Author: Courtney

The cruise boat started moving around 5am this morning.. not that I noticed-I slept right through it all. When we woke up to get ready for the day and have breakfast on board before our first outing, I was impressed with the views out of our big picture window in the room. It was stunning!

We had breakfast while the boat was in motion, and before we were finished, we were already docking. They really have this all down to a science. We met Osama in the lobby at 8am and headed off to Kom Ombo Temple. There’s something about walking up some stairs and then being blindsided by the raw beauty standing in front of you. Pillars and stone built so high, it’s still completely unimaginable that this was created more than 2000 years ago! Just-insane.

The temple was built to honor two gods: the crocodile god, Sobek, and the falcon-headed god, Horus. We learned about Isis, goddess of magic and healing when we went to Philae Temple, Horus is her son. Anywho-since the temple was built for both, it has a double entrance. The scenes carved into the stone were beautiful, and even a little risqué. There is a scene with penises peeing-symbolizing their owners were scared in a battle and wet themselves.. ha. I’m sure I just butchered that story-but either way-they carved a small scene with a couple penises on it and I act like a 12 year old boy and find it funny. Real mature, amiright?

Osama walked us through the crowds and was able to show us so much and explain the scenes laid out in front of us. He pointed out the ways the high priests could sneak through the secret passageways and be the “voice of the gods” by hearing the person’s prayers in one area and sneaking around to be the voice somewhere else entirely, to sometimes deceive people into doing things that benefited the priest. Meh, I’m tired-so I’m not sure if that makes sense. Basically, the priests could be sneaky as hell, even back then.

We saw the scenes including the crocodiles, too. Apparently, someone would pick the “special” crocodile to keep and praise for the crocodile king, feeding it and all that, after sterilizing it. When it died they picked a new one. Crocodiles were mummified and buried with or around important people that passed away, too. Kinda crazy! Imagine walking inside to pray and coming face to face with a croc! Just kidding, they kept them in a special place, and they were all over the Nile River in this area, too.

They would still be all along the river now, too, if they weren’t relocated into Lake Nassar when the high dam was built. Now, it’s thought that more than 80 thousand crocs are in those waters, the lake created from the dam-and you’d never know it by looking at the lake itself-it looked like Lake Tahoe when we saw it yesterday from Abu Simbel. It’s wild out here.

When we left the temple we walked right into the Crocodile Museum. There were tons of mummified crocs on display, along with statues created to honor Sobek, the crocodile king. I really enjoyed this small, one room museum. It was loaded with information and really neat trinkets, carvings, and statues. It also had air conditioning-so a big win there.

We got back to the boat before ten, and hung out in the little bar area watching the river excitement until lunch time. I’m not sure when we started moving again, but it was probably before 11am. We sipped Cokes and waters while watching other boats go by, along the shores of the Nile with their farmlands, cows, and donkeys.

We were all pretty exhausted. It’s been go, go, go this entire trip so far, and very early mornings-which is completely necessary with this heat. We got to talking and decided to ask if we could stay on the boat this afternoon so we could relax and swim at the pool on the top deck-instead of going to see Edfu Temple. It was going to be so hot. Our guides agreed, and so we ended up having the rest of the day free.

We ate lunch and then quickly changed into our bathing suits to lounge around pool. We swam some and laid in the sun-it was a little awkward, because we were docked. One side had the town and the other side had another boat tied to us. We got some stares, from both sides, for sure.

When it got a little too hot and my skin stared getting red, we moseyed inside. We napped and I read some. Just before 5pm I met Terri on the upper deck to watch the sunset. Andrea joined us. Mom kept napping. The rooms are so perfectly cold that it’s hard to get back into the heat after you’re comfortable.

The sunset was phenomenal. The way the orange glow turns to pink and then purple that always makes me smile. It’s hard to be anything but grateful when you’re in that moment. I’m still in awe of everything here. The people, the river, the infrastructure. Old homes right next to even older ancient structures. It’s everything I thought it would be, and then like nothing I could have ever imagined all at the same time.

We had dinner together before heading back to shower and get into bed. I’m really bad about falling asleep the second I lay down these days. With all of the excitement all day long, once my head hits these pillows it’s like the light switch was flipped and I’m comatose before I even realize I closed my eyes. A great sign of another perfect day.

Today included another very early morning. We were up, showered, packed and leaving the hotel by 4:30am-breakfast boxes in tow. This one had a few more options, including chips. Nice.

We had an almost 4 hour ride in our van to get to Abu Simbel Temples. It’s close to the Sudan border and not much was visible between Aswan and there.. mostly open desert for as far as the eye can see. Andrea got some fantastic pictures of the sunrise along the way.

