My Egypt – Part 8

January 10, 2017
Edfu
This morning our tour began at 6:30, just as the golden sun was rising over Egypt.
A carriage took us to the temple of Edfu. I was very impressed by the architecture and decided instantly in my mind that this was my favourite one of all the temples we’ve seen so far. The Edfu temple is dedicated to the falcon god Horus.
The temple of Horus is the only temple which is still fully intact. It was built by the Greek in year 237 BC, and finished in the year 57 BC.
The temple consists of 4 parts – the first element being the pilum, the second part the huge two towers, the third part being the hypo style hall, and the fourth part being the sanctuary and Holy of Holies.
Looking at all this I am reminded of the temple service in ancient Jerusalem, and how this is a copied image of that. So many things are similar if not even alike; and one can see that it was copied from the Jewish Religion. The reason why Horus took on the body of a falcon is so he can shoot straight up into the sky, to intervene between heaven and earth.
I stared at the hieroglyphs in wonder, surprised by their perfection. An entire story was carved into one of the walls, so Abdul tells us. Abdul also explained to us the technique of shaving; wax was used to get rid of all unwanted hair, then salt was rubbed into the skin to make it glow. But in the pre-dynastic times a flint was used to shave the head.
There are so many stories written on these walls, so many hidden mysteries. One wonders about ancient footsteps walking along these same old rocks. Who were they and what were these people really like?
We returned to the boat and we sat on the sun deck, watching the land of Egypt slowly passing by. A cup of tea by my side, I really could get used to this lifestyle.
Luxor is coming closer. We approached the locks. The boat waited for over an hour until it was finally our turn to go through. Apparently, it is a 10 m drop between each side. While we waited, little boats arrived at the side with men inside holding up Egyptian linen and scarfs, desperately trying to sell their ware. We chuckled as we watched the demonstration. One person from our boat agreed to buy something and the man bundled up the ware and threw it up, where it accidentally landed in the pool. Thankfully it was wrapped in plastic. In return the money went into the plastic bag and was thrown down towards the man in the boat. Voila, that’s how business is done in Egypt.
At 5 pm we reached Luxor; the city which has changed its name so many times. But one well-known name from ancient times, known to some people today was Thebes. We watched through our window in our room as Luxor approached closer and closer, and my heart skipped a beat. We were here. The city that has seen so many events throughout history. This was the home of Tutankhamun, the young boy king, and the place where the very first pharaoh Seqenenra, ruled upper and lower Egypt. Excitement coursed through my veins as I thought of all the people that once walked on these rocks outside of my window.
Only one hour after docking, Abdul took us over to the Karnak Temple to watch the amazing Sound & Light Show. It was incredible to see the buildings in the dark, with haunting shadows reaching out, as the light lit up the wall, telling stories of ancient times. Tomorrow we will tour the entire temple complex in daylight.
We sleep another night on this amazing cruise ship, the Nile gently rocking us to sleep.