Day 12 - Queen Hapshetsut and the SS Sudan

There was an emergency this morning! Kim went to the ATM to get a little more cash before we left on the cruise. She started screaming that the card was not returned. She got the money and the receipt, but no card. I had heard of schemes where thieves could rig an ATM to keep the cards and return later to get them. Last night, we noticed that the bank was working on the ATM. We just hoped that the ATM was still malfunctioning! Our guide was ready to leave and the hotel said that the bank did not open until 9:00, so there was nothing we could do.

We went to Hatshepsut’s temple this morning. She had married her half-brother Tutmosis II (there was lots of incest going on back in those days). When he died, his son (Tutmosis III) from another wife became Pharaoh. Since he was too young to rule, Hatshepsut became regent. After a few years, she took over as Pharaoh. Because she did not have a legitimate right to the throne, she concocted a story of how the god, Amun, impregnated her mother and she was now the child of a god. In most of her statues, she is portrayed as a man. She built this fabulous temple into the side of a mountain. It has been reconstructed and is beautiful in construction. When Tutmosis III grew old enough, he kicked Hatshepsut out of power and defaced or covered up her temples and monuments. Her cartouche has been erased from this temple and her statues have been beheaded.

On the way back to Luxor, we stopped at TiTi Oraby Alabaster Factory. The building was built over top of a noble’s tomb. Many of the houses in this area are built over tombs and have been plundered over the years. I was at this place nine years ago. When we entered, we got a demonstration of how they work alabaster by hand into the final shape. In the showroom, each time we would touch something, he would try to sell it to us. He guided us around the entire shop. At one point, he showed us a scarab that his grandfather had made. He said it was so good, that if we bought it, he would give us a business card. He said the officials at the airport would think the scarab was an antique and we were trying to smuggle it out of the country. I wonder if he really thought we believed that story. We bought three pieces that I bargained pretty hard for. I suspect that I still paid too much for them, but they are nice.

The guide and I dropped Kim off at the cruise ship and we returned to the hotel. After several phone calls, we went to the bank to get our ATM card back. We had to wait a long time while a technician went to retrieve the card. I did not really know what was going on, because our guide was speaking in Arabic and gave me few details. The guide told them that our ship was leaving at 12:00, so they would speed-up the process. Suddenly, a manager asked if this was my card. I thought he would hand it to me and we could be on our way. I guess it doesn’t happen that way in Egypt. I had to talk to two managers, turn over my passport, and wait an excruciatingly long time to get it back. It was a relief to have it back.

Now Kim and I could enjoy our time on the SS Sudan. It is the one of two steam ships cruising the Nile. The rest of the ships are like big boxy Motel 8’s floating on the river. In the late 1800’s, Thomas Cook had a fleet of steam ships constructed for Nile Cruises. This particular ship was built for King Fouad in 1885. It stayed in the family until the revolution in 1952. It has been refurbished and is run by Voyageurs du Monde. All of the staff wears period uniforms. Agatha Christie toured Egypt and cruised on this ship. This experience inspired her to write the novel “Death on the Nile”. In fact, it was the movie that helped us decide on the trip to Egypt this year.

Agatha Christie had decided to spend some time in Egypt to help her get over a bad marriage. It was on the Sudan that she met an archeologist, who was to become the love of her life. After marrying, she stated that that archeologists make the best husbands because the older you get the more interested they become in you.

The ship is absolutely beautiful. We spent the first half hour walking around taking pictures. When we came on board, they gave us a cool cloth to wipe our hands and face. We were also given a cool hibiscus drink as well. We have the Agatha Christie suite. It looks out onto the bow of the ship and we have full side views.

Lunch was served buffet-style in the dining-room. It was very good. Both of us still were not feeling well, so we tried to eat as little as possible. Our waiter was very attentive. If our water glasses were down, even a little, he would fill them for us. We are not used to this kind of service. We also started to look at our fellow travelers around the room. It looks like most, if not all, of them are French. I hope we can talk with them later.
























We were introduced to our guide (thank God he can speak English). We were originally told that we might only have French guides. The only French I know is kissing and I wasn’t going to communicate with him that way! One couple was from Switzerland, Sabina and Luke, speak excellent English, so we toured together. Our first tour was the Karnak Temple. It was a large temple complex that was expanded by each new Pharaoh. King Tutankhamen built a chapel and put up statues for his wife and himself. At one time, as many as 80,000 people worked at building this temple. It was built and rebuilt over a span of 1,500 years.

We spent a lot of time in the big hypostyle hall. It has 134 pillars and still has some original paint on those pillars. Our guide took us around the walls and told us what was going on in each scene. He took more time than we thought he would. He is very knowledgeable about the temple and the scenes depicted on the walls.


















Our next stop was Luxor temple. It was built by Amenhotep III. He also didn’t have a legitimate right to the throne either, so he used Hatshepsut’s story about being the son of a god to stay in power. When Alexander the Great conquered Egypt, he rebuilt the “Holy of the Holies”. He put his picture on the walls and his name in a cartouche as if he was a Pharaoh. During the early Christian era, the Christians were persecuted by the Romans. They would use the ruined temples as a sanctuary or a church. Because the pagan gods and scenes offended the Christians, they would try to chisel away the features. Because they would cook in these temples, the painted ceilings would be turned black. The early Christians turned the Luxor temple into a Coptic Christian Church. When the Romans expelled the Christians, they erected their own temples to their gods. After the Arab invasion and the conversion to Islam, a mosque was erected. Luxor temple has been worshiped by the Pharaohs, Greeks, Romans, Christians, and the Muslims.

Before we were done with the tour, our guide received a call from the ship wanting to know where we were. Dinner was supposed to start soon and we were not on board yet. Our guide takes his time and covers a lot of good information. We didn’t care if we were a little late. Kim was getting tired and was happy that the tours were over.

We went to bed early, because we were to be up and ready to go by 6:30 the next morning. We have a full day planned.