Iraklion to Egypt

For the first time on this trip, Jan sat his considerable skills in the left hand seat. He has been keeping a careful eye on me as I have flown for the past week but today we decided it was his turn to fly and my turn to take photos.

The process of arrival and departure is never particularly straightforward. We have ground handlers arranged by White Rose Aviation. They meet us on the tarmac and make sure we get our fuel and park in the right spot. Then we are handled through customs and passport control and driven to a hotel.

The departure is the reverse but we have to add time for flight plans and payment of handling fees.

This morning we were collected from the hotel at 630 am local but did not depart until about 9 am. In tomorrow's heat we are aiming for earlier but fearing it won't be that easy.

Al Arish is a very interesting place for a bloke from Sydney. It is right on the border with Israel. Tanks line the street. Our 1971 mercedes taxi was escorted front and back by the police blaring horns and at a pace I feared the brakes would not handle.

The town barely holds back the desert from slithering into the Mediterranean. I walked the best part of 7 km to the market past hundreds of half built homes with women shepherds herding sheep around. Every kid wanted his photo taken and I was a source of amusement for them. I suspect tall foreign tourists are a bit unusual.

Long day tomorrow to Bahrain.

Approx Track Miles:    523NM  
Hobbs Hours:               4.8
Fuel Added Crete:       348 litres
Price per Litre:             AUD $3.50