What Goes Up, Must Come Down. 3750 Steps Down.

The phrase "what goes up, must come down" is usually associated with the throwing of something in the air, but can actually be applied to a variety of situations. For example, a little child that eats a lot of candy may get a sugar high, only to crash later. Another would be the rise and fall of the Romans. Or, two people who decided to hike up a mountain and don't have any intention of being gurus, they too must go down. Way down.



There are two trails you can take to climb up Mt. Sinai. The trail we took up is a wide, gradual path called the Camel Trail because there are people constantly asking you, "Camel? Camel?" No, they aren't questioning their pronunciation, they're asking if you want to ride a camel to the top, which means you are constantly getting run over by camels on the trail. The other trail, called the "Steps of Repentance," was laid out by a monk as a form of penance. The steps -- 3000 to where it joins the Camel Trail and then 750 to the summit -- can be uneven, steep, and difficult to spot in areas where the steps have been eroded.



The "steps" are generally taken on the trip back down, offering a relief from all the camels, but no relief for your knees, thighs and calves.



The guidebook claims there are 3750 steps, but as it felt like more, we wondered if that really depend more on the individual's stride?



Going for sunrise meant that on the way up we didn't see any scenery. We did see an incredible number of stars, but no mountains. Meaning on the hike down, to admire the scenery we took breaks. Or maybe we were taking breaks on the way down, so we admired the scenery. Potato, tomato, right?



It should be noted that towards the end of the hike we had been up for nearly 24 hours, had been on the mountain for the last 7 hours, and were definitely starting to feel the effects. When taking this photo, Justin thought he could see faces in the rock. Do you see faces, or do you think Justin was slightly delirious from exhaustion?



One of the main reasons to take the "steps" down is the view of St. Katherine's Monastery, although we're not sure our knees thought it was worth it. St. Katherine's was founded in AD 330, making it one of the oldest continually functioning monastic communities in the world. It's named after St. Katherine, a martyr who was tortured and beheaded because she was a Christian. It is believed that angels transported her body away from Alexandria, where she was killed, to Gebel Katarina, Egypt's highest peak, which lies about 6 km away from Mt. Sinai.



Here is a camel. There is the monastery. Not to be confused with a Montessori. Or a donkey.



You'll never guess who we saw inside the monastery! A descendant of the original burning bush. I know! Near by, they have several "No Smoking" signs. Wouldn't want to think you were getting a sign from God, only to find out it was a wrong number, or, in this case, someone who didn't pay enough attention to Smokey the Bear.



We made it! Here we are, back at the same spot where our adventure started. (We collapsed shortly after this picture was taken.)