Above: On the ferry after a sleepless night.
Another sleepless night
I rose in the wee hours of the night and wandered around. There were people sleeping everywhere, both inside on the floors, and on the open deck. I went to the restaurant. The atmosphere there, like the rest of the boat was very friendly. A complete stranger from another part of the restaurant walked over and had bought me a cuppa tea. Back on deck after dawn, I was offered breakfast by some locals. I will definitely miss the friendliness of Sudan once I land in Egypt where just about everyone will be wanting to make a bit of money from me (or any foreigner).
Us foreigners (including the likes of Syrians and other third party nationals) retrieve our passports from the purser’s office before arrival without having to queue up with the Sudanese and Egyptians. We felt privileged. The purser told me I needed to pay USD15 for my visa-on-arrival (VOA). I knew I didn’t need one but didn’t want to argue because last time arriving in Nuweiba, even the immigration officers didn’t know that I qualified for visa-free rather than VOA.
Arriving at Aswan
We reached Aswan’s port before 0900 (1000 Sudan time) and waited for about an hour before an immigration officer boarded. The queue for getting our passports stamped in the First Class restaurant was long. When it got to my turn, the immigration officer beckoned the purser and reprimanded him for selling me a VOA. He then stamped me into Egypt.
The purser led me to his office and proceeded to peel the label off my passport. I was horrified that it may tear or otherwise damage the page which would cause suspicion of tampering later. Fortunately the Egyptian VOA sticker wasn’t criss-crossed with security cuts and the glue wasn’t too adhesive and it peeled off cleanly. I got my USD15 back too!
It was a very long wait until everyone had been stamped-in and the ferry chugged to the jetty and the doors were finally open around 1230 to the stampeding crowd.
I kept with Erich, Ulla and Vincent and was given VIP clearance through their Aswan helper, skipping the customs queue. I probably saved another hour! I also joined them on their transport to the city. Coincidentally, their helper recommended my prebooked Keylany hotel and it all ended well.
In the public area, the immigration officer I dealt with came out and told me once more that I never have to pay for a visa for Egypt for stays up to 15 days and welcomed me once more to Egypt. Lovely!
It was around 1500 by the time I reached my room, so I had a much needed shower after not having one in Wadi Halfa and on the ferry, making it two days. Then a quick nap.
I was so happy to see the shower and the bed.
Vincent had elected to stay somewhere else, so I had a cheap dinner with the Germans and crashed for the night. There were street protests outside and I heard some fireworks before I nodded off. Enrich and Ulla thought they were gunfire. I was so tired I slept through everything.
Mystery solved
I had always wondered why people in bus stations always carry a blanket, packed in its original clear soft plastic case. I often wondered if it was a gift for friends or relatives at their destination. I now realise it is the local equivalent of a sleeping bag. You lay it out to provide a soft surface and cover yourself with it too. You can use it just about anywhere, on station floors or ship decks.