Middle East - Anthony Ham [161]
El Dorado ( 364 1027; Masbat; mains E£35-65) As you’d expect from an Italian place run by genu-ine Italians, the dishes here are second to none. You can dine in their comfy, covered eating area or al fresco on the beach, sampling the winning thin-crust pizzas (E£35 to E£50), the pastas (E£50 to E£65) or, best of all, mouth-watering carpaccio with rocket and parmesan cheese (E£70). Real parmesan cheese! Be sure to leave room for tiramisu (E£30) and authentic espresso.
Yummy Mummy ( 010 580 0944; Mashraba; mains E£40-80) Though the word on the street is that this is the best of the ocean-side restaurants, we’re not completely convinced. The grub is fine, though definitely on the spendy side, and the moody lamp-lit ambience is sublime indeed. Alas the surly staff don’t do much to bolster the fine dining experience.
For a quick bite in Mashraba, pop into the Koshary House (koshary E£3-5), next to the taxi drop off point. The Ghazala Market ( 24hr) is in Masbat, with smaller satellite stores all over Dahab, and is well stocked with a range of food and sundries.
Drinking
Two main bars vie for punters’ drinking attention on any given night: the grungy Tota’s (in Masbat), an unmistakable two-storey bar shaped like a giant ship, and Rush (in Masbat), a slightly classier outdoor joint just a few doors down. Both try to outdo each other with nightly events that range from drink specials to trivia nights to foam parties. It’s best to hop between the two to scope out which one has the more happening scene.
For a quieter tipple, try the Furry Cup (Blue Beach Club, Mashraba; noon-2am), popular with dive instructors and other expat residents. Otherwise, the top-floor bar at the new Yalla! (in Masbat), on the main Dahab strip, is not a bad place for an afternoon beer or cocktail.
Getting There & Around
Bus
The East Delta Bus Co station and ticket office ( 7.30am-11pm) is located in Dahab City, close to the mosque. The most regular connection is to Sharm el-Sheikh (E£11 to E£15, 1½ hours), with 10 buses between 8am and 10pm. There are three daily buses to Nuweiba (E£11, 1¼ hour) at 10.30am, 4pm and 6.30pm, with the 10.30am service going on to Taba (E£22). There is a bus at 9.30am going to St Katherine’s Monastery (E£20, 2½ hours). Buses to Cairo (E£70 to E£80, nine hours) leave at 8.30am, 12.30pm, 2.30pm, 4pm and 10pm. Buses for Suez (E£40 to E£45, seven hours) depart at 8am and 4pm, and there’s one daily service to Hurghada (E£100, 12 to 14 hours) and Luxor (E£120, 14 to 16 hours) at 4pm. If you’re going to Luxor, this is a cheaper and faster (but less comfortable) option than the bus-ferry-bus alternative.
Pickups meet all incoming buses and charge around E£5 to get to Assalah.
TAXI
A taxi (usually a pick-up) between Assalah and Dahab City costs E£5.
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ST KATHERINE’S MONASTERY
069 / elevation 1570m
This unmissable ancient monastery traces its roots all the way back to AD 330, when Byzantine empress Helena built a small chapel and refuge here. Based at the foot of Mt Sinai, this was the supposed site of the biblical burning bush, where God first had word with Moses. In the 6th century, Emperor Justinian had a fortress built around the original chapel, also throwing in a basilica and monastery, to house and protect the small monastic community that had coalesced here. The monastery is dedicated to the legendry martyr of Alexandria, St Katherine, who had the misfortune to be tortured on a spiked wheel and beheaded.
Today there are just over 20 Greek Orthodox monks living in this ancient compound. There’s no charge to visit the actual monastery ( 9am-noon Mon-Thu & Sat, except religious holidays), but you’ll need to pay to see the wonderful collection of manuscripts and icons in the Sacred Sacristy (adult/student E£25/10), also known as the iconography museum. Be warned that the monastery is inevitably overrun by tour groups and can be packed to the rafters.
St Katherine Protectorate (adult/student US$3/US$2) is a 4350-sq-km national park that encompasses Mt Sinai and the monastery.