An overnight train, a bus, a boat, and a ride in the back of a pickup truck brought us to a Nubian Village just outside of Aswan. After our home-hosted meal with a local family we hurried back to our hotel to snuggle in for a very short night’s sleep. We had to start out to Abu Simbel at 4 a.m. this morning.
The temples at Abu Simbel are just shy of the Sudan border. They only open the road from five until four; so you have to make sure you are ready to go right when the gate opens. The temples are worth it. Originally they were carved into the side of a mountain. Which is unbelievable considering how enormous they are. Rameses II had it built to celebrate his power—I’m convinced. Even more remarkable is how Abu Simbel arrived at its new location. When the High Damn was built in Aswan the temples were in danger of being submerged under water. An international team of experts put their heads together and rock by rock moved both the temple for Rameses II and the temple for his wife Nefertari to higher ground. The back story makes these temples even more interesting. Of course Dad loved that Rameses II had his wife’s image chiselled into the wall as a cow. Apparently this makes her a god, and apparently it is a compliment. If Dad decides to refer to me as his special cow there might be words. You are always in my Prayers. Love Mom.
19 Comments
Roberta
1/28/2019 08:50:23 am
Amazing!
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Diane
1/28/2019 11:22:43 am
And to think that before I came here I knew nothing about Abu Simbel. So much to learn.
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Miss H.
1/28/2019 09:12:31 am
Missed you the last couple days. Good old winter is causing bus cancellations galore! Remember those days!? It's almost -30 degrees Celsius with the windchill here. We are interested in just how warm it is in Egypt right now. Does it get significantly colder at night as it is desert? Do you feel the humidity, or is it just really hot?
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Ray
1/28/2019 11:17:33 am
It has been in the low to mid 20's during the day and low teens at night. It is however not humid, so clothes dry quickly. Today driving back through the Sahara desert it was warm enough that we saw mirages.
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Kayden
1/28/2019 09:44:04 am
why are people carved into the side of the mountain
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Ray
1/28/2019 11:21:16 am
Rameses II built this temple on Egypt's southern border. He wanted anyone attacking from the South to see his 4 large statues carved into the side of a mountain and think twice about attacking such a powerful king.
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S.J
1/28/2019 09:46:12 am
How long was the the train ride to Aswan?
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Ray
1/28/2019 11:23:28 am
We got on board at 8 o'clock in the evening. They served us supper and the we slept until morning. They then served breakfast and we got off about 8:00 in the morning. So 12 hours.
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Jakob
1/28/2019 09:50:29 am
Have you found any rocks that fell off pyramids?
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Ray
1/28/2019 10:40:51 pm
There are rocks lying around the base of the pyramids from the pyramids. You can touch them but you must leave them where the are.
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Ray
1/28/2019 11:25:36 am
There are rocks lying around the base of the pyramids from the pyramids. You can touch them but you must leave them where the are.
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Tara Brennan
1/28/2019 04:42:23 pm
Looks amazing! A far cry from the weather we're having here.
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Diane
1/28/2019 10:41:26 pm
Yes, we are actually going swimming in the Nike today😄
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Mrs. B.
1/30/2019 07:53:54 am
Aiden says that you maybe shouldn't swim in the Nile. He watched a YouTube video that suggested it is quite polluted. We are wondering what it was like.
Ray
1/30/2019 09:27:20 am
At some spots along the Nile and canals connected to the nile we have seen a lot of garbage. They did select a spot were the water was clear. Diane went in but I didn't because the watter was cold.
W3B
1/29/2019 09:08:45 am
We are very excited to see these amazing pictures! We only have 4 student's here today in our class!
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Ray
1/30/2019 09:23:48 am
All four big statues are of the same Pharaoh Ramses II. They used to be lower down by the river. After they built the High Aswan dam they moved them to this spot by the lake. We drove for three hours by bus to see them. Near by there is a ferry dock that goes to Sudan only 20 km away. We did sail under one large suspension bridge on our way from Aswan. Our Felucca did not lower it's mast quite enough and it scraped the bridge.
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Seth
1/30/2019 07:56:11 am
Why is one of the statues completely gone but the others are still there?
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Ray
1/30/2019 09:16:35 am
The damage occured in an earthquake.
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