First thing this morning, we called to check status on our bag. Yes, they would ship it a second time. It would go out today, to be delivered tomorrow to the front desk of the hotel, where someone was always on duty. It didn’t sound like they were going to charge us for the shipping. We had the front desk talk to the agent to confirm shipping details. We went to the front desk later in the day and told the next crew to be expecting our bag tomorrow.

Thanks to guidance from one of the dive crew, we found a tour company that offered tours to Luxor. Two good things today! It is a group tour package, with bus, tour guide, hotel, food and admission to attractions. While it is no by means cheap, it is probably overall less expensive than the “limo” when you factor in hotel, food, etc. The tour leaves the day after tomorrow, so we booked another dive trip for tomorrow.

We got to work on chores. Eric gave Kosmos a quick wash down, then Eric cleaned the water maker. He also put on two new belts on the secondary alternator. He fixed the coolant leak (just a loose clamp), but couldn’t find the leak in the stabilizers. Christi cleaned. We both spent a lot of time reshuffling things on board to make room for all the stuff we brought back with us, a very unrewarding and time consuming task.

Most of the boats that we have seen pull into Port Ghalib to check in, and then leave the next day. And we totally understand why. If you aren’t a diver, there is basically nothing to do in Port Ghalib. The other side of the complex is a pain to get to, and there isn’t anything to do there other than eat. The restaurants all charge resort prices, which are beyond the budget of most cruisers. The hotel offers a pool, SCUBA diving, and a bar, once again, at resort prices. There is nothing else around at all for hundreds of kilometers, and it is ungodly expensive to go anywhere. To add insult to injury, the only grocery store is about a mile east of the marina complex. The only transportation over there is private taxi, which costs USD$15 round trip. And there is a serious fly problem in Port Ghalib. No joke, hundreds of flies swarm around the boats, and no matter how hard you try to keep them out, they manage to get in. While we have really enjoyed the hospitality of the staff here in the complex, it really is not a very cruiser friendly place. If we didn’t have to wait on our bag, we probably would have moved north to a town called Hurghada, which is more suitable for cruisers.

And, onto a blog question:

Q: Do burgers taste different in different countries? How were the burgers in Oman? Were they camel meat or beef?

A: Yes, burgers do taste a little different everywhere we have been. First of all, the bread and toppings are generally a little different than what is traditionally served in the US. More importantly, though, the meat tastes different. Green grass fed, free range beef tastes different from grain fed cattle in pens, and it is definitely noticeable.

We really do not eat burgers too often, but we have had craving now and then. The burgers in Oman were OK, more like American fast food style than we would have preferred. We have been spoiled by some phenomenal burgers in other parts of the world, so our burger tastes are a little more discerning than they used to be. We never asked what kind of meat they were, we just assumed it was beef.