Tuesday, June 3, 2014

a tale of recklessness

A while back I read a story on my friend's blog that prompted a reckless story of my own.  Here's the story I told Amy Jo.



I was nineteen when I went on a mission trip to Egypt for 16 days.  I wasn't nervous like most of my peers since I had lived overseas a lot in my early years.  I wonder if maybe I should have been a little more timid?  If I had been, I sure wouldn't have had as much fun.  I rode a felucca down the Nile with new Egyptian friends.  I rode a train from Port Said to Cairo with a few friends and no "real" adults.  And, riding a camel in Egypt at the Giza pyramids was great.

So where's the reckless part?  Well, it was on the camel ride.  I was young - about 19.  My camel herder/ guide guy led the camel a long way from the crowd.  I could see the crowds of people waiting for camel rides, but they were only tiny dots in the distance.  We were pretty alone out there in the desert. Once we were alone, he began to bully me about giving him a tip.  We had been told by our Egyptian hosts that we were already paying a lot to ride, and if we wanted to tip, it shouldn't be more than one American dollar.  It may have been pretty reckless to refuse the guide, but I did.  I don't repond well to being bullied.  Never have.  After a lot of badgering and verbal bullying, he told me to get off the camel.  He said he was going to leave me alone in the desert.  I told him, "That's fine.  I can walk back.  And when I get there, I'll be sure to tell your boss what you did."

He took me back - on the camel.  Without a tip.  And, I talked to his boss anyway.  I think he got fired.  Poor schmuck.  He tried to bully the wrong tourist.




What about you?  How have you been reckless?

10 comments:

Suz said...

Is this true? Wow what a trip
The good Lord was watching over you that day...could have been much worse...more than a tip
how beautiful was it to see those ancient ruins....

Relyn Lawson said...

Yes, it's true. He was a bully. I can't abide bullies.

Mrs. E said...

Great story. (Oh, and that trip to Egypt has me drooling!)

Jennifer Richardson said...

I love it!
I have a particular hard spot
for bullying, too,
and am always encouraged
when someone has the courage
to dig in their sweet heels
and stand their sacred ground:)
Your life continues to inspire me:)
-Jennifer

Mac n' Janet said...

Had a similar experience in the Egyptian museum in Cairo. We (my daughter and I ) didn't tip either.
Our reckless was renting a car down in Mexico and taking off to the jungles on our own to see the pyramids, not just the Chichen Itza complex near Cancun. Air conditioner went out, had it repaired by a refrigeration company, got sick in Palenque, took a road so potholed we thought we'd break an axle, just missed a hurricane and had an incredible trip.

Marilyn Miller said...

You were very brave, good for you.
I am going to have to think on this as I haven't been as reckless as I probably should have been.

alexa said...

A feisty response with a positive outcome for you - but could so easily have been otherwise! Hopefully a lesson learnt all round ... Sounds as if your adventuring spirit ensured a memorable trip!

Sandy K. said...

Since you were on a mission trip I can assume you probably felt righteous indignation at his treatment of you and knew you could hand it wearing your "armor." Well done! Though I do feel it was a bit on that gutsy "are you kidding me" scale:). What a story!

HKatz said...

This is inspiring, and I'm glad you came out of it OK. I can picture you returning triumphantly on the back of the camel :)

Jeanne said...

Very bold for 19, and what an amazing experience that must have been.

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