"Luxor is a city in Upper (southern) Egypt and the capital of Luxor Governorate. As the site of the Ancient Egyptian city of Thebes, Luxor has frequently been characterized as the "world's greatest open air museum", as the ruins of the temple complexes at Karnak and Luxor stand within the modern city. Immediately opposite, across the River Nile, lie the monuments, temples and tombs on the West Bank Necropolis, which include the Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens."
Unfortunately, no photography is allowed in the Valley of the Kings. It was very impressive - lotsa tombs with the walls with beautiful colorful decorations. I have never seen anything like that before. Definitely a must-visit in Egypt.
The ancient Egyptians were obssessed with Tomb Building!!!
"Hatshepsut , meaning Foremost of Noble Ladies, (1508–1458 BC) was the fifth pharaoh of the eighteenth dynasty of Ancient Egypt. She is generally regarded by Egyptologists as one of the most successful pharaohs, reigning longer than any other woman of an indigenous Egyptian dynasty."
In another words, Hatshepsut was the queen of politics - vengeful, evil, petty and ruthless. Enough said.
Temple of Hatshepsut
(80% restored ===> boring)
Restored Artifacts
By this time, we were quite sick and tired of temples already. Well, it was quite nice, but we really had enough.
Apparently, these statues were featured in the movie Transformers.
"The Nile is a major north-flowing river in North Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world[2]. It is 6,650 km (4,130 miles) long.
The northern section of the river flows almost entirely through desert, from Sudan into Egypt, a country whose civilization has depended on the river since ancient times. Most of the population and cities of Egypt lie along those parts of the Nile valley north of Aswan, and nearly all the cultural and historical sites of Ancient Egypt are found along riverbanks. The Nile ends in a large delta that empties into the Mediterranean Sea."
I could appreciate that Nile River was the lifeline for Egyptians, without Nile, there will be no Egypt.
Felucca - Traditional Sailing Boat
Along the Nile
(Taken by HY)
The best part was swimming in the most famous Nile during the winter.
It was not very cold, and it was a wonderful experience! Highly recommend it.
SM said "You would only regret about things that you didn't do."
That's really true.
(Taken by HY)
The only problem is the corrupted police patrolling the river. My point is what is wrong with swimming in the Nile, and there is no signboard prohibiting swimming. However, the police did not dare to question the tourist like me, and approached the boatman. I still could remember the sad face of the boatman when he told me I got him into trouble. Naturally, I felt guilty, as my innocent swim in the Nile caused problem for him.
I stuffed 50LE (US$8.50, S$11) to the boatman and asked him to give to the police. It was like a magic and the police left. I knew that the boatman gave the police less money, but I didn't care as long as the matter was solved.
Apparently, the police told the boatman that they were very concerned about tourists' health, as the water was cold in the winter. Hence, they did not allow any tourist to swim in the Nile River. Wow!!! I was surprised that the police are so caring. Egyptians are "fortunate" to have this kinda caring police who are full of bullshit.
Chilling out at the Roof of the boat.
=)
Cruising along the Nile and enjoying the sunset!
WHY DO WE LIKE BOB MARLEY HOSTEL?
When SM asked the owner if we could paint on his hostel's wall, he was fine with it and bought new paints & brushes for us!!! How cool is that!
This is the first time we got to paint the hostel.
(Okay, I did not do much, as I was lazy.)
Our Singapore Lion =)
Our Singapore Flag. =)
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