We really wanted to get out of here today - not because the timeline requires it, rather because we're in the commercial port and it's not particularly nice. We've been positioned on a quay that is clearly designed for large ships. The quayside is a large parking area for freight; there are no facilities for yachts (such as electricity points or water) and even the bollards are too far apart. The toilet is not usable so we're using the onboard toilets more than normal and they're playing up. Coupled with the consequences of last nights birthday party, motivation is a bit low.
Julie's eaten something that has disagreed with her, so she's spent much of the day dozing by a bucket. Craig and Sandra left at 14:30 to head for the airport and their flight back to Manchester. All very sad. I'm really going to miss their company and I know that the loss of their contribution adds a lot of pressure to the 3 of us.
We finally completed port formalities and the refuel at about 17:00, so we were cleared to go. However, there has been a language mix up with the payment. I told the agent that I only had EGP5000, so that's how much fuel I wanted. He pushed for a fuel figure in litres, so I explained that we could only fill up if I could pay by visa. "That's OK, there is a visa machine outside". With that understanding I filled to full then he took me outside. When he stopped at an ATM cash point it became clear that his idea of a visa machine was an ATM. With a bank daily withdrawal limit of EGP4000, we're way short of his EGP13500 bill (including USD700 for agency fees, cruising permit, customs, marine inspection .... ). The ATM would not accept my credit cards so we're going to be juggling Julie's cards tonight then try again tomorrow morning!
When I was downtown I found a dive shop, so I've got 2 tanks and weights on order for tomorrow 10:00am. We'll see what happens but there's potential for a bit of diving en-route to Hurghada.
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