Choking the mighty Nile at Esna

The previous post in this series is here..

We had breakfast on the boat after visiting Edfu. Surprisingly the area was only half full. Turns out we were going to Luxor from Edfu but through the Locks at Esna.

There is a 30 foot height difference(?) in the water levels of the Nile on either side of the locks. So only two boats go at one time through the locks to the other side. There is a long queue. Each set of boats takes almost 15 minutes to go through the locks. So all the boats race to the locks from Edfu temple.

So did our boat!

We saw a bunch of vendors hitch their small boats to ours and throw towels and shawls to the people on the deck to sell it. It was intersting. The curiosity of buying something with this method alone got them some business from our group! They were selling what was a table cloth? shawl? towel? for 3-4 dollars depending on the size and bargainer. 

we did have fun in the rooms where our cleaning crew did more towel decorations. The king Tut one was hilarious! We spent a lot of time on the rooftop. They were selling full body massages for 25$ for 50 minutes. So I did go for the massage. It was pretty good and relaxing. 

A video highlight reel including a timelapse of the ship going through the locks. My hands hurt after holding the phone in the same place for the entire duration.. but you can see the whole process.. 

We did go dock at Luxor 30 minutes earlier than the 4:30 PM estimate. We waited for the boat to clear before getting down and walking to the Luxor temple..

The Edfu chitra katha

The previous post in this series is here..

Our entire group was ready at 4:30 AM and outside on the street adjoining the dock. The original plan was to have a van ready to take us to Edfu Temple before Sunrise! Given every ship was sending its people there, we were to go early to clear the security check and ticket counter and get in. 

There was a snag. The van never showed. We tried to change plans to go in two horse carts (originally abandoned by our guide Walid as too risky) but others kept getting the horses and we were just waiting for 30 mintues. Walid had to feel the fury of 3 women and two girls who burnt him with their eyes just like those sages in the Amar Chitra Katha cartoons.  He apologized profusely and we finally got our van after 25 minutes of waiting. When we went to the temple entrance, the line was a few hundred meters long and I counted ~ 600 people in the line in front of us!

We made it to the temple after security checks and were amazed by what we saw! This temple reminded me of Uttarakosamangai. Same layout.. a long hallway that takes you to the main sanctum with a lot of pillars and chambers on the way!

A must see highlight video of Edfu temple.. it took me a long time to edit this to under 10 minutes from 56 video clips!

It is one of the most well preserved temples in Egypt. The murals on the large temple walls tell a story just like a cartoon in panels. The fight between a hippo god and a crocodile god and the crocodile emerging victorious is amazing. 

Inside the temple the walls still retain some of the color. If the plain murals look this awesome, imagine how they would have been 2300 years go when every bit of it was painted!! It would have been spellbinding!

this one reminded me of Ravana.. 

the unifier being confered the crowns of the north and south with different crests ! this theme is repeated across a lot of temples. The kings support the gods, the gods support the kings. eventually the kings take over for the gods.. 

the detail on the boat including the little chains was amazing!  Probably why it took a 100 years to finish this temple!

No wonder people came there and donated to the temples and they were the big social and economic centers.

These pictures do not do justice to this temple. It happened to be preserved only because it was buried in the sand and folks used to tunnel into some of these chambers and used it as hideouts.  

tried a pano but again, this is at a scale where pano's don't work..

This one doubled up as a hospital and maternity ward as well apparently. When we first went to the main sanctum, there was a 100 strong crowd and given my height, simply couldn't see or capture photos or videos. Was disappointed with that and walked out to the entrance with the group. Then I asked Walid how much time we had? He said 10 minutes. So I ran 1/2 a mile back and forth to the sanctum. Given all boats were leaving at more or less the same time, the crowd was gone. There were 4 people in the sanctum. 

Ran there, took pictures and videos and captured my running back to the entrance.

The golden idols all gone! 

Then there was more drama. The van driver locked the van with the keys inside! We waited another 15 minutes for a backup van. The ladies burnt him with their eyes again like the sages of folklore! Before they started painting some new murals in Edfu temple on the vanquishing of Walid at Edfu in Etchachrome colors, we got into the new van and drove back to the ship in time for breakfast. 

we were in for a surprise at the breakfast area as three large tables were empty. The entire Chinese and Korean gang was gone! Walid told us that they took a bus to save time and were going to see everything in our next stop ahead of time and fly out. We had more time, so we were going to spend it on the ship the rest of the afternoon! 

More on that in the next post..

If you do the river cruise or not, do not miss Edfu temple! It is just fantastic! 

Sobek-Horus, Shiva-Vishnu.. same same but different

The previous post in this series is here..

Our cruise docked at its first stop, Kom Ombo!

Every ship had docked at around the same time to catch the sunset and it was like a zoo. We could hardly hear our guide in that crowd. To top things off, many guides had powerful laser pointers that should have been banned for public use given their power. They were blinding and for some reason the tourguides were all trying to one up each other in pointing.. that made for bad photos! 

Our guide Walid told us that this was a very special temple that survived intact inspite of all the changes in Egypt over time. 

Special because there was the faction from the North that predominantly believed in the Falcon god Horus. The southern folks were all with the crocodile god Sobek. 

This was cause for a lot of concern. So a great unifier built a temple that had two entrances, similar murals on either side , two side by side shrines and the back wall with a description that split everything including the festivals, offerings, etc. right down the middle. 

