Kom Ombo: Temple of Sobek

Fierce protector god, Sobek

Thursday 24 January: Today I queue for a 1st class train ticket (E£13) to the small town of Kom Ombo, 25 miles north of Aswan. From the sleepy station a private taxi (E£20) drops me off at the small but unique Nileside temple, 3 miles east of town, the driver is happy. 
Of similar age to the Temple of Isis at Philae, many of the reliefs were completed by Ptolemy XII (Cleopatra VII's father) during the Ptolemaic (33rd) Dynasty, about 2,300 years ago. However, the fierce crocodile-headed god, Sobek, had been worshipped here at his cult centre since predynastic times when sacred crocodiles would have basked in the sun on the riverbank.
What makes the temple architecturally unique is that it was actually two temples, one each side of central axis. Falcon-headed sky god, Haroeris, was worshipped on the left side and Sobek on the right. Behind the temple a new museum showcases thirty mummified crocodiles, a few of many exhumed from sacred tombs in this area.
Negotiating a taxi back to the station (E£10) I jump on the next, 3rd class (94th mode of transport), train south and, as tourists aren't allowed on some trains, I pay on the train. It's E£2 (about 20p) for the for the reasonably comfortable, but slow, one-hour journey back to Aswan. Good day out.
Slideshow of Kom Ombo Temple.

Abu Simbel

Giant builder, Ramses the Great

Monday 21 January: I'm back in Aswan primarily to visit Ramses the Great's two magnificent temples at Abu Simbel. As a legacy of the turbulent 1990's vehicles heading to the site, 175 miles south of Aswan, must travel in convoy. This gives me two options, either to take the 7:00am local bus, arriving at midday, or opting for a minibus tour, departing at 3:00am. I choose the latter as it will give me more time at the monuments, but I will have to suffer the company of a multitude of package-tourists from the coach convoy (94th mode of transport).
Temple of Ramses II
Arriving at 7:00am I rush ahead of the disorganised tourist hordes and for a while have the colossal rock-sculptured temple frontage all to myself. Awesome is a word often inappropriately used nowadays but the four giant statues of Ramses II are just that. The facial features of each statue are slightly different, ageing slowly from left to right to emphasise the great king's long,19th Dynasty, 67-year reign. The greatest of all the New Kingdom pharaohs, Ramses II built Abu Simbel around 3,250 years ago as a show of strength to any Nubian boatmen approaching from the south. The numerous inner chambers are a delight with colourful reliefs depicting everything from scenes from daily life to warfare scenes showing Ramses II smiting and trampling his northern Hittite enemies at the Battle of Kadesh (no photos allowed).
Temple of Hathor
Ramses II dedicated the nearby Temple of Hathor to his favourite wife, Nefertari, and, unusually at the time, her statues are carved in equal proportion to his own. During his long 96 year life Ramses the Great had 200 wives and legitimate consorts who, between them, bore him as many as 90 sons and 60 daughters, probably more.
Originally carved out of a mountain on the west bank of the Nile, both temples were sliced into manageable blocks and relocated here to avoid being submerged by the rising waters of Lake Nasser. Returning to Aswan we stop briefly to look at the High Dam, four hours drive to the north.
Slideshow of Abu Simbel.

Philae: Temple of Isis

Goddess of magic's cult temple

Two main types of temple were constructed in ancient Egypt: mortuary temples, dedicated to the memory of a pharaoh and his journey to the afterlife, and cult temples, dedicated to a deity linked with a particular place. Funerary temples were always built west of the Nile, a direction associated with sunset and death, whereas cult temples were usually built in the east, a direction associated with sunrise, birth and life. Philae temple, where the beautiful cult goddess of Isis was worshipped, was constructed relatively recently during the Ptolemaic (33rd) Dynasty, a mere 2,300 or so years ago.
Tuesday 25 December: My Christmas treat is to visit the legendary 19th century Nile cruise destination of Philae and a taxi from Aswan soon drops me off near the temple ticket office at Philae's boat jetty. Ticket (E£50) in hand I soon realise that a motorboat to the island is charged extra. I know this and, of course, the boatmen know it too. I'm over a barrel and I know it, they know it, and they know that I know . . .
A small fortune later (E£70) and the elegant columns and bulky pylon towers of the temple slowly appear above the rippling waters of Lake Nasser. It's almost lunchtime and, apart from a Chinese family, I have the whole island to myself, I've chosen my time wisely.
Often appearing in Victorian sketch books the small columned kiosk of Roman Emperor Trojan is far less impressive than the double-colonnaded approach to the massive twin pylons of the Temple of Isis. The front wall has deep-cut reliefs, one featuring Ptolemy XII, Cleopatra VII's (of Caesar and Mark Anthony fame) father smiting his enemies. Many of the columns are decorated with reliefs of Isis and her consort, obscure Nubian lion-headed goddess, Arensnuphis. As well as being the goddess of magic, Isis was also the protector of mothers, children and the Ritual of Life. Daughter of the sky goddess Nut, she married her brother, Osiris, and conceived Horus with him. Exalted throughout ancient Egypt the worship of Isis spread throughout the Greco-Roman world, to as far afield as Britain, before being usurped by the later cult of Christ.
Like a giant children's Lego kit the whole temple was dismantled, block-by-block, during the construction of Aswan High Dam and reassembled here prior to the original site being flooded by Lake Nasser in 1980.
Slideshow of Philae Temple.

