And the temples are quite nice. The walkways are more developed with ganite block rather than sand and dirt and more effort has been made for tourists' comfort. The main temple (it is Ramses II again!) is centered on the island and walkways surround it and lead to other areas with two different sets of columnades as well as two smaller temples. The walkway connects them all.
The complex was built by the Nubian kings during the Late Dynasty so once again we discuss the workmanship and the artisanship as inferior to that of the Old Kingdom. Nevertheless, it is very impressive with excellent color in the interiors of the temples. In the temple we see more examples of Coptic Christian crosses and ancient language as yet to be deciphered. We are able to climb to the top of the temple and our reward for attempting the treacherous stairway is an extraordinary view of the lake, of the Aswan Dam, and of a shipbuilding area where a cruise ship similar to ours is under construction.
At the smaller temple, Mohamed helps us understand what we are seeing. Ramses II military campaigns again are featured on the exterior walls of the temple chambers with Nubian and "Oriental" captives and slaves as well as beheadings, smitings, etc. Very graphic! On other walls we see Ramses II receiving an expedition from Nubian kings with animals, food, drinks, animals, etc. Apparently the Nubians have decided it is better to pay the price than to fight the Pharoah! It is very impressive and Mohamed's interpretation and enthusiasm brings it to life for us.
On the way back to the ship the vendors invite us to help the Egyptian economy once again! One necklace leaps into my hands! :)
We return to the Omar El Khayan for lunch and then bid it adieu for the next leg of our journey. We board small transport boats and cross over to another cruise ship where we walk through several boats to get to the dock! This is an interesting exercise which we experience several times in the coming days. The bays and docks are not large, so the boats dock side by side and passengers walk through the lobbies of several boats in order to get to their particular boat or to the dock for alternative transportation. It's very interesting to compare boats in this way, and we were quite pleased with our assignment!
We board the bus and drive to a view of the high dam (not to be confused with the Aswan Dam). We walk along the dam and realize how small it is in comparison with Grand Coolie Dam or Hoover Dam and yet it generates one-third of the power for all of Egypt. For this reason there is a very high level of military presence protecting the dam. As we drive away and down the road for quite a few miles, the military base responsible for guarding the dam clearly is very large. On the other side of the road from the base is a huge granite quarry which also goes on for miles and miles with huge boulders and lots of dust! Very impressive!
Our next stop is back in Aswan city at the Papyrus Institute and Gallery for a demonstration on making papyrus "paper" from papyrus reeds specially grown in the Nile Delta and constructed into paper and painted in Cairo for this gallery. The papyrus of the ancient Egyptians is extinct so this papyrus is a new version. The process of preparing the reeds is most interesting: stripping the exterior, flattening the softer interior, soaking in water, then layering strips lengthwise and crosswise. The result is quite beautiful. We were offered a wide assortment of scenes painted on various sizes of sheets of papyrus. Many of our tour members found terrific and beautiful bargains for Christmas presents and personal use. We fall on the personal use and enjoyment side of that spectrum!
While others were finishing their purchases, Marcia and I crossed the busy street to a pharmacy to get cold remedies. This was an interesting experience because the pharmacy staff definitely were not accustomed to working with tourists! A couple more tour mates (Mitch and Grady) came into the pharmacy looking for other items, so the four of us managed to communicate sufficiently to get what we needed. I was a companion rather than a shopper in this instance, and it remains one of the unscheduled delightful memories of the trip for me.
From the gallery we went to our hotel - the Movenpick on Elephantine Island where we had lunched several days earlier. We checked in and then rested briefly before leaving for the light show at the Philae Temple. Meanwhile our dear Mohamed had had one of his bags snatched (stolen) at the dock across from the Movenick while he was helping a couple of our group members into the transport boat to cross over the Nile to the hotel. All of our reservations and vouchers and tour related materials for the rest of the trip as well as cash were in his bag. As a result he was unable to go to Philae Temple with us but fortunately overnight he was able to set things in order for the remainder of our tour. The bag was never returned. Mohamed never complained; he just went about the tour's business and kept us all informed and engaged. He is an incredible professional and now a dear friend.
Our trip to the Philae Temple was another great adventure in transport: We left the hotel and got on the transport boat to get to the bus. We got on the bus and went to the entrance to the Philae Temple site. We got on a transport boat to get to the island where the Temple is located. We experienced the light show and then we reversed the process to return to the hotel! It's hard work to enjoy the history and treasures of Egypt!
Philae Temple is another example of an stunning set of buildings that had to be moved when the dams were built. In this instance, the dams flooded the temple and later the world coalesced to save the temple from its watery grave. The Temple is dedicated to the goddess Isis whose history began in earliest of Egyptian times and lasted into Roman times. The Temple is quite large and the out buildings and columnades are extensive. The sound and light show was worth the cost and the effort. It told the story of Isis, her origin, her relationship with Osiris (her husband) and his evil brother (think Cain and Abel), and Osiris' resurrection (think eternal life) and their child Horus. It is a classic story. The show evolves to the Roman times when Roman emperors included Isis in their panoply of gods and then on to Emperor Constantine who even allowed the temple to remain. A smaller temple to Hathor, the goddess of music and art, remains on the site as well. In Egyptian dieties, Isis and Hathor always are linked, so the story included Hathor's relationship and feelings of insignificance and neglect in comparison to Isis. My favorite part of the story was the description of how the Nile flooded the temple when the dam was built. In the dark night, the sound of the Nile rising caused me to expect that any minute I would be feeling water around my feet and legs. It was extraordinary! In addition, the voices of Isis and of the Nile (think James Earl Jones) resonated in the night air. As the story ended, the full moon rose over the Nile and all of us breathed sighs of contentment about the experience. The site of the temple from the transport boat as we circled around the island to return to the temple entrance was breathtaking!
Back at the hotel we were treated to a delicious Nubian chicken targine with rice, tomato soup, rolls, etc. It was a long day. We slept well.
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