Luxor to Kom Ombo

Saturday, September 23, 2023
Kom Umbu, Aswan Governorate, Egypt
We might be on a boat but no rest for us at all this morning! So, we were up at 5.15am for a 6.30am departure.
Lots to see in Luxor so we are heading to the West Bank.
It makes sense to visit sites before it gets too hot. Our first stop was to the Colossi of Memnon which are two giant statues of Pharaoh Amenhotep III that sit near Luxor, Egypt. Colossi of Memnon symbolize the rule of the king over Egypt. The three figures in the statues, Amenhotep III, his wife Tiye, and his mother Mutemwiya are all symbols of rebirth. They have withstood all the natural disasters that they faced. 
We then visited Valley of the Kings. The ancient Egyptians built massive public monuments to their pharaohs. But they also spent time and treasure creating hidden underground mausoleums.
The most famed collection of such elaborate tombs—the Valley of the Kings—lies on the Nile's west bank near Luxor.
During Egypt's New Kingdom (1539-1075 B.C.), the valley became a royal burial ground for pharaohs such as Tutankhamun, Seti I, and Ramses II, as well as queens, high priests, and other elites of the 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasties.
The tombs evidence elaborate preparations for the next world, in which humans were promised continuing life and pharaohs were expected to become one with the gods. Mummification was used to preserve the body so that the deceased's eternal soul would be able to reanimate it in the afterlife.
We visited several of the more elaborate tombs. So elaborate, and the colours and paintings were indescribable. Our Egyptologist explained many of the paintings - for example the ancient Egyptians were scared of snakes so there are drawings of 3 headed snakes with legs and wings. To defeat these in the afterlife there are lots of good but small and powerful snakes. What an amazing place. 
Underground with no ventilation, it was very hot in these tombs though!!
As an aside, whilst tipping is a strong cultural norm in Egypt - it is very full on. Insight do tip on our behalf for many services (for example at the airport entrance when our bags are being scanned and when our bags go on the bus) but the locals still try to double dip and request money when our guides are not looking. At Valley of the Kings, we had to catch golf carts to the site. The drivers of other carts even demand a tip out of you - even though they haven’t done a thing! No problem with tipping when services are provided but the double dipping or scamming is just annoying. Anyway, it’s just constant. Everywhere. All the time.
We then had a typical stop to shop for expensive and overpriced items. This time, alabaster. 
We then stopped at Hatshepsut Temple. Hatshepsut (c.1473–1458 BC), the queen who became pharaoh, built a magnificent temple at Deir al-Bahari, on the west back of Luxor.
The temple consists of three levels each of which has a colonnade at its far end. On the uppermost level, an open courtyard lies just beyond the portico. Mummiform statues of Hatshepsut as Osiris, the god of the dead, lean against its pillars.
It was very impressive, but also very hot! We have learned not to sit in the front of the golf carts - those passengers get hammered for tips!   
We then walked through a rural farming village and visited a locals home. We walked through their home, and had tea and freshly baked bread. They are fairly self sufficient but will sell at the market some of their produce and purchase what they are unable to grow themselves. They have chickens for eggs, pigeon for meat, and various crops. The home was very basic - dirt floors etc. 
And then we were back on the boat for a late lunch after 7 hours of scenic activity. It’s been 24 hours now since we embarked but the boat hasn’t gone anywhere yet. We were aware of this before we arrived, but the boats do not travel too far along the river. As lunch began though, we set off - no more activities today so the rest of the day is for relaxation! There are so many boats on the Nile!
We enjoyed the rest of the day relaxing. The scenery as we sailed was just magnificent looking at life along the Nile. We did need a nap after the two last very early mornings. We then enjoyed a cocktail hour with the group and a 3 course dinner. We then had drinks upstairs as we passed through the Esna Lock. Before and after this, there were vendors in boats trying to sell us things - scarves, clothes etc. they throw them onto the boat in a plastic bag and you throw the money back - it was all very entertaining! 
The following day was a day of sightseeing as we sailed. It was fascinating viewing as we sailed along the river close to the riverbanks - a lot of fishing, swimming, farming and towns. The landscape changed considerably during the morning. In the afternoon, we arrived at Kom Ombo. 
Close to the river Nile, the Kom Ombo Temple was built during the Ptolemaic period between 180 BC and 47 AD. The limestone temple was built by men on elephants and was dedicated to 2 primary Egyptian gods: Sobek and Horus the Elder, gaining it the dual names of 'House of the Crocodile' and 'Castle of the Falcon'. There were so many boats and so many people here! There would have been 40-50 boats and they each have about 100 passengers in addition to those not travelling by boat. Another impressive temple with many stories on the walls.
Historically there were a lot of large crocodiles in this area of the Nile. The ancient Egyptians were fearful of the crocodile and hence many were mummified. So we also visited the Crocodile Museum where we saw mummified crocodiles- thousands of years old. 
And then we had to purchase some outfits from the shops here for our dress up Egyptian night. We bought our galabayas (like a kaftan) which was quite a stressful experience but amusing. We did have a fun night with our Egyptian dinner and dancing afterwards!
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Comments

Rachel D
2023-09-24

Love the photos! Had to scroll all the way to the end to see your Egyptian costumes! Looking good!

Joan
2023-09-24

My god you pair have been to some places, the photos are absolutely fantastic, and I love the Egyptian clothes you have on you both look terrific.

2025-02-10

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