Sunday, December 30, 2007
Nile Cruise: The end
.. and the sun sets on a magical week's cruise aboard the MS Nile Saray (Three star vessel with a 5+ star crew) on Egypt's life blood, the Nile.
Nile Cruise: Balloon Flight Luxor
Another really early start: we had decided to take a balloon flight across the Nile's floodplains and below the Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens as a special treat. And while we were promised at least 35 minutes we enjoyed a full hour's flight welcoming in the morning sunrise amongst the smokey haze from sugar-cane burn-off. And in the silent morning washed with the heat from the ignition flame to the balloon we traversed the sky. How can you express the imagery except maybe through pictures?
Nile Cruise: Abu Simbel
An early morning wake up call 3.45am was all we needed but today we flew Egypt Air from Aswan to Abu Simbel on the southern shores of Lake Nasser about 25km from Egypt's border with Sudan. Abu Simbel is IMPRESSIVE!!! The original construction, monuments to Rameses II and his favourite wife Nefertari, were carved out of the rock of the hills, but because they were going to be drowned by the rising waters of Lake Nasser, the structures were removed and built 90 metre higher up. Two artificial hills were constructed and the saved artefacts were reassembled in an exact replica of the original monuments. The rock-cut Temple of Abu Simbel is up there with Ankor Wat in Cambodia. The Pharoah Ramses II is shown at four different stages of his life while in the Temple of Hathor alongside (dedicated to Nefertari)the 10m high statues step out of the wall, their left feet forward, symbolic in Ancient Egypt of walking into the afterlife. After a 90 minute tour we were shuttled back to the plane for the flight back to Aswan. And lunch!! And a rest!! That night we sailed back towards Luxor, stopping at Edfu during the day and arriving at Luxor about midnight.
Nile Cruise: Aswan
Clive didn't fare too well in Aswan. We thought initially it was the Pharoah's Curse, but more likely it was reaction too rich and plentiful eating. Can't complain about the food! Shelley took in visits to the Temple of Philae (by felucca) in Lake Nasser; the Aswan High Dam (and we crossed the lower dam at a later point) and on to the Botanical Gardens. After lunch, and a kip, we took a tour to a local mosque in Aswan, where because it was 5.10pm and not many (five in fact) Muslims come to pray at that time, we were able to sit in and watch them at prayer in a mosue built about 25 years ago. Our guide explained to us his version of Islam and how accommodating and tolerant it is of other religions and from there we tripped down to the local markets where we were let loose for an hour. Very similar to the markets of Turkey and Istanbul in particular. Hassled all the way by shop owners (and their'vultures') we were encouraged to buy: 'Come and have a butcher's'; 'ASDA prices..'; 'We'll pay you to come and look'. Clive tried bartering with a book stall owner and was told to 'Go away' because his offer price was absurdly low. We met other members of our tour group in a local coffee shop where we had free drinks and Shisha - Shelley insists she didn't inhale the raspberry flavoured smoke that bubbled through the water! It WAS nice!
Nile Cruise: Temples of Edfu and Kom Ombu
More sailing up the Nile, heading towards its source, brought us to the Temple of Edfu, half way between Luxor and Aswan. Edfu, the Temple of Horus, was largely buried by sand until it was found in 1860 and because it was buried several parts of the walls and columns contain their original coulours. The engraved illustrations here have taken on a new look and, influenced by the Greeks, show more human detail: the shape of both men and women - and navels! A quick wander, a purchase (and some unsuccessful bartering) and we were hustled back to the boat for another huge lunch and more sailing to Kom Ombu. A night visit to the Temple and for the first time, witness of the Egyptian calendar (the last day of the month was identified in hieroglyphics as a circle with a tail across the top - is this where the term 'tail-end' comes from?) and the mummified remains of three crocodiles and back to the boat from where we set sail for Aswan. Traditionally, they say, aboard the cruise ship, tonight was Galabaya night where everyone dresses up for a fun party of dance and music and drink. We were becoming rather partial to the Luxor Lager and it was SO easy to get: sign to Room 118 please!!!
Nile Cruise: Valleys of Kings and Queens
The tombs of the Pharoahs and their families are located just outside of Luxor on the barren fringes of the Sahara Desert. Sited under a pyramid like peak with the sun symbolism portrayed by its shape, these resting places are much more sohisticated and elaborate and buried much more deeply than I had imagined. In the Valley of the Kings we visited the tombs of three Pharoahs: Ramses III, IV and IX. The sarcophogi lie at the end of long elaborately decorated passage ways with small antechambers dotted along the inward route: in these were housed the necessities for the journey in the afterlife. Keeping a watchful eye over the thousands of tourists swarming through the tombs, high in outposts along the desert ridge line, the Tourist Police maintain their armed vigil against the possible threat of terrorism: an accepted part of tourism here given that in 1997 58 tourists and 3 policemen died in a terrorist attack in Luxor. From the Valley of the Kings to Deir el-Bahri, the monumental temple designed by Senmut for Queen Hatshepsut, to the Valley of the Artisans (home of the workers who constructed and engraved the tombs in the Kings and Queens Valleys and who were led blindfolded to work and back so they were unable to reveal the tombs locations) and on to the Valleyofthe Queens. The warmth of the desert sun was a welcome addition to our tours through these oppulent and majestic structures. Only two tombs were visited in the Valley of the Queens(Nefertari's Tomb is closed to general rifraf like us!):The Tomb of Queen Tyti and of the 12 year old Prince, who died too young to be buried in the Valley of the Kings, Amen-Hir-Khopshef. And back to the boat for a sail south to Edfu.
