At the end of the day's tour in Aswan, our guide dropped us off at our cruise ship, the Sheraton Anton in time for lunch. Another amazing place to see is Abu Simbal which is a 600 klm round trip south from Aswan - but due to the extremely high temperatures we decided to give that one a miss for now - perhaps another time in cooler weather.
The ship departed in the early afternoon and we began a relaxing two day cruise northward on the Nile, visiting the villages of Kom Ombo and Edfu along the way. The ship went down through one set of locks at Esna on the Nile. It appears to be cheaper to buy a ticket at the ship or from an Egyptian agent than to purchase it from the home country. We heard many people saying it was 4 times the price to book from their home country, so many felt it was excellent value. We were upgraded to a suite on the 4th deck so we were very happy also. The current season is extremely hot and perhaps that is one of the reasons why tourist numbers are very low here at the present time.
Pat enjoyed lazing in the sun on the top deck whilst yours truly sat enjoying the open air from under shade covers. The top deck is a wonderful place to relax with many lounges, tables, chairs, palm trees and a great swimming pool. It's great just lazing away the time watching the river and the date palms on the banks of the Nile slip by. The banks are very fertile and seem to be full of crops and people working the fields. On the cruise we met a very nice Korean couple, Hankeon and Seunghee, both from Seoul. After breakfast, on the morning of our arrival in Luxor, our group was picked up by a guide and we headed out for an exciting day of exploring.
The Valley of the Kings - visiting this dry, barren limestone valley and hearing about the Kings who were buried here, the processes involved and the finding of the burial sites will give me some interesting reading in the future. I have only ever had a basic knowledge of Egyptian history and I have now found it to be fascinating to say the least.
When a King's Coronation takes place, commencement on the stone work of his burial chamber begins - so therefore the longer the King's life, the bigger the tomb and the more antechambers will be incorporated. When the King dies, there are just 70 days available for final preparation to take place, in which the body is mummified and his final chamber room for burial is made ready.
King Tutankharum's tomb was very small because he had lived a short life and died suddenly at age 19 - his was the first tomb discovered and was actually found by accident. When the archeologists were scratching around back in the 1920's a jug of water fell from a donkey - the water ran out of the jug but disappeared - this is where they they then began to excavate and ultimately found the tomb - the first of 63 tombs which have been found to date in the Valley of the Kings. At this valley we visited 3 King's tombs.
Al-Deir Al-Bahari Temple - another wonderful site to visit. Built by Egypt's only and very controversial female ruler. It is a grand tiered structure built into the side of a mountain and graced by huge statues.
The Valley of the Queens - here we visited 2 substantial tombs. This valley is by no means on the same grand scale as the Kings' valley and many tombs have been simply dug downwards into a shaft-like structure. The tomb of Queen Nefatari is supposed to be the best in the whole of Egypt, but the Government decided to close it to the public. You can however visit, if you pay the entrance fee of 20,000 Egyptian pounds.
Karnack Temple - another fascinating site and a very impressive area incorporating one section alone with 134 huge columns of stone.
We strolled down through the streets of Luxor in the evening - enjoying the street scenes, the people and those wonderful food smells. Due to the extreme heat during the day people seem to spend more time inside and after sundown they are able to get out and about in the cooler temperatures of the evening. At our Hotel we decided to check out the view so went to the rooftop restaurant and enjoyed the view and a cold beer and glass of wine. By the way, the aroma in Egyptian spice shops here is great.
The following morning we were well organised and headed out of town to the bus stop for the 8:30am departure for Hurghada on the Red Sea - or so we thought. The large air conditioned bus was delayed - then it was broken down - then of course, it wasn't even going to arrive. We were assured another bus would be here soon. The bus finally left at 11am - a big clapped out heap of junk - no air conditioning - but anyway, we were on our way. Those of us waiting for the bus chatted amoungst ourselves - Japanese, Italian, French and Australian - it certainly helps pass the time.
We had a very long, hot bus trip across the arid land and through the wild scraggy mountains to the Red Sea, arriving after 5pm. We teamed up with the little French family Vincent and Stephanie with their two children, Pierre 7 and Adele 4 as we were all heading to the same destination. We stayed the night at a "very basic" hotel at the port of Sigala as we had decided to take the 4am fast ferry across the Red Sea to Sharm El-Sheikh on the Sinai Peninsula. Pat thought it would be best to catch the ferry, otherwise we could be waiting a long time for it to open up like it did for Moses. The crossing was very rough and many people on board were seasick. The ferry was travelling at 50 km/hr but they decided to go "slowly slowly" to 37 km/hr which made the trip more comfortable. The usual 1.5 hr crossing became a 2.75 hr crossing!
At Sharm El-Sheikh Pat negotiated a good price for a mini van so we headed north up the Peninsula to Dahab on the coast. What a relief - great sea breezes and a very enjoyable little hamlet. We checked into a little Bedoin Village called 7th Heaven and decided to stay put for a few days to enjoy the coastal location and perhaps the opportunity to sample some local seafood.
