Granite Quarry, Aswan Dam, Isle of Philae, Essence and Felucca Cruise

Unfinished Obelisk
Me at Granite Quarry
Me at Aswan Dam overlooking Lake Nasser
Sign at Dam Site
Sign at Dam Site
Lake Nasser and Isle of Philae in background
On ferry, heading for the Isle of Philae
Still on Ferry
Temple on Isle of Philae
Approaching Temple on Isle of Philae
Temple on Isle of Philae

Greek influence in capitol
Looking out through Kiosk of Trajan
View from Isle of Philae
Engravings were destroyed
Temple in the background
In the courtyard
Sign on the Isle of Philae

Kiosk of Trajan as seen leaving the island
Felucca Ride
Had to pass thru two other ships to reach shore
Middle Kingdom ruins
Increasing water in the Nile ;-}
View from Felucca

Mausoleum of Agha Khan
Ship Oberoi Philates

14 March 2008

The ship pulled into Aswan this morning. I was able to sleep until about 7:00 AM. I went up to the fourth floor to watch as we came in. I was surprised that the ship tied into another ship, which was tied into another ship. To get to shore, we had to walk through two other ships. Apparently this is standard operating procedure.

The first stop of the day was the granite quarry where the Egyptians obtained their pink granite. I was surprised as the relatively large number of people there. The site to see was the unfinished Obelisk which Pharroh Hotchepsup intended to dedicate to her father. However when cracks were discovered in the granite, the project was abandoned. There was a second obelisk that had been abandoned in an earlier stage of the work.

The next stop was the Aswan Dam which is used to prevent flooding and to provide all the needs of electricity for the country. The project took eleven years to complete and the Russians insisted on being paid in cotton for their assistance. The dam created the largest man-made lake, called Lake Nasser. It extends south into the Sudan. To prevent silt from making the dam useless, they have built a side canal. I don’t know how effective it is.

The next stop was the Isle of Philae, where a temple which dates to the Greco Roman period is located. To get to the Isle of Philae it was necessary to take a ferry. Our guide attempted to find a relatively clean boat. The temple was in use from about 400 BCE to 400 CE. It definitely shows the Greek influence. There is a small temple there called the Kiosk of Trajan, which was not quite finished. One of the capitols of a column was not carved. A lot of the images had been defaced probably by the early Christians that used the temple as a church. You could still see where the Christian altar was and there was a Coptic inscription on one of the walls. Coptic is apparently written using the Greek alphabet.

The next stop, which was voluntary and only about six of us went, was a place where they made very pretty glass bottles and essential oils from various flowers and other entities. I had made up my mind that I wasn’t going to buy anything. I’ve already spent more than half of the cash I had brought with me and don’t want to get into trouble at the end of the trip.

We returned to the ship with barely enough time for lunch before the Felucca ride, which I enjoyed very much. Again I was surprised at the number of ships in the harbor. I don’t understand how they avoided running into each other. We saw the sites around the Aswan bay area which included the mausoleum of the Aga Khan and some middle kingdom ruins on a hill.

Dinner was served about an hour after we returned to the ship. As usual I found it a pleasant social event. Now I have to go back to my cabin and pack. My suitcase must be outside the door at 6:30 AM. We leave for the airport at 7:30 AM.

Sunset over the Nile at Kom Ombo


Entrance to Temple at Kom Ombo
Ceiling with vivid painting at Temple at Horus and Sobek
Me in front of Temple of Horus and Sobek
Unknow Roman Emperor
The room Stewards have a sense of humor!

Temple of Horus in Edfu and Kom Ombo Tour

13 March 2008

Today I had the pleasure of sleeping in until about 7:00 AM. Using the shuttle bus provided by the ship, we went to the Temple of Horus in Edfu. This is considered to be one of the best preserved temples in Egypt. It was built by the Greeks starting in 237 BCE and was completed about 57 BCE. Apparently it was built on the foundation of an earlier temple. The Greek rulers associated their G-ds with the Egyptian G-ds in order not to upset the local population. Some of the original paint is still there. The temple was three quarters covered by sand which preserved a lot of the engravings. The Coptic Christian population had defaced many of the engravings because they felt that this was paganism and had to be destroyed. Tea time followed and I had a cup of coffee. At about 6:00 PM, the ship pulled into Kom Ombo.

We went ashore to visit the Temple which differed in that it was dedicated to two G-ds; namely Sobek, the crocodile G-d and Horus the elder. This temple was in operation from about 200 BCE to about 200 CE. Some of the engravings were in excellent condition. There were engravings of medical instruments used during this period. There was a mummified crocodile and a statue of an unknown Roman Emperor. The place was very crowded and I couldn’t really see everything I would have liked, because we had to get back to the ship for dinner and the Galabiya party.

I showered and dressed in the galabiya that I had purchased today. By the time I finished dinner, all I wanted was to go to sleep. I made an appearance at the party and then came back to my cabin to go to sleep.

Cruising the Nile - Near the Sena Locks and Temple of Horus Video Clips

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Kom Ombo Video Clips




Sailing into Aswan Video Clips




Granite Quarry Video Clips




Lake Nasser Video Clip




Isle of Philae Video Clips