Seti Abu Simbel

... a bee line to the temple to get there before many other groups. We're a pretty determined group of photographers, after that illusive "I'm the only one here" photo at every stop.<br><br>Abu Simbel has two temples, one with four 80 ft high carvings of Pharaoh Ramesses II (which he built for himself) and a smaller one for his queen Nefertari. The purpose of the temples was to intimidate Nubians traveling up the ...

... the bus and headed back to Aswan at 9 a.m. which was another 3 hours of driving.<br>Since I'm on the subject of the tourist convoys, I want to raise a few questions about them. They exist to try to prevent attacks on tourists in Egypt yet it's widely known throughout the country and other countries that these convoys leave Aswan for Abu Simbel at the same time every day, all year round. A bit too predictable if you ask me. I understand they can't change the time the convoys leave everyday ...

... colored flowers. Then, about about half a mile beyond the nile the green abruptly stops and there are golden desolate sand dunes as far as you can see.<br><br>That afternoon we had wanted to see the sites in Aswan but we all decided it was too hot and we took a nap in the airconditioned rooms. We signed up for a trip to Abu Simbel the next morning, and then a 3 day felucca, egyptian sailboat cruise. For our sailboat cruise, our hotel told us we should bring ...

... with about 8 different roads coming and going, the Ramses Hilton itself is very nice and we have scored a junior corner sweet with a king sized bed and heaps of room. <br> We are completely starving by the time we get to the hotel, so a quick freshen up and 6 of us have organized to search for food together. We aren't too adventurous I must admit, we go to the annex of the Hilton across the road and head to the Egyptian Italian restaurant and order pizza. The restaurant ...

Day 6- Heading south and the start of our cruise<br><br>After our 3:00am call we collected our hotel supplied breakfast boxes (with enough food to feed 3 people for breakfast and lunch) and headed to the lobby. After checking the luggage we boarded the bus and for once headed out into quiet traffic. Today is Friday so it's the weekend and day off for local people.<br><br>We were taken to the newly opened domestic terminal at Cairo to catch our plane to Aswan. All the staff were ...

... bombs etc. I'm not kidding there were guys there with the mirrors on the long sticks that you see in the movies going around the van and checking it all out. My they though we were a bunch on druggies but I swear it is only cause we have had about 4 hours sleep! Once we were cleared through that check point we lined up behind some over cars and vans, just had to wait now for a bit. I looked out my window and there are guys guarding the fenceline with sub machine guns. Must ...

... normal" Egyptians who were just being nice..simply because my guard is up. It's sad and I'm glad I started in Turkey and Syria where it is so different. <br><br>Abu Simbel <br><br>Carved out of the mountain on the west side of the Nile between 1290 and 1224 BCE, the temple at Abu Simbel was dedicated to the gods Ra-Harakhty, Amun and Ptah and, of course, to the deified Pharoah Ramses II himself. Mostly it was designed as a show of strength, with the colossal, awe ...

... mind this was all taking place on a two lane road in the pitch black dark without anyone using their headlights whatsoever. <br><br>For the second day in a row we were in transit to witness the night&#8217;s slow end. Ever gradually the stars lost their sparkle, the sky lightened and an angry looking sun rose to our left. The blackness of the land around us lifted and the ridges of the endless desert became discernable, and we could now see the ...