Day 6
Today was a rest day in that I was not moving any further west along the wall. I booked an extra night at the Twice-Brewed Inn so I could spend part of a day at Vindolanda, a nearby Roman Fort and still active archeological site. Thus, after an excellent breakfast of smoked salmon benedict (I am not sure I am going to lose any weight on this hike…..!) I set off on the one and a half mile walk to the site, walking once again on narrow country roads. As I turned off on the road leading directly to the fort and museum I had to be careful- the road narrowed to a single lane and was quite busy (relatively speaking) with other visitors coming and going. I noticed several buses in the parking lot as I arrived and once I entered the site realized there were several school groups on field trips roaming around.
I passed a real life thatched cottage on my way to Vindolanda. I hope there is an actual modern roof under the thatch!
The Vindolanda excavation is very well known and considered one of the most important in England, as well as for Roman history. The fort and village, which sits adjacent to the fort immediately outside the walls, have been unearthed to the foundations, revealing the extent and layout of the site. But more importantly, because of the soil conditions in this area (clay), everyday artifacts made of leather, wood and paper which normally decompose over time, have been preserved intact. No where else has such a treasure trove of everyday items been found. Incredibly, the archeologists unearthed 2500 or so “tablets”, paper thin post-card sized wooden writing sheets which were still legible documenting mundane topics such as birthday party invitations, pleas for more underwear, storage and supply lists and so on. Experts are still studying these insights into life on the frontier of the Roman empire. I spent several hours in the museum at the site where many of the artifacts are displayed (some are also in the British Museum).
Big picture view of the Vindolanda site. It was quite sprawling.
A view down the “Main Street” of the village leading to the fort.
Archeologists, many amateur, are still working to reveal part of the foundations and it is possible to watch them at work. I was lucky enough to arrive just as a guided tour of the site was heading out and quickly joined. The tour guide walked us through the foundations, explaining what purpose some of the buildings served (based on the artifacts that were found in them). He also described the basic layout of Roman forts, which I was a bit familiar with after visiting Chester’s Fort earlier. The Romans were very consistent in their fort design! In addition to the ruins and museum, two reconstructions of Hadrian’s Wall, one in wood and the other in stone, provided an example of what the wall might have looked like when it was intact. Overall I spent nearly three hours there, wandering around and exploring.
They found thousands of well-preserved leather shoes at the site- preserved because of the anaerobic soil conditions. Much of the footwear looks familiar.
The rest of the day was spent reading and relaxing as well as catching the early World Cup match.
The foundations for the garrison commander’s house. Note the green courtyard in the center.
The grain storehouse. Note the elevated floor to allow air to circulate so the grain did not spoil. The bathhouse also had elevated floors- for heating.
Day 7
The day was partly cloudy but no rain was forecast although I was going to be facing a headwind with gusts near 40mph. So I layered up and headed back to the trail to head west for my 8ish mile walk to my evening’s stop. The trail was going to be a lot of up and down for most of the day but the good news was I was going to pass over the highest point so successive days would be mainly descending. I was not on the trail long when I noticed large pink signs with arrows pointing out the trail for those heading east. Shortly after I saw the first sign, a gentleman in shorts and a T-shirt with a race tag ran (yes, ran) by. I managed to ask him if there was a race today and he had enough energy to nod. About half an hour later, another guy ran by and from him I learned that it was a 70 mile race with the destination being Newcastle. From the next two guys, which were about two miles behind the first two, I learned that the starting point was Carlisle. From then on, as I walked west, up and down steep inclines, through grassy fields, over stiles and through gates, a steady stream of people passed me hiking/running in the other direction. I was starting to feel inadequate. I was taking ten days to walk 84 miles and all of these people (there were about 1200 entered, I found out) were going to complete the 70 mile leg in a day! I stopped to chat with one of the volunteers stationed along the way and he told me that some people take over 24 hours to complete it. I suspect the first guy I passed would finish between 10-12 hours (maybe faster). It was an entertaining morning and I decided to cheer everyone on as they passed me, much to their surprise….
Another view illustrating the steep hills in the central part of the walk. Down was harder!
Now you see it, now you don’t. An example of how nature has worked to bury the wall.
So it went for three hours until I reached the Army Fort museum where I veered off the trail for a visit. It turned out there was a major pit stop/lunch stop for the racers near the museum and I think I saw the bulk of them at that location. (They apparently had timed starts every 30 minutes, between 6am-7am.). The Army museum was on the location of another old Roman fort, but unlike Vindolanda there was not much to see at the site, but I had stopped to check out the museum which had more information about Roman army life. I only spent about an hour there but as I emerged and sat down for lunch at a picnic table, noticed that the racers were still pouring into their lunch spot. This was the group that was going to be on the trail for 24 hours— I had no doubt.
Another example of a milecastle along the wall where soldiers were stationed to watch the north.
Back on the trail, I had only a few more hills to clamber down but at this point I was exposed to the main force force of the wind and felt like I was almost bent double to move forward! Luckily the trail dipped down into the defensive vallum (ditch) the Romans had built on the south side of the wall, which was still present, and I was shielded somewhat from the main gusts. As I emerged from the ditch, which followed the descent down the hill, the path wandered through the trees, again providing some shielding!
I veered off the trail one more time to take a look at Thirlwall Castle, a castle built over a 1000 years ago with stones taken from the wall. About half the exterior structure was still intact and I tried to map the interior of the Newcastle castle keep into the ruin I saw before me. After circling the ruin, I was back on the trail for a leisurely 30 minute hike to my evening’s accommodation in Gilsland.
An example of the stone wall (central and east coast)
A simulation of the wood wall (west coast construction where stone was not readily available).
Day 1
After my experience walking the Coast-to-Coast walk in 2018, I knew I wanted to do more walks in England. I had long had my eye on Hadrian’s Wall as my next excursion and now embarking on that adventure. I decided to walk the path from east to west despite the fact that most people walk in the other direction-usually starting in Bowens-on-Solway and finishing in Newcastle. My hike started in Newcastle however and I arrived a day early to have an extra day to explore the city. Instead of saying in the city center, I booked lodgings in Tynemouth on the coast. To keep things simple, I used the same company to plan the logistics for my Hadrian’s Wall trek as I did for the England Coast to Coast walk- Mickeldore. All I had to do was tell them how many days I wanted to take to hike the whole route, the number and location of any rest days I might want and they took care of allThe bookings, moved my luggage everyday and provided a packed lunch.
Tynemouth was easy to get to using the Newcastle metro and turned out to be a small, but vibrant village. The ruins of a large monastery, on the site of an even earlier Roman fort, on the coast a block away from my lodgings were my first stop after dropping my stuff off. The main priory was the largest structure still intact, followed by the gatehouse. I sat on a bench to enjoy the day and watched with amusement as three teenagers, with helmets, small shields and wooden swords re-enacted a medieval sword fight. Maybe they were filming for social media? After exploring for an hour, I found a place to grab a bite and retired to my room for the rest of the day.
The priory ruins at the monastery in Tynemouth.
The next morning I took the metro to the city center and visited the Great Northern Museum near Newcastle University which hosts a nice exhibit on Hadrian’s wall. Since it was a Saturday, there were loads of families and kids at the museum so I did not linger after perusing the exhibit on the Wall. I headed south through the city center for a visit to the remnants of the Newcastle castle which sits on the site of yet another Roman fort. The castle keep is still intact and I roamed around all the different floors, exploring the nooks and crannies, trying to image what it would have been like to live there. The castle walls are also still intact in some places, including a couple of the gates, so standing on the roof of the keep, I could see how the grounds might have looked in the 1200’s when the castle was occupied. Leaving the castle keep I headed through the still exiting river gate in the walls to the old town adjacent to the river, winding through streets with long-standing pubs and more modern cocktail bars and restaurants. Clearly this was the place to be—I lost count of the number of bridal parties and birthday groups out celebrating, even though it was only late afternoon. I imagine this area is super active at night!
Newcastle castle Keep. Still intact and super interesting to wander around in and imagine what it might have been like to live there!
I stopped in to an Italian restaurant to grab an early dinner/late lunch then headed back to Tynemouth to prepare for the next day.
