Nile River Cruise…part 2

 Most Nile River cruises sail from Aswan to Luxor at a leisurely pace…

Stopping at various points along the way such as the Nubian Village. Nubians are a tribe that came from Africa and speak their own language and have their own traditions. There are a number along the river and are known for their brightly colored homes  

We visited one of the families and were offered mint tea…

They also keep crocodiles for pets  

The town has a bustling market 

We also discovered very quickly that Egypt has a very demanding tipping culture. It seems everyone has their hand out for a tip even if they didn’t provide any service  

We laughed at this picture of the camel as it too is expecting a tip! 

During our trip there we also began to see just how many tourists are on the Nile. Our guide explained that tourism is much lower now because of the political situation in the region, so I can just imagine how many people would be there before.

Here are some scenes as we sailed along the river,,,

Sellers would come along side the ship, throw up a line to connect and then commence to sell their wares.

Mountains of sand behind a fertile river bank…

Beautiful light on the river…

Aga Khan’s home and tomb on top of the hill…it is the hereditary title for the spiritual leader of the Nizari Ismaili Muslims. He was made an honorary citizen of Canada in 2010 and there is the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto.

Another lot of temples and another early morning rise…

This temple is Edfu Temple which is a remarkably well preserved ancient temple located on the West Bank of the Nile in Edfu, Egypt. It was constructed between 237 and 57 BCE. It is dedicated to the falcon headed god Horus…

It has many huge columns…

The lions are guarding the entrance…

Our group inside one of the chambers…

The “ old folks “ taking a break!

When we arrived at our final stop in Luxor we left the boat at 5:00 am to beat the crowds. There were thousands waiting for the gates to open at 6am to visit Karnak which is a massive religious complex and the largest ancient religion site in the world! 

There are over 100 massive columns throughout the complex…

Don wondering “ why the heck am I doing here?”

The walls are covered with hieroglyphics …

Luxor Temple was constructed around 1400 BC and later expanded by pharaohs like Ramses11. It is very well preserved with elaborate columns many topped by the lotus flower and also large statues.

Some street scenes from the town of Luxor…

Back to the ship after a long day…

Time for refreshments…

Our last morning was also an early rise as we headed for the Valley of the Kings. 

The hot air balloons were just landing. 

In we go…the last temple on this trip…

The Valley of the Kings is an ancient burial ground containing over 60 rock cut tombs for pharaohs and nobles from the New Kingdom period, 1939- 1075 BCE. This is where the famous discovery of King Tutankhamen’s was located.

The inside of the tombs were magnificent with the colors still brightly displayed…

There is also Queen Hatshepsut Temple on the site. It is a mortuary temple which is unusual as she was a queen and not a king. However she declared herself a Pharaoh when she ruled Egypt from 1479- 1458BC. 

And now on to the desert…