On Thursday, we left our felluca by motorboat at 6.00 am (another early start) and returned to Aswan. We collected our luggage and boarded our bus, ready for our convoy. Egyptians require foreigners to travel in police convoys in lower Egypt (essentially the area south of Cairo), so your travel times are determined by the convoy times.
We had stops along the way to Luxor at Kom-Ombo and Edfu. Both are temples.
Kom-Ombo is on the edge of the Nile and has good relief carvings. It is a double temple, where most features are duplicated, side-by-side, along a symetrical central axis. The temple is dedicated to Sobek, the crocodile-headed god, and to the falcon god, Horaeris (also called Horis the Elder). The temple is Ptolemaic (from about 180 BC). Earthquakes, Nile floods, damage from later Coptic users and reuse of the stone for local building have taken their toll on the building, but is remains worth seeing, particularly for the reliefs.
The Efdu temple is dedicated to the falcon-god Horus. It is inland from the Nile on the western side. For centuries, it was covered with sand, which protected the building from earthquakes and the elements. Consequently, it is one of the best preserved temples in Egypt, with even the roof remaining. It is newer (comparatively) than the temples of Luxor. being Ptolemaic (after about 300 BC).
From Edfu, is it a one hour trip to Luxor, where we would stay for one night. Luxor was the capital of Egypt in ancient times (it was then known as Thebes). We took horse-drawn carriages from our hotel to the Karnak temple complex, about 2 km north of the town. Luxor is on the east side of the Nile (the side for the living).
Karnak is a large and impressive temple complex, built and re-built by many pharaohs over the Middle and New Kingdom periods, starting around 1500 BC. It is a large site and we had a good local guide. He was quite a character, having been born in the temple area itself in 1943 (then, locals lived among the ruins). The complex itself is spread over a large area. Particularly impressive are the large statues, the remaining tall granite obelisks and the Hypostyle Hall, with its array of 134 massive columns.
The next morning we rose before sunrise yet again - this time to take a motorboat across the Nile to the west bank to visit the Valley of the Kings. The west bank is the side of the dead (ancient Egyptians lived predominately on the east bank, where the sun rose, which was seen as the side of life). It is a few kilometers from the bank to the Valley, so we set off on donkeys provided by locals. Fortunately, the donkeys knew the way well and we made it, even if the ride isn't terribly comfortable.
The Valley of the Kings is a relatively small and desolate valley, with steeply sloping sides and a rocky peak at the head that resembles a pyramid. It was quite crowded, even at this early hour (about 8 am). We visited four tombs. The general layout is similar - a gently sloping descent though a rock-cut corridor about 5m square, passing through two or three somewhat larger spaces, to end at a burial chamber (of maybe 8m square). Walls and roof are covered with incredibly well-preserved drawings and hieroglyphics, which are typically carved into the plaster of the wall and painted.
The tombs can be crowded and become quite hot and stuffy. It must be very unpleasant visiting in the hottest summer months.
We bused to Deir El Medina, the area of the tombs and village ruins of the workers who actually built the regal tombs. These tombs are smaller (of course), but colourfully executed and show more scenes of normal life. One worker showed a scene of his wish for the next life - to be farming by the Nile with his wife.
We returned to the Nile by our trusty donkeys.
In the afternoon, we had free time. We found a jewellery shop and helped the local economy, before walking past the floodlit Luxor temple to have a G & T on the terrace of the Old Palace Hotel - the grand hotel in town.
We had a meal at the Jamboree Restaurant (for the second night - we had been there previously to sample the local delicacy, stuffed pigeon). At 10pm we headed to Luxor station to board the 11pm overnight train to Cairo.
We had stops along the way to Luxor at Kom-Ombo and Edfu. Both are temples.
Kom-Ombo is on the edge of the Nile and has good relief carvings. It is a double temple, where most features are duplicated, side-by-side, along a symetrical central axis. The temple is dedicated to Sobek, the crocodile-headed god, and to the falcon god, Horaeris (also called Horis the Elder). The temple is Ptolemaic (from about 180 BC). Earthquakes, Nile floods, damage from later Coptic users and reuse of the stone for local building have taken their toll on the building, but is remains worth seeing, particularly for the reliefs.
The Efdu temple is dedicated to the falcon-god Horus. It is inland from the Nile on the western side. For centuries, it was covered with sand, which protected the building from earthquakes and the elements. Consequently, it is one of the best preserved temples in Egypt, with even the roof remaining. It is newer (comparatively) than the temples of Luxor. being Ptolemaic (after about 300 BC).
From Edfu, is it a one hour trip to Luxor, where we would stay for one night. Luxor was the capital of Egypt in ancient times (it was then known as Thebes). We took horse-drawn carriages from our hotel to the Karnak temple complex, about 2 km north of the town. Luxor is on the east side of the Nile (the side for the living).
Karnak is a large and impressive temple complex, built and re-built by many pharaohs over the Middle and New Kingdom periods, starting around 1500 BC. It is a large site and we had a good local guide. He was quite a character, having been born in the temple area itself in 1943 (then, locals lived among the ruins). The complex itself is spread over a large area. Particularly impressive are the large statues, the remaining tall granite obelisks and the Hypostyle Hall, with its array of 134 massive columns.
The next morning we rose before sunrise yet again - this time to take a motorboat across the Nile to the west bank to visit the Valley of the Kings. The west bank is the side of the dead (ancient Egyptians lived predominately on the east bank, where the sun rose, which was seen as the side of life). It is a few kilometers from the bank to the Valley, so we set off on donkeys provided by locals. Fortunately, the donkeys knew the way well and we made it, even if the ride isn't terribly comfortable.
The Valley of the Kings is a relatively small and desolate valley, with steeply sloping sides and a rocky peak at the head that resembles a pyramid. It was quite crowded, even at this early hour (about 8 am). We visited four tombs. The general layout is similar - a gently sloping descent though a rock-cut corridor about 5m square, passing through two or three somewhat larger spaces, to end at a burial chamber (of maybe 8m square). Walls and roof are covered with incredibly well-preserved drawings and hieroglyphics, which are typically carved into the plaster of the wall and painted.
The tombs can be crowded and become quite hot and stuffy. It must be very unpleasant visiting in the hottest summer months.
We bused to Deir El Medina, the area of the tombs and village ruins of the workers who actually built the regal tombs. These tombs are smaller (of course), but colourfully executed and show more scenes of normal life. One worker showed a scene of his wish for the next life - to be farming by the Nile with his wife.
We returned to the Nile by our trusty donkeys.
In the afternoon, we had free time. We found a jewellery shop and helped the local economy, before walking past the floodlit Luxor temple to have a G & T on the terrace of the Old Palace Hotel - the grand hotel in town.
We had a meal at the Jamboree Restaurant (for the second night - we had been there previously to sample the local delicacy, stuffed pigeon). At 10pm we headed to Luxor station to board the 11pm overnight train to Cairo.
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