At lunch time we strolled along the waterfront and were lured into a little restaurant with the sea lapping the sides of the dirt floor - here we sat down for a very enjoyable lunch of grilled calamari and vegetables with all the trimmings - what a wonderful spread. Our lunch was topped off with tasty cold watermelon and Bedoin tea. Absolutely delectible.
We gave Kelli and Sonya a call - it was great to hear their voices. Kelli knew exactly where we were, as she had been here on her backpacking trip 10 years ago - she said these are the restaurants where the best food is determined by the most number of cats! Yes, the place has a big population of cats roaming around. One actually grabbed Pat's leg and scratched him while we were having lunch!
Pat was keen to visit Mt Sinai and St Catherine's Monastery, where Moses is reputed to have received the 2 tablets of stone, containing the 10 Commandments. The trip was to be 12 hours from 11pm and returning the following morning at 11am. I chose the alternate option and enjoyed a great night's sleep! I am currently sitting in the same restaurant enjoying the sea breeze, the view and breakfast - it has given me a great opportunity to write my Blog.
Well Pat returned from his expedition looking a bit tired, stiff and sore but with some wonderful photographs of his trip. Pat's trip incorporated a 7 klm trek up the mountain on a camel and the last 750 steps on foot and returning all the way back down on foot. To quote the Lonely Planet:
Rising up out of the desert and jutting above the other peaks surrounding St Catherine's Monastery is the towering 2,285 metre Mt Sinai. Although some archaeologists and historians dispute Mt Sinai's biblical claim to fame, it is revered by Christians, Muslims and Jews, all of whom believe that God delivered his Ten Commandments to Moses at the summit. The mountain is beautiful and at the summit it offers a taste of the serenity and magnificence of southern Sinai's high mountain region.
There are two well defined routes - the camel trail and the Steps of Repentance - that meet about 300 metres below the summit at a plateau, where everyone must take a steep series of 750 rocky and uneven steps to the top. Most people make the climb in the predawn hours to take in the magnificence of the sun rising over the surrounding peaks, and then arrive back at the base when the Monastery opens for visitors.
This was the trip that Pat took - he couldn't wait get into a shower and have a much needed sleep. On reflection, I think I chose the better option. I am currently sitting in the same restaurant enjoying the sea breeze, the view and breakfast - it has given me a great opportunity to write my Blog.
That evening we had dinner at the 7th Heaven Restaurant with Vincent & Stephanie, Pierre and Adele the French family we had met a few days earlier. They are partners in a vineyard in France so it was very interesting to hear how a vineyard is looked after and ultimately the wine prepared for sale. We have been invited to visit the vineyard so we'll look forward to doing that on our next visit to France.
We left Dahab the following morning with an Aussie Tour Group as we were offered a lift to Nuweiba further up the coast with them. Nuweiba is the ferry port from which we departed Egypt for Aqaba, Jordan. The process of buying the ferry ticket in Nuweiba; going through security; sitting and then lining up for a bus to the ferry; boarding the ferry and then finally cruising across the sea to Jordan was not carried out at any shattering speed - I guess there's just no rush when you're leaving Egypt! We finally arrived in Aqaba at about 5pm so decided to stay a night before heading north.
Jordan feels so much better to be travelling in than Egypt - the people are more laid back - they're not so much in your face and we've noticed the streets are cleaner. Jordanians are passionate about their Royal Family and love King Abdullah, the son of King Hussein. People love to talk about the good deeds their King carries out on a regular basis - from travelling around the country to visit the people, sitting down and sharing a meal with the Bedoins to building homes for the poor.
There are some ruins from an early medieval port city in Aqaba called Ayla, so we decided to visit as our little granddaughter has the same name.
We packed up early in the morning, negotiated a deal with a taxi driver and headed north to Wadi Rum. Wadi Rum is a protected area and is considered to have some of the most extraordinary desert scenery in the world. Our 4WD driver was called Eed and he was 16 years of age - a little younger than we're used to, but nevertheless he handled the Toyota well and he certainly loved his job.
(In 1916, the Arabs with the assistance of T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) launched the Arab Revolt and helped the British drive the Turks from the region.)
This is the region where the Arab revolt took place and was also the location for scenes from the movie, Lawrence of Arabia. Eed took delight in showing us the highlights of Wadi Rum, especially Khazali Canyon which is a deep narrow gorge and home to many early inscriptions in the rock.
When we left the Protected Area, a taxi driver made us a a good offer to take us to Petra, our next destination. Along the way he stopped and bought us a cup of tea and refreshment - quite a bit different to the taxi drivers in Egypt! Mini buses are available for transport between many of the towns and cities here, but they wait until they have a full bus before leaving - so if time is not an issue then buses are very cheap to get around. Taxis are everywhere and they also offer reasonable fares.
Petra is a very special place and Jordan's most visited tourism spot - it has been a Cultural World Heritage site since 1985. We visited both at night and during the day. To quote the Lonely Planet:
Hewn from towering rock walls, the imposing facades of the great temples and tombs of Petra are an enduring testament to the grandeur of the Nabatean vision. The Nabateans - Arabs who controlled the frankincense trade routes of the region in pre-Roman times - chose as their city a hidden valley concealed from the outside world and transformed it into one of the Middle East's most memorable sites.
