Friday, April 1, 2011____86 degrees 7:00 AM -_Midnight
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| Ship docked in Safago, Egypt |
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| Armed vehicle along the road |
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| Security vehicle in front of bus convoy |
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| Many police check points along road |
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| Donkey and driver along road |
Sitting on the northeast corner of Africa, with coastlines along the Mediterranean and Red seas, Egypt borders Libya to the west, Israel to the east and Sudan to the south. Over 90% of the country is desert and most of the 74 million population live along the Nile Valley and in the Nile Delta, with a small percentage living in the oases that dot the barren interior. Port Safaga is a town in Egypt on the coast of the Red Sea. It is situated within a natural harbor surrounded by coral reefs and small islands. It is approached from the Northeast as the southern and eastern approaches are marked by several protected reefs. Having numerous phosphate mines, it is regarded as a top phosphates export center and a marine port connected by a regular cruise shuttle service line with Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
Safaga is reputable for its unpolluted atmosphere, black sand dunes and mineral springs which have acquired specific characteristics for remedy of rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis. The sea water is known to be highly saline and rich in minerals which are beneficial for the skin. It is a good starting point for a day trip to the sights of Luxor, one of the most impressive sights of Egypt, only 137 miles away.
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| Good example of hieroglyphics |
Karnak is second in importance after Giza. It covers over 100 acres on the east bank of the Nile north of Luxor. It includes a huge temple of Amun, the king of the gods, along with many other smaller temples and obelisks. Taking over 1300 years to complete, Karnak lay buried under the sand until excavation began in the mid 19th C. The size of Karnak is impressive, especially when you remember that it was all built by hand, with hundreds of thousands of workers.
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| Avenue of Ram-Headed Sphinxes |
The Avenue of Ram-Headed Sphinxes leads to the temple entrance and the 3000 year old Hypostyle Hall—a colonnade featuring 134 immense and richly decorated columns supported a high stone slab roof. The complex also boasts the Obelisk of Queen Hatshepsut, the Temple of Amen-Re, and the Sacred Lake. An enormous statue of Ramses II seems to welcome visitors, but his arms forbiddingly cross his chest.
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| Ramses II statue |
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| Sacred Lake |
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| hieroglyphics |
A hieroglyph is a character used in a system of pictorial writing, particularly that form used on ancient Egyptian monuments. Hieroglyphic symbols may represent the objects that they depict but usually stand for particular sounds or groups of sounds. Hieroglyph, meaning “sacred carving” is a Greek translation of the Egyptian phrase “the god’s words” which was used at the time of the early Greek contacts with Egypt to distinguish the older hieroglyphs from the handwriting of the day.
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| Example of the writing in tombs |
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| Aerial view of Valley of the Kings |
The Valley of the Kings site in a remote location on the west bank of the Nile. It refers to the lavish hillside tombs that date from ancient Egypt’s 18th, 19th, and 20th Dynasties where the pharaohs are buried. The individual royal tombs were chiseled deep into steep solid-rock slopes. These passages in the Valley of Kings were constructed solely for the sarcophagus. Once the body was inside, the tunnel was sealed for eternity. Interior décor tells of a society’s fervent belief in a tangible afterworld.
Ancient Egyptians believed the deceased sailed all night through the Underworld. The Sun God pointed the way through the darkness, but various guides or gatekeepers might have to be paid for their services during the journey. Murals on the walls tell of the impending pilgrimage and offer directions in case the traveler should get lost in the darkness.
On the way back to the ship we stopped briefly at Colossi of Memnon for pictures. These 64 foot twin statues of Amenhotep III are all that remain of a once-great temple.
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