Holy Moray! She Smokes Shisha by the Seashore
Trip Start
Sep 19, 2008
1
9
11
Trip End
Sep 23, 2008
Where I stayed
Dahab,
Egypt
Monday, September 22, 2008
The first dive was OK. Saw some fish that were native to the Red Sea and one of Doug's favorites- an octopus. I was suprised that it actually came out of its hiding place and moved along the bottom a bit. No Doug, this Dive Master (DM) wasn't as cool as the one in Hawaii as she didn't catch it for us to play with. I told her about our experience there however, and she said, 'Oh they're not supposed to do that.' I felt like saying, 'Only if they want a big tip.' Spoil sport!
The second dive was great. First of all it was just me and the DM on the dive. It started out great from the get-go; we dropped in and the first thing I saw as I was descending into the blue abyss was a giant bait ball of silver minnow-type fish. Then I saw a school of Crevalle Jacks and another school of what looked like snappers or a grouper type fish
Lagoon in Dahab
. Saw several free-swimming Lionfish and a big Scorpion fish. Then came the first novelty: a GIANT moray eel. This thing was like a mutant. The King Kong of morays. I swear it was 8-9' in length, had a head as big as a basketball and a body equally as large throughout. It looked like a big anaconda. I couldn't believe it. It freaked my DM for a minute as she thought it might get aggressive. I momentarily thought about going around to the back of it and tweaking its tail, which was sticking out of the crevice due to its size, but quickly thought better of it. That thing could take off much more than a finger for sure! We watched it and it watched us for a few minutes and then we swam on. After about 25 yards, I noticed that something was really stirring up the sand. I asked the DM what it was and she signaled some sort of fish. I felt pretty sure she was mistaken due to the size of the silt trail that had been stirred up. Of course... I was right and a few kicks later we spotted a really big Ray (can't recall what kind it was- no doubt of the same variety that killed the Crocodile Hunter), which excited the DM quite a bit. We saw several other good size schools of fish, along with the typical ones around the reef and then saw the bait ball again as we did our safety stop and surfaced. When we got out she told me that was one of the better dives she'd had in a long time, so evidently it was fortunate that I decided to go on the final dive.
Dahab Restaurant
My final night at the Red Sea I went into downtown Dahab for dinner. Dahab is very laid back, sort of a backpacker/hippie scene. Yes Doug, you would like it for a few days. However, it's a small scene so I think you'd grow weary after a few days . Take the waterfront in Bonaire, throw in a little of Bangkok's Khaosan Road and there you have it. Basically its a shorefront bazaar scene. Lots of small shops and restaurants. The restaurants are all pretty much set up with Bedouin-style seating: on the floor on pillows. Much like Moroccan style if you've ever been to that type of restaurant. So, I grabbed a pillow in the breeze, ordered some seafood and watched Dahab go by as Arabic music played in the background. Enchanting.
Towards the end of the evening I was confronted with the fact that there was one thing left to scratch off the list of Middle East experiences. I had opted against it last year in Egypt, but my curiousity about it had lingered. I debated it back and forth in my mind and finally the 'committee of one' voted it had to be done. So I ordered a shisha after dinner; lung cancer be damned! I opted for apple as I figured it would be the smoothest of the choices. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the shisha, it's a water pipe. Think of Ali Baba or the Caterpillar in Alice & Wonderland
Shisha
. I have never been a fan of smoking but I must say I actually enjoyed it as it was extremely mild and somewhat relaxing (then again that could have been a result of my recumbent state on all those pillows and the beer). In fact I enjoyed it to the extent that I actually thought about bringing one back, but decided it would likely be troublesome and one of those things that seemed like a good idea at the time, but... Plus it would be kind of hard to explain to the kids in our family. I might have then been responsible for the next bad family habit we formed since karaoke. Our family can only handle one bad habit a year. Can you imagine if we broke out the karaoke and the shisha at the next family gathering? We might never get everyone to go home! As for the big question: Did I inhale? Well... I think I was visited by King Tut himself. Anyway, it was a very enjoyable evening and all that was missing was you! Speaking of smoking, I noticed the cigarette packs over here are very aggressive in their warnings. Not only do they have the typical written warning, but they also come with a picture illustrating the dangers of smoking. The picture is of a man, laying down with an oxygen mask over his face and defibrillation pads on his chest. Thought provoking!
Doug a.k.a. 'Big Brain': When you finally construct your bar I want to be your interior designer (finally put those years of study at FSU to good use). I'm going to incorporate a Middle Eastern/Caribbean fusion scene. People will flock. Trust me. You'll be rolling in it. (If not, you'll be left with a fabulous place to sleep.)
