A camel came to our New Years Eve party in our Cairo Hotel
People do not really crawl all over the Pyramids. This one you can go inside, which we did just to discover that its impossible to understand how they were built. They are the most impressive stuctures I have ever seen.
In awe - So big - so small
How did they get those stones up there?
We attended a sound and light show where the Sphinx talks and explains his place on earth. It was a magical evening and on New years Eve.
These camels and their bedouin drivers are straight out of the desert on which the pyramids were built. Their tents can be seen in the background.
Pity about Sphinx's nose -
Eventually got a ride on a camel, but not one of Bedouin origin, waited until we were in Nubian territory up by lake Nasser.
A smaller version of the "Marquis de Nile" the one with the swimming pool which served as our floating hotel for 8 days. I counted and collected the names of 72 other river boats.
Taken from the boat as we were on our way to Edfou
A whirling dervish - a very impressive athlete - Egyptian entertainment in the evenings in the bar aboard the boat.
An early morinig visit to the pool on board
An Egyptain village veiwed from the boat
Another riverboat in he distance and local river life - village fishermen
More scenes from the boat - this hut shelters animals from the 50+ heat in summer
Pre dinner sunset views - and getting cold as evenings do.
We had very little time to put our feet up with up to 4 land based tours a day
We went out on the Nile on both of these boats, the felucca and the motorboat. River transport is the domain of the Nubians who were displaced from their villages when lake Nasser was filled at the completion of the dam.
The desert comes right down to the rivers edge.
Waiting in a queue to get through the locks.
Karnak - Luxor
View from the Aswan dam - the second most impressive structure I have ever seen.
A very much alive though quite little crocodile in a Nubian Village - I was just a little worried as it wriggled.
From Aswan we joined a police protected convoy on a 600km round trip almost to the Sudan border to see Abu Simbel. On the edge of lake Nasser we found the temples that had been relocated, with Unesco help, to avoid been covered by water when lake Nasser was created by the Aswan dam
The only way to see real life in Luxor, this outing showed us the real town and the lives of ordinary people, and a little insight into the culture and poverty of Egypt.
Ramses the third lived here!!First known site of a flushing toilet. Pity following civilizations did not follow on.
These minarets dominate the landscapes and fill the ears with a call to prayer 5 times a day. This even started to remind us of the time of day and its impact on the lives of Muslim men.
An urban village in Luxor
The photos tell the story.
On Dec. 28th a Kiwi friend and I trained back up to Paris to join a french tour to Egypt. 3 days in Cairo, a flight to Luxor and then an 8 day cruise up and down the Nile on a river boat, flying straight back to Paris from Luxor on the 8th. We had no idea what we were letting ourselves in for as it certainly was not the holiday that I was looking forward to. There was so much to see and do and not enough pool time on the boat and I spent much time translating for my non french speaking friend. I made new french friends as I shared my thoughts on this very priviledged insight into another culture presented to me in French by our wonderful french speaking Egyptian guides.
