Abu Simbel

Our day started too early as we were facing a 3 hour drive through the desert to visit one of Egypt's iconic temples, Abu Simbel.

 This temple was threatened with destruction when the high dam was built in Aswan resulting in rising water levels.  UNESCO stepped in and at a cost of 55 million dollars in the 1960's the temple was carefully dismantled and moved.  It had been originally carved into a mountain and so the engineers had to build a  new mountain into which the temple was placed.  An amazing feat if engineering!

The temple itself is amazing.  The iconic statues of Ramses II stand at its entrance. 

It was built to commemorate a victory over the Hitites and the interior contains carvings depicting the battle and giving thanks to the gods for the victorious battle.  It is a remarkable temple and of particular note, shows the use of lions during the battles as weapons.  These animals were trained to attack and are shown with the Pharoh who reportedly led the battles himself.

Alongside this temple stands a smaller one dedicated to Ramses first wife and therefore Queen of Egypt, Nefritari.  Thus temple is smaller but I liked it better as it had a more delicate touch and the decorations celebrated music and arts.

We were also able to see Lake Nasser, the largest man made lake in the world, some 550 miles long.  How bizarre to see crystal blue water stretching out to the horizon in a desert!

Inevetably we had a three hour drive back to the ship and we were able to see the Sahara roll by. There were land formations created on the millennia by volcanoes.  When the sun was high enough we were able to see a mirage...shinning the distance and it was easy to see why thirsty travelers were desperate for water!

Our bus took us back to the ship for a late lunch and we rested for the remainder of the afternoon.  We packed up and spent our last night on the ship enjoying a show by natives of the Nubian Areas of Egypt, to the south of Aswan.

Edfu and Komodo Temples

We were able to sleep in until 7 on November 1 which was wonderful after the early morning of the previous day.  We started with a horse drawn carriage ride that took us through the busy town.  We were on the road with all types of conveyance which was a bit unnerving.  Also we were warned not to tip the driver until we returned or else we could be abandoned for the return trip.  With this admonition we were on our way to Edfu Temple.  

This was a most impressive temple as the ceiling is still in place.  

It was used by Christians as a refuge from persecution from the Romans and so the ceiling is badly soiled by smoke from candles and lanterns.  

Nevertheless the temple walls are beautiful and the guide provided explanations and on the spot translations of the hieroglyphics!  

When we left the temple the inevitable vendors at the entrance were very aggressive which was unpleasant.  Then we had to find our driver and take the horse drawn carriage back to the ship.  It was an intense experience!

Then we sailed to our next stop...Kobodo.  on the way we saw a beautiful sunset over the Nile.  We arrived after dark which adds a different dimension to the experience.

We visited another temple in the evening.  I was not looking forward to this as I was feeling a bit 'templed-out' but this temple was a big surprise.  

It was a location where the crocodile was revered and therefore mummies of crocodiles were found here.  They are housed in a museum and it was all fascinating.  The ancient Egyptians had a cistern which was connected to the Nile and through which the crocodiles could come so they could be fed.  In addition, the females laid eggs in the still water of the cistern.  

It was fascinating as many of the hieroglyphics made reference to these creatures and the God of the underworld, Seth, was depicted with a crocodiles head. 

In addition, the temple was used as a hospital with seven surgical units in its rear and hieroglyphics included descriptions of medical instruments as well as prescriptions.  

This temple also makes reference to Trajan who was a Roman conquerer and who was convinced that he must win the hearts and minds of the people through their religion.  It was all fascinating!

We were tired when we hit the bunks that night...especially as we are facing a 0345 wake up the next day for our next temple visit...

Valley Of The Kings and more

October 31 arrived and there I was 60 years old!  This had been unimaginable to me and I was not looking forward to the day.

I was distracted by a very early wake up call (0315) and went for a sunrise air balloon ride over the dessert!  It all started in the pitch dark with stars shinning overhead.  We had to cross the Nile to the West bank on a small boat and then took a bus to the launch site. 

 We watched as the balloons were inflated.  In front of our eyes these huge behemoths rose up and were so beautiful against the dark sky!

 Before we knew it we were climbing into the basket which was held down by strong men until launch time.  When we were ready the balloon lifted doubtlessly into the air and the scenery appeared below. What followed was 45 minutes of incredible scenes, including an Arial view of Hatsheput's temple. 

We landed and were spirited off to meet our tour group which was in its way to see Hatsheput's temple from the ground.  This was incredible as we had already seen it from the air.  Also, this is the tomb of my very favorite ruler if the Egyptian people, being the first female who ruled with no male superior.  She was very successful and saw the country through a period of great prosperity due to her policies.  She declared herself a King despite her sex and felt that she should therefore be buried in the Valley of the Kings.  She was refused this honour and instead she built her temple and tomb on the opposing side from the valley and tunneled through the mountain to place her tomb in the Valley of the Kings despite the prohibition.   She rocked and her temple was incredible!

