Bur Safajah Transportation

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There are about 230 kilometers between Safaga and Luxor. The road Safaga-Qena (Road #28) has 161 Km long and runs among mountains. The most significant of them: Gebel Wa Ira (1039m), Gebel Abu Mogul (1246m), Ras Barud (1446m).

I admired mountains landscapes which I've never seen until then though I've often been in European mountains. Egyptian mountains differ from what I've seen before. They are continuation of desert and represent lifeless space. If the European mountains always caused me to scramble upward - in Egypt it was difficult to imagine even an attempt to climb up even along a low mountain. It seemed to me, that under the African sun I shall be immediately transformed into ashes.

Therefore the best way of acquaintance with these mountains - through a window of the bus with the conditioner!

You may see more pics on my Travelogue

You can see my 2 min 25 sec Bur Safajah (Safaga) – Luxor road VIDEO clip with Superstar Just a Girl music from my YouTube channel .

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Safaga is a small town on the coast of the Red Sea about 60 kilometers from Hurghada.

I would not pay attention to this place, if the existing order of sending tourists bus caravans from Hurghada to Luxor. After well-known events in 1997 when terrorists made an attack on tourists in Luxor, security measures were undertaken almost everywhere in Egypt around tourist sights. That's why it is possible to reach Luxor from Hurghada by bus only under watching of armed security forces. For this purpose buses gather in caravans in Safaga simultaneously to depart in a way.

Departure of buses to Luxor took place in 7.00 during my visiting of Egypt. The departure from the hotel was appointed at 5.00. Such an early departure was caused by two reasons. First, the bus was gradually filled with tourists from numerous hotels along the coast. Second, early departure allowed arriving to Luxor before afternoon.

You can see my 1 min 45 sec Hurghada – Bur Safajah (Safaga) road VIDEO clip with Superstar Satisfaction (Original Mix) music from my YouTube channel .

Please press the right bottom button on the screen for expansion of the image in the whole screen.

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When our bus has arrived to Safaga, I have been amazed by how many buses were waiting for the departure to Luxor. It seemed to me that there were more than a hundred buses. Therefore the name of the city of Safaga now will always associate for me with a chaos of buses and the armed escort.

The parking is equipped with toilets. It is possible to drink some coffee (I have made it for $1 = 5 LE). As our bus has arrived one of the last at 6.45 we had not to wait long, and in 15 minutes the caravan has gone to its way to Luxor.

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The parking between Safaga which is situated on a coast of the Red Sea and Qena which is located on a bank of the Nile is hardly a unique place of a congestion of people in this area. Therefore the presence of the Mosque here is not wonder. Though the Mosque has been constructed recently enough (it seemed to me that it has happened just before our arrival), it has caused my interest.

Muscovites are not spoilt by views of Mosques. In Moscow there are several Mosques (there were four recently). Therefore the architecture of a building unusual to me and a high minaret has forced me to make my camera and video camera ready immediately.