October 2007
Page 3
| Page 1 | CAIRO: Cairo Marriott, Cairo Museum, Giza and Sakkara: The Pyramids and Sphinx, Alexandria, The Mosque of Mohamed Ali |
| Page 2 | UPPER EGYPT: The M/S River Anuket, Cruising the Nile in Aswan, Abu Simbel, Temple of Philae, Temple of Kom Ombo, Temple of Horus at Edfu |
| Page 3 | UPPER EGYPT: Valley of the Kings and Queens, Dendera, Hot Air Balloon Ride, Karnak Temple, Luxor Temple |
| Page 4 | Tips for Traveling in Egypt |
UPPER EGYPT
Our tour of Upper Egypt next brought us to Luxor. The west bank features the Valley of the Kings and Queens. The east bank, along with the town of Luxor, features the temples of Karnak and Luxor.
Valley of the Kings and Queens
The imposing Colossi of Memnon originally stood guard at the entrance of Amenhotep III's memorial temple.
The Valley of the Kings contains the tombs of pharaohs of the New Kingdom. There are numerous tombs spread over several hilly acres of hot desert. Photos were not allowed inside the tombs, which are long corridors covered with reliefs and hieroglyphic texts leading to the burial chamber. Here are a couple of photos of tomb entrances nestled in the hills.
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The adjacent Valley of the Queens is where the wives of the pharaohs were buried. Again, photos were not allowed inside, so here are a couple of photos of the entrances.
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Dendera Temple
Dendera Temple is located north of Luxor, near the town of Qena. This temple is dedicated to the goddess Hathor. As I mentioned on page 2 (see Temple of Philae), Hathor is portrayed full face. On the left is an overview shot of the temple. On the right are some of the columns from the hypostyle hall. (Hypostyle means that there are rows of columns throughout the hall, not just on the perimeter.)
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On the left is another beautiful example of a relief. The carving on the right is the demigod Bes.
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The Dendera Zodiac is on the ceiling of a small room within the temple. This is actually a replica. The original is in the Louvre. If you have a magnifying glass, try to pick out some of the signs of the Zodiac!
Hot Air Balloon Ride
This was my first time on a hot air balloon. It was fabulous! It is literally floating on air. It was a little scary at first — not because of the height, but from being so near the flame as they "fired up" the balloon — but it was a lovely ride, and the view was quite spectacular.
Our sunrise ride gave us a bird's-eye view of the Valley of Kings and Queens. There were about a dozen balloons in the air. The photo on the left was taken from inside the basket of my balloon, as another balloon fired up. On the right, you can see several of the balloons floating over the Valley.
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The Ramesseum, on the left, is Ramses II's mortuary temple. Medinet Habu, on the right, is the mortuary temple of his son, Ramses III.
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As we moved past the Valley of Kings and Queens, we floated over a farming village. Notice the livestock in the yard — donkeys, water buffalo, chickens, etc.
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Many people build their homes a floor at a time, as they can afford it, so often, the top floor is without a roof. We saw people cooking their breakfast (left) or just getting out of their beds (right)!
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Karnak Temple
The city of Luxor has 2 major temples: Karnak in the north and Luxor in the south (see map above). These lie on the east bank of the Nile, flanking the town. In ancient times, the 2 were connected by an avenue of sphinxes. You can still see some of the sphinxes leading from each temple. The area in between is currently being restored.
Here's a panoramic view of the front of the huge Karnak temple complex, which covers an area of 100 hectares, or about 247 acres.
Inside the forecourt is a large statue of Ramses II (I told you he was a great builder!). Nestled in front of his legs is his beloved queen, Nefertari, the favorite of his 40 wives.
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On the left is one of the magnificent obelisks, and on the right is the sacred lake — the best existing example of one.
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Luxor Temple
Luxor Temple lies south of Karnak, at the other end of the avenue of sphinxes. On the left is a view of the front pylon, with its obelisk and statues, and on the right, a view from inside the forecourt looking toward the back of the pylon.
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The inside features numerous statues of Ramses II. Here are a few examples.
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On the left is another beautifully-preserved relief, and on the right, one of the best-preserved sphinxes.
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Nasr City: Sadat Memorial
On the way from the airport in Heliopolis back to the Cairo Marriott for one last night before our departure, we made a stop in Nasr City to see this beautiful memorial, which is close to the spot where Anwar Sadat was assassinated on October 6, 1981.
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A special thanks to Grand Circle Travel (www.gct.com) for putting together this phenomenal tour!
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