January 25, it's crazy how the time is running away, and I know that I'm terrible bad at updating my dear diary! Now it's 20 days since I last did it, shame on me, I know! Today I almost haveing a dayoff, as I was driving my lovely Norrlanders to the airport this night, and waved them goodbye around 03.00 in the morning, so I am free today, until the next flight is arriving tonight. The flights from Skelleftea hopefully arrives in Hurghada around 19:35 which means that I have to be at the office at: 18.00, have to prepare a bit before we head out towards the airport. Then it hopefully will be a relatively quick transfer, to the 3 large hotels located some kilometers away from the center. But for sure I will do my very best to get home in time, and to wish Emily good luck and nice trip to Cairo this night.

Today the sun shining again, about a 23 degrees hot, the wind is chilly but you should not complain, cuz I know i'm living in the paradise .... As you all know, tend to the climate and weather down here in Africa, Egypt fine almost all year round. But you should never be to sure about everything... some thing are meant to be surprises.

January 17th the day, when the rain blowed over Hurghada, and large parts of the whole Egyptian territory. For the first time in years, more specifically, since 1993, the first real rain was falling over the Egyptian country.

It started with some small showers, thunderstorms and flashes. Me, Julia and my uncle and my cousins were going to get us something to eat out in the new marina, in shade. When we were sitting there, you felt that something was not as it used to be. You could feel directly that it was something unusual going on. The air was damp, The clothes felt like adhesive close to the body, the staff on all of the restaurantes were running everywhere to bring all the furniture inside.

Just a few minutes later it took off, and we could now see tiny black, wet spots take shape on the ground. It rained! unbelievable! We eat our food, and then we went off, and leave the family and go home. Warnings about the storm spread rapidly all over. The road to Cairo was closed, so our poor guests who was supposed to go to the pyramid city had to stay home instead. It took a few hours and the rain had not taken off yet.

Still the rain was very local, only rained in some parts of the town.The power went on and off all the time around in different hotels. But still you could hear the thunder and see the lightning. But still the we all was waiting for the "real" rain to come. Indeed, Me, Julia and Emily will encircle to assist in receiving guests from Sweden who was supposed to land in Sharm El Sheik. We didn't know for sure if they had to make a stop in Hurghada or not, cuz the airport in Sharm was an incredible loss out of the rain.

Me and Emily went out to meet up with Julia in the taxi and head off towards the office. And then..., the sky opens up and it starts to pour. Well at office, we got the call that the plan to Sharm managed to get past the weather, and landed without any problems. We were disappointed that we are now sitting in the office without anything to do =) went down some stairs, and took a nightcoffee at Costa Coffee with, Endisa, Nagy, and our beloved local guides.

Then it was time to go home and try to get some sleep. Both me and Emily fall asleep directly, but around. 4:00 something slammed so loudly and we both woke up! Opened the door to the balcony, It's just one word for what we were seeing..... FLOODING! It was crazy, it looked like the hotel was swimming! incredibly fascinating to stand and feel the warm raindrops agains your face, to see those gigantic flashes beat themselves against the black sky.! But in the middle of the beautiful moment, we heard something that could be closed to the sound of a waterfall! We ran into the bathroom and check the shower! It was turned off and everything was in order. But then we could hear this strange sound again. We're opens the door which leads to the corridor where all the other rooms are located.

And in the opposite our room,we could see some guests trying to pouring water from the room. It was or sure more then 30cm of water on the floor, and right there, we saw it, in the ceiling it was a huge hole, from which it's was flooding water .... the beds, the bags and million of other things was now floating around in the room. I looked out over the streets and the hotel areas, it felt like most of it was swamming in the water.

I called Sandra, who were at the airport, and waited for the flight, to sweden. And for sure she had to wait, cuz the whole airport were filled with water , and all the electricy was totaly blacked out!! Which resulting in a very wet and dark waiting for the flight, which ended up to be more then two hours late. They left Hurghada somewhere and took off somewbere around .8.00 in the morning.  I took place in my warm, soft bed around 7.00 and woke up 15.00, now it was time to get to the office again, to later go and pick up the new guests at the airport. I went out on Sheraton road tried to get a cab, unbelieveable it was water everywhere! the cars was almos not moving. it was water all the way, through all parts of the town.

So, just over one night, Hurghada inc. El Gouna were covered with water, but three days later everything's dry again! But it is quite crazy, how a country's not prepared on this situatiion, normal rain. After all I've been writing here, all of you probably think that this must have been a monsoon rain, which pulled 'across the country. But I would actually like to compare it with, a very rainy autumn day in Sweden. Much more dangerous than that, it wasn't. But as wells, drains, houses, hotels, roads, etc. are not equipped with the necessary parts which you need when this much water comes, the afterwork is worse than you could ever imagine.

We were lucky in Hurghada, poor those who were stucked in Sharm, and all the way down to Aswan area, which had got much more rain, and of course a lot more to stand in. But now it's a little more then a week ago since the rain, and everything is back to normal again. Hurghada is still hanging,my job is going on as usual, the sun is shining, happy holiday hungry tourists are walking on the streets again.... what can I say, we're back in pardise! 


AFTER RAIN COMES SUNSHINE-AFTER RAIN COMES SUNSHINE