Karnak logo

Obelisks
Obelisks (I believe this is the one erected by Hatshepsut)

Painted ceiling at Karnak
The painted underside of the columns

Anne listening to the tour guide
Anne (right) listening intently to what Adam is saying.

Adam, our tour guide at Karnak
When touring through such ancient places it's essential that you have a good tour guide, and we were lucky to have Adam (pictured left). He was an expert guide and very knowledgeable about the ruins at Luxor and Karnak. We were also fortunate to have been a part of a small group of only 16 which allowed us to always be close and hear what was being said and to have our questions answered. Unfortunately most of us have no control over how many people are in a designated group, but I would question any tour office you are thinking of dealing with as to exactly how many people are in the group. The smaller the better.

Cartouche with frog nearby
A cartouche. I probably took this picture because of the frog in the lower left. Frogs are one of Anne's favorites.

Horus
This hieroglyphic represents the god Horus, one of my favorites

The sacred lake
The sacred lake

Avenue of Ram's Head Sphinx
A restored part of the Avenue of Ram's Head Sphinx

This ends the pictures from the temples of Luxor and Karnak. They were magnificent. If you ever have the opportunity to visit Egypt make sure you see these wonderful ancient ruins. They are breathtaking and worth any expense and trouble you might encounter to visit them. Before continuing to the east bank of the Nile and the Valley of the Kings, a word about touring in tour groups.

My nature does not lend itself to traveling in tour groups. I find them to regimented for my tastes. If I like a place I might want to stay longer, and if I don't like it I might want to leave early. Traveling in a tour group this is impossible. There is always a schedule to adhere to, like it or not. I think one of the most enjoyable aspects of this tour was the fact that there were only 16 people. How many times have you taken tours in groups of 40, 50 or even 60 and found it difficult to get close enough to hear what the tour guide was saying. Small groups are much better!

Another thing when touring in a group, don't expect much from the people you are touring with as you may be disappointed. Let's face it, we're all individuals with our own preferences for the people we hang out with and the things we do. Being thrown together in a group of unknowns can introduce some rather surprising turn of events. On this tour there were only two other people our same age, Anne and Geoff. The remainder of the group was at least 15 to 20 years older. There were times we needed to slow down so that the older ones could keep up and they were definitely affected more by the heat than we were. Most of the people were very nice and polite, however, there was one couple who were, to say the least, quite bizarre. They announced to the group right up front that they didn't want to have anything to do with the group; that they were just traveling with us as part of the group, but they didn't want to socialize or even be friendly. I guess it takes all kinds!?! For the better part of the trip they kept their distance from the rest of us, but toward the end of the trip they actually became friendly and began talking with us. So, expect nothing from your group and be pleasantly surprised if they are all nice, enjoyable people.

Now, let's cross the Nile and head into the Valley of the Kings area ...

 
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Athens : The Acropolis at Night | The Parthenon
Rhodes: Lindos | The Acropolis at Lindos
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Cairo: Port Said to Cairo | Sakkarah | Memphis | Life in the Nile Delta |The Great Pyramids at Giza | The Great Sphinx at Giza
Life in Cairo and the Mosque | Life in Cairo and Sadat's Memorial
Luxor: Luxor and the Temple of Luxor | Temple of Luxor (2) | Temple of Karnak | Temple of Karnak (2) | Temple of Karnak (3) | Colossi of Memnon
The Ramesseum | Deir El-Bahari | Valley of the Kings | Shopping in Luxor | Shopping in Luxor (2)
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