Category: Luxor

It’s our last day – back to reality tomorrow.  And for the second time we didn’t venture off the island after yesterday’s exertions.

So not a lot to report, just more fabulous piccies, which aren’t especially original.  Nice view when having breakfast ….

And this sums up the weather – I think it has been the sunniest holiday ever.  A few clouds in the desert last Wednesday, but otherwise just full-on sun from dawn to dusk.

And, of course, the final show of the day.  And it is a show.  We bagged a front row seat, and were treated to resounding excerpts from De Rosenkavalier as the sun goes down.

Sun going down (again).

And so that’s about it.  Been looking back over the photos and here is a selection of some favourites in no particular order.

I liked this one, because it depicts having a haircut – one necessity for the afterlife.

Just writing this as the sun sinks over the Nile, yet again.

We ventured over to the West Bank today, to see a selection of temples and tombs.  The game is played by the “friendly” rogues who are out to hassle you and gain a few pounds.  Each tomb has its own guard with a key, and a big sign saying no photos.  So he says you can take photos as long as you don’t tell anyone and slip him E£20 (about £1).  Meanwhile, the tombs aren’t that easy to find without a guide, so one attaches himself and tells us he will protect us from hassle.  A small tip at the end is much appreciated!  The game ends when you’re tombed out – you can only take in so many amazing 3,500 year old paintings before you’ve had enough.

And we lost.  We were tombed out!

So here are a few amazing photos.  Eileen organised it all and I don’t have the details to hand, so all questions to her.

Colossus’s at the entrance.

Amazing temple.  Smaller than Karnak …

… but look at some of the preservation and colours.

Then into some tombs.  Again incredible for 3,500 years.

And also the view from the outside.

And this is a real chain-gang.  They are passing small buckets of rock down the hillside in (what was for us) extreme heat of high 20s from 5 in the morning until 1.00 and all for £3.

We returned to the pool.

And another of those boring sunsets!

We showed a singular lack of ambition today, and didn’t even venture off the island today.  Most of it was spent around the pool, but when we did get off our behinds here is a selection.

It’s that sunset again – Eileen enjoying a cocktail.

Plans are more ambitious tomorrow.  Let’s see …

So we were wandering around Karnak Temple, and Eileen said “that was quite nice”.  There is me thinking she was talking about the amazing spectacle that is Karnak, whereas she was actually referring to the lack of hassle.  But more of that later, as well as a philosophical question.

To start with, the view from breakfast on the terrace …

Then to setting up our place by the pool.

Then off to Karnak.  We had been a bit worried about the degree of hassle we might get, but taxis are so cheap that we could get one from the hotel, have him wait for a couple of hours and then take us back all for £5.  Apparently last year the taxis could wait outside the hotel for 3 days before they got a fare, so hopefully things will get a bit better for them.

Karnak.

So the question is can you feel ripped off if you haven’t been ripped off?  It was £4 to get in to the Temple.  But there is also an outside museum with many more artefacts.  Having paid our £2 to get into the museum, we realised we had been tricked and it should have been included.  Just a couple of rogues setting up a booth within the complex.  So tricked/cheated, but certainly not ripped off by the visit.

Sunsets will, I suspect, be a regular feature of our stay here, and so we might continue to bore you until we stop taking pictures!  Here is today’s from our balcony.

And finally, we were stopped a number of times for people to take our photo.  It’s obvious why they might want Eileen, much less so for me but it really did happen.

And one to generate nightmares …..

So at least the blog title is accurate now.  El Gouna had done the job, but we were ready to move on.  And it was beginning to get very windy.

The story is all about safety (it all feels very safe) and the lack of tourists.  The taxi driver was telling us that a few years ago he would be taking passengers to Luxor twice a week, now it’s once a month.  And just over a year ago they could only drive in convoy across the desert with police security and all the side roads closed.  Now we just had to give 24 hours notice and were fine, although plenty of checkpoints.

Anyway, here’s the desert.  So far the only clouds we have seen in the whole stay so far.

And then, of course, knowing it will take between 4 and 5 hours, you start to wonder about loos.  But  Lo and behold there is a shop and cafe in the middle of nowhere.   And as Eileen observed, they were a bunch of rogues – felt ripped off paying £1.50 for a coffee and 20p for a Loo is quite a feat, but they pulled it off!

Apologies now because we’re going to look smug.  Here’s the view from the balcony – that’s the Nile, with the Valley of the Kings in the background.  We like it here!

Time for a walk around the hotel grounds.  It’s on an island in the Nile just outside Luxor, and here’s one of the 3 pools.  Might try that tomorrow.

And if the sun is setting over the Nile, what better to do than enjoy it over a G&T.  Cheers!

Doesn’t come out very well, but we also had the privilege to see a murmuration.

And finally for today, Luxor seems even cheaper than El Gouna.  Just had a slap-up 3 course meal with a bottle of (actually surprisingly good) wine for £15 per head doesn’t make sense, but we’re enjoying it.

Suspect a bit of culture and sunsets tomorrow.

That is it’s our last day in El Gouna before we head off across the desert to Luxor tomorrow.

Usual story – blue sky, although it has been getting increasingly windy.

Didn’t even bother with anything in between sea and sky on this one!

Decided to venture out on a snazzy little boat trip to the reefs in the Red Sea.

Saw Dolphins …

…. and fish …

…. and erm …

…. and a bird feeding it’s chick.

Some rather expensive boats resting – apparently yours for €5,000 a day!

Bit of a rest on the beach and then a wander round the lagoon at sunset.

And finally the strangest sight of all on the coral reef!

Strictly speaking, deja-vu is something that you imagine happened, but actually didn’t.  So perhaps this is more of a Groundhog Day.

Colours look great under a blue sky.

Sea and umbrellas ditto.

Hmmmm ..

Clambered up a tower nearby which shows the extent of the development, although because it’s not full and there are plenty of lagoons, we can keep well away from the crowds.

Actually it does seem to be incredibly cheap.  A delicious meze and water at lunch came to about £4. Dinner in the Marina with beer. And wine was under £30, but it was extremely quiet.  Apparently there has been some recovery since last year, but still a way to go.

And finally, Eileen was taken with the bins,so here you go!

This is what the view from the balcony looks like in the morning – on a clear day you can see the Red Sea.

Mooched around and had lunch (we always seem to share a lunch view and this didn’t disappoint).

Then a wander around “the estate”.  It’s huge but as it’s built around the beach and lagoons, it feels more like a small town.

A Selfie with a difference!

And sunset over the mountains.

As Eileen said, the photos make it look better than Sri Lanka – but don’t be fooled …

Anyway, we’ve got a couple of days of R&R before heading off across the desert on Wednesday.  Suspect the blog for the next couple of days will be strikingly similar!

It’s not Luxor yet.  A few days in Hurghada on the Red Sea to start.

Unfortunately it was dark when we arrived, so this is the best we can do today.

Sunset from the plane over the desert.

View from the room.  So haven’t got a clue at the moment!

But delicious meze and fish.  We’re 2 hours ahead so it’s after 10.00 already.