Anyone who knows me well is aware that you never know what is going to happen next. We were in an Alabaster Shop on Sunday afternoon after all our touring. I found a piece I really loved, a covered dish in black Basel and beige. The price started at $500 and I got it down to $300. There was a chip at the bottom of the piece that was barely noticeable but I pointed it out. The owner said that he would give me an extra $50 off. Then he said that will be $270. I immediately corrected his math and then said “and you are going to fix the chip?” He agreed, wrapped it up and I paid for it. We get on the bus and are on our way to the ship when Tarek, our guide, gets a phone call and asks me if my middle name was Ann. I answered yes. Apparently when I paid for my purchase with my credit card, my other credit card must have slipped out of my wallet and the owner found it. Rather than calling the credit card company or doing nothing, he called Tarek to see if it belonged to someone on his bus. They drove my credit card to the ship and I gave the driver a very generous tip although Tarek said it was not necessary but very much appreciated. He said that this kind of service is normal when he has close relationships with stores like this. A great ending to something that could have been vacation ruining.

On to the beginning of the day. We were up at 5:30 AM and had breakfast before we left. I didn’t fare as well for breakfast. I had fava beans, which is traditional Egyptian breakfast food, mashed potatoes and sliced grapefruit. Definitely bizarre. Their fruits are not very good. It could just be the time of year. I don’t normally eat breakfast anyhow so it wasn’t a big deal.

Our first stop was the Valley of the Kings. At this place 62 tombs and 20 unfinished pits have been found. In the Old Kingdom the Pharaohs were buried in pyramids. After the pyramids were broken into and looted by grave robbers, it was decided that the Pharaohs and their families would all be buried in an obscure place underground. And an obscure place it was! Our guide told us a story about the discovery of King Tutankhamun’s tomb. Egyptian law states that if a tomb is found intact (which is very rare because of looters) the discoverer is entitled to nothing. If it has been touched, the dicoverer of the tomb is entitled to 30% of what was found. Tutankhamun’s tomb was discovered by Harold Carter, a famous Egyptologist, in 1922. The man who had been backing his expedition was ready to back out but Carter convinced him to continue for a little more time. When the tomb was discovered the Egyptian government said that it was an intact tomb therefore Carter and his team were entitled to nothing. So much pressure was put on the government that they were forced to monetarily pay for the value of the 30% of the discovery. Probably a very smart decision by the Egyptian government or who would sponsor these archeological expeditions if there was a chance they would not get paid.

Our ticket allowed us to enter 3 tombs. There was an extra charge to enter King Tutankhamun’s tomb but we were told that there was nothing there other than the mummy. There were no hieroglyphics or paintings on the walls. Tarek said that although there are 62 tombs only 6 or 7 are open at a time. He said they are open for 4 or 5 years and then closed to help preserve the colors.

The first tomb we went into was Ramses V. You had to climb down about 100 steps into the small tomb. Thank goodness there were only 4 other people down there at the time we were there, The colors in this tomb were spectacular, as can be seen by the pictures below.

A funny story about going into the tomb of Ramses IX. At the end of the tomb was a wooden fence in front of a staircase going down further into the tomb, where the burial chamber was. I took a picture of what I could see. That picture is below.

The guard motions to me to give him my camera. I thought he wanted to take my picture, which happened all the time and it is worth $1. He takes my camera runs down the stairs and starts taking pictures of what, I have no idea. He comes back up. Takes pictures of me and returns my camera. I look at my pictures and Holy God, I couldn’t believe my eyes! It was the burial chamber and was an entire room filled with paintings in the deepest colors we saw.

Here are some pictures from the first tomb we entered. I am a little embarrassed to say that I don’t remember the name of the person who was entombed there.

Next we headed to the Temple of Hatshepsut, the only female Pharaoh. The way she became a Pharaoh was by convincing the high priests that her mother was impregnated by the god, Amun-Ra, making her the direct descendant of the gods. When a woman puts her mind to something she can convince a man of anything! Apparently her 4 year old nephew should have been the next Pharaoh. She promised to teach him to be a ruler and that he would succeed her after her death, which he did. All of the images of Hatshepsut have either been defaced or completely removed from the temple walls. There are many theories why this might have happened including that followers of her nephew believed she never should have been Pharaoh, her nephew ordered her images to be removed or the high priests ordered it. We saw this kind of defacement in almost every temple or palace we were in.

Hatshepsut’s temple is dedicated to Amun-Ra, her alleged father, and consists of three terraces, each on a different level. All the levels have squared columns many of which are still adorned with her likeness. A room of the palace was just opened to the public three days ago. I think our guide thought he had died and went to heaven, or in his case, the afterlife.

Our tour day ended with a stop at the Colossi of Memnon, two massive stone statues of the Pharaoh Amenhotep II. They have been there for the last 3400 years.

Back to the ship to spend the afternoon on the roof top deck watching the beautiful scenery as we floated south along the Nile. An interesting occurrence happened when we were sailing. Locals, known as pirates, in row boats come along the ship and scream trying to get the attention of guests on the deck. They will throw their wares up to the desk hoping you will buy them. Now, we are talking throwing things from the water level to the 4th floor of a ship. If you want to buy, you put the money in a plastic bag and drop it to the boat. No problem if it ends up in the water, they just jump in and get it.

Another wonderful dinner prepared especially for me and an hour massage before bed. It doesn’t get much better than that!