We got to the temples just after 8am, including a pit stop for the bathroom and a coffee. At the pit stop we saw all the big tour buses coming in, so we rushed a little, to try and beat the crowd to the temples. This is a place I’ve been soooo looking forward to seeing with my own eyes, the magnitude of the statues-I didn’t want another 300 people to shuffle through with me.

When we got through the entry point, Osama saw the excitement on our faces and let us go without explaining first-so we could get our pretty pictures without all of the people, and then learn about it afterwards. I don’t think he minded being able to wait for us in the shade, and I was brought to tears by the beauty of it all. Some things just need to be taken in before they’re explained.

The first temple was built by King Ramsey II, and outside into the mountainside there were four statues of himself that were over 60 feet tall. They were incredible to witness in person and to walk between. Inside the temple were columns and statues all of Ramses, and the scenes etched into the walls were of his great battles. My favorite piece is the one with him on a chariot shooting an arrow (it looks like Sagittarius to me lol).

The second temple is also stunning. It was built by Ramses for his wife, Nefritari. Outside, there are 6 statues carved into the mountainside, all over 30 feet tall. Two on each side of the entrance are of the King and one on each side is is the Queen, but they’re all the same height, which wasn’t something typically done. Usually queens are made shorter than the kings. Inside was also gorgeous, with scenes including Ramses and Nefritari making offerings to the goddess Hathor. I’m not great with the details, but there was more of a softness to this temple compared to the battle scenes in the other. The beauty in the carvings was undeniable.

We enjoyed our time, walking around and taking it all in. When we made it back to Osama, he explained what we saw and answered our questions. We were extremely pleased to do this in the shade, because about half way through the temples, the tour buses descended upon us and it got HOT and way too crowded. He would have been shouting over entirely too many people. We got back in the van and took naps on our very long ride back to Aswan.

Exhausted, we made it back to Aswan. Osama surprised us with ice cream before getting us checked in on our Nile River cruise ship: Le Fayan. Y’all. It is GORGEOUS. It is so beautifully decorated and the rooms are spacious for being a cruise! I was thrilled! We got our room keys and then headed off to eat lunch on board. It was set up buffet style and the food was perfect.

With full bellies and free time, we explored the ship before giving in and taking naps. I know I accidentally conked out pretty quick. By the time we were all awake again, the sun had set and there wasn’t much to do but wait for it to be dinner time. We strolled the top deck, lounging for awhile taking in the city lights of Aswan.

When we went downstairs for dinner, we were told they weren’t quite ready for us yet, so we strolled back upstairs to the little shops on board. Mom found some earrings and Terri found a pretty dress. By the time we were finished shopping, it was dinner time! We chose our dinner order at lunchtime, since this meal wasn’t buffet style. I had a chicken Cesar salad, creamy mushroom soup, beef medallions with herb sauce, and a brownie with ice cream. It was all superb.

When we got back to the room, I didn’t even last 20 minutes before I was asleep. Mom said she was going to brush her teeth and that’s the last thing I recall before waking up this morning. I think it was a pretty good day!

Somehow, the timing was perfect for our flight to Aswan. We were all up and in the van with our driver by 3:45am, breakfast boxes in tow. I was the only one that really ate anything out of it though.. no one else is a morning eater-they’re normal and wait for their tummies to wake up-I wake up and tell my tummy “if I’m awake, you’re awake-let’s do this!” Haha-and now with taking the synthroid, that first hour of no food literally almost kills me every single day. I’m a real delight.

We got to the airport by 4 something, went through a huge security check point with all of our luggage, then stood in line to check our luggage, walked to the gate and went through another security scanner to get on the plane-this one also includes a quite thorough pat down by a lady only speaking Arabic.. it makes for an exciting morning, lots of attempts to make them smile and way too many hand gestures for what to do and where to go. It always works out, though. And we were on our plane by 5:36am.

When we touched down in Aswan, we were happy to realize this cute city is nowhere near as large as Cairo, so also nowhere near as chaotic. The driving is still a neat song and dance, with everyone weaving in and out of each other-somehow always managing to not tap one another. If I were driving, I would have a complete collection of other vehicle’s side mirrors. Im sure the Egyptians are thankful I didn’t think I’d manage driving us around on this tour!

Coming out of the airport, we met Osama, our tour guide for the next several days. He’ll be with us from now in Aswan, all the way until we fly back to Cairo from Luxor. He’s a quick witted guy, and so full of information that I think at first everyone was still a little stunned from all of the early morning travel and couldn’t keep up with him, the information about the area and the ancient history here.. but after some rest we all managed just fine. Funny how lack of sleep makes you miss all the jokes 😉 I’m picking up what he’s putting down, now! Ha

First thing, after getting to the van, we were driven to a port to get on a boat to go to Philea Temple.. which is on an island in the Nile River. Let me also say-I knew the Nile was a huge river, but I didn’t realize exactly HOW HUGE the river is. I mean, it sustains life for so much of Africa, going through 11 countries and is the second longest river in the world.. just slightly shorter than the Amazon River. It also flows from the south to the north, emptying out into the Mediterranean Sea. And it is wayyyyy wider than I realized.

