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.

Cruising on Loch Ness

Urquhart Castle remains on Loch Ness

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?)

Looking down the Royal Mile

Edinburgh Castle from Castle Terrace

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.