We got on a 40-passanger bus at 5:00 this morning for a three-hour ride to Abu Simbel. When we arrived, there were several busloads of tourists there already. This was OK because all of the people left before we were halfway through our tour. It was magic having the place empty except for us and a dozen other visitors. Samy and OAT have this tour timed perfectly. Even the weather was perfect – shirtsleeve warm.
Abu Simbel consists of two temples honoring Pharaoh Ramses II and Nefertari, his queen. It is an ancient wonder with its huge guardian statues seemingly emerging from a cliff and its elaborate depictions of famous battles on the inner walls of Ramses’ Temple. Photos are not allowed inside the temples, so I can only display shots of the outside.
The construction of the Aswan Dam in the 1960 threatened to cover the temples with Lake Nassar. It was decided to save them beginning a huge engineering project. The temples were cut into large blocks and moved 200 feet up the cliffs.
We spent a couple of hours here gawking at the statues, colorful paintings and bas relief carving inside the temples. Then it was back on the bus for the three hour ride back to Aswan. On the way, we ate a box brunch that the hotel supplied to us.
When we arrived in Aswan, we transferred our personal items to our small bus and went to lunch on a floating restaurant on the Nile. After lunch, we went back to the hotel for some down time.
We met again at 5:30 and drove to a perfumery. We received a lecture on perfumes and their essence. They had several essences to sell, some to smell good and some to make you feel better. As a demonstration, the women went upstairs as the men stayed downstairs. The staff proceeded to give us massages using their oils. My masseuse used eucalyptus and sandalwood oils. It felt good.
From there we went to the Spice Market where they sell spices and everything else. The vendors were just as aggressive as others we have seen. It was fun, though, to walk through the streets and see the variety of things for sale.
Then it was off to dinner for our fourth meal of the day. We ate outdoors and had soup, the regular bread and salad, and a mixed grill of chicken and lamb sausage. It was really good.
It’s closing in on 10:00 so we are going to bed.
No comments:
Post a Comment