Our 8th day in Egypt was spent in ancient Aswan, the southern-most city in Egypt with a population of approximately 300,000.  This city is considered to be one of the driest, sunniest and hottest places in the world and as such, our early morning excursion began at 7:00am to try and avoid the mid-day heat. 
 
Our morning destination was the famous Aswan Quarry, the preferred source for granite throughout Egypt in ancient times.  The quarry, which is now an open-air museum and archaeological site in the city of Aswan, was a short 5 minute drive from where our Nile Cruise ship, the MS Farah, was docked.   The entrance to the museum is at one end of the quarry and opens into a large square at the bottom of a sloping, rocky hillside.  A worn path and stone steps carved into the rock that wind around the slopes of the quarry form the trail that guides you through this ancient site.  

​Partially carved stone blocks are scattered all along the trail, but the highlight of the museum is the massive ‘Unfinished Obelisk’ which lies on an angle along the slope of the quarry and can be seen from virtually every vantage point on the trail.  It was never finished because as it was being carved from the quarry bedrock, it developed cracks and was therefore abandoned.  This obelisk, had it been completed, would have stood 138 feet tall, weighed nearly 1,200 tons and been one third taller than any other obelisk in ancient Egypt.  What I find mindboggling is that the obelisks that we had seen a few days earlier in Luxor, each weighing up to 500 tons, had been carved here in Aswan some 3000 years ago and transported nearly 250 kilometers to their final destination.  

It was 9:30am when we shuffled down the last portion of the quarry trail towards the exit of this ancient site, yet the temperature had already reached 38 Celsius.  The reflection of the sun against the quarry rock intensified the sweltering heat and I couldn’t imagine what it would be like visiting the quarry in the afternoon.  We left the quarry and boarded our air-conditioned van for the half hour drive south to our next destination - the Aswan Dam and Lake Nasser.
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The Aswan High Dam was constructed during the latter part of the 1950’s to control the seasonal flooding of the Egyptian Nile River Basin.  Previously, irrigation of the farmlands along the banks of the Nile River, which flows from Sudan in the south and then northward through Upper and Lower Egypt before it empties into the Mediterranean, depended solely on natural flooding.  The problem with natural flooding is that some years there was too much water which would destroy crops, while other years, there wasn’t enough water which resulted in droughts.  The building of the Aswan High Dam resulted in the creation of Lake Nasser, stretching 479 kilometers to the south with a width of 16 kilometers at its widest point, making it one of the largest man-made lakes in the world.  The dam, and the associated reservoir formed by Lake Nasser, allows controlled flooding to take place throughout Egypt’s Nile basin while also generating hydroelectricity contributing to Egypt’s agriculture and developing economy.

​Following our brief visit to the dam, we boarded a boat that transported us on the lake to the small island of Agika to visit the Philae Temple.  Originally built during the reign of Ptolemy II, the Philae Temple is dedicated to the goddess Isis and its walls contain scenes from the Egyptian mythical story of Isis, including bringing her husband Osiris back to life, giving birth to Horus, and mummifying Osiris after his death.  While the temple is currently situated on Agika, it was originally on a different island, but when the Aswan dam was being built, there was fear that it would be submerged.  The Egyptian government, in conjunction with UNESCO, drained the water around the original location and moved the Temple, stone by stone, to Agika.

​After exploring the Temple, accompanied by running commentary from our guide and Egyptologist George, we boarded the boat to take us back to the entrance to the dam.  On our way back to Aswan we made a brief stop at a store specializing in Egyptian Cotton where I purchased a high-quality tee-shirt embossed with an ancient Egyptian astrology chart.  We ventured next door to an Essence shop where we enjoyed tea and received complimentary massages comprising a variety of essential oils.  Blissfully relaxed and pleasantly fragranced, we left the shop and drove a few more minutes back to Aswan and our Nile cruise ship for lunch and a refreshing swim.

​By 2:00pm we were ready to do some more exploring in the area around Aswan.  George had arranged for us to sail down the Nile towards Lake Nasser on a covered, open-air boat that picked us up at our ship.  We cruised lazily up river in the mid-afternoon sunshine, enjoying a variety of light snacks and beverages that had been provided by the tour boat.  Every once in a while, we would pass an iconic felucca gliding gracefully across the water, its single sail filled by the light breeze.  At one point, we spotted a caravan of about a dozen camels and their riders slowly making their way along the rocky bank between the river and the mounds of sand dune to the west.

