Day 36, 9 August 2012, Farewell to MS Nile Style, hello hotel, Luxor by night - After a peaceful night docked in Luxor we bid a fond farewell to MS Nile Style and transferred to the Sonesta St George Hotel in Luxor. We repaired to the pool after the usual Egyptian arrival hiccups.... "Oh by big bed in a non-smoking room did you really mean twin beds pushed together in a smoking room?" Er... actually no oddly enough. But as we say "This is Egypt". After venturi...

Day 35, 8 August 2012, Edfu Temple, Esna Lock, Arrival in Luxor - Edfu Temple is 5 minutes from the Nile via horse & buggy. Another incredibly well preserved temple - this one in it's original position! Dedicated to Horus, the falcon god as you can see from our smiling faces in the cover photo. The horse and buggy ride from the ship to the temple had me flicking mentally through the travel insurance policy with regard to patently dangerous activities. Eve...

Day 34, 7 August 2012, Aswan to Abu Simbel (Road Trip!), Kom Ombo Temple, Egyptian Party - The day started early. Very Early. 3 am (in the morning!) early. Nevertheless, time, tide and government bus convoys wait for no tourists. We're off to Abu Simbel. As I write, the sun is rising over the Sahara, and we are speeding along an excellent road smack bang in the middle of the desert. The convoy necessitates the early start, but more importantly temperatures re...

Day 33, 6 August 2012, Train arrival at Aswan, Transfer to the ship for the Nile Cruise, Visits to Aswan's High Dam and the Temple of Philae - We arrived at the Isis Hotel Aswan for a brief freshen up and at that point did the twain divide - to meet again in a few days. We paid our upgrade money and checked into the 5 star Nile Cruise ship the MS Nile Style - our first cruise ever and on waters so smooth even I couldn't get ship-sick. Gorgeous room, big bed and ...

Day 32, 5 August 2012, The Pyramids of Giza, The Sphinx and The Pyramids of Saqquara and on to Aswan by overnight sleeper train - Our guide, like 80% of the male population in Egypt is called Mohammed. To avoid stampedes at tourist sites if one of us calls out for assistance, he goes by Momo - and our group is his family for the next week. Just like every family, there are probably one or two from the shallow end of the gene pool - but that remains to be seen. ...