Valley of the Kings - 30 December 2007

Once again our passage through Esna lock was delayed and we woke about an hour out of Luxor, the same place that we joined the Serenade after our tour of Luxor on Tuesday. The reason for berthing here was that it was by the bridge that gave access to the West Bank of the Nile. The original programme was that we would take a boat across the Nile from Luxor and return by bus, but the delay meant that the transport arrangements had to be reversed. Such is the life of a tour guide, coordinating and rearranging transport at short notice.

Our first stop was the Valley of the Kings which may have been a closely guarded secret at one time, but all the world and his wife were there this morning, including an ex-employee from NZ. We had just under an hour to see three tombs of our choice. There are now 63 discovered tombs but many were closed for restoration. Influenced by our Tour Guide we chose Rames III, IV & IX snaking through them in the queues and making it back to the meeting point with a minute to spare.

Then it was Hatshepsut's funerary temple, a grand edifice built into the cliff on the back of the hills surrounding the Valley of the Kings.

Off the standard tourist route and thus much less crowded is the Valley of the Queens where we were able to visit the tomb of the son of Ramses III who died young and was buried in the tomb prepared for his mother, and the tomb of Titi. By far the best tomb in the valley is the tomb of Nefratari but unfortunately is has been declared off limits for tourist unless they pay $US3000 for the privilege of a vist. Leaving the valley we had time for a quick photo-shoot at the Colossi of Memnon, the oldest structures on the West Bank and a tourist attraction for more than 2000 years.

A ferry ride took us across the Nile to the Serenade, which had arrived in Luxor while we were on our morning excursion then, after lunch, we joined another tourist convoy to the Temple at Dendera.

The concept of the tourist convoy was a result of the November 1997 massacre at Hatsheput Temple when 62 people were trapped in the Temple and shot, but it seems a rather strange idea since it gathers all the 'targets' into one easily identifiable place. The one positive benefit was that the convoy was given right-of-way everywhere and all local traffic was stopped in the side streets or stopped on the side of the road so that the convoy could speed past.

The Dendera Temple was the site of the first recorded use of the Signs of the Zodiac. What we saw was a replica as the original was stolen and now resides in the Louvre in Paris. It is also possible to visit the upper level of this temple, as it has not been destroyed in the passage of time.

For the benefit of the passengers who only joined the Serenade for the downstream voyage there was another floorshow with the Whirling Dervish (male) and belly-dance (female) performers infinitely more superior to the pair we watched on Monday night.

Kom Ombu - 29 December 2007

This cruise seems to specialize in early morning wake-up calls - not the most desired addition to a relaxing holiday - and this morning it was 0600 so that we could be at the Kom Ombu Temple, in front of which we had moored during the night, when it opened at 0700. Unfortunately this temple was used as a source of building blocks for a sugar cane processing factory so is nowhere near as complete as the others we have visited. The unique features here include mummified crocodiles; a Nilemeter, used for gauging the height of the annual flood and thus levying the taxes for the year; depictions of the King with two left hands, a practical joke by the workmen carving the reliefs; and a relief showing the various medical instruments in use 2000 years ago for such operations as brain surgery and caesarean sections.

Leaving Kom Ombu it was a race down the Nile to Edfu, the MS Serenade seemed to get overtaken by every other boat, leaving us trailing the twelve or so line-astern ahead of us. At Edfu, those who had joined the Serenade at Aswan were taken for their tour of the temple and we had some free time to wander around ashore. Unfortunately it was not all that pleasant: the quay is lined with carriages touting for tourist trade drawn by the most mangy collection of smelly, scrawny, under-nourished horses you could ever have the misfortune to meet. The water-sellers, bazaar owners, carriage drivers and walking 'cambio' men were all vying to catch your attention and, naturally, your 'tourist dollar'. On the whole this trip has been reasonably free of this harassment but the short time ashore reminded us quite forcibly that we were in Egypt.

Back on the boat we cruised into the night heading for the Esna lock and Luxor.

Abu Simbel - 28 December 2007

This morning's wake-up call was at the unsociable hour of 0340 so that we could be on the coach at 0415 ready to join the convoy at 0430. After the 1997 massacre the authorities are taking no chances with their most precious commodity, the tourist. The 280km trip from Aswan to Abu Simbel is made in convoys under armed guard. For some reason, although we appeared to be the last coach to arrive we were the convoy leader and as soon as the guard had joined us we set off across the featureless waste to Abu Simbel; bizarrely on the wrong side of the road most of the way.

30 minutes before arrival the tour leader woke us so that we had time to eat something from the 'breakfast box' that we had each been given as we left the boat and it also gave us the opportunity to watch a totally unspectacular sunrise over the Sahara.

Abu Simbel was packed with tourists but different in that it was carved form rock rather than built from stone. The story of its rescue from the rising waters of Lake Nasser and its repositioning 64m higher and 280m back from the original location is quite inspiring. Unfortunately, photos are not permitted inside the temple; a prohibition rigorously enforced by the numerous attendants inside the two temples.

The 2.5-hour trip back to Aswan was a chance to catch up on some of the lost sleep before we arrived for lunch. Quite why we had to join the 0430 convoy when, clearly, there were later convoys running at civilised times is anyone's guess.

After lunch it was time for our felucca ride up around Lord Kitchener's Island and back to the boat. Part way round we were 'ambushed' by a young boy in a hand-paddled 'canoe' who pulled up alongside and sang various well known English songs and then, at the request of our tour leader, a 'national song' from France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Japan and so on. Pokarekare ana was not in his repertoire. Having been tipped for his vocal prowess he then paddled off flat-stick looking for another boatload of tourists.

