at the base of the mountain is saint catherine’s monastery, famous for its collection of ancient icons. this collection is deemed by some to be the second most important collection of icons in the world today. during periods of intense historical iconoclasm, the icons here were protected, thanks to the monastery’s extreme isolation. we waited with some camels for a few hours for the monastery to open, then crowded in with a huge group of people through a tiny door. also inside is a bush purported to be the original burning bush, which is a rather dubious claim.
