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Nile Cruise Journal
(Lea) Cruising the Nile was an exotic adventure. Though we did not experience any murder and intrigue as in Agatha Christie's
Death on the Nile, we felt we were on a great adventure discovering and exploring Egypt's ancient history. Just watching the towns
that lined the banks of the Nile and knowing that they were lived in over thousands of years ago was
pretty cool.
During our cruise we stopped in Aswan, Edfu, Esna and Luxor - all containing awe inspiring sights. I cannot list them all, but
every time we viewed a new sight I would say, "That is amazing." The advanced architecture, literature, mathematics and science of
ancient Egypt was apparent at the sights. Some of our favorites included: 1) The Valley of the Kings in Luxor. Amongst the stark desert and sandy hills the tombs of Egypt's kings and queens were discovered. Some of these tombs are open to the public and we were able to explore the crypts of kings dating back 3000 years. The hieroglyphs and paintings in the tombs were elaborate, telling stories and their religious beliefs. 2) Queen
Hatshepsut's temple in Luxor - she ruled for 20 years and declared herself king. She even dressed as a king! Her temple is set in limestone cliffs almost looks like it was constructed in modern times with its different levels and terraces. But it was constructed 1400
BC. 3) Temple of Kom Ombo in Kom Ombo - this is a dual temple to Sobek, the crocodile headed god and Horus - the falcon headed god. The
reliefs here still contained many of the colors.
In addition to the sights, the people we met made the cruise a great experience. Although we disliked our tour guide (extremely rude and in particular disrespectful to
women), our group made the cruise more than worth it. We met an international crowd of
Norwegian, English, Jordanian and Canadian tourists; we spent much time laughing and talking together. A highlight was when Rolf, a Norwegian, led us in a Norwegian folk song and dance. The cruise definitely was something you dream of experiencing - a chance of a lifetime that I would love to do again!
(Keith) In the middle of the Nile at Aswan lies
Elephantine Island. Lea and I took
a local ferryboat filled with Nubian women out to the island one day.
The Nubian people once lived in southern Egypt (between Aswan and the
Sudan), but were displaced when Egypt built the High Dam.
Many marvelous temples resided in the affected area; luckily the
world’s engineers, archeologists, and governments came together to save many
of these historical treasures. We
visited the Phailae Temple on our Nile cruise; it was one of the massive
structures that was moved to higher ground to avoid the floodwaters behind the
new dam.
Several Nubian villages now reside on Elephantine Island.
The island is physically beautiful with the swirling waters of the Nile,
lush, green palm trees, and views of the desolate Arabian desert.
The villages consist of mud buildings with only narrow, dirt paths
between them. As we walked the
narrow streets we were clearly the only Westerners present. Most tourists opt for only taking a felucca (a small
sailboat) around the island without actually getting out and visiting.
Therefore the island doesn’t see many tourists and is a little more
authentic and approachable. Our journal
shows pictures of a mother and her baby; they were very excited to have their
picture taken, and since we used our digital camera we were able to immediately
show them the picture.
Also on this small island are some ancient ruins that are currently being excavated by a German archeological group. Again since there are few tourists on the island, we were able to wander around the statues and columns free of other people . . . a welcome break from mobs of tour groups and touts.
On our Nile cruise, my favorite stop was at the Valley of the Kings in Luxor. Many of the pharaohs had their tombs built deep inside the rugged, sparse desert mountains in order to hide them from tomb robbers. These complexes are amazing; the passages are uniform and ornately decorated with pictures of the pharaoh and various gods. Some of the tombs extend deep into the mountain, often hundreds of yards. As with the pyramids, it was a great experience to see firsthand the art work and engineering expertise of this ancient civilization.
Check out our Nile Cruise Photos.