2006 Egypt

28 December 2006, Thursday; Marsam Hotel, Luxor, LE130 (incl)

Super, super day. Cold, but clear and relatively wind-free.

After breakfast in the courtyard, we cycled down to the ferry, crossed the Nile and cycled along the Corniche to Karnak Temple.

What a fantastic place. We splurged on a guide (LE50 for one hour – though I think we got a good 90 minutes) and were thrilled that we did.

Built (added to, changed, renovated) over 2000 years from the early Middle through the New Kingdom and into the Graeco-Roman period, Karnak Temple was known as The Most Perfect of Places. The temple was the main place of worship of the Theban Triad – Amun-Ra (king of the gods), Mut and Khonsu (moon god).

Seti I, Ramses II and his beloved wife Nefertari (our guide told us it was Nefertari who rescued Moses from the bulrushes), Hatshepsut, Tutankhamun and even Alexander the Great are present here. Amazing columns and obelisks and everywhere hieroglyphs. A little overwhelming.

You enter along an avenue of ram-headed sphinxes from around 1250BC and through the first pylon – the largest gateway ever constructed in ancient Egypt, though never completed. Past the barque shrine of Seti II and the colossal statue of Ramses II and his wife Nefertari (there seems to be some dispute as to whether this is actually Ramses II or not). And so into the Great Hypostyle Hall (1290-1260BC). Built by Seti I and his son Ramses II, the hall covers 5400m2. And is truly magnificent with its forest of 134 papyrus-shaped columns. Some taller (21m) with bell-shaped capitals; some shorter (13m) with papyrus bud-shaped capitals. The sandstone columns are composed of a series of drums set atop one another. The height difference is bridged by stone grids to let in the light. The rest would have been roofed and brightly coloured (some original paint remains). Seti I commissioned raised reliefs; Ramses II sunken reliefs. The hall has undergone massive restoration work over several decades.

Particularly imposing are Hatshepsut’s obelisks – the fallen one lies near the sacred lake and shows her receiving a blessing from her “father” Amun-Ra. The standing one is, at 29.2m, the tallest remaining in Egypt. The tip was originally covered in electrum – a gold/silver alloy. Some of the scenes of, for example, Hatshepsut being blessed by Horus (son of Osiris and Isis; he is identified with the pharaoh) and Thoth (god of writing and wisdom) were eradicated by Tuthmosis III – the stepson in whose stead she had ruled. Also two pink granite columns erected by Tuthmosis III (1479-1425BC) with the lotus of upper Egypt and the papyrus of lower Egypt in high relief.

And perhaps most moving is the statue of Tutankhamun (1336-1327BC) and his wife who loved him so dearly she did not wish to remarry after his untimely death.

We were lucky. There were few tour groups around while we toured with our guide. After we parted we drank mint tea beside the Sacred Lake and then returned to take photos of all we had seen. By then it was fairly crowded but did not matter.

From Karnak we cycled back into town and found ourselves a restaurant where we dined amongst the locals on roast chicken and veg and rice. Yummy. Near here the local butcher combines goats penned to one side and meat hanging from hooks in the open air. We witnessed the man there weighing a goat for a client on a motorbike.

Strolled past some tourist shops – a few vaguely tempting. And have been pleasantly surprised at the limited amount of hassling. Luxor is known as the hassle capital of Egypt. But either we have developed a working method of limiting the harassment, or there has been some sort of “intervention” – perhaps due to tourist complaints. Perhaps a combination. There are some things that are annoying, but not unmanageably so. There is a hard sell attitude. And some people do step into your path to block your way. Or ask you to write a postcard to a friend – a scam to get you into their shop. Or refuse to accept your first (or second or third) NO. Or throw a scarf over your shoulder as you walk by. Some, amusingly, say “no hassle, no hassle, just look, no cost to look”. Or “how can I help you spend your money?” Or “Everything free in this shop”. But in general we have found the city quite pleasant. (Coping is in the main a matter of getting your head around the process and choosing not to let it impact on your enjoyment, I think. And it is definitely easier when there are two of you.)

After our stroll we spent some time in the Mummification Museum (LE80). Some odd sods: Priests purify the dead with sacred water. The linen bandages are smeared with resin. These are then wrapped around the body. On show were fantastically decorated mummy boards and coffins; mummies of people and animals (cat, ram, crocodile, ibis, etc); the tools used to remove the brain and viscera; the canopic jars in which the internal organs were stored (there are four jars each traditionally with a different lid representing the four sons of Horus: human – liver; falcon – intestines; jackal – stomach; baboon – lungs); wooden carved or painted boxes which contained miniature statues of “servants” to help the pharaoh in the afterlife – including help with any tasks assigned the pharaoh by the gods for bad behaviour in life. Interesting and really well-displayed.

Then back on the ferry for tea in the courtyard and dinner in the dining / meeting room.