Arriving to Aswan by night train at 8AM, we headed straight for our hotel, the Nubile Nile Hotel a block away from the trains station and conveniently situated in the city centre of this hot city. With temperatures rising +40C easily, Aswan is all but Alaska, hence the irony when locals welcome you to Alaska when they see you pass by, huffing and puffing because it's already 35 degrees at 9AM...
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| Cheers from Lake Nasser! |
Aswan, all the way in the South of Egypt, is known for various sights. Firstly the Aswan dam, which are actually two dams: the first, a small one built by the English in the 19-hunderds, and the second, the big one, said to be one of the "10 Great Projects of Egypt in the 20th century". Secondly, the Nile itself and its surroundings. Thirdly, the Stone Quarries of Ancient Egypt: from where most of the stones used to built the pyramids where from. Fourth: Temple of Philae, which we had the opportunity to visit, and last but certainly not least: the nearby located amazing Abu Simbel Temple Complex.
Due to the heat I decided not to join the group to the Temple of Philae, giving me some time to rest and hang out with some of the other members of the group. Our hotel, though it not being the nicest nor the best, had a swimming pool on the rooftop, making it awesome to just hang out there and enjoy the view over the city and the Nile river.
By 4PM, when the heat finally starts to drop, most of the group joined for a typical Nubian dinner. We first enjoyed an hour-long ride along the Nile, showing us the different sights that are within reach of the city. We then landed on Elephantine Island, located in the middle of the River Nile and only reachable by boat. Here we were received by a nice local Nubian, who offered us his house where we could all enjoy a Nubian dinner together. Nothing special, but great food and good vibes all around! Returning to the hotel, with a beautiful view of Aswan by night from the river, around 10PM we went straight to bed because...
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| Aswan by night, as seen from our boat |
The next morning, we woke up at 3AM (!) to leave the hotel at 3.30AM. As this area is supposed to be dangerous, all the busses with tourists are assembled right outside of town and the convoy was escorted along the 300kms towards Abu Simbel. Abu Simbel is in one word: Breathtaking. Getting up this early is well-worth the 45C by 9AM to discover the two temples along the Lake Nasser, the world's biggest artificial lake. I could go on for hours about both of these temples, which are truly beautiful and insanely accurate of you think about how men were able to carve them out of pure concrete +2500 years ago... but pictures are probably a better way to describe them. Although you cannot take pictures of the inside. This is definitely a must-do when in Egypt! Check out my previous blog post with Photos.
Around 10AM the bus left for Aswan again, again under escort, saving us the expected 50C it can be in summmer. Another three hours ride brought us right back to our hotel. The current situation in the Western Desert of Egypt -check here and here- forced our team leader to alter our itinerary. As we were supposed to visit this beautiful part of Egypt at the end of the Tour, but governmental chitchat (they made their own mess!) made this impossible for us! So our team leader showed us what the alternative would be, and we will now slightly adapt our route, and go to Hurghada, Red Sea for some diving instead!
The last evening in Aswan brought us a walk through the Souck, which is basically a market where you can buy everything for nothing and nothing for a lot. Some laidback chilling near the pool, a quick snack and a last small tour of town centre later, we headed to bed, ready for our next trip: Sailing the Nile on a Felucca!
_safe travels!
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| Smallest temple of Abu Simbel, dedicated to Ramses II's wife |
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| Abu Simbel's main temple, erected by (and partly for) Ramses II |
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| Better view of the amazing and huge Abu Simbel Temple |
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