After a small breakfast I left my tagged luggage in the hallway of the B&B and headed out. I would meet up with my bag at my stop for the night some 12 miles distant. The Hadrian’s Wall walk actually starts in Wallsend, a metro stop about halfway from Tynemouth to the City Center so I took the metro to the Wallsend station and consulting the detailed map provided me by Mickeldore, easily found the path. The start (or end if you are walking west to east) of the trail was adjacent a site of an old Roman Fort the Segedunum. The site mainly illustrates the foundations and layout of the fort; nothing remains of the structures themselves.
The path was well marked and served double duty as a bike/walking corridor for the community. Because it was such a nice day, cloudy but not cold, lots of people were out biking and walking. After nearly two hours of walking through a peaceful corridor of green along the river, I reached the city center. The crowds increased and I found a Sunday market along the waterfront in the old town. I slowed my pace and spent some time browsing, the food stalls especially tempting, but I breakfast was not too far in my past and my lunch was in my backpack so I resisted the temptation to try any of the food. Leaving the city center, still walking along the river, I continued to encounter locals out strolling for another hour or so, bikers for another two. After walking for three hours, I stopped at a bench overlooking the river and broke out my pack lunch, indulging in a short rest.
After lunch I continued to follow the trail, which more or less remained next to the river, until Newburn. At the Newburn bridge I turned south to cross the river and walk to the B&B I was staying at, about 1.5 miles distant. After six hours of walking, I closed out my first day on the trail and looked forward to the next day and my first encounter with remnants of the wall.
The path near Newcastle. Nicely paved and used by locals as a walking/biking path.
Day 2
I got lucky with another nice day – only partly cloudy leaving blue skies and white puffy. I headed out around 9am retracing the1.5 miles from th B&B back to the trail to start the day’s 11 mile trek to my next stop. The path continued to closely parallel the river affording me the opportunity to watch the Newcastle University rowing team practicing. This part of the trail was well used – locals out walking, some with strollers, many with dogs, as well as bicyclists, singles and groups. After a couple hours of walking, that included my first hill climb (no where near as tough as New Zealand!) I was at Heddon-on-the-Wall. I love the names of English villages— many are nothing more than geographical descriptions. In this particular case, the small village of Heddon, sits adjacent to one of the few intact sections of Hadrian’s Wall (hence the name). The village, perched on a hill that afforded a wonderful view of the surrounding countryside, consisted of some very old buildings, still used as homes, and some modern construction. The village (population 1300ish) consisted, besides the residences, of a pub (inevitably) and a church and a school. The longest contiguous remains of Hadrian’s Wall, 220 meters long, sits just east of the center of the village in a field and I stopped by to take it in. The section, including the foundation stones, varies in height from three feet to ground level and I walked the length, looking at the construction technique and trying to image what it must have looked like when it was built (nearly 2000 years ago!). It’s amazing, really, that the original stones are still intact and haven’t been cannibalized for construction during the ensuing two centuries (which is what happened elsewhere along the wall).
Leaving Heddon-on-the-Wall, the path entered farmers’ fields, generally following the course of Military Road. The modern day Military Road follows the original path of the road that stretched along the south side of Hadrian’s Wall for use by, well, the Roman military (English names!). England has a public right of way law so it is not unusual to be on a major trekking path and find yourself marching through a cow and sheep pastures or agricultural fields and I found myself skirting cows and startling sheep for motor the day. Luckily the cows seemed used to random people walking by them and merely watched with no reaction.
Hadrian Wall ruins in a field. Remains of the wall appear and disappear throughout the route.
Throughout the day I passed several groups Hadrian Wall trekkers walking east. I rarely overtake (or was overtaken) by hikers heading west like me, although I saw one couple who were walking west and when I sat down for lunch at the top of another hill at Harlow. My lunch spot had a great view; the green rolling hills of north England unfurling in front of me, interrupted by the silver ribbon that was the river Tyne. The English countryside appeared very neat and tidy, postage stamps of various shades of green plowed fields, sometimes spotted with riots of wildflowers, broken by tree lines or stone walls. I never grow tired of the scenery when I am walking through the English countryside!
I had a late lunch so it only took me another hour or so of walking to reach my stopping point in East Wallsford. I checked in, stretched (mandatory), showered, reviewed my next day’s path and wandered over the adjoining pub for dinner- a nice relaxing way to end the day!
Day 3
Since Robin Hood’s Inn, my evening stopping point was right on the trail, I had an easy start for today’s hike – simply walk out the door and turn west. My goal for the day was 11 miles away in Chollford. It was another nice day with partly sunny skies and little wind; a great day for a long walk. The theme for the day turned out to be “stiles” because for most of the day I was walking through fields. Crossing from one field to another required navigating through stiles set in the wall. Gates were generally locked (I was told by my B&B host later that evening that people were not closing the gates, so the stiles were created to avoid that problem). The walk was scenic but the only remains of Roman construction that were visible along the route was not the actual wall itself, but rather the large ditch that the Romans had built along the north side of the wall. In several sections of the walk the wide, deep ditch still existed and it looked formidable, especially considering anyone trying to cross it in the Roman times would have archers poised to fire at them from the wall.
Another view of the wall emerging in a field.
I arrived in Chollford in the early afternoon and decided to stop at the local pub, the George, to have a pint of Guinness before walking up the hill to the village of Humshaugh where my evening lodgings were. My timing was perfect because while I sat in the pub relaxing a short, but strong rain shower moved through the area— but I was inside and remained dry!
Day 4
I was not in a hurry to get started today because I wanted to visit Chester’s Fort before heading further west and the ticket office did not open until 10am. The landlady at the Orchard Inn B&B, my evening’s accommodation, suggested an alternate route to get to the fort— the “high road” that led through the village and then down to the river, as opposed to hiking back down the the George and heading west on the military road. I took her suggestion as it gave me an opportunity to wander through the small village and a less-well traveled part of the English countryside. It was a lovely walk and as I passed the several hundred year old homes, I tried to image I was back in regency England and what life would have been like.
Ruins of the Roman bathhouse at Chester’s fort. They had dry saunas and steam rooms and a cold plunge pool. Very elaborate.
Chester’s Fort, which sits on the River Tyne and built bisecting the wall (with gates north and south of the wall) was excavated by John Clayton. Actually much of the preserved sections of the wall are due to his enthusiasm and dedication to unearthing Roman artifacts in north England. Chester’s Fort emerged after he started poking around some ruins in his backyard; he kept excavating, everywhere after that. Today it is possible to see the layout and foundations of the fort’s buildings, including an incredibly intact bathhouse, and gain an understanding of what a typical wall fort looked like. There is also a small museum that contains many of the artifacts that he found while excavating. I spent an hour there, wandering around and exploring the different buildings before heading back out to the trail. I had eight miles to go and a pick up at 3:00 to meet.
The weather was generally nice, but occasionally a random cloud would wander by with a light sprinkle and I spent time along the walk putting on and removing my rain pants. The wind was fairly strong out of the west so I kept my rain jacket on most of the day as a wind break. I did discover an advantage of walking west, even though I faced the wind – I walked through rainstorms, not along with them (they were moving west to east)! I was definitely leaving the coastal region behind as the trail started to ascend, although in a measured way. Like the day before, I was walking through fields, with occasional interludes through small groups of trees. The trail still paralleled the military road in the distance, and usually ran adjacent to modern stone walls that separated pastures. At Grindon, noted by the location of an old schoolhouse and less than a dozen buildings, I turned off the path and went to the schoolhouse to wait for the taxi that would take me to Haydon Bridge where my B&B was located.
St. Oswald’s church dating back to the 800’s and still in use. Unfortunately it was closed when I passed by and I could not go in to explore.
Day 5
My luck finally ran out— the weather forecast for the day predicted 100% rain so I mentally fortified myself for a wet day. Fortunately, I only had about six miles to cover so my soggy trek would be short. I deliberately planned to keep the daily segments short for this section of the wall because there are many ruins and interesting features through the center of the hike and I did not want to feel rushed. Thus, my goal for the day was a pub/inn six miles distant, slightly off the trail called Twice-Bewed and I was spending an extra day there so that I had time the following day to hike to the nearby ruins of Vindalandia, a must-see archeological site.
The taxi driver was back at 9:00am to deliver me back to the Old Grindon Schoolhouse where he had picked me up the day before so I could start where I ended the previous day. I was in full rain gear—rain pants and jacket and backpack cover. In reserve I had a rain poncho but was hoping the rain did not get bad enough to need it. Luckily, even though the sky was overcast and the morning grey and dull, I only had to endure a steady light sprinkle for most of the day, so the poncho was not required.