​We sailed for about an hour, passing in and out of small tributaries noting the oasis-like islands covered in lush grasses, palm trees and colourful plants.  We eventually stopped at a small, sandy cove where the captain beached the boat, so we could get out and spend some time swimming in the Nile.  The water was refreshingly cool and surprising deep just a few meters from shore.  A few of the brave amongst us (I not being one) climbed atop the boat’s roof and jumped off the stern into the welcoming water below.  We spent about half an hour frolicking or floating in the river as the late afternoon light shimmered against the water’s surface.

​Back on the boat, we air-dried in the warm breeze and continued sailing for another 15 minutes before docking for our second-last stop of the day.  We exited the boat and spent a leisurely 20 minutes walking through the Aswan Botanical Gardens which featured native plants and wildlife from the area.  

​We continued walking through the village and passed several small markets.  George had arranged for us to have tea and snacks in one of the homes that overlooked the river.  The home was the residence to an extended family which consisted of 3 generations.   Along with a variety of birds that were perched around the house, the family had also made pets of several crocodiles that were kept in shallow pools.  

It was finally time to head back to Aswan, so we descended the steep slope of the Nubian hillside back to our awaiting boat.  The ride back took about one hour but allowed us to have an unobstructed view of the sun as it slowly sank beneath the sand dunes to the west, casting brilliant hues across the water.  We arrived back at the Farah shortly after 8:00pm and headed directly to the dining room for a late dinner of rice, mixed vegetables and beef kofta. 

Continue to Day 8 - click here.

After a quiet and restful night docked near the city of Edfu, we woke early and met for a buffet breakfast in the MS Farah’s main dining room at 6:00 am.   Today we would be spending a couple of hours at the historic Temple of Edfu before sailing on to Kom Ombo, about halfway between Edfu and Aswan. 
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We disembarked from the Farah and prepared to board our transport to the Ptolemic Temple of Edfu, on the west bank of the Nile, in the ancient city.  Normally we would be transported to our destination by air-conditioned van. Today we deviated a bit and instead of boarding a van, we were loaded onto horse-drawn carriages for the 20-minute ride through the narrow streets of Edfu.  

​The Ptolemic Temple of Edfu was built between 237 and 57 BC during the Hellenistic period and is dedicated to the Egyptian God Horus.  It is one of the best preserved temples in the world and provides a perfect example of how Egyptian temples were structured.   It consists of a courtyard, a garden with columns, an anti-chamber and an inner chamber that is considered the most holy part of the temple complex and which represents an extension of Egyptian heaven.  The entire temple is covered in carvings and elaborate hieroglyphics that depict ancient scenes and inscriptions from the sacred drama - the age-old conflict between Horus and the trickster, Seth.

After about an hour and half, we met our “drivers” at the temple entrance and mounted our carriages for the ride back to the Farah.  We set sail from Edfu at 9:30 am and as such, spent most of the morning and early afternoon on the pool deck swimming and lounging under the hot Egyptian sun.  At about 3:00 PM we docked at Kom Ombo, about 65 kilometres south of Edfu on the Nile, and prepared for a late afternoon visit to Kom Ombo Temple.

Kom Ombo is an agricultural town famous for the Temple of Kom Ombo, a Graeco-Roman temple built during the 3rdCentury AD. The temple is actually a double temple, dedicated to both Horus, the falcon-headed God and Sobek the crocodile God. Sobek is associated with Seth, the enemy of Horus, and this temple was his sanctuary.  At one time the Egyptian Nile was infested with crocodiles and many were kept captive in Kom Ombo Temple.  Mummified remains have been found throughout the cemeteries in and near the temple and at the Crocodile Museum.   While many areas of the original temple were destroyed, it is possible to discern how the massive blocks were attached.  The inscriptions on the walls depict the first Egyptian calendar, a variety of medical and surgical tools as well as a birthing chair.  

​Even though we began our visit of the Kom Ombo Temple at 4:00 pm (in order to avoid the mid-afternoon heat) the temperature was still sitting at 44 degrees Celcius by 5:00 pm.   We returned to the ship and had a refreshing swim in the pool before preparing for our special al Fresco Egyptian dinner on the top deck of the Farrah.  The crew were dressed in traditional Egyptian attire, and as guests, we were encouraged to do the same.  We were able to purchase some inexpensive garb from the ship’s store specifically for the occasion.  Tables were set up on the top deck and a variety of Egyptian food was laid out on kiosks at the back of the ship.   Following the feast, we gathered downstairs in the lounge for an Egyptian style party with music and dancing.  It was a great way to end another day of exploring the mysteries of the Nile.

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​Continue to Day 7 - click here.