With a little spare time before dinner we decided on a walk through the souk; quite a disappointment after the bazaars of Cairo and the souks of Morocco so we returned to the boat to catch a sunset on the Nile.

High Dam and High Tea - 27 December 2007

Another morning of intense sun-lounging was our lot but the difference this morning was the presence of feluccas, the gaff-rigged sailing boats so distinctive of the Nile.

After arriving at Aswan, where we joined at least 60 other cruise ships moored 4 and 5 abreast, we disembarked for our bus trip to see the Aswan dams, Philea Island and Temples, and a perfumery. We drove across the lower, original dam en-route to the High Dam. This dam was built by the British in 1902 and flooded the Temple of Isis and it was not until 1987 that this Temple was rescued, reduced to 47000 pieces and repositioned on the renamed Agilika Island.

The High Dam is just what one would expect and, as is normal with hydro dams, most of the interesting stuff is underground. The dam contains enough rock to build 20 Great Pyramids and holds back the largest man-made lake in the world, so long (500km) that it reaches into neighbouring Sudan. The dam was built in the 70s with Soviet assistance and now provides more than enough hydro-electricity to power the whole of Egypt as well as taming the annual Nile floods.

On the way back to our boat we detoured to visit "Philea" Island and the Philea Temple complex. Since the Temple is on an island, a boat is required for access so the bus dropped us off at the waterfront tourist-tat bazaar where there were dozens of boats milling around and jostling for position to entice tourists to use their services. It appeared to be total chaos. If there was any organisation to the way it system worked it was not apparent to the outsider.
Having, somehow, secured our boat we were delivered to the island for our tour while our boat waited, in the shade of another island, for our return. How all this was coordinated before the advent of cellphones is anyone's guess.

It was our intention to visit the Old Cataract Hotel for High Tea on the terrace where Agatha Christie wrote Death on the Nile but unfortunately we never had the time to make it there and there were conflicting stories, one of which was that the Terrace was closed for refurbishment.

Edfu - 26 December 2007

Our early morning transit through the lock at Esna was delayed due to an overnight mechanical failure of the lock so it was not until 10:30 that we finally made it through. The delay afforded the sellers in the rowboats more time to throw their wares to the passengers and more time for the back and forth bartering.

After the lock we settled down to another day of lazing on the sun-loungers watching the banks of the Nile slip past; a truly demanding task.

Late in the afternoon we arrived at Edfu where we disembarked and were taken by bus to the Temple. It is the best preserved Temple in Egypt and had it not been for the Coptic Christians who took refuge there from the Roman persecution, the place would be even more amazing. Fortunately the desert sand had raised the floor level so the lowest layers escaped the religious zeal of the Coptics who industriously chipped away all the other faces they could see; believing that they were representations of gods. The irony is that the Temple is dedicated to Horus, a falcon-headed god and all his images were left untouched while the kings, queens, high-priests etc were defaced (in the strictest sense of the word).

As we arrived at the temple site we were accosted by Ali from Number 4 bazaar, to ensure that we went back to see him and, just to make sure, he handed us his business card proudly bearing the name "Louts Bazar". I thought it impolite to explain the English meaning.

Back on board we prepared ourselves for the "Galabiyeh Night". Most people joined into the spirit of the event and dressed in Egyptian costumes of various types. The after dinner entertainment was a bit of a challenge as they tried to organise German, Italian, Spanish, Belgian and English speakers to all get involved in communal activities. A German girl and a Belgian girl both gave impromptu belly dance routines and both were considerably better than the official 'expert' who entertained us on Monday night.

Leaving Luxor - 25 December 2007

Christmas Day began with a 6 a.m. wake-up call so that we could visit the Karnak Temple site, the largest templ comple in the world, and get back to the boat before it sailed. Karnak is a 70 acre site comprising ruins of temples, obelisks and other structures erected by and in memory of several Pharaohs. There are a couple of majestic obelisks formed from single blocks of granite that are quite inspiring; one is 29m tall.

Back on the boat we sailed south, upstream, arriving at the Esna lock to take our place in the queue for our transit through the lock: two boats at a time and a 45-minute cycle means there are significant queues upstream and downstream. We took our place at number 20 with a likely transit in the early morning.

Being forced to sit and enjoy the hot Egyptian sunshine when we could have London fog was a real trial, but we were stuck in the queue, what else could we do? Until the next boat arrived and moored alongside the entertainment was provided by the locals who attempted to sell Egyptian clothing by throwing it 4 decks up from their rowboats to the unwary tourists on the cruise boats. If the garments were not thrown back immediately the haggling began. Throwing the garments back and having them miss the target and land in the water did not impress the sellers one bit, even though the goods were in plastic bags.

Off up the Nile - 24 December 2007

With Sunday's fog refusing to lift all day, the prospects for an early flight on Monday were not promising. However, the weather bods predicted clearing winds and they were correct with Monday dawning crisp and clear. Gatwick was typical pre-Christmas chaos but we departed on time in a plane full of package tour-package passengers.

Paris looked stunning from the air as did the Italian lakes, a little relief from the tedium of the 5-hour flight to Luxor. There was some delay at Luxor airport as two pieces of our party's luggage had not made it with the rest but eventually we were delivered to the MS Serenade, one of 400 cruise ships on the Nile and our home for the next 7 nights.

Dinner was a special 6-course Christmas Eve banquet followed by a 'floor show' consisting of a dancer with a swirly skirt - not a patch on the one we saw in Cairo and a very flabby 'belly dancer', again not a patch on the one we saw in Aqaba. Should anyone suggest that belly dancing was a good way to loose flab and tone the body, this lady was living proof of the fallacy of that argument.