Passing by an old turret in the wall. Random features dot the wall all along the path.
I joined the trail and turned west, following the path of the wall. Emerging from a small copse of woods, the trail continued into the fields, like the day before, but today I was walking along ruins of the original wall. They were extensive and I shared my experience with many of the sheep who were climbing on and around the wall. Also along the route were several well-preserved milestone forts, typically housing the small contingent of soldiers who had been stationed periodically along the wall. Eventually, after about an hour or so on the trail, I started encountering people walking east, including several groups of students. It was easy to pick out who were British and who were not based on their attire— the light rain did not appear be an issue for the natives (as opposed to those of us buried in rain gear…).
The fort at Housestead has been excavated and it is possible to see the foundations, similar to Chester’s Fort. Unfortunately, the ticket office was closed (no one seemed to know why) and so I did not linger. After passing Housestead the trail started to become very hilly and steep, both up an down, which required care as the ground was slippery. There were stones placed as pseudo-steps in many instances, but those were also slick so I proceeded with caution. It seemed that most of the morning was spent either climbing down into or climbing up out of a ravine. In addition, this are of the wall was constructed on a high ridge (great views, but probably better without the rain) and I cannot image what it took to build the wall along these steep inclines and dips. The rain came and went but it remained, at most, a light sprinkle or a dense mist – even so after hours of trekking I was fairly saturated!
An example of one of the barracks found along the wall (doors both north and south) where small groups of soldiers maintained watch.
View showing some of the steep ravines the wall (and hence the path) climbs into and out of. Tricky in the rain!
One of the most famous parts of the Hadrian’s Wall trail was on this segment, the “sycamore gap” where up until a few years ago, when a couple of idiots vandalized the tree, a 300-year-old sycamore tree bridged a gap in the wall. The two vandals, who cut the tree down, are serving four years in jail and thankfully the tree is trying to grow back. I noticed as I reached this area of the trail that a lot of people were day hiking from Twice-Brewed (where I was heading) and despite the weather the trail was crowded. The steep inclines and descents continued, but now with more traffic, until I reached the road diversion to the pub/inn; I was more than looking forward to a hot shower and dry clothes!
The stump of the vandalized (cut down!) 300 year old sycamore tree that guarded this gap in the wall. You can see small shoots, so hundreds of years from now, perhaps it will be back….
Back in Cairo for the final few days of our tour, our goal was to visit two of the most important museums- the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization and the Grand Egyptian Museum, to wrap up our trip.
The National Museum of Egyptian Civilization is a carefully and excellently curated set of artifacts that cover the entirety of Egyptian history from the early dynasties until present day. Most importantly the museum hosts the royal mummies that were extracted from the Valley of Kings, a total of 17 kings and three queens. The special exhibit, which does not allow photography unfortunately, started with the earliest rulers- their mummies and sarcophagus and other objects, describing their place in history and in the line of pharos–passing through time until the late period. As Ramses was a popular name, there were several “Ramses” mummies. When the museum opened, providing a nice display area for the mummies, a “Pharaohs’ Golden Parade” was held in 2021 to move the mummies to the museum. A short video highlighted the extravaganza with each mummy having its own chariot (fancy car), a parade of people dressed in period costumes, bands and acknowledgement by the Egyptian president. For Pharaohs who sought immortality by building elaborate pyramids and tombs, one can only observe that it seemed to have worked, given the pomp and circumstance and attention they receive in modern times! We spent several hours at the museum, taking our time to absorb the stories and study the artifacts as well as visiting the mummy exhibit.
At the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization. A highly recommended stop!
Coffin of a priest. I had not noticed before that they actually painted on the bottom of the feet.
Another example of some of the beautiful colors that remained intact over the millennia.
The new Grand Egyptian museum, opened within the last six months, has been a project in work for decades. As I mentioned in a previous post the original Egyptian museum, which we visited at the beginning of our trip, was filled to the gills with all kinds of artifacts, many not labeled or curated. It had long been recognized that a new museum was critical and thanks to generous donations from the Japanese (they provided 75% of the funds) and others, the new museum, which is huge and modern, hosts many artifacts that had been in storage and unavailable for public view. Most importantly, the museum was also designed to display the contents of King Tutankhamen’s tomb.
The museum facade is very artistic and evokes the pyramids, which sit in the background as the museum is very close to the Giza site. Eventually a walkway will connect the museum to Giza making the area a hub for tourism. That part of the project is not finished yet but despite that fact the museum, since its opening has drawn huge crowds, domestic and international, to experience the largest museum in the world dedicated to a single civilization. We spent the whole day wandering around and it was, just barely, enough time to absorb its amazing contents.
The museum is lofty, with what would be considered the lobby area, open air (although roofed) stairs and a gliding walkway leading up and to the right to the major exhibit area. The twelve galleries (not including the King Tut area) are organized by period and topic and we strolled through them slowly in chronological order. Hossam did a great job of pointing out significant displays while leaving us enough time to wander around on our own. The museum was crowded and tour guides, working in a multitude of languages, were leading small and large groups through the galleries. Because our visit was at the end of the trip, I felt that I could put context around some of the objects and was still playing “guess that God” throughout the visit.
A schematic of the galleries (not including the Tut exhibit) of the Grand Egyptian Museum.
A view of the Giza pyramids out of the window that leads to the main galleries.
After lunch at one of the restaurants in the food court we headed back up the ramp to the King Tut galleries and spent the afternoon gawking at all of the stuff that was buried with him. Chariots, jewelry, representations of food, hundreds of little statues representing different servant functions, alabaster jars, tunics…. it was incredible. The sarcophagi and coffins that King Tut were buried in (like a matryoshka dolll) were on display and the highlight of the exhibit was his solid gold burial mask. (Remember from a previous post his mummy is still in his tomb in the Valley of the Kings.) Based on the sheer amount of objects and the quality– fine wood, alabaster, gold gilding and rich paints– a lot of wealth was invested in ensuring a luxurious afterlife. Too bad you cannot take it with you….. King Tut would have been set for eternity!
King Tut’s outer coffin (not sarcophagus).
The next coffin in the set -also very elaborate.
The famous solid gold mask found on King Tut’s mummy. It is in a glass case and difficult to get a shot without glare. (Lots of people trying to take pictures at one time!)
Our last night in Cairo we had a very nice, filling (so much food!) farewell dinner with Hossam and headed to the airport in the wee hours of the morning to start our homeward journey. Truly it was a trip of a lifetime!!!!!
View of the Nile at night from my Cairo hotel room. Awesome view!
The temple at Abu Simbal is a must-see when visiting Egypt. Abu Simbal sits on the Nile (now Lake Nassar) roughly 140km south of Aswan and about 40km from the border with Sudan in the heart of Nubian Egypt. The temple, built by Ramses II, was cut into the rock and served as a warning/reminder to the region about his might and power. Near the main temple he also built a smaller temple to his wife Nefritari. Both temples were relocated in the late 1960s as part of a massive undertaking to save the historical sites from the flooding that created Lake Nassar when the high dam was built in Aswan. For me the temple held equal fascination because of its history and as the subject of an incredibly complex engineering project. Besides the temples there is not a lot happening in Abu Simbal, the town itself is only 30,000 or so and sits on the edge of the desert. Tourism and shipping, due to the small port that offloads cargo from further up the Nile, are the two main sources of income. Consequently a lot of visitors bus up from Aswan, a three hour one-way trip, visit the temples, then return, making it a long, long day. Others fly in, visit and fly out, a bit less grueling, but still a long day. We chose the short, one hour flight, but instead of returning to Aswan after visiting the temple, our plan was to board a boat and cruise north down Lake Nassar back to Aswan— much more civilized and relaxing than the mad dash in and out that many do.
The flight got us to Abu Simbal mid-morning and after dropping our luggage off on the boat, which was moored near the temples, we walked over to explore the site. A short video in the visitor’s center documented the process for moving the temple. The temple was cut into 1042 massive blocks, minimizing the number in order to avoid damaging the fragile sandstone, then disassembled, moved 200 meters north-west and lifted 65 meters, and reassembled. Because the temple was cut into the cliff face, the engineers had to build a large hill at the new site to mimic the original cliff face to contain the interior chambers and the film walks through the design and building of the complex. Not only is the engineering fascinating but also the fact that multiple nations were involved in helping Egypt save this and 17 other temples from immersion, a wonderful recognition of our shared inheritance that are the wonders of ancient Egypt!