Aswan

Feluccas bob gently on the Nile

Sunday 23 December: The first-class sleeper train from Cairo (93rd mode of transport) is slow but remarkably comfortable, squeaky-clean with crisp white sheets. Alcohol is no longer served (shame I really was looking forward to a cold beer in the lounge car). At US$80 for the overnight trip, including dinner and breakfast, it's a fair deal and by mid-morning I'm strolling down Aswan's riverside Corniche towards my hotel.
Located on a pretty section of the river, Aswan is Egypt's southernmost town and a good base for exploring Upper Egypt's monuments, tombs and temples. I have a large en-suite room with a twin-aspect balcony in the El Salam Hotel on the Corniche. There are great views from the rooftop restaurant where a simple breakfast of boiled egg, soft cheese wedges, bread, jam and tea or coffee, is served daily. At first glance the hotel itself looks a little grubby but actually it's perfectly clean and tidy, just a little bit old and tired. At E£88 (about £8.80) a night it's difficult to find fault.
Sunday 25: It's Christmas evening and I intended dining out in the Old Cataract Hotel, where Agatha Christi wrote Death on the Nile, but as business is slack their only open restaurant is the reasonably priced French style 'The Terrace'. Unfortunately it's an outdoor terrace which is slightly chilly after dusk. So I only stay long enough to see a glorious sunset from the Old Cataract's bar before heading to a good old Arab restaurant, El Masry, in town. The food here is good Egyptian fare - charcoal grilled chicken and lamb, various soups, rice and salads but no alcohol is served. Aswan is quiet at night so I head back to the El Salam where there's a few cans of beer that I bought in Cairo (just in case!). Relaxing I open my laptop and a beer, and then do what most people do at this time of the year - drink too much and watch an old movie - a 1978 whodunit - Death on the Nile.
Wednesday 26: Taking the local ferry across to Elephantine Island I visit the ancient ruins of Abu but there's little to see and I end up spending most of my time sitting in one of the riverside restaurants trying to spot bird life and watching the feluccas (sailing boats) gliding across the Nile until sunset. I had hoped to remain in Aswan for the whole of the festive season but I'm going to head north to slightly livelier Luxor for the New Year, I'll be back.
Sunday 20 January 2013: I'm back in Aswan to visit a must see, Abu Simbel temple on the banks of Lake Nasser, a four-hour drive south. But today I'm just hopping over to the west bank to check out Aswan's Tombs of the Nobles. Refreshingly, non-flash photography is allowed and I tackle the tombs in chronological order.
Tomb of Mekhu & Sabni (# 25 & 26)
A double tomb for a father and his son from the time of 6th Dynasty, Old Kingdom, pharaoh Pepi II, about 4,300 years ago. Prince Mekhu was killed in battle in Nubia and the colourful reliefs show Sabni, his son, avenging the older man's death.
Tomb of Sarenput I (# 36)
 A large tomb from the reign of 12th Dynasty, Middle Kingdom, pharaoh Sesostris I, around 3,950 years before present. The vault is undecorated inside but reliefs cut on the outer wall, behind the outer pillared courtyard, depict Sarenput with his dog and wife, on the opposite wall a queue of flower-bearing concubines approach the seated governor. Heaven indeed.
Tomb of Sarenput II (# 31)
The grandson of Sarenput I, he governed Upper Egypt during the reign of 12th Dynasty pharaoh Amenemhat II, about 3,900 years ago, and his tomb is the most striking of the group. The access corridor, lined with six statues of Sarenput in side niches, leads to a four square-pillared burial chamber with a deep recess painted on each side with scenes from Sarenput's family life.
Outside, views from the tomb path back down to the Nile and beyond are a pleasant fresh-air diversion between the stuffy tombs.
Nubia Museum

Tuesday 22: Again, with non-flash photography allowed, the Nubia Museum is a real highlight of my visit to Aswan. I just love the early non-pottery stone bowls (how did they do it?) and small copper chisels used to carve rock as hard as granite, yes this was all the ancient builders had. Sightly later statues too - marching Nubian warriors, goddess Isis suckling a baby Hathor, god of wisdom Thoth in the guise of a baboon, a super head of 25th Dynasty black Nubian pharaoh Taharka, a near complete statue of the great builder Ramses II and an almost perfect black stone-carved image of Hathor, goddess of love. In the side-hall there are several mummys saved from the lands now beneath Lake Nasser. A mummified goat and the exquisite guilded-golden face of a nameless princess stand out among them.
Wednesday 23: A short stroll behind the Nubia Museum is an ancient quarry where a huge pink-granite obelisk remains in place. Flawed and discarded in antiquity you can still see how it was excavated. They slowly pounded away at the hard rock with slightly harder black cobblestones to produce deep channels on either side. This must have taken an age - but how the hell did they plan to move such a massive column without snapping it?
Slideshow of Aswan.

