The Nile Cruise - In the Footsteps of the Pharaohs
Egypt is where history first emerged. It is here that we have
the first pictographic record of events and persons.
Hieroglyphics, the system of writing used by ancient Egyptians
can be traced back to about 3200 BC. At about 3180 BC, the
nations of Upper and Lower Egypt were brought under the rule of
a single king titled Pharaoh. The first Pharaoh is thought to
have been Menes, who set his capital at Memphis, 22 km south of
Giza in today's Cairo. The Pharaohs established the systems that
brought forth the highly successful Egyptian civilization.
The history of Ancient Egypt lasted for about 3,000 years.
Ancient Egypt declined, was overrun and thereafter ruled by
foreign powers. The Greeks and Romans who ruled after the
decline were aware of the great similarity between their own
gods and those of the Egyptians. They not only tolerated
Egyptian religion, but also expanded existing temples and
dedicated new ones to existing cults. Some of the new overlords,
Alexander the Great for example, styled themselves as divine
priest-kings in imitation of the Pharaohs.
Emperor Theodosius, who reigned after Christianity became the
state religion in Rome, extinguished the last remnants of the
living culture. The Egyptians worshipped hundreds of gods - a
great offense against the monotheistic religions; whose first
article of faith is that there is only one God. Theodosius
decreed in AD 391that all pagan temples in the Roman Empire be
closed. The Arabs, who brought Islam to Egypt in 640 AD, also
had no time for deities such as Anubis the jackal, Horus the
falcon god or even Amon the king of the gods.
Ancient Egypt was dead for one thousand five hundred years,
until the French came across the Rosetta Stone in the nineteenth
century invasion of Egypt by Napoleon. This priceless discovery
was inscribed in both Greek and Egyptian, and it was the key
that allowed the deciphering of Hieroglyphics by Jean-Francois
Champollion in 1822. The voluminous literature produced by
Ancient Egyptians was now accessible to curious scholars. This
rekindled great interest in Ancient Egypt in the West that
remains undiminished to this day.
Religion is the common theme running through the attractions of
ancient Egypt. The diversity of gods found worthy of worship is
astounding. There were over 2,000 of them of either sex and they
supposedly manifested themselves to earthlings as animals. There
were overlaps and the same gods could be known with different
names in various parts of the country. There was hardly any part
of the life experience that was not assigned a deity- digestion,
mummification, sexuality, feasting, childbirth, writing - you
name it. Some gods came and went out of fashion, but those
connected with basic aspects of life were enduring. Such deities
had cults and temples dedicated to them.
The afterlife was taken very seriously, and a lot of the
monuments relate to preparation for that glorious time. Mortuary
and burial preparation was so elaborate as to ensure a painless
and enjoyable afterlife. The custom of mummification, for
example, was seen as necessary for the soul needed a physical
body to occupy in the other world. There was however great
inequality in preparation for eternal life. The Pharaohs and
other royals, nobles and key officials were mummified and
accompanied by grave goods and great treasure. The common folk
who could not afford the full treatment had to do with
statuettes of mummies.
The main draw to Egypt is the legacy of the Pharaohs and the
Greeks and Romans who ruled after them. Basically this legacy is
associated with temples, tombs and burial places. People in
Egypt from the earliest times to present have always lived along
the River Nile and this is where you find the richest harvest of
ancient monuments. As many travelers will testify, the best way
to experience classical Egypt is by taking a Nile cruise. The
cruise is a very pleasant and relaxing way to get close to the
attractions of antiquity, most of which are not far off from the
banks of the river. You also get a glimpse of rural Egypt where
many eke out a living just as their forbearers did thousands of
years ago.
The typical Nile cruiser is really a floating hotel. Amenities
on board will include lounges, restaurants, bars, swimming pool,
discotheque and shops. The rooms are rather smaller than those
of a land based hotels but will have air conditioning, TV and
enough room for twin beds, private shower, nightstand and
dresser. The quality of cruisers varies and they are graded with
stars just like hotels. Top end cruisers have spacious suites
and amenities almost equal to those of ocean cruisers.
Generally, the quality and romance of Nile cruisers surpasses
other riverboats anywhere else in the world.