This was followed with a visit to the Valley Of The Kings where 80 Pharoh's are buried and where King Tut's Tomb is located.  We learned along the way that this valley was chosen for this purpose for many reasons, including the fact that the natural landscape provided a remote valley with a natural mountain formation at its head in the shape of a pyramid.  It was an incredible experience, to stand among these tombs under the scorching sun and to feel it's mystical quality.  Camera unfortunately are not allowed in the tombs.  We visited three of them and they were incredible!  The colours are intense and many of them are untouched!  The tombs themselves are empty, except for sarcophagi but the walls are decorate and splendid.

Then it was back to the ship for a lovely birthday supper topped off with a rendition of happy birthday in Arabic and in English and a lovely cake.

BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!

Luxor and Karnak

We bid a sad goodbye to Cairo to continue our visit into the southern part of Egypt.  We arrived in Luxor after a short airplane ride and we were taken   to our ship on the Nile.  This would be our home for the next four nights. 

The area is so different. It is lush and green in stark contrast to the dusty, desert like conditions in and around Cairo.  Also Cairo is home to 20 million whereas Luxor has only 500,000.  It is therefore much quieter and not crowded at all.  The traffic alone is much calmer  and more like I am used to. 

After we settled into our cabin we had a quick lunch and the we left for a tour of Karnak.  This is a huge complex and we only visited a small area of it.  I was absolutely awe-struck. When built, over q period of over 1,000 years it was both a temple and a fort.  It offered protection in the event of invasion and has a lake which is fwd from the Nile to ensure a water supply.  It is a magnificent place.  One of the temples has more than 130 columns and, amazingly the colours in the plaster reliefs and on the lintels is still very evident.

  It is a huge complex and we saw but a small part of it.  Of particular interest is an Obylisk that commemorates the reign of Hatsheput who was a powerful female ruler of Egypt at a time when only men were permitted to do so.  Her successor attempted to erase all evidence of her existence but this artifact was only covered in a casing which effectively preserved it!

This we followed up with a visit to the Luxor temple.  This was built by Ramses II who wanted to create an annex to Karnak and who built a 2 km road connecting the two places, lined along its length by sphynx statutes.  This temple has been used also by the early Christians who remastered the walls and added their own icons.  We could see a rendition of the last supper in one faded corner.

Wonders of the Cairo Museum

The day started off with another early start and a long ride through Cairo in the busy traffic.  The congestion is epic and cars seem to move around with great smoothness despite there being 5 of them abreast in three lane roads!  There is much horn blowing and the traffic includes buses and cars, tuk-tuks and motorcycles, donkeys and scooters all vying for space on the same roads.  When pedestrians are also thrown into the mix it is a wonder to me that it runs smoothly at all!

We drove mostly on busy roads  with views of the city abutting the highways.  We were headed for the citadel  that is famous as it was built in the 1100's and it contains a mosque which was added in the 1500's.  

We visited the mosque that had an ornate solution area open to the sky and then visited the interior which had a fabulous chandelier that was donated by France and which includes 365 glass lights. 

Then we went to the Cairo Museum.  This is a treasure trove of egyptian artifacts, including displays of some of the contents of King Tut's tomb.

After lunch on the Nile we were off to old Cairo.  We walked through the old town with its narrow streets and were led to a church Abu Surga and which had housed the Holy Family during their escape from the Romans. 

Next we visited a Synagog called Ben Azra which marked the place where Moses was found in the reeds and also is believed to contain the ten commandments tablets.

Then we walked to Saint Barbara church where St. George is commemorated, and where we could see the prison he was kept in and the very instruments used to torture him (shudder).

Next we saw Saint Mary church also called the 'hanging church' because it was suspended between two towers. 

It was a day of religious education, and an education it was as we were exposed to many differing beliefs and learned some basics about them all.

We then made our way to the bazaar which is again in areas of winding narrow corridor like streets with vendors to either side calling for our business as we walked along.  We topped this off with a visit to an authentic style cafe.  There were men smoking hookahs and people sipping coffee and it felt very authentic.

We were approached by a woman offering henna tattoos and thought to have some fun with this.  Paul asked for a tattoo of an ankh, the famous egyptian symbol of life.  To his surprise and our hilarity,  the woman drew a very poor rendition  of an anchor.  She tried to produce a dove for me but she was no artist!  We laughed uproariously!

After this long day we arranged for a trip to a local restaurant where we tried traditional Egyptian dishes!  What a spectacular and full day!