Last time I went through Suez was in 2005 on a Portugese ship, FUNCHAL, when I was sailing home from Fremantle to Liverpool.
Not changed too much, A little wider and deeper and a huge bridge over it near where the old El Firdan bridge was.
We got a Bum boat on board at Suez and they got off in Port Said. The swag they had was rubbish compared with the exotic items we could get 50/60 years ago.
I asked the Man `did you know, George Roby, Jock Macgregor, Sandy McNab and so on. He knew nothing. They just sat there in silence surounded with Made in China objects, no bartering, no joking.
We saw the Real Bum Boat men. Now they have gone the same way all our mates and ships went, just memories now.
