Nile Cruise, Take 2

So, on the morning of our second day, we finally set sail (and yes, I’m finally updating my blog).

The Nile

We sailed up the Nile – how cool is it that I can say that? – until we reached the Temple of Kom Ombo. Kom Ombo is actually a double temple dedicated to Horus and the crocodile god Sobek. The temple was right on the shore of the Nile (and up some stairs). And it was absolutely beautiful… hot, but beautiful. Our visit to Kom Ombo was over by noon (Mohammed said it would be just too hot after that).

Kom Ombo

It was interesting, there were so many boats docked at each… um, port (?) that sometimes we had to walk through 4-5 boats before we’d get to shore. Some of the boats looked nicer than ours. Others were in an obvious state of disrepair. Since Amanda sees dead people, I’m surprised she didn’t see any ghosts hanging around the scarier boats we passed through.

After Kom Ombo, we set sail again. In our down time (not ashore and not eating meals), we had planned to go up on deck and lounge by the pool. However, even sitting in the shade of an umbrella (or even under an awning) was too darn hot for us (at least for me) to stay up there for too long. So, we spent a lot of time in our cabin. Which was actually quite nice. The heat was tiring, so we read and napped. Oh, and looked at the pictures take that day. Exactly how a vacation should be, busy seeing the sites, but still with time to relax.

Later that afternoon (it was fairly close to sunset), we docked at Edfu. The Temple of Edfu wasn’t as close to the river as Kom Ombo, so the three of us piled into a little horse-drawn carriage (Mohammed sat up with the driver), and we drove to the temple. It was really a nice way to see the town, and except for the kids who kept running after us begging for money, the drive was quite nice.

OK, this isn't the carriage we took in Edfu, but it's pretty much the same

Edfu, apparently, is the second largest temple in all of Egypt (after Karnak). The walk up to the temple was quite impressive, even as we were getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. Yup, dusk + hot weather = LOTS of mosquitoes. I think I counted upwards of 30 bites on my legs. Since Edfu is on the west bank of the Nile, should I have been worried about West Nile virus? Well, I wasn’t. Oh, and I got propositioned on my way in to the temple. Do people really fall for that stuff? Amanda brought a fake wedding ring that she wore from time to time. She usually got left alone… should have followed her example.

Edfu

Lisa and me with Horus