On Wednesday, we stopped in a little port town before entering the canal. I think it was called Sohkna. I wasn’t planning to get off because all the tours were for 8 to 11 hours. They were all to the pyramides and I was there a few years ago; so I just sat up on the deck. There was an announcement from the bridge that we should go in side. There was a sandstorm coming. I went in and watched it. It was like nothing I’ve ever seen. It was this swirling wall of red and brown dust coming at you over the horizon. It closed out the sky and just kept coming. I could hear it hitting the windows like little grains of sand. I just sat there in the lounge and read for awhile. When the noise stopped, I walked out on the deck. There was a ship in the next dock that I had seen before. It was about the length of a football field away. I could not see it at all. I looked at the cars and trucks below on our dock and it looked like it had snowed. There was about a foot of sand on everything.
The day before, I had watched the movie, “mission impossible”, which I had seen before and I had forgotten there was a sandstorm in it. Well, it was just like it. At dinner, the captain told us that because of the storm, we would be delayed in entering the canal. We were suppose to line up at 8pm but we didn’t do it till 3am. We were suppose to enter the canal at 6am but didn’t do it till 11am. It seems that the storm had caused three ships already in the canal to go aground.
I spoke to some of my parishioners the next day, who had gone on the tour. They said that they were in the coaches when the storm hit and had to pull off the road. One said it reminded her of driving though a hurrican once. No one was hurt but a number of people got dust in their lungs later and had to go to the mecical center – especially anyone with asthma issues.
Sorry for the delay in writing but I got busy with paperwork. i will report on the canal tomorrow.
PAPERWORK?!?!?! On vacation???
I was in a dust storm like that in Amarillo….boxcars blown off a passing train, tractor trailers tipped on their side. It was quite frightening.
Can’t wait to hear about the Canal passage….