We pulled up at Edfu temple on dusk one evening on the ship, having seen Kom Ombo temple in the morning. I pulled out my tripod to capture some pics in the low light. This guy (well, f*cker actually that follows you around and asks for (read: demands) money in return for pointing things out that he makes up) got in my way, and to my advantage....
Another carving at Edfu Temple....
The temples look just gorgeous at night....
We had to dock that night at Edfu rather than sail through as the wind was too strong - when I saw Esna lock the next morning, and how narrow it was (not to mention the width of the pylons of the bridges we had to go under, I was pleased.... Egyptian safety standards hard at work meant that I wasn't confident in the positioning or number of life jackets available....
Introducing Coralie and Alan - I've adopted them. They remind me a lot of my parents - and Alan gave me a nice lecture yesterday when I headed off to Hotchickensoup Temple on my own (West Bank of Luxor, heat of the day, dodgy Egyptians everywhere....) which was quite welcome after no one giving a damn where I go or what I do for so long...
They don't normally wear that. Such attire was compulsory for the dinner on board, which was a hoot. Sickeningly touristy, but I hate to admit, a lot of fun....
Is it Laurence of Arabia? The guy from Priscilla, Queen of the Desert? No, it's Harry the Irish Hairdresser from King's Cross who has had me in stitches for days and days to the point where my stomach muscles are hurting. I've had to tell him to stop making me laugh.... he is the bitchiest person I have ever met. I love it.
Tarek and Isabella. Tarek has invited me to a bona fide home cooked Egyptian dinner with his mother in Cairo over the weekend. After establishing that that doesn't constitute a marriage proposal or similar, I've accepted.
Cruising down the Nile was a good insight into Egyptian life. There were....
Women doing their washing all along the banks....
Fishermen hard at work.....
....and no end of donkeys and carts hauling stuff all along the banks of everytown we passed...
Generally, I sat on the deck reading, drinking coffee and taking photos.....
Horse and carriage is the main form of transportation in Luxor... and those irritating f*ckers ask you every 3 steps if you'd like a ride. And there are 10 million of them.... Thank you to my quick-thinking (and generous) bus buddy from South America, who sent me an iTunes gift voucher for Billy Joel's Greatest Hits Vl. 1 and 2 - it makes it MUCH EASIER to ignore them with my iPod in.....
Karnak temple complex at Luxor was impressive - it is enormous - it covered 50 acres (or hectares, can't remember, but it was big)..... The colour has washed off most of the temples so it was good to see some preserved for a change....
The West Bank of Luxor at Sunrise. The Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens are nestled in the mountains in the back there....
....of course, all of the tombs in both Valleys are underground. Only 6 Tombs in Valley of the Kings are open, out of 60 - so I only got to see three. It's pretty amazing - 60 Pharoahs were buried there, and some well under the ground into the side of the mountain... no photos allowed, so all I can do is describe the claustrophobia, heat trapped in those tombs underground, and enormous granite sarcophogi so big that they cannot be moved. All the contents and mummies were stolen by grave robbers thousands of years ago, except Tutankhamen... and it's all in Cairo now anyway.... It was well worth a visit though - but hot, hot, hot.
It was up at dawn to ride donkeys down into the Valley of the Kings..... which was fun, but they were nuts and difficult to control.....
Donkeys still are the main form of transportation in the Villages.....
...the views were great and meeting the locals in the villages along the way was great too....
I loved Mr Abdul. He was the most gorgeous man and answered all my thousands of questions at Karnak Temple and Valley of the Kings..... he had a wicked sense of humour.
I decided to fly solo and see the Temple of Hatsheput (Hotchickensoup according to Mr Abdul, who have I mentioned I adored?). Much to Alan's concern! It was visually the most impressive thing I've driven up to in Egypt.....
....and I survived, with 5 litres of water and a hearty vocabulary (I used the words "f*ck off" for the first time in Egypt. It was effective.).
These Statues of Osiris were enormous, and there were hundreds it seemed along the facade.
Back in Luxor at sunset, after rehydrating and cooling off by the pool - Luxor temple, one of Luxor's fine temples, and the first motorbikes I've seen since leaving New York City. None in Jordan at all and virtually none elsewhere in Egypt, it seems.... and no safety gear appears to be required.
More sheesha - here's Ben having a hearty puff of the Lemon. Will I ever learn?
Tomorrow, it's time to hit the Red Sea again - the coast here in Egypt ooks more impressive and protected than on the Jordanian side - so I'm looking forward to getting among the reefs again.....
Then in a couple of days it's back to Cairo for a few days (guarding my passport so that Tarek doesn't steal it and prolong my stay in Egypt, as threatened) - I promise you all that the Temple portion of Egypt is over!!!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment