|
 Frontpage
 List of tour options
Hotel destinations
 Printer friendly version
Day 11 & 12 - visits on Luxor east & west bank
Day 11 was the day to relax in the exotic garden of Winter Palace, and not at least the opportunity to enjoy life in and around the large swimmingpool in the end of this garden.
In the afternoon, just before the darkness came - then it was time to visit the Luxor temple some minutes walk from the New Winter Palace. Seeing the temple this hour had the advantage that we saw it in daylight and then a short time after could see it in spotlight, that apart from the night atmosphere gave a better light to see the wall reliefs more clearly.
 |
Up in the mountains of the Valley of the Kings, by the entrance to the tomb of Thothmoses III
See larger photo |
Day 12 was the time where our guests should cross the Nile to the west bank of Luxor. Here they first visited three royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings and the majestic terrace temple of Hatshepsut.
From there we went to Deir el Medinet, the Workers (or artists) village where you, apart from seeing this ancient village, could enter two of the artists tombs. Not being royal tombs, which had their own strict, thematic rules, as reliefs of the travel guide through the kingdom of death (Am Duat) and so forth.
Nobles and artist's tombs show us on the other side the daily life in Egypt for more than three thousand years ago. That reason alone makes it an important visit, add to this that these was made by some of the best artists in ancient Egypt - then each of these tombs become some of the most important treasures remaining from those who once lived here.
Last on Luxor west bank was the visit to the temple complex at Medinet Habu with its three temples. We find here the temple of Hatshepsut and ThothMoses III, Ramses III and female rulers of Luxor.
In a local village we had prepared a luxury version of a local dish, and this time it was duck. The duck was a much-appreciated bird in ancient Egypt as well, as we can see this bird being offered in numberless tombs and temples.
Day 13 & 14 - Dendera, Abydos & Minya
After a last night at New Winter Palace, next morning we had to be early to join the convoy to the Dendera temple, the temple for the goddess Hathor. Not like the "real" ancient Egyptian temples in Luxor, the remains here is from the Greek-Roman times. The temple has also a large relief of Cleopatra VII and the son she got with Emperor Julius Cesar.
From Dendera we had our own security escorts, as we now enter an area of Egypt very few travellers go, and absolutely no charter companies bothers to include. Good for us, as this is truly a forgotten treasure chamber of Egypt - and we had the luck to have it all for ourselves!
Of the original Egyptian temples, the temple of Abydos is the most intact temple of them all. Built during the rule of Seti I (19th dynasty), the father of Ramses II. The atmosphere here is truly unique, a high artistic level of the relief's and strong colours which unbelievable enough is the original colours. From here we started the long bus tour towards Minya and what was awaiting us there the next day.
Next morning was an early rise again, and our bus takes the participants to the city the Greeks called Hermopolis - as they recognized their god Hermes in the Egyptian god Thoth (god for wisdom and writing). We visit the large statue of Thoth as a baboon, and the ancient cemetery where we entered the tomb of Petosiris who lived not many years before Alexander the Great came to Egypt and was appointed pharaoh of Egypt by the legendary Amon oracle in the Siwa oasis.
After the visit to Hermopolis we crossed the Nile to the "heretic king" EchnAton's new capital of Egypt. At least this was the capital of Egypt for the last years of his reign. Today it's a place, or rather a monument of some few truly unique years of ancient Egypt's three thousand years history. We visited two of the tombs here, and the part of the palace that is excavated.
After a lunch at the hotel, it was time for the last of the exclusive visits here - and this was also the last visit of a fourteen days tour to Egypt filled with adventures, excursions and lectures covering all from ancient Egypt to the modern society we today had visited. This last visit was to Beni Hassan, some beautiful but hardly visited tombs (due to their remoteness from the mass tourism), truly amazing monuments from the Egypt's Middle Kingdom.
Dinner at the hotel in Minya, and the time had come for the drive to Cairo - directly to the airport and departure. We had behind us 14 days on the road and on the Nile, and a flower bouquet filled with unforgettable memories...
Go to the next page
Day 1 to 6 - Arrival, Cairo and Alexandria
Day 7 to 11 - Aswan and Nile Cruise
Day 11 to 14 - Luxor to Minia & departure
Day 1 to 14 - Accommodation used
turer - hotell - ekspedisjoner
www.egyptmyway.com/contactforms.html
MyWay Travel a.s.
www.egyptmyway.com
Tel. Egypt: +2 012 7739149
Tel. Norway: +47 45661608
Epost: post@egyptmyway.com
Org. number: NO 987 180 633
Send a
Post Card
|
 To the top
List of tour options
Hotel destinations
Printer friendly version
Except where otherwise noted, this site is
licensed under a Creative Commons License.
Text & photo, Arnvid Aakre
www.egyptmyway.com
|