Back to the temple. This temple was built somewhere else entirely, but was getting ruined by the flood waters of the Nile, so in the 1970s when the high dam of the Nile was finished being built, UNESCO world heritage organization paid to have the temple disassembled and reassembled on an island that wouldn’t flood and that they leveled out.

We took a cute boat over to the island, and thankfully I didn’t slip off of this one like I did in Italy. Small victories, here folks. Osama took us through the site, showing us the Greek and Roman influence of the pillars and showing the way the carvings inside the temple tell the story of Isis, the Goddess of magic, healing, and birth, her husband, Osiris, God of the green lands and killed by his brother, first to enter the underworld-and how Isis fought to bring him back for one night to be impregnated and have their son, Horus.

This temple was also the place where many Egyptians came to worship their gods when Christianity started to take over in the area and people who differed in beliefs would fight and kill each other. It was one of the last places for the ancient Egyptian religion to be practiced, since it was on an island and not so easily accessed. Again, forgive any misled details. There was so much information given and it’s difficult to relay it at all, let alone properly. It does make me want to enroll in some history classes though!

We retreated to the boat after walking through on our own and getting pictures of the architecture and beauty of the place.. attempting to avoid all of the crowd. There’s always a crowd! I really enjoyed the boat ride, personally. I always love being on or in water. Back at the van, we made our way through downtown Aswan, and Osama was able to get us an early lunch at a cute little restaurant. It wasn’t open yet, but they graciously let us wait in a lobby with cushy chairs until they were ready for us inside the restaurant.

This may have been my favorite meal yet-don’t laugh-but it was PIZZA! It was perfection! Andrea and I also got a shawarma-a wrap with meat, grilled veggies and dipped in a sauce, served with fries. It was all delicious. All of us seemed to like this meal, too, not just me-so I think it was actually pretty good and not my post trail stomach enjoying everything that comes with bread.

We got to our hotel, Tolip Hotel, and checked in. It was beautiful! Pinkish red marble accents, chandeliers, a true gem. We unloaded our stuff (well, the bell hop did) and explored a little bit. Then all hung out in our rooms and rested. Everyone took a nap, except me, because I don’t nap well. If I had fallen asleep, I’d probably still be asleep now. I listened to my book and uploaded pictures, and scrolled the internet while sitting on the balcony staring out at the Nile River. What a stunning view.

At 4pm, we met Osama in the lobby and he took us across the street to the river, and onto another boat. We had a nice sunset ride up the river to a Nubian Village. The colors are incredible! The Nubians paint every brick in vivid bright colors-with gorgeous patterns and lively scenes. We were able to visit a house and tour the inside. And the upstairs balconies as well. The hosts were kind and welcoming, even giving us some tea to drink.

They had crocodiles to showcase, too. And, well, I’m about as fond of a reptile larger than me as I am of snakes. I peeked and then left before anyone got the bright idea of getting one out. No thank you. We walked through their markets and Andrea and I got some dresses-we are both horrible hagglers. This man tried to sell us a dress for $100! USD! Sir, are you on crack? Like I realize they set it crazy high to argue it down, but at that high price I’d rather just walk away. I find the whole thing of standing around arguing over price extremely annoying. It’s why I enjoy ordering online-no talking about my purchases required. Let me shop AND BUY in peace.

Osama saw my face and came in to help, he got us down a lot lower than where Andrea and I were, and then got the man to give us a scarf, too.. hahaha-so, I know we overpaid, but we paid a hell of a lot less than $100 a dress! Insane. And stressful. I wonder if they bargain on absolutely everything? I told Andrea on the ride back, it would be like bargaining in Kroger for the chicken to be a quarter of the listed price. It’s just not an easy concept for us to manage.. I feel like it makes us think everyone is a cheat or a swindler, I have enough trust issues as it is-no need to bring shopping into it.

We really loved the peaceful boat ride back to the hotel, it was dark outside and the lights were beautiful. There was music playing and it was wonderful to just soak in the moment. Like, we’re really here. We’re really enjoying these crazy chaotic days with our mamas at our sides, taking it all in, too. What could possibly be better?

Back at the hotel, we walked around a good 20-30 minutes until we found the restaurant. We got the buffet and filled up our bellies before making our way back to the rooms. Tomorrow is another very early day, because we’re going to Abu Simbel Temples-and this has been a bucket list visit since planning this whole trip. The problem? It’s a 3 hour drive to get there. Whoops. Sorry, guys!