After breakfast we packed up, said goodby to the ship’s crew, threw our luggage up on the roof of the van and set off.
First stop: Luxor Temple.
This was a total surprise.
Many many columns and statues, really impressive entrance right off the “Avenue of the Sphinx.”
There are the Sphinx that have been here, but recently they started excavating and have found over 1500 total Sphinx. They are rebuilding the entire 3km road from here to Karnak, and lining it with the Sphinx. Sphinxs. Sphinxes.
Whatever.
Here, on the temple walls we saw Alexander the Great giving offerings to god of fertility.
Sure enough.
Yesterday’s visit to the alabaster place was not a fluke. There really is a god of Viagra and his name is Min.
Look at the photo. His name should be Max.
The entrance is flanked by Ram headed statues, not sphinxes. Once again something about fertility.
The interior features a virtual forest of columns.
That alone is pretty amazing.
Add in the second largest obelisk and some fine statues and this was also a great stop.
I think I would recommend Luxor over Cairo except I suppose you need to see a pyramid or two.
Well it was actually kind of sad when we all split up to go our separate ways.
We were delivered back across the river to our guest house for today, the Villa Nile House. We are straight across the Nile from the Luxor Temple which is in view of our room.
The little town is Qarna or Model Village. It is a busy village right on the main road to Valley of the Kings but back here in the enclosed courtyard it is quiet except for the occasional donkey or rooster.
Amazing.
So after a glass or two of wine we went out to the pool for the afternoon.
Swimming, reading, napping.
As I type this I am sitting by the pool under the shade of the lime tree.
Later I walked the two blocks to the street parallel to the Nile. The streets are all dirt, kids play soccer in the empty lot. The town mosque has a green dome but no minaret, the speakers mounted on the dome. The volume is turned up too high so the call comes out all scratchy and garbled. There are three little restaurants with similar menus and prices. It is cheap eats here. This is where there is a river crossing so there are many colorful boats with colorful names like The New Titanic tied up. I stopped at the store for a large water.
The imam of the mosque, who is supposed to do the call to prayer five times, did random musings and attempts at songs, so we listened to his staticky musings off and on during dinner and into the night.
Our lamp-light dinner was enough to feed four. We had Egyptian white wine, kept semi-cool on the refrigerator.
The main course was “ chicken of the Nile” or fresh caught fish of the day. The selected two off the boat and it is the best fish I have had in a few years.
There was a big plate of rice, French fries, Egyptian salad (cucumbers, tomatoes, onions) and a yogurt sauce, and pita.
I ate 1.8 fish while Gail concentrated on the rice and salad.
While we ate dinner in the garden, two bats flew back and forth in the dimming light clearing the bugs.
With the lights of the kitchen shining through the stained glass, the poked-tin lights on the path, the marble lights competing with the almost-full moon overhead, it was a relaxing, romantic end to our Egypt trip.
We have a resident gecko in our room. He croaks once in a while.
We have no WiFi. We have no cell service. We are totally cut off and I really don’t give a damn.
We are isolated but feel very safe.
I never even bothered to take the key out of the door while we were here.