Nile cruises normally take three, four or seven nights. You will
be able to see the most important and interesting monuments on
the shorter and more popular cruises that ply between Luxor and
Aswan. The longer sail takes you up to Dendera. The boats sail
both downstream and upstream and on the shorter cruises, you can
embark at either Aswan or Luxor. The more adventurous travelers
or those on a tight budget avoid the luxury cruisers in favour
of fellucas- the traditional Nile sailboats. Though amenities
onboard fellucas are very basic, those who can survive them,
visit all the attractions along the Nile at a fraction of the
cost of the cruisers.
At Aswan, the Nile is deep, calm and is at its most glorious. It
is a good place to embark on your Nile cruise. Aswan was for
long Egypt's southern frontier city and its gateway to Africa.
This was the region known as Upper Egypt, being upstream of the
Nile. After Aswan, the Nile passes through a section of hard
rock, resulting in rapids or cataracts. Thus by nature did Aswan
attain its strategic position and it has served as a garrison
town for those who have ruled Egypt over the centuries. And for
this reason, there are monuments here associated with the
Pharaohs, Greeks, Romans, Christian Copts and Islam.
At Aswan, make sure to visit the Philae Temple. Ptolemy II
started the temple when the Greeks ruled, and the Romans
completed it. It was dedicated to the goddess Isis, an important
figure in Egyptian mythology that was worshipped across the
Roman Empire. Even after Emperor Theodosius ordered all pagan
temples to cease operations, Isis was still being glorified at
Philae, until about AD 550 when Emperor Justinian finally shut
down the temple. The early Christians converted the temple's
hypostyle hall into a chapel. For good measure, they defaced
some of the pagan reliefs adorning its walls.
The temple forms an excellent backdrop for the nightly
sound-and-light show. The temple was nearly lost after the Aswan
High Dam was commissioned in the 1960's. It took UNESCO and the
Egyptian government ten years to move it, one stone at a time,
to higher ground on Agilka Island. Most people also visit
Elephantine Island, which has temples and a museum. The Island
has been inhabited since about 3000 BC and was an important
trading and cultural centre.
Aswan is home of the Nubians, a dark skinned people, related to
the people of the north of the Sudan. You can see some Nubian
villages at Elephantine Island. The Nubian museum celebrates
Nubian culture right from prehistoric times. Aswan was once an
important centre for Christian Copts. You can see the ruins of
the once majestic Monastery of St Simeon, which was destroyed by
the conqueror Saladin (Salah ad-Din) in 1173 AD.
Aswan was the source of the granite stone that the Pharaohs
favoured for building temples and other monuments. The Northern
Quarries are the site of the giant Unfinished Obelisk. Had the
obelisk been successfully completed, it would be the single
heaviest piece of monolithic stonework -reaching about 42 m and
weiging over 1168 tonnes. It must have broken the hearts of the
builders, who supposedly abandoned it, after coming across
defects in the rock formation.
The next stop on the cruise is Kom Ombo, 48 km to the north of
Aswan. The main attraction here is the Graeco-Roman temple. Work
on the temple was started by Ptolemy VII in early second century
BC and continued by some of his successors. The Romans Emperor
Augustus built part of the temple at around 30 BC. The Temple of
Kom Ombo actually consists of two separate temples, each with
its own entrance, colonnades, hypostyle hall and sanctuary. The
southern temple is dedicated to Sobek -the crocodile god, while
the northern one honours Horus -the falcon god.
Though the two gods shared the same grounds, in mythology, Sobek
was associated with the god Seth, an enemy of Horus. At Kom
Ombo, the gods took the liberty to bring along family - Sobek
sneaked in his consort Hathor and son Khonsu, while Horus had
his wife Tesentnefert and son, Panebtawy. If you have not seen
mummies before, be sure to see the mummified crocodiles in the
Sobek part of the temple.
At Edfu, you disembark to see the Temple of Horus. Edfu was the
cult centre of Horus the falcon god. It is perhaps the best
preserved of ancient temples of Egypt. The temple standing today
was started by Ptolemy III at about 237 BC on the site of an
earlier Pharaonic structure. Work continued under some of the
Ptolemies that followed. Appropriately, the entrance adorned by
two majestic granite falcons. The walls bear reliefs depicting
Horus. One scene would please any tyrant -it shows Ptolemy XII
dealing mercilessly with his enemies.
