now back then they were what I call Granny pants but I just checked and they have improved greatly.
The socks haven't changed in all the years that I have had them.
I know that there is a Tilly USA as well.

 

[franandaj]

I have been reading along on your journey I just don't comment much but I did have to comment on this.

Yes we do have a company Tilley Canada that sells quick dry socks and underwear. In fact I took them on my trip to Australia back in 1991 and you just rinse them out, press in a towel and hang to dry and they are dry by the next morning. Now back then they were what I call Granny pants but I just checked and they have improved greatly.
The socks haven't changed in all the years that I have had them.
I know that there is a Tilly USA as well.

I actually found that my undies and nylons dried pretty quickly hanging in the tub. The socks and bras took a little longer, but since I had brought multiples of all of them I wasn't concerned. Had we been moving hotels like we did the first few nights it could have been an issue, but we had six nights at this hotel.

 

[pkondz]

For the remainder of the trip, we are pretty insulated in our bubble. We only see the poverty etc. from afar.

By design?

Mine we pretty much dry by morning as well.

Not surprised in a desert climate.

Really? Why not?

No idea!

Yeah, and there are some later instances where we tip and it's not evidently normal.

Oh?
Standing by…

 

[franandaj]

Hi Alison! Newbie joining in
I have to thank you for your excellent reports! I had ankle surgery on Friday, your SWW TR got me through Saturday and now this one has got me through Sunday! I really feel like I'm getting to know you both from reading your reports, and am very much enjoying your pictures-especially all the great food pics and fireworks pics. Can't wait to read more about your future adventures and am heading back to read more if the past

Hey! Fun throwback! I was going back through TRs looking for pictures I'd posted as bonus features and came across this!

It was from 2/15/15. Good to know when we started interacting!