I regret not taking pictures of the lovely dining room on the ship where we gathered for our meals. I was never without my phone, so how I missed such opportunities baffles me to this day. Nevertheless, imagine a restaurant set up buffet style. We were assigned a particular table to take our meals. The table was long and sat about ten people, it was the first on the left side when you entered the dining room. Our table companions were very nice people who spoke softly during meals in their native tongue. I slept like a baby that first night aboard, the mattresses made me feel as if I had fallen into a fluffy comfy cloud. At breakfast the next morning, I learned that overnight we had docked in the town of Kom Ombo in Aswan Governorate, Upper Egypt. After breakfast, Adel and I geared up for a day of exploration. We started off visiting a fascinating “dual temple.”  The temple honors Sobek, the crocodile god of fertility, and Horus the falcon god.

We returned to the ship for lunch and shortly after set sail to Edfu, an Egyptian city located on the west bank of the Nile River between Esna and Aswan. Cruising toward Edfu, the ship was quite entertaining; from traveling through the Lock and Dam at Esna, to relaxing in my room, to observing passengers engaging in a session of good-natured haggling for scarves, towels and tablecloths with the intrepid merchants who rowed right up to the side of the cruise ship.

Dusk was upon us when we finally docked, disembarked, and reached the site of the Ptolemaic Temple of Horus. It was a beautiful evening. I really love the way  I captured the evening glow through the temple’s opening in one particular picture. Yet, justice wasn’t served on the actual feel and beauty of the temple that night. Before heading back to the ship for the Egyptian dinner planned by the dining staff, Adel and I stopped by a dining establishment of his friend, which was located in the area. The video of me dancing and truly enjoying myself will forever stand as a reminder that… I am here in this Earth realm for a short time to create, explore and experience life, not just survive it.

The next morning, during breakfast, I learned that we had arrived in Luxor overnight. I also learned that Luxor is the modern name for ancient Thebes, once the capital of Egypt, which consisted of two cities lying on the west and east banks of the Nile. After breakfast, there was a short time to relax before our day of exploration would begin. Adel had arranged for a driver to pick us up from the docking area. We started off on the West Bank with a visit to the Necropolis of Thebes and the famous Valley of the Kings, where 64 of Egypt’s Pharaohs had their tombs carved out of solid rock.

We walked slowly through the visitor’s center and then out into an open area where drivers in little white golf carts shuttled visitors deep into the valley to tour the ancient burial chambers. Adel waited in the wings while I visited the tombs of King Rameses the 3rd, 4th and one other. I attempted to hold on to the entry tickets I collected during my tours. Notice, the Valley of the Kings ticket, the three holes punched represent the number of tombs I visited there.

There’s a lot of walking involved with these types of tours, and I was getting tired as the morning wore on. So, you can imagine that I was one happy camper when Adel said our driver was waiting for us and we needed to grab a shuttle back up. Boy, it felt so good to flop down in the back seat and be whisked off for lunch.

After lunch, we visited Morssy al-Abaster Factory before heading over to the mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut at Deir el-Bahari. Men sitting outside the shop working on their craft chant a special introduction when you enter the shop. Adel is a good friend of the owner, no surprise there, huh? I bought a few items and souvenirs there before leaving. You may have noticed pictures with just my hand in the photo. I was drawn to certain walls and led to do that, I don’t know why. Queen Hatshepsut walls was no exception, I was drawn to the Ankh on that wall. It was early evening by the time we made it back to the ship.

When I finally returned to my cabin to bed down for the night, this fella was waiting for me. I giggled out loud, took a pic, showered, and poured a glass of wine from a bottle I purchased earlier. We would be checking out of this wonderful Nile cruise in the morning and spending the day in Luxor, so I needed to finish the bottle.  Needless to say that night I experienced the sweetest of all my Nile River sleeps. Stay tuned…