You next stop and highlight of the cruise is Luxor. The range,
magnificence and diversity of the monuments in the Luxor area is
unsurpassed in all of Egypt. Known to the Greeks as Thebes,
Luxor became the capital of Egypt at around 2040 BC. The city
survived the sacking by the Assyrians in the 7th century BC, but
steadily declined, and was finally destroyed by the Romans in
the first century BC. Among the celebrated monuments dating from
Luxor's heydays are the necropolis complexes at the Valley of
the Kings, Valley of the Queens and Tombs of the Nobles. You
will also come across some outstanding temples scattered in the
region.
The Egyptians buried their dead in the direction of the setting
sun and the west bank at Luxor was the final resting place of
royalty and high officials. The Valley of Kings is where the
rulers of the period historians refer to as the New Kingdom
period (BC 1550-1070) awaited the afterlife. The Pharaoh
normally picked the spot for his tomb and had it built in his
lifetime. Tomb building for royalty and high officials was very
serious business and it supported a battery of architects and
craftsmen, who had a settlement in the valley. The valley
contains over 60 tombs that have so far been excavated.
The tombs have suffered in recent years due to increased number
of visitors, pollution and the rising ground water that has come
with the Aswan High Dam. For this reason, not all of them are
open to the public at any one time. Unless you are a scholar,
visiting three or four tombs should be sufficient. Among the
best tombs are those of Ramses I, Tuthmosis III and Ramses VI.
Tutankhamun's is today the most famous - though he is not
considered a significant Pharaoh and he died at only nineteen.
Treasure hunters had over the years looted most tombs in the
valley. But Howard Carter, the British archeologist, discovered
Tutankhamun's tomb almost intact in 1922. The treasure that was
found here is truly amazing- statues, chests, chariots, beds,
weapons, and many items he needed for the afterlife. The main
item today at Tutankhamun's tomb is his mummy. About 1700 items
recovered at the tomb are now at display at the Egyptian Museum
in Cairo. The most outstanding of the collection is the 11 kg
solid gold death mask. Imagine then, what the looters carried
off from the bigger tombs of the more illustrious Pharaohs!
On the other side of the Valley of Kings is the Temple of Deir
el-Bahri, built by Queen Hatshepsut. Hatseput. The temple is
very impressive from a distance and is a great place to take
photos. The name Valley of the Queens is misleading, as both
male and female royals and some high officials were interred
here. About 80 tombs have been identified, of which the most
famous is that of Queen Nefertari. Take more photos at the
Colossi of Memnon -two huge statues that are the sole legacy of
the temple of Amenhotep III.
Amenhotep III also built the Temple of Luxor on the east bank.
The temple was dedicated to the god Amon, though inside you also
find a shrine dedicated to Alexander the Great. The temple's
entrance is lined with Sphinxes, and inside you find colonnades,
courts, obelisks and wall murals. The mosque of Shaykh Yusuf Abu
al-Hajjaj was built on top of part of the temple. You can also
visit the Luxor Museum, which has interesting exhibits from the
area.
The incredibly impressive Temple of Karnak is a huge complex
that was dedicated to the god Amon. In the New Kingdom period,
this was the most important temple is Egypt. It is probably the
largest religious building ever and it can carry no less than 10
average Christian cathedrals. Some of the interesting structures
within the complex are the gigantic hypostyle hall, the Kiosk of
Tarhaka, statue of Ramses II, temple of Ramses III and the
sacred lake.
The best time to take a Nile cruise is over the cooler months of
November - March. These are also the peak months and to avoid
crowds, always start out early each day. October, at the end the
hot season is tolerable, especially when you factor in that it
falls with off-season period: it is cheaper ad less crowded.
When visiting the monuments, you are advised to hire a guide who
will explain the historical context at each site. If you are on
a Nile Cruise package, the services of a guide will usually be
included.
You do a lot of walking, and you need to bring along suitable
shoes. Other items you ware encouraged to pack are: sunglasses
and sun screen lotion. Remember also to carry bottled water and
photographic film, which you can buy at the cruiser or at a
bazaar. Light clothing is generally recommended though you may
need a sweater and jacket for winter evenings.