The main temple Ramses II built to show his power and relationship to the gods.
For scale… and a better appreciation for the immensity of this temple (which was moved!!!)
The main temple is impressive with four large statues of Ramses II lining the façade. Smaller statues at his feet represent family members and this was the first time a temple had been intact enough to retain this detail. He built the temple to remind his distant southern subjects of his might and power and the sheer size of the temple does a great job of making one feel small. The scenes depicted on the inner courtyard walls had the common theme of Ramses smiting his enemies, with battle scenes showing him trampling enemies beneath his chariot wheels. The inner sanctum held four statues still intact (unlike other temples where they had been removed or defaced). Ramses was one of the statues, sitting with three gods -Amun, Ra-Horakhty and Ptah- implying his equality with the divine. Interestingly the temple was aligned such that on two days of the year, February 22 and October 22, the rising sun penetrates the main axis and illuminates three of the four (not Ptah, who is a god of the underworld and remains always in the dark) bathing them in light. The skills of ancient astronomers and engineers never cease to amaze me…. We spent some time wandering through the interior chambers, looking at the scenes and playing “who is this god” (I am slowly getting better at it!) and dodging other tourists as it was quite crowded. The temple has lot of side chambers and small shrines and it was really hard to imagine that the whole complex had been moved.
An example of one of the scenes on the temple walls showing Ramses in his chariot smiting enemies. Again, you have to be there to appreciate the scale!
Inner sanctum where Ramses sits with three gods- Ptah (for left), Osiris and Ra-Harakhty. All but Ptah were illuminated twice a year by the rising sun.
Exiting the larger temple, we walked over to visit the smaller temple, built for his wife Nefretari (not Nefrititi, who is a totally different person) and dedicated to the goddess Hathor. Ramses II was only the second person to build a temple for his wife (the first was for Nefrititi) and unusually the statues of him and Nefratari are the same size instead of the slightly smaller depiction normally employed for wives. Surrounding them, dotted along the main facade were smaller statues of their children. The inner temple had scenes of Nefratari with Ramses or her interacting with the gods and goddesses, and in particular Hathor. As I have mentioned previously, Hathor, by far, was the most popular and most often depicted goddess everywhere we went. As goddess of love, beauty, joy and maternal care, she apparently appealed to everyone, everywhere and was shown in various forms that revolved around her main aspect, the cow. It got confusing trying to identify her from pictures alone and instead we relied on identifying her hieroglyph to pick her out in the various scenes. Everywhere we went in Egypt, regardless of who the temples were mainly dedicated to, there was usually a small shrine to Hathor present somewhere on the grounds.
Inside the temple of Nefretari, where again, the goddess Hathor is honored– her depiction is on the column.
Exiting the temple grounds we went back to our boat and settled in our staterooms. Unlike the dahabiya, which was small, hosting a maximum of 17 people (recall we had five!), both of the boats that offer the three day cruise from Abu Simbal to Aswan can hold around 150 people. Our boat, a six deck ship with a sun deck containing a pool and hot tub, several lounges and a dining room for public spaces, was only about a third full. The combination of being late in the season (the main tourist season goes from October through April) and the Iran conflict had dwindled the numbers of visitors. Most of the passengers were European- mainly Spanish, French and German- we were the only native English speakers on board. At dusk we headed back over to the temple to watch the sound and light show, which projected onto the face of the two temples. My favorite part was when they simulated the sunrise phenomenon of light traveling down the main axis of Ramses’ temple. The three gods silhouetted was very dramatic and I have no doubt made an impression on anyone who saw it.
Lake Nassar cruise ship. Only two ships offer cruises on Lake Nassar- same itinerary from Abu Simbal to Aswan, stopping at the numerous temples and tombs that were moved when the lake was created.
The cruise was very leisurely, giving us a nice chance to relax and have a different kind of experience on the Nile (Lake Nassar). The temples and tombs we stopped to visit each day were some of the 17 that had been relocated to higher ground. Some were in great shape, while others were more or less skeletons but nonetheless all were interesting in their own way. Lake Nassar is huge and surrounded by desert with occasional splashes of green dotting the shores where hearty trees managed to thrive. The area was desolate and we were totally cut off from any communications (no cell phone towers or wi-fi)- it was kind of nice! There was a stark kind of beauty in the browns, tans, oranges and beige mosaic of colors and textures that defined the landscape and I spent a lot of time on my balcony or in the main lounge watching the world go by. Hossam told me there was a highway about 4km to the west of the shoreline that ran down the length of the lake, so some small outposts were tucked away out of sight. It was a harsh environment to live in with temperatures getting into the 120s in the summer (but it is a dry heat…..ha!). Luckily the hottest weather we had, 104 deg F, was in Aswan. The trip down Lake Nassar was quite pleasant with highs only in the 80s. After three relaxing days we found ourselves back in Aswan and headed to the airport for a flight back to Cairo.
An example of a large temple that got relocated. Many of the relocated temples were on the pilgrimage route from upper Egypt to Aswan and Luxor.
Some of the temples still had striking colors on their walls. I was constantly amazed at the sate of preservation given the age of the art (2000-4000 years old!).
Not much of this temple remained but what was left was moved. Perfect place for a photo!
We sailed into Aswan mid-morning, arriving a bit later than anticipated because at our request the crew unfurled the sail and disconnected us from the tugboat for part of our journey, slowing us down considerably. It was worth it though to have a glimpse of how the ships sailed the Nile before the invention of the steam (or diesel!) engine. Our mooring point was slightly south of the main part of the city in the designated spot for dahabiyas. The larger cruise ships docked at the city center and took up most of the shoreline, even though they were moored four to five deep. When we passed them on our way to the temple, I counted 50, a testament to the large number of ships that cruised back and forth between Luxor and Aswan.
Our first stop in Aswan was the Aswan dam, the original dam built in the 1920s, and the high dam, built about 50 years later. Aswan dam is long, about 2km, and a lot lower than the high dam which sits south of it and forms the giant Lake Nassar. The dams regulate Nile levels, changing the nature of agriculture in the lower Nile, which has been historically driven by the seasonal Nile flooding. Additional dams are upstream along the Nile, including a new one that is being built in Ethiopia, making water management of the world’s longest river a multi-lateral effort. The high dam was impressive and more so the sheer size of Lake Nassar. The creation of Lake Nassar drove the relocation of several temples and tombs so they would not be lost to history. One, the famous Abu Simbal temple that Ramses II built, was on our list of destinations along with seven other temples we would visit during our Lake Nassar cruise later.
An island in the first cataract near Aswan with relocated ruins on it.
After the visit to the dams, we headed over to the Philae temple, dedicated to Isis, and one of the temples that was moved to an island for preservation after the dams were built. The temple complex is vast and not only encompasses the sanctuary (and accompanying courtyard, columned halls etc..) for Isis but also a shrine and small temple to Hathor (again, Hathor is everywhere in Egypt!). In addition, like many of the other structures left from ancient Egypt, the Greeks and Romans and Christians occupied and altered parts of the complex for their own uses. The outer wall of the temple has the largest figures of any temple, dominating the structure with pictures of the gods. Trajan built himself a shrine adjacent to the outer courtyard and a small alter, with Christian crosses, sits in the corner of the columned hall. Suprisingly, given the extensive use by subsequent cultures, the hieroglyphic scenes on the inner temple walls remain in good shape with practically no de-facing. The beauty of the faces and the details of their expressions were readily discernible and it was a nice change from looking at rough cut rock where faces used to be. Just for the clarity of the scenes and the artistry of the carvings, this temple was one of my favorites.
Part of the Philae temple complex.
Philae temple, side view of the main temple/sanctum- the centerpiece of the temple complex (which was huge!)
After completing our visit to the Philae temple we took a falucca ride on the Nile. The falucca is a small traditional sail boat used by people to move around the river. Our captain, along with the other faluccas on the river, had to tack against the wind to move down the Nile, even though the current was in our direction; the river was alive with sailboats zig-zagging in front of us. The sailing trip consisted of a peaceful circuit around the islands that form the first cataract of the Nile just below the Aswan dam. The tall reeds and granite boulders that dot the river completely blocked the city, creating a glimpse of what sailing the Nile might have been like eons ago. Our excursion ended as the sun was setting and we headed back to the dahabiya for our last night aboard.