Nile Cruise: Luxor
We arrived in Luxor in the dark and the first experiences of the city were at night. The desert air was cold (but not as cold as UK) and the sky clear; the streets were busy and golden lights glowed from both street lights and buildings. The 'porters' did everything - and then demanded backsheesh, the tip! You almost had to tip to breathe the air. The pestering was bad - almost as bad as our experience on Hai Van Pass in Vietnam. But we got through the phalanx a couple of pounds sterling lighter. The first morning required a 5.30am wake up call with a 6.30 post breakfast departure so we could visit Luxor and Karnak Temples ahead of the crowds. And what awe inspiring places. The creative genius and engineering feats of the early Egyptians can only be marvelled at. The blend of the spritual with the ordinary daily lives where social structuring saw the separation of nobility/priests and other people was expressed in the monuments (big seemed best), especially those dedicated by Rammeses II to himself and his family, and in the hieroglyphics etched onto walls, obelisks and support structures. We enjoyed a thoroughly informative tour of both temples with our guide, Achmed, who was a great font of knowledge on the ancients of the area. Our worst experience at Karnak Temple was being yelled at by an armed Tourist Policeman, from a distance, to get off the mud brick wall which surrounded the temple. We didn't argue!! Back to the boat for dinner (the full board which was included in the price meant three sumptuous buffet meals per day) and then a visit to the Luxor Museum, a relatively new museum in which, apart from several interesting artefacts, there were two well-preserved mummies. It was kind of an honour and a privelege to be able to look in on these two people, preserved in death for the world to see.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Scottish Highlands
The next day December 1 we took a twelve hour coach trip from Edinburgh, north to Loch Ness and on to Inverness, before heading home again down Scotland's spine. A long, long day but a very memorable exerience. The stories of the early Scots and how they lived and died I found really interesting. I thought I was of a Highland clan but no! Turns out we Crawfords are of Lowland Scottish stock. But being amongst the Highlands was like being in the Mackenzie Basin of our South Island only not as high. Bleak, colourful, rich in human history, desolate and uncompromising. This is the Highlands of Scotland. From the complete Stirling Castle just north of Edinburgh to the crumbling ruins of Urquhart Castle on the shores of Loch Ness, via the shrouded peak of Ben Nevis, our day took in a 400 mile route. Castles and Lochs; glens and invers; MacDonalds and Campbells; Bag pipes and Ceilidh; mountains and crofters; sheep and highland cows. These are the images of the Scottish Highlands - and no Loch Ness Monster to be seen! (We WERE looking! Wouldn't you for a £1.0 million reward?)
Edinburgh, Scotland
What I thought was a bank holiday in reality turned out to be a Clacton High School staff shopping holiday. We flew to Edinburgh to do our shopping. We arrived in the rain at 10.00pm and, adventurous as we are, caught a £10.00 (for 2) return airbus and set out to find our hotel. But the bus windows steamed up inside. With rain on the outer side, visibilty was very poor. But the friendly driver directed us at our stop and we headed off, towing cabin bags, armed with umbrellas looking for our stay. Eventually we asked a young couple for directions and likewise, eventually, we found our hotel. Signs (like hotel signs) are almost non-existent in the Edinburgh Old Town (or very very small)and so streets and buildings in the dark, were like one huge blur. But comfortable accommodation was finally at hand - and so was sleep. We woke next day to visit amongst patches of blue/grey/rain/cloud/sun/mild 10 degrees, the right up there Edinburgh Castle and, good news, entry was free (down from the normal £11.00 pp because it was Nov 30th, Saint Andrew's Day - Patron Saint of Scotland). As we normally do, we walked and walked, slowly at first, and later, more quickly as we realised the day was slipping away: dusk at 4.00; dark by 4.30. But we did manage to squeeze in a self-guided trip through St Giles Church as we headed down the Royal Mile towards Holyrood Abbey; a visit to a personal 3D theatre show about Loch Ness and its monster; a walk past John Knox's house, past the Mercat (the centre of town and former execution site) and on to the Old and New Parliament buildings: sadly we arrived too late to get into the new buildings. So on we trudged, map out, gathering (all two of us!) under yellow street lamps in the 4.30 dark at various points, and wound our way up what looked like dodgy dark paths to the lookout on Calton Hill (here sits Edinburgh's answer to the Acropolis) from where we got a full on view of the city - at night in the rain (at least it wasn't cold). From Calton Hill down into the New Town and to the Christmas markets - dinner consisted of a small plate of apple strudel and cream from the German market. YUM!! And from there a wander into a huge marquee where we sat and watched St Andrews day festivities with Ceilidh band and dancing and beer and free giveaways. A really enjoyable way to end a very long (but short on daylight) day.
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