Because families are the most important...

I just want to give you all an update on Ross and me. We will be suspending the blog for awhile. I just recently received news about a lil' member of my family who has become suddenly ill and we took the first flight to be back home with my family.

Since leaving on our travels in January, we have seen incredible sights, met unbelievable people and become closer through memories that no words can describe. We've put up 1/50 of the posts possible, but we hope that our blog has inspired you all to do what you love...because you can.

Above all, we've realized how important family and friends are to us. We didn't think it was possible, but the love for our families and friends back home has grown significantly. So, when we got the news from my family, we knew without a moments hesitation that we needed to be home. Nothing in the world and no destination around the globe compares to our families.

Keep in touch and stay tuned for the continuing adventure...

The Hospital Experience

In search of relatively urgent medical care we were taxied to the local hospital. Hobbling through the doors of what seemed to be an abandoned mental institution, we hollered out for some assistance. Eventually we came across six men huddled around a small T.V. watching the 2 o’clock soap. The men sprung into action with an eerie glee that seemed to say “we’ve got a live one!”

After a painfully efficient examination the Doc decided it best I get an X-ray. Sharief, the medical assistant, wheeled me down a long corridor to the X-ray room. A recently renovated torture chamber, the X-ray room housed a massive machine built from spare microwave parts fashioned with railroad spikes. As the self-proclaimed technician flipped the switched I could feel the radiation in my teeth.

I was then briskly wheeled back to the examination room, picking up hospital staff along the way like an episode of the Benny Hill Show. Before I knew it my ankle was being fitted with Plaster of Paris. An arts and crafts project that involved three physicians, one ‘technician’, one stray cat, six inquisitive onlookers and one very concerned girlfriend. Two weeks was my sentence as the doctor lovingly signed my still wet cast; “Welcome to Egypt! Your friend, Doctor So-and-so.” A questionable insurance report later and I was on the back of Sharief’s Motorcycle heading for camp, my fresh cast drying in the hot Egyptian sun.

Devonitely NOT Rossome

Tragedy has befallen our once blissful travels. Without going into too many embarrassing details I will say that, despite Devon’s adamant better judgment, I injured my right ankle while frolicking on some large boulders.

Diagnosis; bone Fissure, two weeks laid up in a cast. With no available crutches my range of mobility allows just enough distance to hop to the rest room and back. This is particularly tragic considering Saint Catharine’s notoriously good treks, including one of Moses’ personal favorite hikes, Mt. Sinai.

A prisoner of my own doing, I will be held up for two weeks at our camp ground while Devon searches for the 11^th commandment. Maybe it will read, “thou shalt listen to your girlfriends warnings when playing on large boulders.”

The Manventure

Red and I in hot pursuit of the Viet-Cong

I met up with a childhood friend of mine and did a ten day tour of Vietnam. Here are some highlights and low lights:

Highlights:
- Meeting up with my man Steve
- Patroning local beer gardens
- Crawling through narrow Viet-cong tunnels
- White sand beaches

The chaos that is Saigon traffic.

Low lights:
- White knuckle motorbike taxi rides through Saigon
- Precarious massage parlors
- Stomach turning minibus rides through the hills
- 8 year old pick pockets

All and all the trip was nothing short of a "manventure."

Walk like an Egyptian

Just askin' for directions

Note his companion.

News from Cairo

We're off to the desert today! So far, we've fallen in love with this city and culture. We've truly been on the go since we arrived. And don't worry, Ross is working on his post about his manventure. Should be good! We'll be back with goods soon. In the meantime...wish us luck in the desert. I'm pretty sure a snake is going to try to climb in my sleeping bag. Fun.