Day 16 – Good-bye Sudan

It was sad to leave the Sudan this morning. We were living large on board. We found out that Sabina and Luke were also going to the Mövenpick hotel tonight. We made plans to get together after our tour. They were going to relax in the hotel for the day. Our new tour guide met us in the lobby and we were off to the unfinished obelisk. Aswan was the only convenient source of granite next to the Nile. It is hard to believe that they could have quarried granite with only stone tools, but you can see the marks for many blocks of stone that were removed from this site. Our guide showed some marks in the rocks where the Egyptians would cut rectangular holes and then fill them with wood. Water would be added to make the wood expand. This would create enough force to crack the granite in the direction they wanted to cut the rock. When I was here nine years ago, you could walk on the unfinished obelisk. Now there is a fence to keep you off of it.

As with any monument, you exit through the bazaar. It is the hot season and tourism is low. We think this makes the venders more aggressive. Kim found a “hand-carved” camel statue she wanted. I started the bargaining process by asking his price. He said “400 Egyptian Pounds”. My reply was 5 pounds. He laughed at me and said my offer was ridiculous. I replied that it was no more ridiculous than his offer. He only dropped to 300 pounds before we walked away. Ten feet further we got the same camel for 15 pounds from another vendor.

Our guide was good at the quarry, but he fell apart in the Nubian Museum. Once we got to the main floor, he would read the tag and then repeat it back to us. He must have thought that we couldn’t read the signs that were in English. He must have thought that most Americans were illiterate. Once we got to the modern period, he was very animated. He did a good job of describing modern Nubian life. This area of Egypt is populated by the Nubians. They are darker than the northern Egyptians. During the Pharaohnic times, the Egyptians conquered Nubia. At one point, they returned the favor.

We were to meet Sabina and Luke to walk through the two Nubian villages on Elephantine Island. We could not find a gate to exit the Mövenpick compound. We were informed that we would have to jump the fence at the water’s edge. We opted for the pool instead.

After dinner, we met Sabina and Luke for drinks in the hotel’s tower. It afforded a great view of Aswan.