Of Temples and Tombs Egypt
From the heights of these pyramids, forty centuries look down upon us. Napoleon Bonaparte
Most people including me visualize Egypt as the land of the Pyramids and the Sphinx at Giza. However, as I now know Egypt is so much more than Pyramids which on my trip I didn’t even get to see until the last day. I wish I had seen the light and sound at the Grand Pyramid, but the show is being revamped and not currently playing.
When you arrive in Giza and glimpse the pyramids for the first time from the windows of your transport depending on which side you are sitting it’s an exciting feeling, like a culmination of a dream. The pyramids look everything like the pictures that we’ve seen but add to it the sand, the camels, the incessant hawkers, the people and it’s a flavor all its own.
I don’t even know why I hesitated for a moment about taking the optional trip to Abu Simbel. The two temples here are the most awesome sight that you’ll be privileged to see on a trip to Egypt.
The trips are run by Egypt Air. Travelers take a flight from Aswan to Abu Simbel and catch an Egypt Air Shuttle that drops you off at the visitor center and then after two hours picks you up for your return flight to Aswan. I felt that the time on the ground was too short as you battle the heat and people to absorb all that’s there to absorb and take pictures to boot.
while Ramses the II was totally narcissistic and has statues or himself and temples all over Egypt one has to appreciate the fact that he honored his favorite queen Nefetari but dedicating a companion temple to her at Abu Simbel. The paintings inside that temple still glow with life.
Karnak is the main temple in Luxor that all tourists usually visit. We had the opportunity to also visit the Luxor temple which is a much smaller and less significant temple in Luxor.
In Dendera, there is a carving of Cleopatra and her son Caesarion. The only one to be found of Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile.
The temple of Hathor in Dendera. Images of the Goddess were defaced by early Christian settlers who hid in this temple complex from their persecutors. The colors and carving though are beautiful. This temple complex was one of the highlights of our visit to Egypt.
The tomb of Tutankhamun was found pretty intact and full of treasures and gold. Almost all the artifacts have been moved to the new museum that has still not been opened called the GEM. A few token pieces have been left in the Egyptian museum that are slated to be moved in time for the opening. While the highlight pieces are insides rooms that cannot be photographed, this is his throne that is on display at the Egyptian Museum.
The Sphinx of Giza.
The Alabaster Sphinx with the features of Ramses the II at the open-air museum in Memphis.
The step pyramid of Saqqara. It was the original model for the pyramids in Giza. I quite liked this smaller pyramid both because we got there when there were not too many visitors and also because it felt and looked unique.
While this is not the greatest photo because of the angle of the sun but there were many people gliding over the pyramids which I thought would be such a fun thing to do. Alas, it was not in our itinerary.
I will say after a while all the temples begin to blur and the facts begin to converge in your mind. It just showcases how rich Egypt’s cultural history is and the archeologists have only just scratched the surface.
There are many internal flights in Egypt during the course of a sightseeing a tour. We flew from Cairo to Luxor, Aswan to Abu Simbel and cruised the Nile in between. With sand and dust flying clearly cleaning the windscreen is in order but I just had never seen it done this way.