Aswan cont...

Aswan cont

High Tea at the Movenpick was a bit disappointing as the usual venue was under repair so we were placed on a very hot roof courtyard.  Regardless we woofed down a couple of sandwiches and scones and departed to our very comfortable room.  Alan was exhausted from lack of sleep the previous night and the morning’s very hot excursions so both flaked by 7pm and didn’t wake until our wakeup call at 6am the next day.  Alan’s exhaustion had turned into a runny nose and Cairo belly.

We transferred from the hotel to the ship the MS Giselle.  The ship is old-fashioned in decorations with lots of wood paneling and big high-back chairs – very much an English Manor theme and extremely comfortable with spacious rooms, no complaints about the quality here.

MS Giselle,

Soon as we dropped our bags we were off on a felucca ride which was lovely as no motor and just gliding down the Nile with a pleasant breeze.  Stopped at a Nubian village.  The village was relocated onto Elphantine Island when the Dam was built.  The Nubians are a darker skinned Egyptian (you can see the African in them) who have their own language and way of life, primarily they are farmers.  All the buildings are colourful as they paint them in bright colours with lots of murals on them.  Crocodiles play a large part in Nubians lives as they raise them in their houses until they are about 1mtr and then release them behind the Dam wall. The village was lovely and we were lucky enough to go into a house and see the way they live, where of course you were shown lots of handmade things you could buy.

Nubian house

Felucca

Back to the boat via a motorized launch past the botanic gardens with our guide pointing out different plants and birds.  Had a brief stop on the banks of the Nile, which we waded through to touch the sands which are the start of the Sahara desert.  

Once back on the boat Alan took himself to bed for the rest of the day.  The boat departed Aswan and headed downstream towards Luxor. We stopped at Kom Ombo to visit the Temple of Sobek, which was fascinating as here you see the hieroglyphics of medical instruments used and stories of operations.  Fascinating as you can see where our modern instruments have evolved from and some look to be exactly the same.  This temple also had some parts with the original colours still showing.  They would have been spectacular in their day!

Temple of Sobek

On the way back to the ship I ran the gauntlet of the hawkers but I needed to buy a galabaya (kaftan) for the Egyptian themed dinner.  Got one for Alan as well so now he has a ‘mantan’ to wear around.  Certainly far more comfortable  than shirts and trousers.  As usual paid far too much but still very cheap and now just need a fancy dress to wear our finery again,  Alan arose from the dead to don his mantan and off to dinner and party we went.  Lovely evening and off to bed where I slept really well again.

EDFU

This morning we had a 6.45 start to beat the other boats to the Temple of Horus.  We departed the ship in a horse and carriage thru the town to get to the Temple.  Temples are starting to all look the same but again we found differences in this one as it was in pretty good condition.  The ceilings were intact but all blacked from fires lit by persecuted Egyptians camping in the temples in the time of the Romans.  Again very interesting and pleasant as we beat the crowds, enjoyed our visit and were back on the boat for an 8.30 breakfast.

Temple of Horus

Temple of Horus