Dashur

Sneferu's unusual Bent Pyramid

Friday 21 December: A handful of miles south of Saqqara is the bleak desert landscape of Dashur where two later, Old Kingdom, stone-built pyramids still survive, both constructed by 4th Dynasty pharaoh, Sneferu, around 4,600 years ago.
Bent Pyramid
Sneferu's architects built the bottom-half of this smooth limestone-clad structure at the same steep angle as Zoser's earlier step pyramid. But following the collapse of a similar pyramid at Meidum they were forced to complete the top-half at a reduced building angle, thus producing the misshapen 'Bent Pyramid'.
Red Pyramid
Lessons learnt, Sneferu's builders started again and constructed the whole of the Red Pyramid at the same shallow angle as the top-half of the Bent Pyramid. Perfectly symmetrical and a joy to admire the Red Pyramid remains the world's oldest true pyramid. The fine-quality limestone cladding was removed in antiquity exposing the red masonry beneath that gives the Red Pyramid its name. The steep entrance tunnel leads down through two anti-chambers to the amazing high corbelled-ceiling of the burial chamber where, it's thought, Sneferu was interred. It seems hardly surprising that he would have chosen to be entombed here rather than within the uglier double-sloped Bent Pyramid nearby. 
Slideshow of Dashur. 

Saqqara

Zoser's stone stairway to heaven

Thursday 20 December: I'm in Cairo, Egypt's capital, a teeming north African city of 20 million inhabitants and today I feel like I've bumped into all of them. Chaos, uncertainty, infrastructure breakdown, dust, dirt, cigarette smoke, noise, air pollution, horn after horn pumping loudly, market traders shouting, bus televisions and taxi radios blaring. But, warts and all, I like this city. Popping down to Tahir Square I take a look in on Garden City House, an old British archaeologists hang-out that I know well, then I return to Cairo's magnificent colonial-style Ramses station to book my sleeper berth south to Aswan. As much as I like Cairo it's getting cold in the evenings and there's likely to be violent protests this weekend, so this is just a short visit. 
Friday 21: For all map-makers out there, not surprisingly, Mubarak metro station has changed it's name but at other stations down the line the name 'Mubarak' has simply been crossed out, not yet replaced. I'm taking the cheap and surprisingly clean Metro (92nd mode of transport) southbound to Giza Station and, once there, I find myself sitting in one of those noisy taxis, radio blaring, driver chain-smoking, but I'm happy, I'm on my way to Saqqara.
Step Pyramid
My reason for travelling to this remote spot, southwest of Cairo, is that I want to to see the Step Pyramid, or Zoser's Pyramid, the world's earliest cut-stone structure. Also it's the world's oldest pyramid, built in 2,650BC (nearly five-thousand years ago) by 3rd Dynasty royal architect Imhotep as the tomb for his pharaoh, Zoser. In Old Kingdom Egypt royals were normally buried in underground vaults marked only by a mud-brick mastaba but Imhotep originated two innovations. Firstly, he used quarried stone as a building material and, secondly, he constructed a pyramid-shaped structure with it. This was a colossal step both in tomb design and also in project management. This innovation heralded not only the construction of all of Egypt's later architectural wonders but many other pyramids including the world's newest and Europe's highest, London Southbank's glass-clad skyscraper, The Shard.
Interestingly, despite much research over many years, the location of Imhotep's own tomb remains a mystery. Don't you just love it? I've been here before, years ago, but since then several new discoveries have been made and I'll soon be coming back to investigate them.
Slideshow of Saqqara.

Egypt: Dahab

Laid-back backpacker's haven

Tuesday 18 December: The slow ferry docks at Neweiba, Egypt's gulf port, at 5:00am - that was quick. But, we are kept on board for a further two hours until the customs officers arrive, it's not the ferry that's slow! Eventually I get a shared taxi south to the laid-back beach resort of Dahab where independent travellers are still the rule rather than the exception. The restaurant-lined beach is back-dropped by the desolate desert mountains of the Sinai Peninsula, and the Bedouin run compound-style Golden Star Hotel is my kind of place, I'll stay a couple of days.
Slideshow of Dahab.

Wadi Rum

Lawrence's desert vista

Monday 10 December: From Aqaba, Wadi Rum is an easy, if brief, day trip (the last bus back is at midday). So I take the 7:00am bus to ensure that I have time for a two-hour trek up to and around the Seven Pillars of Wisdom rock outcrop.
During the 1917 to 1918 Arab Revolt, British army officer TE Lawrence used Wadi Rum as an operations base and much of the epic movie Lawrence of Arabia was shot on location here. You can just imagine Lawrence's ragtag Arab cavalry charging the fleeing Turkish troops across the desert sands.
Slideshow of Wadi Rum.