Position 31:15.38N 32:18.965E

Bleary eyed, we let the lines go and motored out of Port Paphos in Cyprus at 4.30 am on Monday with a predicted ETA at Port Said around 5pm on Tuesday.

A cracking sail with 15knots of breeze on the beam saw us cover nearly 100 miles in 12 hours, our actual arrival time at the fairway buoy was 9.30am Tuesday morning !

We followed in a line of yachts to enter the start of the Suez Canal and moor in Port Fouad Yacht Club where the Felix Agency were waiting to check us in to Egypt and arrange our transit through the Canal.

Although a little bumpy from the wash of passing ships, we are quite comfortable and we have electric and water, which we put to use this morning by cleaning off all the accumulated salt from the passage.

We were pleasantly surprised since the write up about Port Fouad Yachht Club in the ‘Red Sea Pilot’ is as follows:-

“There is a constant surge in the basin from traffic, the fingers are derelict, it is dirty with refuse and oil, moorings are unsafe and filthy and shore power is decidedly dodgy “

Although our passports have already been returned with our Egyptian Visas, a further visit to immigration is required to convert this to a multiple entry visa.

This will take a few hours and we are booked to go tomorrow, so this morning we caught the ferry across to Port Said town to arrange our phone cards and to explore.

Even with knees and shoulders covered, I did stand out in my Western clothes which obviously made us a novelty because people stopped their cars to welcome us, people on the ferry welcomed us, everyone was very friendly and wanted their photos taken.

The town was more shabby than chic and reminded us very much of India.

Praying time in one of the main streets whilst a ship passes through the canal in the background  

Mark tried out the barbers for a shave and a haircut – all for the price of 20 Egyptian pounds ( £2 GB)

Phone and data cards were around £8 per month and the taxi fare to the phone shop was 20p for ten minutes drive.

First Impressions of Egypt – bustling, happy, friendly, shabby and colourful.

Next step – transit of the Suez which is planned for a couple of days time but is always subject to change depending on shipping traffic.