Cruising around the Nile first cataract on a felucca- typical views.
After a late dinner on the dahabiya I went back to my room to pack. Two of our group were returning to Cairo in the morning, but myself and another were staying in Egypt for another week, including a couple more days in Aswan. The following morning we moved to our Aswan hotel, the Old Cataract Hotel, a very nice, colonial-era hotel set on a bluff overlooking the Nile north of the city center. After dropping off our stuff in our luxuriously appointed period rooms, we headed out to the Nubian museum. Nubia encompassed upper Egypt from 700BC forward when invaders overran the Nile delta below Giza. From that point onwards, when many history books mention “Egypt” they refer to the history of lower Egypt, the area of interest for conquerors due to the rich resources of the Nile delta. Upper Egypt, from Giza northwards (and at times Aswan), became known as Nubia. Until visiting the museum and reading about the history and development of upper Egypt, particularly after 700BC, I did not understand the distinction nor the complex political and social environment between “Egypt” and “Nubia”. We lingered in the museum for almost two hours and it was a great learning experience!
While we were in the museum the day heated up with the temperatures hitting 104F, so the afternoon was spent relaxing. Despite the heat (it was a dry heat after all…) I sat by the pool, which faced the Nile, reading a book and watching the world go by. It was nice to take a break and simply sit! That evening after the sunset, when it had cooled down a bit, Hossam came to gather us up to show us the Aswan market and we spent an hour or so wandering around taking in the activity; families and individuals were out doing their shopping, interspersed with a few tourists. It was very colorful and chaotic.
Aswan market. Generally more organized than other markets I have seen- wider passages and less chaos.
The next day, which promised to be just as warm- over 100F, we headed out early to visit nobles’ tombs on the West Bank across from Aswan. We took a small motorboat across the river, that being the most efficient way to cross. There are few bridges across the Nile – ferry boats, row boats, and faluccas serve as the most efficient point-to-point travel still today. The climb up the steep sandstone cliff was challenging but at the top the interior of the tombs were still cool. Aswan was the source of granite for the pyramid and temple builders of the south, so it was not surprising to see granite as a building material in several of the tombs. One tomb still had a stack of bones in a basket sitting inside an inner burial chamber! The cliff was littered with tombs and in the distance an archeological team was at work- the results of their finds, including mummies of ancient priests, I had seen the day before at the Nubian museum as part of a special exhibit. I suspect there is a lot more to uncover in the area!
The Nobles’ tombs on the West Bank of the Nile across from Aswan that we visited. It was hot!
I knew it was hot when I saw this camel chilling in the sand. Luckily we only had two days where the temps breached 100F.
Leaving the cliffs we headed up river in our small motorboat, the breeze on the water serving as a counteragent to the heat of the day. We meandered slowly, moving around and amongst the islands that form the cataract, enjoying the abundant bird wildlife and except when other motorboats intruded, the silence of nature. Our destination was a Nubian village on the West Bank just south of the Aswan dam and as we went further north, colorful houses started popping up on the riverbank—hotels, cafes, homes. At one point several boats of tourists were pulled up and the occupants out swimming and wading in the Nile on a shallow beach. At the Nubian village we were shown a school, with a short lesson on the Arabic language (I can now write my name!) before going to a restaurant for a traditional lunch. Later in the day we had high tea at the restaurant and finished our stay in Aswan in a relaxing manner. Tomorrow- off to Abu Simbal!
Nubian style house on the Nile. The houses were all decorated in vibrant colors.
Just to give you an idea of how many cruise ships were moored in Aswan- here is a shot of one part of the waterfront. The ships are moored four to five parallel.
View from the Old Cataract Hotel. One of my favorite hotels we stayed at.
When I researched Nile cruises, the amount of information available was almost overwhelming- tons of companies offering all kinds of experiences at different price points are available. One of the top items on my “must do in Egypt” list, however, was to sail the river in a traditional Egyptian sailing ship, a dahabiya. The shallow bottomed boats, hosting two sails, one fore and one aft, have been sailing the Nile for thousands of years. They are small, usually hosting between 10-20 passengers and like the bigger cruise ships, have different levels of experiences. Working with Hossam during the planning stages, I figured that if I could have five people, at a minimum, on the tour it was possible to book a private dahabiya cruise (just our party). Luckily four friends signed up for the trip and now we were sailing on our own private dihaybia up the Nile in a wonderfully intimate and luxurious manner. The ship, Khemet, is beautiful— with an upper deck open to the sky apportioned with lounge chairs to watch the world go by, a middle deck with an open air seating area, bar and dining area outside as well as an indoor seating and dining area, and a covered aft deck lounging area for those wishing to avoid the sun. The lower deck has a small lounge area at the rear, but otherwise hosts the cabins. My room was well appointed with an en-suite bathroom more than adequate to my needs. I may be biased, but I think it is one of the nicer dayhabiyas on the river!
The aft covered deck of the dahabiya. Super comfortable and a very pleasant place to watch the countryside go by.
Since we were sailing upstream and the wind is unpredictable, the dahabiya was towed by a small tugboat. I thought this was unusual until I noticed every other dahabiya, whether sailing upstream or downstream, was towed. The trip was peaceful however and whenever one of the larger cruise ships came by (capacity 50-150) with their loud engines, belching black smoke, I was thankful to be on our graceful, peaceful serene dahabiya. A couple of days into our trip, the wind picked up and the crew detached the ship from the tug boat and unfurled the sail giving us a taste of what traveling the Nile would have been like before the invention of the steam engine. We were not moving very fast (sailing against the current, regardless of the wind) but it nonetheless was kind of magical!
Columns in Esna Temple.
The front of the Esna temple; restoration will make the existing colors even more spectacular!
The temple dedicated to Khonum, god of the Nile who created man out of clay, at Esna was our first stop. The temple was within walking distance of our mooring stop on the West Bank and after walking across the four other dahabiyas moored at the same place, all of us in parallel, we climbed the embankment and walked down the street to the temple entrance. We arrived early, around 8am, so absent any crowds, Hossam easily guided us through the temple, explaining the scenes on the walls and columns. A restoration project was underway on the outside of the temple and a team of workers was applying the same chemicals to the structure that were used on the ceiling of the temple at Dendara which removes the soot and reveals the colors. Based on the colors that were still intact on some of the inner columns, when the project is finished, the temple is going to be stunning. The temple is below the current ground level and to unearth the main sanctuary required the relocation of many families. Because of the surrounding city and complications with moving more people, the complete temple grounds are still buried. The deities represented in the temple— Khnoum, Neith, Hera, Satet and Menhet, were mostly new to me and it was difficult to pick out the nuances that identified them. The crowds were starting to show up as we finished and were walking out, so our timing was perfect!
The walls of the Esna temple. So colorful!
And the ceiling!!!
The Temple at Edfu was another stop, one that practically every cruise ship on the Nile makes and as we pulled in to moor, the shoreline looked like a parking lot. The dahabiya mooring area was a bit further up the river than the large cruise ships so we avoided the crowds on the embankment, but the temple was incredibly crowded. Getting to the temple from the banks of the Nile was fun— the city prefers that visitors use horse drawn carriages as they are trying to keep motor vehicles out of the city (bad roads) and away from the temple grounds (no parking). I had never been in a horse drawn carriage before and really enjoyed the trip. Watching the carriages, and there were a lot of them, navigate through the town streets around tuk-tuks, cars and buses was very entertaining. (The large cruise lines are allowed to bring buses to drop off their people, because trying to manage 50-150 people in carriages is difficult- the cruise lines complained).
On the way to Edfu temple via horse drawn carriage.
The temple complex is huge and hosts the largest set of scenes and hieroglyphics on its outer walls of any temple in Egypt. The temple is dedicated to the god Horus and was built during the Ptolemaic period between 237 and 57BC. It is considered one of the best preserved shrines in Egypt. The mud-brick wall surrounding the temple, mud-huts and outbuildings is still intact. The outer walls depict scenes describing the battle between Horus and Set. The columned hall leading to the inner sanctum was similar to other temples we had visited, but the difference was in the number of intact rooms off of the main axis. One room contained hieroglyphics that documented perfume recipes, other rooms were shrines and others had unknown purposes. The inner temple had walls immediately surrounding it creating a narrow passage that went around and behind the sanctum, with even more rooms hidden away. It was interesting to explore, but unfortunately super crowded, with large groups trying to stay together while navigating tight spaces. The temple is worth a visit just because so much of the complex is intact and walking around it was easy to imagine what it must have been like to live or work there, but be prepared for lots of people!!!
