The Valley of the Kings…
The Valley of the Kings was the royal cemetery for 62 Pharohs, and is located on the west bank at Luxor. The only entrance to this place was a long narrow winding path. This was a secret place, where sentries were placed at the entrance of the Valley, as well as along the top of the hills, in the hopes of discouraging tomb robbers, who had in the past plundered all royal tombs
We visited the Tombs of Ramses VI—just opened after years of restoration… It was exceptionally beautiful with painted reliefs… then the Tomb of Ramses IX
and finally, the Tomb of Tutankhaman # 62—the guard at the tomb is the grandson of an Egyptian that worked with Harold Carter.
and finally, the Tomb of Tutankhaman # 62—the guard at the tomb is the grandson of an Egyptian that worked with Harold Carter.
And finally, we saw the Tomb of Ramses I #16—a very steep incline.
Then it was off to the Valley of the Queens… It contains about 70 tombs, mainly belonging to Queens, Princesses, Princes and Nobles, who lived during the XIX and XX Dynasties. In general, these tombs are smaller than the ones of the Kings. The plans of these tombs usually consist of a small antechamber, a long narrow corridor with several side chambers, and at the end - the burial chamber.
* Tomb 44 belongs to Prince Khaem-waset, who was a son of Ramses III. He died at the young age of 9. It consists of 2 long corridors, with 2 side chambers, and a square burial chamber. The walls of this tomb are decorated with various painted scenes, some of them representing the Prince with different deities, and with his father in front of the deities of the after world.
* Tomb 44 belongs to Prince Khaem-waset, who was a son of Ramses III. He died at the young age of 9. It consists of 2 long corridors, with 2 side chambers, and a square burial chamber. The walls of this tomb are decorated with various painted scenes, some of them representing the Prince with different deities, and with his father in front of the deities of the after world.
One of the most important tombs in the valley is the one that belongs to the famous Queen Nefertari, the principal consort of King Ramses II - The Temple of Deir El-Bahri was built of limestone, not sandstone like most of the other funerary temples of the New Kingdom period. It is thought that Senimut, the architect who built this Temple, was inspired in his design by the plan of the neighboring mortuary Temple of the 12th Dynasty King, Neb-Hept-Re. The Temple was built for Queen Hatshepsut (18th Dynasty), to commemorate her achievements and to serve as a funerary Temple for her, as well as a sanctuary of the God, Amon Ra.
Colossus of Memnon These two, gigantic figures of Amenhotep III were originally situated in front of his Mortuary temple, which was destroyed. The two colossi are made of sandstone, which during ancient times was brought from Gabal El Silselah. Each colossus, including the pedestal and the crown, is about 69 feet tall and represents King Amenhotep III seating on his throne, wearing the royal headdress, with the divine cobra protecting his forehead. On the sides of the colossi there is a representation of the Nile god Hapi, bending together the lotus and the papyrus plants, symbolizing the union of Upper and Lower Egypt.
Back to the ferry…. Our guide arranged a special tour for us of Tomb of Nefartari… This tomb was closed for 20 years and allows only 150 people per day. We were alone in the tomb. The paintings on the tomb walls depict Nefertari's journey after death to the afterlife, guided by various guardian-spirits and deities, including Isis, Hathor, and Osiris. Nefertari was one of several Queens of Rameses II, 1290-1224BC. Her name means “the most beautiful.”
We got the ferry back to the boat
That afternoon, we had a tour to Karnak and Luxor Temples.
That afternoon, we had a tour to Karnak and Luxor Temples.
The Temple of Karnak is the largest Temple in the World. The complex contains a group of Temples such as the Great Temple of Amon Ra, The Temple of Khonso, The Ipt Temple, The Temple of Ptah, the Temple of Montho and the Temple of the God Osiris. A 65 foot high, mud brick enclosure wall, surrounded all of these buildings.
The Temple of Luxor was built in the reign of Amenhotep III and added to significantly by Rameses II, who had colossal statues of himself erected at the complex.
We got to escape group mode and headed to the bank (our guide said he was going to go home, close all the drapes and have a beer… it was a tough day with some very obnoxious American tourists…) We headed off to see some local color alone.
We stopped at a local restaurant and asked if they serve beer. They directed us to a second floor dive and had kebab and korfa (and beer, no label, they covered the bottled with napkins). great food.
We stopped at a local restaurant and asked if they serve beer. They directed us to a second floor dive and had kebab and korfa (and beer, no label, they covered the bottled with napkins). great food.
We walked the streets of Luxor to get a little taste of real life
We took an “Egyptian Cadillac” to the “Winter Palace”, Agatha Christie’s hotel in “Death on the Nile” and had "stellas" at the bar.
We met an Egyptian in the travel business. He calls the Brits “fish and chips” and said that “after Aquilli Lauro, the Americans stopped coming to Egypt. Now they have to deal with the Japanese”… and his best quote - “When you deal with the French, you either go blind or you go bankrupt”. Best time to visit Egypt—October November January or pre Christmas (Dec 8-13)
We got the Egyptian Cadillac back to the boat (10L). Cost for the “Cadillac”—15000L, for the horse - 3-4000L
Dinner on the boat…we paid Hanni NOT to serve us more food… dessert- crepes suzette. John said, “Stay with me on this, you’ve got to stop the food…”
Mehmet delivered a bottle of wine to our room. We watched Thelma and Louise on TV and welcomed in the New Year.
