Sunday, September 07, 2008

Exotic Enigmatic Egypt! Part 11

It was our last night on the cruise ship and most of the crew came out after dinner and did a performance for us at the lobby area. Towards the end, they got some of the passengers to join in the singing and dancing and we went to bed feeling a bit sad that the cruise was soon coming to an end.
Entertainment by cruise ship crew

The next morning after we disembark, we were taken to the Valley Of The Kings, located amongst the desert mountain at the West Bank of the Nile.
Valley Of The Kings
Unless you're a tomb raider, this is one mountain you won't want to climb.

Valley Of The Kings



Valley Of The Kings : Ramses IV
This valley holds about 63 tombs for kings and nobles and has many chambers. We picked a few to go into as some tombs have very complex chambers where one might have to climb up and down very steep steps. It's really warm and almost up to the point where one might find it hard to breathe (those with asthma were told to refrain from going into certain complex tombs). Let's just say, walking into one of the tombs made me experience how it might be like for one trapped in a mineshaft.

Temple Of Queen Hatshepsut
We then went on to visit the Temple of Queen Hatshepsut which is built right into a cliff!

Temple of Queen Hatshepsut
Wikipedia says : Djeser-Djeseru is the main building of Hatshepsut's mortuary temple complex at Deir el-Bahri. Designed by Senemut, her vizier, the building is an example of perfect symmetry that predates the Parthenon, and it was the first complex built on the site she chose, which would become the Valley of the Kings. Read more about Queen Hatshepsut and the temple HERE.

Temple Of Queen Hatshepsut
Explanation from wikipedia : Osirian statues of Hatshepsut at her tomb, one stood at each pillar of the extensive structure, note the mummification shroud enclosing the lower body and legs as well as the crook and flail associated with Osiris


Making of Alabaster
On the way back, we were taken to an the countryside where there were many places selling alabaster. We were given a tour and shown how alabaster is made.

Alabaster

Alabaster
The many different types of Alabasters

Onto our last leg of the tour, we had a bit of luxury when we checked into Steigenberger Nile Palace in Luxor.

Steigenberger Nile Palace Hotel - Luxor

Learning Hieroglyphics
In the late afternoon, we had a "meeting" in one of the conference rooms for some Egyptian history lessons and our guide, Mohamad even drew some hieroglyphic for us to learn. Apparently all Egyptian tour guides had to study and pass exams on Egyptian history and hieroglyphics before they can work as tour guides.

Steigenberger Nile Palace Hotel - Luxor
We relaxed in the open air lounge before we embarked on a night out in town later ;o)



To be continued ...



21 comments:

Kok said...

wmw,
If I don't climb the mountain, I walk, can kah? :P

sc said...

wah, gotto learn hieroglyphics some more..envy envy ler..

Anonymous said...

Err.. trapped in mineshaft :S

Ciki said...

you take some killer amazing shots... hieroglyphic exam??! is that like the highest form of scholastic torture or wot.. lol. very cool.

worldwindows said...

Nice pics. Alabaster figurines catch the eye.

wmw said...

kok : Cannot walked, maybe can crawl! Hahaha...

SC : Can't remember now. Hahaha...Interesting, it's fun drawing them.

Jason : Yah, pretty suffocating inside :0

cumi&ciki : It's rather interesting, their history seems like a fantasy and hieroglyphics are so intriguing.

worldwindows: Thanks...Yeah, the alabaster stuff are pretty amazing.

Kok said...

wmw,
CRAWL meh?! Hmmm...maybe I need a pair of knee guard first... hahaha!

Anonymous said...

What a fantastic end to an exotic journey. I'm with Jackson --- wish I can visit Egypt before I turn 40, 50... whenever lah! :P

J2Kfm said...

shudder to think the feeling of trapped in mineshaft. the heat, the humidity, and the seas of humans ...

sigh ... wonder if I'll ever have the chance to travel to these type of exotic destinations.

backStreetGluttons said...

surely you will have your honeymoon here , just like we plan to

wonda said...

I forgot if you've mentioned the number of days you toured Egypt. So how long were you there?
Love the hotel - exotic, posh and palace-like. Wish there is a genie to bring there!

蓝双子 said...

wah, u visited a lot places woh. did u go to the matta fair last weekend ?

Anonymous said...

Looking forward to the continuation. :)

wmw said...

kok : Hahaha...yah, forgot about asking you to wear knee guard and don't forget to wear sunblock lotion!

Jackson : Why 40? Why not 35? Why not NOW?

LFB : Hasn't ended yet...to be continued! Hahaha...

j2kfm : I don't want to either! Hahaha...can lah, save up and travel the world!

BSG : No ah, I don't want honeymoon here...I want it to be in either NZ or USA!

HairyBerry said...

alabaster sounds like plaster, hor? hehe...both also made from almost the same materials. but of course, alabaster looks so much more exquisite.

very nice pics lar!!! ;D

yammylicious said...

i heart the open air lounge.. nice!!!!

wmw said...

wonda : I was there for 2 weeks. Bring genie there? I want to find a genie! Hahaha...

bluegemini: Quite a number, thanks to my company :o). Didn't go Matta fair, did you?

Lee Ping: Well, stay tuned! :o)

Nic : Looks really nice (and they are more expensive than plastic too! Hahaha). Thanks, still learning how to operate the camera lah...haven't really sat down to fiddle with it.

Yammylicious : Yah, at night got performance too, out in the open!

daphne said...

wnw-that looks lovely. That would have wowed me!

Rasa Malaysia said...

MW, how are you? haven't been here for a while, in fact, I haven't been able to read any blogs other than mine in the past few months due to so many happenings and overseas traveling. Sigh. But I am glad that you are still on the topic of Egypt, you definitely documents your travels the best. For me, after I come back, I forgot everything, including all the wonderful places I had just visited. LOL.

Terri @ A Daily Obsession said...

i love ur egypt photos :)

wmw said...

Daphne : The alabaster or the hotel?? :o)

RM : Hahaha...I seem to be on Egypt forever eh? Thanks for dropping by though busy :o)

Terri : Thanks so much for the compliment :o)