LUXOR

January 20, 2007

Luxor, Egypt

Today was a very exciting day, and one that I never expected to happen but am very grateful that it did. All day long I have been pinching myself to make sure that I am REALLY in Egypt. But the smells and the heat and the dust were real enough, so I managed at last to convince myself that I was actually there. I was in EGYPT.

The morning actually started off on a bad note. We woke up at around 7:30 to the sound of Jessica, one of our roommates, puking in the toilet. Uh oh. Something’s wrong with the water here, we thought. We had already been warned not to eat raw fruits or vegetables or to drink the water. Maybe the food on the plane had been poisoned? In any event, Ambris and I looked at each other from our cots and prayed that we would not succumb next. I had eaten the plane food too.

However, we walked from our hotel-villa to the lobby to be greeted by the most wonderful breakfast menu ever. The whole wall of the building was covered with all kinds of food you could imagine. Sausages, omelets, figs, some strange type of yogurt, meats, cheese…. I tend to usually stay pretty close to the familiar items for breakfast so instead of getting what looked like the local fare I would stick with cereal and eggs. Still, it was a pretty good choice, and knowing at 7 that we were likely to have a very late lunch I ate a lot.

Then we loaded the bus and were introduced to our tour guide, Hashme??? He told the story of the history of the Nile and of Egypt in a kind of mythological way. He was a gifted speaker, and we all enjoyed his interesting and informative speeches. He talked about the three colors of Egypt—green, brown, and blue, and talked about the life giving aspect of the Nile. 95 % of Egypt is desert, and the land of the Pharaohs would not exist without the annual flooding of the Nile every year. There was a very clear strip where the green of the crops and the irrigated region just stopped, and desert began.

And then we went to the Valley of the Kings. This site was used in the New Kingdom as a method to deter tomb robbers from stealing out of the kings graves. It is a dry, barren place, the brown of the rocks burns against the blue of the sky. Underneath the rock formation of a natural pyramid, the kings built passages carved directly into the limestone rock. There, our tour guide told us the story of the mythological origins of Egypt, explained the myth of Isis and Osiris, and told us what to expect in the tombs. Nothing, however, would prepare us for the magic of stepping into these respositories of the kings.

The first tomb we visited was the Tomb of Thutmose III? This was the steepest of the passages—we lowered ourselves down a long narrow crevice of the earth that was initially just chipped limestone. However, we reached the bottom and it turned into a plastered, hallway lined with images. All of the script on the walls was simple black and white pictograms—hieroglypics if they were to be reinvented with a modernist feel. The figures were spare outlines; people on boats, fantastic animals, and of course the gods.

We saw two other tombs from the Valley of the Kings. The other two seemed more elaborate. In addition to being carved, these tombs had reliefs cut into their walls, and contained many side chambers for the storage of items needed in the afterlife, among which included a sailing ship, food, and other goods. The antechamber was absolutely amazing on the second tomb. Huge paintings of Isis, Osiris, and Anubis flanked the doorway, and along one wall was a fantastic painting of a Winged God—I am not sure which—brilliantly painted and decorated.

The third tomb was also incredible—it had to turn to avoid colliding into a previous burrow in the ground, but was similarly carved and painted. This passage appeared to be very long, but it was blocked off by rock falls within the tunnel, and we could go no further.

On the way back, we passed vendors hawking their wares. Ambris and I looked at some of the beautiful scarves and necklaces, and the vendors would approach us and shove the items at us and say “cheap price”, all of the while shouting a price that was probably 5 times the price of the product. We said “no” and they would follow us, saying “ok 50, ok 40, ok…” hoping that we would make the purchase. That is the way that you do things in Egypt. Overwhelmed, we headed back to the bus.

Next stop was the temple of Queen Hatshepsut, who was one of the 2 queeens buried in the Valley of the Kings. Her temple, much restored, is said to represent the 3 stages of life, and the massive ramps, and 3 storied collonade are quite impressive. This temple is also carved into a rock cliff at the opposite side from the valley of the kings, and it was magnificent to walk around. Off of one corner was a chapel devoted to Hathor, and the capitals of the columns had cow’s heads in her honor. The size is something that is almost impossible to imagine, and the elegance of the entryway was amazing. Much of it is restored to its present state, but imagining it with all of its painting and sculpture intact, it would have been quite a sight.

ON the way out, Ambris and I decided to buy some scarves as souveneirs, but were so caught up and overwhelmed by the haggling that we actually delayed the bus! The vendors are so persistent it is hard to leave the shop when you realize the item is something you no longer want. And, having no idea of what an item should actually cost did not help us at all! We were rescued by Toumazou and left as soon as he came.

Finally, we went to the tombs of some artisans, cramped, but no less beautiful tombs. Unlike before, some of these tombs showed scenes of domestic life, and women with the aromatic cones on their heads. So much work for something that will never be seen in life!

Then, hungry and tired—we went to a restaurant that had quite good Egyptian food. Its hard to describe—some meat and potatoes, grilled vegetables, all very soft and slightly spicy, but very good. We ate around 4 and by then were so tired from the sun and the walking (or climbing) into the tombs that we went back to the Hotel and slept.