Safaga, Egypt

Safaga is a port on the east coast of Egypt, on the Red Sea. From here I joined one of the guest tours for the long journey into Luxor. It took us about 4 hours to reach our first destination - the Valley of the Kings. This is a desert location where many royal and noble tombs are located, most famously the tomb of King Tutankhamun. The desert was chosen at some distance from the Nile to avoid any humidity and protect the mummies from degrading - how smart were they?? I learned that the fame of King Tut comes from his tomb being found "intact" (though in fact it had already been broken into very early on, but the thieves weren't interested in the gold and left it, they took some rarer oils), and isn't in itself as impressive as the Royal tombs, since his death was unexpected and a nobleman's tomb had to be converted quickly. I went up to the entrance and had a peep inside, but didn't pay the extra $20 necessary to go inside. Instead I used my time to visit the three tombs our guide recommended, of Ramses III, IV, and IX. These Royal tombs were way more than I was expecting. The walls and ceilings are covered in hieroglyphics, and they are all in stunning colour! The colours are what most surprised me, I always imagined hieroglyphics as being carved into dull stone. There are bright yellows, reds, blues, greens....it all has the feel that the artist just walked out of the room. Apparently the colours have been brought to light through a restoration treatment, not added on by the restorers. The result is breathtaking. Even the ceilings are painted in blues, with stars and scenes of the heavens. We had three tomb entrances included in our ticket, and there was just enough time to visit these. I wanted more time there...as usual...if I ever go back I'll cough up the extra $20 to say I've been inside King Tut's tomb. Apparently he's still in there. But for now right outside will have to be close enough.

After we left the valley we made two photo stops, one at the Colossi of Memnon (two great stone statues which guarded the entry to a tomb) and the Temple of Luxor. Then we moved swiftly on to our next big attraction - the Temple of Karnak. Now this was something I hadn't really heard of and didn't know what to expect. Again, I was blown away...it's a huge temple complex, with rows of sphinx lining the entrance, a gallery of immense pillars covered in hieroglyphics, a sacred lake, several obelisks, and statues everywhere. Apparently a scene from James Bond "The spy who loved me" was filmed here, I've made a mental note to check it out. We had plenty of free time here, of which I used every last second, wandering around with my mouth open, giving my camera a workout. The place is really incredible, I feel so lucky I had the chance to go.

A special mention to the Steigenberger Hotel in the town of Luxor where we had lunch - it was an amazing meal!! I was stuffed enough not to get hungry on the three hour drive back to Safaga. Thanks!

I also need to mention the less showy but just as engrossing sightseeing that happened on our coach as we drove most of the day. We passed many many small villages along canals of the Nile, where life is still lived much as it was thousands of years ago. The men and boys all wear long tunics to the ground, ride donkeys and pull their wares along in carts. Sugarcane is a big export here, and many farmers were in the process of bringing their wares to the train to send them north to Cairo, Alexandria and beyond. Later in the evening I noticed men and young boys relaxing on curbs chewing on leftover bits of sugarcane stalks. Some of the roofs in the villages are still made of straw, and the walls of mud and mudbrick. The people were so friendly - very excited to stop what they were doing and wave at us as we passed by.

Some of the locals do have cars, in the larger villages and especially in Qena and Luxor. But these were lined up for blocks in order to get gas - there is a fear at the moment that fuel will run out so people are stocking up and filling up at every opportunity. There were literally a hundred cars in line at every station, waiting for hours for their turn, along with motorcycles and even police cars. It was a pretty crazy sight every time we passed a station. You would know one was coming up based on the line of cars beginning on the side of the road. Glad we weren't in one of those lines!

Anyway I know this post is long, I'm just still reeling a bit from another amazing experience in Egypt!
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