More of the Edfu temple complex.
The passageway behind the inner sanctum. Lots of nooks and crannies in the temple complex.
We arrived at Kom Ombo, another stop, around sunset. The dahabiya moored only a few hundred yards down the shoreline from the entrance to the Temple of Kom Ombo so we easily walked to the ticket booth. The temple at Kom Ombo is dedicated to Horus and Sobek, the crocodile god, one of the few temples that hosts the sanctuary of two deities. The temple is one of the “newer” ones of all that we visited, being constructed during the Ptolemaic dynasty in the 180BC timeframe; the Romans added to it later. Keeping track of the various entities that compose the Egyptian pantheon is confusing since the mythology covers thousands of years and roles and functions of gods and goddesses start bleeding together. In the case of the temple at Kom Ombo, Horus is portrayed as a healer and interestingly, there are scenes on the walls that depict medical instruments, some of which are recognizable and in use today. Because it was night while we visited the temple was lit up, providing some dramatic shadowing on some of the figures and making the hieroglyphs stand out.
Since the temple is dedicated to two gods, the structure is symmetrical and follows what I have come to recognize as the standard temple design—courtyard, roofed (once upon a time) rooms with columns, inner sanctuary for the particular god and surrounding small rooms as additional shrines. Scenes showing the god engaging with whichever ruler built the temple dot the walls and columns along with text explaining scenes, themes or whatever points the ruler was trying to get across. An unusual twist to the standard design at Kom Ombo was the discovery of a large cache (hundreds) of mummified crocodiles under the sanctuary of Sobek. A separate “crocodile museum” was constructed on the temple grounds to host the discovered mummies for the visitors. I was surprised at the size of some of the creatures!
Kom Ombo at night.
An example of hieroglyphics on the walls of Kom Ombo.
The temple was very crowded as it is a popular stop for boats of all sizes and the large groups roaming around made it hard to stand in a corner and soak up the atmosphere but I still managed to spend some time studying the scenes and the symbols in my quest to be able to recognize different gods and goddesses. I cannot imagine what the crowd would have been like if the cruise ships were all completely full (many of the ships were fairly empty because of cancelations due to fear of the war, or disruptions to air traffic through the main hubs in the Gulf states because of the war).
Mummified crocodiles found at Kom Ombo.
Even though we moved to our dahabiya the day before in preparation for our Nile cruise, we had one more day to spend in the Luxor area before heading up the river. In truth, you could probably spend a week based in Luxor and have plenty to see. I had worked with Hossam to extend our stay a few days to visit a few more places than the standard cruise tours encompass. Today, with visits to Habu Temple, and Deir-al-Medina (Valley of the Artisans) we will complete our exploration of Luxor and start our cruise south up the Nile.
Habu Temple is a large temple complex built by Ramses II to celebrate his defeat of the sea people. The site is very large and has been used by multiple dynasties and Egyptian rulers, including the Greek, Roman and Christian communities, since its construction in the 1150BC timeframe. The exterior walls of the main temple building tell the story of the battle with the sea people and their eventual defeat, glorifying Ramses’ victory. One whole side lists the items of tribute extracted from the defeated people. The scenes are large, both on the outside walls and in the inner courtyard but the pictures of the deities have been defaced, no doubt when Coptic Christians took refuge in the complex to avoid persecution from Rome (Coptic and Roman Christians differ in theology). The inner sanctuary contains numerous columns, some with very clear carvings (although, again, deities defaced) and some of the original colors still show through. Rooms branched off in different directions making the whole structure a rabbit warren of passages that were fun to explore. Hossam walked us through the important scenes describing what was being portrayed which really helped put into perspective the purpose of the temple and what daily life might have been like. Ramses had a palace adjacent to the temple, complete with his private entrance, so I suspect the complex was busy!
The pillars and walls of Habu temple were very well preserved.
A view looking up at the Habu Temple ceiling.
Wandering around on my own I examined the remains of mud huts where the Coptic community lived, including the remains of their church. I also really enjoyed perusing the scenes on the columns, trying to sort out which god was which (which is not that easy and a knowledge of rudimentary hieroglyphics is helpful). The University of Chicago has been working at the site for decades, documenting the scenes and the writing, an indication of just how large the temple is and how much information is available to study.
An example of some of the wonderful colorful scenes on the temple walls.
As a change of pace, we had a brief stop at a papyrus workshop before heading to the Valley of the Artisans. At the workshop we had a demonstration of how papyrus was, and still is, made which turned out to be much simpler than I had thought—the starchy fibers pressed together after soaking in water for a week and a half. The workshop had a gallery of paintings (all sorts) done on papyrus and we all found something we liked, to the delight of the workmen.
The remains of the artisan village in the Valley of the Artisans.
The Valley of the Artisans is adjacent to the Valley of the Nobles. Thus along the West Bank cliff face stand three different burial valleys – kings, nobles, and artisans- that stretch several kilometers. The Valley of the Artisans was more than a burial valley however, also serving as a settlement where the artisans and craftsman who worked on the kings and nobles tombs lived. Consequently, at Deir-al-Medina, besides the tombs uncovered, archeologists have unearthed the remains of a village, still defined by the mud-brick walls of the houses. Not surprisingly, because the people were artisans, the tombs in their valley were very colorful and detailed. Like the nobles’ tombs, the artisans’ tombs were relatively undisturbed and visiting them, the original color and patterns little disturbed, provided more insight into how the kings’ tombs might have looked before being ransacked and defaced. One nice thing about visiting Deir-al-Madina was the lack of crowds; again those with short time stays in Luxor never make it to this site, providing us with lots of space and time to linger in the tombs and take in all of the art! Even after visiting many tombs, the vividness of the color and the elaborate decoration still surprised and impressed me.
An example of an artisan’s tomb.
Another example of an artisan’s tomb.
After a long day of wandering around the West Bank of Luxor, we returned to the dahabiya to start our journey up the Nile, south to Aswan. From the stack of cruise ships along the banks of the Nile at Luxor, it looked like we were going to have plenty of company as we sailed!
Another example of an artisan’s tomb.
The Valley of the Kings is one of the highlights of a visit to Luxor and therefore high on my list of priorities to visit. The valley was used primarily by the 18th-20th dynasties, spanning approximately 500 years, to hide the kings’ tombs in the hopes of keeping the graves safe from grave robbing.
Despite its barren appearance and challenging terrain – high cliffs with steep sides cutting through a warren of small gaps in the walls – the valley has attracted tourists throughout the ages, as evidenced by the amount and variety of graffiti that can be found in multiple ancient scripts. The same holds true today; the site was crowded with tourists speaking an incredible array of languages and by far was the busiest place we have yet visited. With the renewed interest in Egyptian archeological activity sparked by Napoleon when he invaded in the lat 1700’s,, the tombs hidden in the valley were slowly uncovered. To date they have found and catalogued 64 tombs, although not all of them are open to the public. As I was walking around the site, I could not but help think about what it might be like to explore the areas not open to the public.
A ticket to the Valley of the Kings grants access to three tombs and a board indicates which tombs are open for visits (They rotate what is open to help preserve the tombs). Extra tickets are necessary for the tombs of Seti I and Tutankhamen. Seti I is one of the most well preserved tombs, with the brilliant blue ceiling, colorful scenes on the wall and several columns dotting the chambers still intact. The tomb had a steep entrance with a long tunnel leading to several chambers reminding me my adventures climbing through the pyramids.
King Tut’s tomb. The sarcophagus is not his. The mummy was in a niche opposite this spot.
From Seti I’s tomb we went to visit Tutankhamen’s tomb. When the tomb was discovered nearly 6000 artifacts were removed, now all on the display at the new Egyptian Museum, a later stop on our tour. When the artifacts were removed, the decision was made to leave the mummy in place, so when I entered the burial chamber after the long, steep climb down into the tomb, I foundTutankhamen laid out on a platform on top of his sarcophagus. The head and feet were bare and the rest of the body was covered by a white linen cloth. The nine containers he was buried in, kind of like a Russian matryoshka doll, were on display at the new Egyptian Museum as well. Three of the containers, one of which included the famous golden mask that hid his face, were coffins followed by the outer three- the stone sarcophagus and two wooden shrines that hid the sarcophagus. I was looking forward to seeing them when we visited the museum! The walls of the tomb had several well-preserved scenes and paintings as well.
