After a poor night's sleep on the train, we arrived in Luxor very early in the morning and went straight to our hotel. It is on the west bank of the Nile, across the river from downtown, but on the same side as the Valley of the Kings, the Valley of the Nobles, and several other notable sites.
The hotel, El Fayrouz, is a charming place, with a restaurant in the enclosed back garden, under the banana trees, with tiled walkways and tables set among flowering shrubs. After settling in and having naps, we met up with our friends, David and Carolyn Pickering, and they took us across the Nile in a small boat (water-taxi) to wander around Luxor. We then went back to their place, a lovely apartment with a roof terrace that overlooks the Nile, for a drink while we watched the sun set. We all went for dinner at Abdul's camp, where we ate wonderful Bedouin-style meats, vegetables and rice that had been slow-cooked together in foil and were delicious.
The next day they took us to the Valley of the Nobles, to see several lesser-known tombs of nobles that were quite stunning, and not at all crowded with tourists. The tomb of Sennofer, overseer of the Garden of Amon, quite deep below the ground and only reachable by a steep and narrow tunnel staircase, had fabulous paintings of grapes and vines on the ceiling. The tomb of Rekhmire, governor under two pharohs, was quite dark inside, but the temple attendant/guard held a mirror to direct sunlight from the entrance to illuminate the carvings. The carvings and paintings showed the making of the tomb, smelting of gold ornaments, and carpenters making the sarcophagus. We also saw the ruins of the village of the workers, where the artisans, masons, and artists who built and decorated all of the tombs lived. The archeologists are still digging, and new discoveries are still being made at all of these sites.
The hotel, El Fayrouz, is a charming place, with a restaurant in the enclosed back garden, under the banana trees, with tiled walkways and tables set among flowering shrubs. After settling in and having naps, we met up with our friends, David and Carolyn Pickering, and they took us across the Nile in a small boat (water-taxi) to wander around Luxor. We then went back to their place, a lovely apartment with a roof terrace that overlooks the Nile, for a drink while we watched the sun set. We all went for dinner at Abdul's camp, where we ate wonderful Bedouin-style meats, vegetables and rice that had been slow-cooked together in foil and were delicious.
The next day they took us to the Valley of the Nobles, to see several lesser-known tombs of nobles that were quite stunning, and not at all crowded with tourists. The tomb of Sennofer, overseer of the Garden of Amon, quite deep below the ground and only reachable by a steep and narrow tunnel staircase, had fabulous paintings of grapes and vines on the ceiling. The tomb of Rekhmire, governor under two pharohs, was quite dark inside, but the temple attendant/guard held a mirror to direct sunlight from the entrance to illuminate the carvings. The carvings and paintings showed the making of the tomb, smelting of gold ornaments, and carpenters making the sarcophagus. We also saw the ruins of the village of the workers, where the artisans, masons, and artists who built and decorated all of the tombs lived. The archeologists are still digging, and new discoveries are still being made at all of these sites.
There was an entire village that has existed in this area for a couple of centuries, that is now being torn down. The villagers supported themselves, at least in part, by trafficking in artifacts and gold that they dug up in their "basements". The government has been trying to relocate them since the 1930's. In 2007, houses were bulldozed one by one, as a part of the plan to make Luxor the biggest open-air museum in the world.
After a great lunch of chicken tagine in a local restaurant, we went to the Temple of Medinat Habu, built by Ramses III. All of the decorations, fabulously carved in monumental size, are meant to glorify Ramses III, and show what a powerful warrior he was. There are several carvings showing a giant Ramses smiting a number of his enemies, who are depicted as being much smaller than he, and kneeling, with their hands bound and and the ropes all leading to Ramses' other hand. There is also a grisly carving of a pile of the severed hands of his slain enemies, and also their severed genitals. This is meant to illustrate the complete vanquishing of these enemies, but also shows his utter brutality.
After a great lunch of chicken tagine in a local restaurant, we went to the Temple of Medinat Habu, built by Ramses III. All of the decorations, fabulously carved in monumental size, are meant to glorify Ramses III, and show what a powerful warrior he was. There are several carvings showing a giant Ramses smiting a number of his enemies, who are depicted as being much smaller than he, and kneeling, with their hands bound and and the ropes all leading to Ramses' other hand. There is also a grisly carving of a pile of the severed hands of his slain enemies, and also their severed genitals. This is meant to illustrate the complete vanquishing of these enemies, but also shows his utter brutality.
To get an idea of the scale of this temple, see the picture above of Barb and Carolyn sitting at the base of one of the columns.
Dinner that night was a treat. A friend of the Pickerings, a young Frenchman named Michel, owns a restaurant called The Three Jackals. There we ate succulent roast lamb stuffed with garlic, roasted potatoes, and zucchini baked in a fabulous Bechamel sauce.
Dinner that night was a treat. A friend of the Pickerings, a young Frenchman named Michel, owns a restaurant called The Three Jackals. There we ate succulent roast lamb stuffed with garlic, roasted potatoes, and zucchini baked in a fabulous Bechamel sauce.
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