Dazzling Abu Simbel

[NOTE: Lee has finally been able to upload his series of blog posts written over the past few days which have gone unpublished due to poor 'net connections which kept him from putting them on line before this. He has also added lots of photographs to previous posts, so look back over the past week or so of posts to gain a better sense of what we've been experiencing.]

The buses left in the pre-dawn darkness for the three-plus hour drive through the desert to Abu Simbel on the shore of Lake Nasser south of Aswan. We drove with armed escorts in a convey of large vehicles allowing each of us a full seat to ourselves. Equipped with snacks and with an on-board bathroom available, we sailed on through the early hours of the morning, witnessing the rising of the sun and lots and lots and lots of sand leavened with rocky outcroppings and distant mountain ridges. We passed checkpoints (with their sleepy guards) and military compounds and an occasional mining operation as the day brightened and grew warmer.

We arrived in the parking lot with several other buses dropping off those who had flown in for their assorted tours, and suddenly the serene emptiness of the desert was filled with a seathing crowd of visitors all being funneled through an undermanned admission turnstile complete with security check. Once inside, however, the crowd cleared a bit as multiple groups assembled and took their various paths down to the temple entrance. The longer we lingered, the smaller the crowds. By the end of our two-and-one-half hour stay, we pretty much had the place to outselves -- and that's when the majesty of the site could really sink in.

What interested us most were the quality and condition of the temple's interior carvings and coloration. One sees photographs of the extrerior statuary but seldom of the interior rooms, their walls and pillars rich with beautiful paintings and incised pictures telling the now familiar stories associated with Ramses IV who commissioned this marvelous place and the adjacent temple honoring his favorite Nefetari. Unfortunately, only exterior photography is allowed, so Lee can share only photos of the statues of Ramses IV and Nefetari flanking the entrances to the two rock-carved exteriors.

As you look at them, think about how difficult it must have been for UNESCO to move all this fifty years ago from the original site some hundreds of feet below the surface of Lake Nasser ...
Believe us, the trip was well worth the drive and the early morning wake-up all (even though it really spaced out Heidi for the remainder of the afternoon. After all, by the time we sat down to lunch at 2:00 p.m. or so back at out hotel in Aswan (the beautifully situated Basma Hotel), we had already been up and about for over ten hours!

Before a late buffet dinner this evening at our hotel, we went off to the local market. Aswan is known particularly for its spices (which many of us sought out to buy), but we enjoyed the entire overall shopping experience just as much, walking along the nicely kept stone roadway past well stocked stores and neatly arranged merchandise, joined by lots of others out for an evening stroll. Even the heavy-handed touts couldn't dampen the mood!