Passageway to Seti I’d tomb.
An example of the art on the walls of Seti I’s tomb.
After emerging from Tutankhamen’s tomb, Hossam pulled us to the side of the crowded main thoroughfare and gave us some information about the mythology behind many of the scenes that decorate the tombs. The themes in the various tombs were similar as they dealt with the voyage of the deceased to the afterlife and their relationships with various gods. He then recommended we visit the tombs of Ramses III, Merenptah and Ramses IV on the general ticket and turned us loose on free time to explore the site. Interestingly, the tour guides are not allowed to enter the tombs with their clients in an effort to keep the traffic flowing (as opposed to having groups stopped indefinitely in different areas of the tight spaces in the tombs).
Ramses III tomb entrance emerging from the tunnel.
A scene of Isis and Osiris on the wall in the tomb of Ramses III.
We headed to Ramses III tomb the first, by far the one with the longest line. It is one of the more popular tombs to visit because of the significant number of well-preserved scenes and hieroglyphics on the walls. The ceiling was painted as a starry sky and the color was still very vivid. Numerous painted columns dotted the large chambers with scenes illustrating his divinity showing him engaging with various gods. The colors were very bright even after 3000 years- incredible. The tomb is very complex in shape, with lots of chambers and tunnels. The long entrance tunnel had a slight bend in it as it descended to avoid an earlier, lower, tomb that was discovered when building Ramses’s tomb (so even in that time- 1150BC, there were lots of tombs around!). Despite the crowd, because of the size of the tomb, I did not feel pressed for space.
The tomb of Merenptah, in contrast was very simple, although the colors on the walls were different, various shades of yellows and orange dominating instead of the dark red and blues that were dominant in Ramses III tomb. Merenptah’s tomb was relatively small but it still contained the sarcophagus, which dominated the burial chamber. A platform built around it allowed for good viewing, especially of the image on the top of the sacrophagus. Like other tombs, certain areas were blocked off allowing no access. It was impossible to penetrate the darkness to see what was beyond some of the closed off areas despite my inner explorer trying to discern what was out of sight.
The brilliant colors in the tomb of Ramses IV.
The final tomb we visited at the Valley of the Kings was Ramses IV. His tomb also had a long line, and like Ramses III, the tomb consisted of several chambers. Of all of the tombs I visited, Ramses’s IV tomb had the widest variety of colors still excellently preserved, vividly splashed across the walls and ceiling. Yellow was widely used as a base color but that made the contrast with the reds, blues, greens and oranges all the more dramatic. Armed with the information that Hossam had provided about the mythology and hints about what to look for in the scenes, I spent some time tracing the pictures around the walls, tracking the story of the voyage to the afterlife. Again I was struck by how incredible it was that such artistry had survived for so long.
The Valley of the Kings is a huge complex and it would take hours to explore every nook and cranny. The hills are dotted with large holes covered by locked doors— tombs that are closed to the public. Archeological work is ongoing at the site on multiple fronts as not all of the tombs have been identified, and it may not be possible to identify all. As I was walking around the barren, rocky, rugged landscape I tried to picture what it was like to be one of the people, 100 years ago, hunting for tombs, moving sand, dirt and boulders under the burning sun, not knowing whether any tomb found would be intact or already the victim of grave robbers (most likely scenario). Definitely hard work!
Leaving the Valley of the Kings we had a brief stop at an alabaster factory, of which there are many in the area, to learn how the alabaster that is mined nearby, is handcrafted into various products. It was an interesting lesson and I enjoyed it but was not motivated into buying anything— but the break from the sun was appreciated nonetheless.
The Temple of Hatshepsut, a large structure hewn into the cliff face near the Valley of the Kings, was our next stop. This stop, like the Valley of the Kings, was also a popular tourist destination and we dodged several buses as we walked to the entrance. The site, dating back to 1500BC, is also co-located with even more ancient ruins of the Temple of Mentuhotep (2100BC). Hatshepsut, was a female Pharo who ruled for several decades over a peaceful and prosperous Egypt. She was a massive builder, not only building the temple on the West Bank of Luxor, but also adding edifices and structures to other sites. Ironically, after she died her likeness was erased in some places- as if to erase the fact there was ever a female pharo! The Temple of Hatshepsut is an imposing structure built on three large terraces facing directly east across the Nile to the Luxor Temple and Karnak. The sphinxes that lined the causeway leading to the temple entrance are mainly gone, only two remain. A side chapel on the second level has a shrine to Hathor, goddess of love and maternity (as a matter of fact, Hathor images are everywhere). An inner shrine for Amun held the place of honor and helped cement Hatshepsut as a descendent of the gods (and fit for rule). It is an imposing structure and must have been more so when it was fully intact!
Striking a pose at the Temple of Hatshepsut.
The remains of a shrine to Hathor at the Temple of Hatshepsut.
Our final stop of the day before boarding our dahabiya, our home for the next five days, was the Valley of the Nobles. While this is not a popular tourist spot, especially for those on tight schedules from cruise ships, it nonetheless is an interesting site. It sits adjacent to the Valley of the Kings, separated by walls of cliffs and hosts numerous tombs of important nobles, priests and royal household members from the 18th-20th dynasties. Like the Valley of the Kings it is a rocky, barren place; a large site dotted with holes blocked with locked doors denoting the tomb locations. We visited five tombs in this valley, all in excellent states of preservation. The gates of the tombs we wanted to visit were unlocked by guards who followed us from tomb to tomb. As these were not popular tombs, much of the infrastructure— lighting, flooring, ventilation was absent. To get light into a couple of the tombs we visited the guard placed a mirror at the entrance and focused the sunlight into the tomb, then held an aluminum foil covered carboard placard to direct the light around the walls. (Anyone thinking of the opening of the movie Fifth Element????) Hilarious!
Tunnel leading into a tomb in the Valley of Nobles.
Visiting tombs in the Valley of the Nobles. They were dotted all over the valley walls.
Because those buried in the Valley of Nobles were not Pharos, the scenes on the walls depicted stories of daily life rather than extravagant engagements with the gods on the walls of the tombs in the Valley of the Kings. Interestingly one of the tombs hosted an official who served both Akhenaten and Amohotep III so this individual lived through the upheaval when Akhenaten raised up the god Aten, turning away from polytheism to introduce Aten as the single god. The shift of theology created a new style of inscriptions, the “Armana” style named after the capital city of Armana he established in honor of Aten. The noble’s tomb displayed both the older style and the new style reflecting his service across both Pharos. (As an aside, the next Pharo- and his priests- returned worship to the original pantheon and Akhenaten was defaced from many inscriptions, much like Hatshepsut was earlier.) Drama through the ages…. The last tomb we visited had the most vivid, and breadth of colors of all the tombs we saw the whole day and it was a great way to end our sightseeing.
Vally of the Nobles- tomb of Ramose, vizier. The tombs in the Valley of Nobles were well preserved, not being targeted by grave robbers as were the tombs in the Valley of the Kings.
Another tomb in the Valley of the Nobles, with the ceiling intact!
Today we took a road trip north to visit Dendera and Abydos, and two temples dedicated to the ancient Egyptian goddess Hathor and god Osiris, respectively. The drive to Abydos, our first stop, took a little over two hours providing a glimpse of the countryside. The roads were generally in good shape, at least until we got to the village near the temple when pavement turned to packed dirt and lanes became suggestions. We had to stop at numerous traffic police checkpoints along the route which was a bit surprising- apparently movement from one district (Luxor) to another (Qena, where the temples were located) is fairly standard but monitored nonetheless. In each case the police examined the driver’s papers and took down information on our destination before being waved through.
