St. Catherine
In the middle of the Sinai Peninsula rises a sacred mountain, 1,586 m high (about 5,203 ft), heading to the deep sky and pointing to God. It’s where God talked to Moses while the people of Israel were leaving Egypt and gave him the Ten Commandments, as written in Exodus. That’s why it’s an exceptional location for Jews, Christians, and Muslims as well. Not to forget the adventurous who are interested in climbing Mount Sinai, as it’s the highest point in Egypt.
Monastery of St. Catherine
Beneath such mountain, lays a Christian monastery dated back from the 6th century AD, St. Catherine Monastery. Named after St. Catherine, who was tortured to death by her father for being Christian and converting another 50 followers to Christianity. The Monastery was built by Emperor Justinian, who was ruling the eastern Roman Empire, from 527 to 565 AD.
The Monastery has a special library that contains a wide collection of manuscripts; written in different languages, mainly Greek, also in Arabic, Coptic, and others. This area has been a pilgrimage destination for Christians since the Monastery was built.
St. Catherine’s Weather
Weather in this area is a little bit different than in the rest of Egypt; it’s maybe the only part in Egypt where it could snow during winter; as this area is at a really high altitude above sea level, it could reach 4 or 5 degrees below zero.Though, during summer, it’s warm tends to hot weather, but still cooler than any other part of Egypt.
Climb The Mountain
A lot of Adventurous head to St. Catherine’s area to visit and hike to the mountaintop. They mainly start their trekking at midnight so that they could reach the summit by sunrise, which will let you feel you had never seen a sunrise before. There are a lot of hotels near Mount Sinai, so you could spend the night before climbing or get some rest after going down. St. Catherine is a magical spot where you can follow Moses on his way up to meet with God, and where also you can feel the sacredness of the location while having a great adventure.
