Even if you’re not religious, the chance to do a night time hike up this mountain, using torches, with the Bedouin people walking around with their camels, it’s still an experience to behold.
Reaching the summit, and watching the sun rise is a lovely sight, and for me, seeing the small chapel where Moses received the 10 commandments was phenomenal.
What I find surreal though, was in the middle of this holy place, there were Bedouin “shops” selling coca cola, chocolate and crisps.
On the way down, as the sun begins to rise, you can see how deftly the Bedouin people can almost RUN down the sides of the mountain, over rocks, etc, rather than use the main path everyone else uses.
You can take a camel up or down the mount if you can’t face the walk, and if you look like you’re flagging you’ll end up being accompanied by a Bedouin guy with a camel, repeatedly asking you if you want a camel. “not camel! taxi!”, but it’s worth persevering and walking up and down it yourself.
near the summit are a series of steps which you have to walk up anyway – so you would have to get off the camel at that point, though the Bedouins will again be there, willing to help you up the steps for a small fee.
On the way down, you can either take the gentler camel trail that you walk up during the night, or the harder, but faster “steps of repetance”.
When we got to the bottom we then went into st katherine’s monastery, and saw the burning bush through which moses had received his vision of god. 7 years ago