The journey took us along canals designed to deliver water from the Nile to farms and villages creating green fields of sugar cane, wheat, corn and other crops in the barren, rocky desert. Houses and buildings dotted the road, sometimes in clumps that defined small villages. Along one stretch of road several large apartment buildings sprouted from the desert in the distance, the multi-story modern buildings looking out of place in the rustic setting. Hossam informed me when I asked about the odd sight that the government was constructing housing adjacent to areas where factories or other major projects were situated (or being planned) to encourage people to move to the area. I saw many homes that were still made the traditional way with mud bricks and some older structures sported traditional straw packed roofs. The majority of the homes and buildings near the road, however, were three story and made with concrete and rebar, a typical construction I have seen in many countries. In some cases the first floor of the building was a vendor stall, selling everything from fruits and vegetables to car parts.
There were a lot of tractors on the roads pulling wagons full of produce—garlic, sugar cane and other crops stacked precariously high– on there way to market somewhere. In some cases several wagons were attached together behind the tractor forming a short “road train”. Needless to say these vehicles were not moving very fast and cars, vans, buses and motorbikes constantly whizzed by. There were many donkey carts on the side of the road, also serving as a means to transport crops. Occasionally, men or boys on donkeys would trot by as well. I saw a wonderfully diverse approach to transportation during the trip! It was the diversity that led to the lack of well-defined traffic lanes as we passed through the villages. It all worked because the speed bumps were numerous enough that regardless of the vehicle, there was plenty of time to maneuver around and avoid collisions.
Hall of columns in the Abydos temple. Shows the scale of the complex!
Eventually we arrived at Abydos to find there were only a handful of other people there. Luckily for us, Abydos is too far north of Luxor to be a common stop for cruise ship excursions and many people do not bother to travel two hours by car to get to the temple. Abydos is an important historical site and central to ancient Egyptian mythology, hosting the temple to Osiris. The temple, started by Seti I in the 13th century BC and finished by his son Ramses II, was placed in Abydos because in the Osiris mythology, it was thought that Abydos was where his heart was found and where Isis, his wife, brought all of his other body parts together to try to resurrect him. (Osiris was killed, then cut into 42 pieces, which were scattered through Egypt, by his brother Set—go read the mythology if you are interested.)
One of the shrine rooms in the temple. Still retains a lot of original color!
The temple complex was huge and had multiple buildings, chambers and shrines. Of special significance for archeologists was the “kings list” which listed the kings of Egypt from the unification of the north and south through Seti/Ramses. Scenes on the walls depicted Seti and later, Ramses, with Osiris as well as the story of Osiris, some still very colorful. We got good at sighting figures who represented gods and figures representing Pharos and even practiced identifying different cartouches (and whether they were the kings name or the birth name). It would have taken a small army of priests to attend to the temple, but the mud-brick houses that they lived in are long gone. Soot and smoke stains on the walls provide evidence that the temple served as shelter for many people over the centuries.
Remains on the temple grounds showing how extensive the complex was at one point.
The famous kings list. Note the long lines of cartouches- the list itself. A treasure trove for those who read hieroglyphics!
Leaving the temple, we stopped for lunch at a restaurant in the village before retracing our journey back south to Dendara to visit the Temple of Hathor. The temple, reputed to be one of the best preserved temple complexes of ancient Egypt, has been utilized by the Egyptian Pharos starting with the Middle Kingdom and later the Greeks, Romans, and even the Christians. Unlike the temple in Abydos, where the ceiling is covered by soot and ash, the ceiling of the Temple of Hathor has been restored and the brilliant blues are beautiful and striking. Numerous shrines, dedicated to various gods of the Egyptian pantheon dot the complex but the main goddess of worship is Hathor- goddess of love, joy, and maternity. As a matter of fact Hathor shows up in many scenes in many different temples and tombs all over Egypt, which fortunate because at the Temple of Hathor in Dendara someone at some time methodically went through and erased (chiseled out) all of the figures depicting gods and goddesses.
Temple of Hathor in Dendera.
There was a hidden chamber in the Temple of Hathor behind the wall, requiring a ladder to get to. Hidden in a narrow space was another shrine to Hathor.
Could it have been the early Christians who took refuge in such places to perform their worship when they were persecuted elsewhere? The remnants of a Coptic church sit near the entrance to the main complex. Who know? But it was really sad to see the damage— it’s an interesting question regarding the history—is the original walls more historical, or the fact that they were defaced also historically significant? Either way, from an artistic viewpoint, the defacing is a tragedy!
Looking up at the restored ceiling in the hall of columns in the Temple of Hathor.
Close up of the ceiling showing the amazing blue color and some of the scenes depicted.
We left our hotel in Cairo three hours before the flight and it was a good thing too- it was raining and the traffic was incredibly messed up. Apparently Cairo only gets rain a few days a year and when it does rain, because road drainage is poor in some places, deep water puddles form on some of the major roads, slowing everyone down. Thus we sat for a long time in a very long line of traffic to get through bottlenecks caused by vehicles trying to avoid flooding. By midwestern standards it was not even a strong rainstorm, but it was enough to snarl a city that sits surrounded by a desert.
The flight to Luxor was a quick one hour hop and we went directly to our hotel, the famed Winter Palace on the banks of the Nile, to have a late but very nice lunch pool side. The Winter Hotel was built in the mid-1800’s and served as the center of society at the height of the archeological revival that occurred in the late-1800’s and early 1900’s. The hotel still retains much of its original charm and I felt like I stepped back into history as I collected my key and headed to my room. I only had time to dump my bags before we were out the door, headed to the Karnak Temple.
In front of the Karnak Temple. A huge complex which needs a lot of time to explore. If I had one wish, it would have been for more time here!
The Karnak Temple is a must-see in a visit to Egypt and is the second most visited place behind the Giza pyramids. Construction started during the Middle Kingdom and continued afterward with over thirty different Pharos contributing something to the complex. Only part of the site is open to the pubic; archeological work continues in other areas. Luxor, also known historically as Thebes, once served as a capital of Egypt and it is during this era that significant additions to the temple were undertaken. (The history and details of the temple can be found online, so I am not going to go into details.)
A close up of the statues at the front.
The temple is huge, not only in extent, but also in sheer size-large columns, towering walls and giant statues immediately make you feel insignificant as you enter. There are numerous small rooms and open areas dedicated to different gods or Pharos. The walls (and some columns) are covered with hieroglyphics and pictures. Unlike the scenes of daily life we saw depicted on the walls of the tombs in Saqqara and Dashur, the scenes on the temple walls tell stories of the Pharos engaging with the gods or illustrate the conquests of the Pharos. The cartouches (of the various Pharos) were repeated all over the place, making it clear who was being exalted (or at least clear to anyone who can read hieroglyphics). Hossam walked us through the different areas pointing out and explaining the various pictures. Amazingly enough in some areas the original pigmentation – red, yellow and blue – was still intact, allowing me to imagine what the whole structure might have looked like originally in vivid colors. Interestingly some of the later additions had less refined figures and pictures portrayed than the original part of the temple.
We walked around for a bit over an hour, until the complex closed at 5pm. I think this is one place where you could probably wander around for half a day to soak in the atmosphere and explore every nook and cranny.
Columns in Karnak Temple to show scale although you have to be there to really feel it. Lots other explore at this site!
When we left the Karnak Temple we headed across town to the Temple of Luxor. The two temples are connected by the Road of Sphinx’s, a broad avenue just under 3km, which used to be the site of processionals between the two temples. The government recovered the road by clearing out houses which had been constructed over the original avenue and today pedestrians can walk between the two temples along the original route. The Temple of Luxor sits close to the Nile and was connected to the river via a canal that allowed boats to deliver materials and people right to the entrance. Like Karnak, the Temple of Luxor was used continuously since its initial construction in 1400BC and inside the grounds it is possible to find contributions from numerous Pharos, the Greeks, Romans and Muslim communities. Also like Karnak, the walls are etched with scenes depicting the Pharos interaction with the gods as well as scenes depicting the yearly processional celebration of the local gods. We toured the temple as the sun set and it was neat to experience a totally different atmosphere—walking through at night with columns and walls lit by spotlights.
Luxor Temple- equally as impressive as Karnak and kind of cool to visit at night.
Another area of Luxor Temple. So impressive!
Both temples were amazing on multiple levels, not the least of which, from an engineering viewpoint, was trying to imagine how they were built and their incredible ability to stand the test of time!
Luxor Temple lit up at night!!!
Ramses II put his name on numerous temples all over Egypt (so everyone would know his name and his association with the Gods). You can see his two cartouches (birth and king name) still showing some of the original color.
An example of some of the columns that dominate several halls at Luxor Temple.
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