As a kid raised in India, could understand some of this. There is always Shiva temples and Vishnu temples and followers of one don't necessarily go to the other even though they acknowledge them both as gods. This wasn't any different. (We actually have a temple in Livermore called the Shiva Vishnu temple, so everyone goes.. it has two shrines but only one entrance. that is progress over the years for you!)

 

There is also some other intersesting stuff at this temple. A scribe on the wall that shows the 12 months and the season during the months. Apparently the Romans moved from 10 months to 12 months after coming to Egypt and realizing that 12 months made sense with the solar and lunar cycles. They inserted July and August as months to commemorate Julius Ceasar and Augustus. (November was the original 9th month). We knew this from history but didn't know this connection with Egyptian temple!

Then there is an inscription of all the surgical instruments used during birthing. There was a Royal birthing room at this temple where surgeons used to practice their craft! It was fascinating. 

We got some photos of this temple that keeps going on and on length wise, with the two parallel tracks for the two gods. 

Finally we came down to yet another interesting area. The crocodile museum. They had so many mummified crocodiles.. some of them more than 20 feet long ! We learned more about Sobek here! 

Then we were late! The boat was going to depart at 7:30 PM latest at dinner time. There was still a crowd trying to get to the docks. I delayed the group trying to find a fridge magnet.

The boat stack up one behind the other, from the dock and you go through multiple boats before you get to yours! 

We all raced to the boat and were almost the last group to get in before they started moving! 

Did have time to set everyone up for this masterpiece(and I say that loosely) in front of the mirror. They had started putting Christmas decorations in the dining area! Group photos are challenging.. makign everyone look at themselves in the mirror instead of my camera in the mirror was intersting.. then I looked down and messed up a few shots.. 

A video highlight of Kom Ombo..

We were going to travel and dock sometime late in the night at our second stop for the cruise. 

Walid gave us that look again after dinner. Slightly better but a 5 AM start from the reception area the following morning! We had already gotten used to this. A 3:30 AM wake up to fly, 4AM start to drive to Abu Simbel the next day and now, a 5AM start.

The trend was going in the right direction...

Cruising the Nile river

The previous post in this series is here..

We were on a boat for a day but it was yet to start. 

Finally we made it to the boat from Abu Simbel in time for lunch. We went straight to the dining room and it was full! The food was good. There was enough vegetarian options for me that worked inspite of my food allergies. Plain pita bread, yogurt, Vegetable side dish like a sambar, white rice, salads, roasted potatoes! It was enough to keep me going over the next few days. 

After lunch we made our way to the rooftop to watch the boat start! Initially it was slow going but the boat picked up pace in heavy winds and we all enjoyed the cruise. 

When we came back to our room the towel art reminded us of a cruice to Mexico a long long time ago.

We dozed off later in the evening. We were told that the boat would dock around 5 PM and we were to meet at the reception area at 5! The boat made it earlier than that! 

A short video of the first leg of the cruise..

We were going to get off and visit yet another interesting temple.. 

Our first cruise!

The traveling Narayanan's went on their first Cruise during the Thanksgiving break with the Cousins.  It was also a San's birthday gift of sorts..

We went to Enseneda, Mexico from Long beach on a 2 day, 3 night Cruise. I am guessing we were never really far from the coast but it was a nice and different experience staying on a ship for days and having fun.

The sunset at Long Beach was gorgeous and we got to see the Queen Mary (from the outside!) and then boarded the Carnival cruise. 

We were greeted by a nice Rainbow as we boarded the ship.. It was a nice omen?!

We were greeted in our cabin by this nice Towel Elephant. Later we were treated to a one hour class on how to make towel animals. The entire family enjoyed that. 

When we were in Enseneda for a short time, there was a paid trip to see "The Bufadora" or cave where the sea water enters a narrow rock formation and sprays out. Given we had 3 hours in the place to see this, have lunch and shop at the local flea market, we did a very bad job of rationing out the time. 

The coastline very much feels like we are in and around Carmel. No surprises there. The Bufadora was a let down. After 30 minutes there, this was the best we saw. No 100 foot spray! 

The flea market was interesting. Not much different from the San Jose flea market, but more local items and same bargaining. Every shop had the same stuff! 

We also ate at this stall of sorts where they make fresh Tacos! The little one was enjoying this the most.

After a last minute shopping attempt by the ladies, we rushed back to the bus and were back at the ship after a small detour to see an old Casino that was famous in Enseneda in the 30's and 40's. 

The flea market was very colorful to say the least!

Back at the ship we had a formal dinner, explored mini golf on the top deck, participated in treasure hunts, ate lots of fries, ice cream and hot chocolate, not to mention masala Chai! 

And yes, we know how to make towel elephants now!

Before we knew it, the ship was back in Long Beach and we were drivng home. Be it outdoor camping, cruising, etc. the first time is always an exploratory trip. It took us 24 hours to get the hang of the ship and know how to get from one place to the other. If you know where to get what, which stuff is included in your package, what is free, etc. and time various activities within the ship with a planner, one can get a lot more out of the trip. 

We were first timers and did manage to experience a lot of what was being offered. Next time, as there will definitely be a next time, we will go on a longer cruise where we spend more time on land in between the cruise. 

It is one thing to take photographs of sunsets from land. Sunset in a cruise is breathtaking!

While the land part of this trip was not as good as we expected it to be, we definitely recommend the Cruise for a three day activity for a long weekend. If you have friends and family with you, even better! The kids really had a great time! 

Nice clean fun!