Nile Sailing and a Nubian Homestay

Late start and lie in today. I got some camel pants from the market and tried to catch up on my blogging before we set sail on our felucca. I think I've been more successful than the previous trips and am fairly current =)

So the felucca, an open boat that moves by wind power, though I think they have a small engine. There's a roof over the main area but it's otherwise open. Mats cover the floor and the crew's provided cushions, blankets and sleeping bags (for hire) for the day and a half trip.

We had some good wind and sun today, so that made hanging out on the roof inviting, though we had to watch our heads when the captain shifted the sails. In the evening, we docked on the West Bank of the Nile to stay with a Nubian family for the night. It was a bit late when we arrived so we didn't see much in terms of the village. This was first homestay where we all stayed in the same house.

Nubian houses here are rooms surrounding a large courtyard. We had three rooms to share where mattresses are lined up along the floor and then hung out in the main sitting/dining area where we had a lovely family style meal including soup, lamb sausage and vegetables. After dinner, we played clapping games with some of the children. It was a really nice change from the cultural shows at previous homestays. Tonight it almost felt like we were visiting and sleeping over at a friend's place.Read more