Knut, Adam, Neil, and Jon in Kom Ombo

Knut, Adam, Neil, and Jon in Kom Ombo
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

The Temple of Sobek and Haroeris -- which we didn't bother visiting. We sat around for a few hours as the rest of the tourists got their fill of this temple. I made the mistake of drinking loads of water. I had to pee just before we left, and the driver wouldn't stop until we reached our next destination. We were travelling by armed convoy (a train of buses in tow) from Kom Ombo to Edfu and to Luxor. As a new low in my travels, I ended up peeing in a bottle in the minibus. Everyone was pretty cool about it, though, even the dude sitting next to me.

My felucca and bed for two nights

My felucca and bed for two nights
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Sipping chai in Daraw

Sipping chai in Daraw
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

On the first day, we didn't anything but slowly tack up wind (down the Nile). At night, we tied up next to a beach (it was nice and warm next to the sand). We slept out on the deck (there was no other option). At night it was pretty cold (low around 60 F), so it was great having blankets to use. In the morning, we got up with the sunrise and drifted to the east bank to let the Texans off (they had signed up for a one night ride). We spent the rest of the morning drifting aimlessly in the excellent wind. I guess we didn't have far to travel that day because Captain Cool wasn't in any rush to put up the sail. Instead, we tied up on the shore for lunch and some of the others had a swim in the schistosomaisis-laden waters. Later we visited Daraw, a non-touristy town where we spent three hours doing nothing.

Attah in his kitchen

Attah in his kitchen
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

This is all the space that Attah had for cooking up the food for us -- fantastic, considering how limited his resources were.

Felucca exploring a sand dune

Felucca exploring a sand dune
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Captain Cool and Attah the Cook

Captain Cool and Attah the Cook
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Seven happy passengers on a three-hour tour, a three-hour tour...

Seven happy passengers on a three-hour tour, a three-hour tour...
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

The others on the tour: the Texan couple (who insisted they were siblings), a Norwegian (doing his Masters thesis in Cairo), and three North American students on Easter break from Bible school in the UK. It was a very unlikely group, but it was a good time.

Lunch on the felucca

Lunch on the felucca
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

After Abu Simbel, I returned to Aswan for my felucca ride. Four of the other passengers had spent the morning visiting the islands in the Nile at Aswan. We started off with a nice simple lunch of pita bread, feta cheese, mixed vegetables, and a tomato/egg curry. Very nice!
A felucca is the traditional sailboat used on the Nile. It actually was one of the nicest things I had done in Egypt. Food and bedding was provided for us for the two day/night trip down the Nile. The boat was crewed by two.

The two temples next to each other

The two temples next to each other
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Temple of Hathor

Temple of Hathor
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

This temple was next to the great temple.

No photos inside

No photos inside
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Just inside the temple at Abu Simbel. Many of the wall carvings were in color. You could actually see grafitti from the 19th century, when this temple was discovered.

Aswan and the Nile at night

Aswan and the Nile at night
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Inside the Temple of Philea

Inside the Temple of Philea
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

This is a rare case of when I could actually take photographs inside a temple. For that reason alone, it was worthwhile coming out to Philea.

This dude's gonna ask for baksheesh

This dude's gonna ask for baksheesh
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

Ah, bakhsheesh -- or tipping. Now I understand how confounded Europeans feel with tipping in America. In a few countries, namely India, Pakistan, and Egypt thus far, people will ask for tips for doing almost nothing. It is ridiculous, and I think it's the same as the children begging for money, candy, or pens on the Annapurna trek. These folks that work closely with tourists are so used to packaged tourists that throw away money, that they'll ask anyone. When they do ask for money, they do so with a smile on their face because it is almost a game to see if they can get anything for doing almost nothing. It is a real shame because the baksheesh tourist encounter is different from that which Egyptians actually experience.
Anyways, I took a picture of this dude and gave him 19 paistres, which was all the loose change I had.

Temple of Philea courtyard

Temple of Philea courtyard
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

This temple is dedicated to Isis. That's what my book says.

Island temple of Philea

Island temple of Philea
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

On the first afternoon, we were herded into a minivan for some sightseeing. I met a couple other Americans (Texans, actually) in the minivan so we passed the time talking about their experiences in Egypt. I later found out that the dude only ate at McDonald's while he was in Egypt. Nice one.
Anyways, we first visited the High Dam, which was not so much of a tourist sight, but a place of national pride for Egyptians, I guess. There are two dams along the Nile that powers much of the area, a lower dam and a high dam. We had to pay 8 LE to "see" the high dam. Imagine my utter boredom. It is not much larger than the smallest dam I have ever seen. It's actually on par with a reservoir wall. How pathetic.
The second visit was to the island temple of Philea. This had to be moved when the dam was created, as part of a massive UNESCO project. This is actually not unique to the Philea temple.
The temple was in good condition with good examples of hieroglyphics and carvings on the limestone. Our tour guide was of no use whatsoever unfortunately so I can't tell you anything about this temple.

View of the Nile from the Hotel Memnon in Aswan

View of the Nile from the Hotel Memnon in Aswan

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This is the rooftop view of the Nile River in Aswan. The Lonely Planet says the view here will satisfy even the most road-worn traveller, and it was right. From here, felucca tours and cruise barges head down river toward Luxor.

View from my room in Aswan

View from my room in Aswan
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

The overnight train ride to Aswan was fine. In fact, travelling in the massive first-class cabin was excellent aside from the young Brit that wouldn't shut up. It was cold enough at night for me to break out my raincoat and my long-sleeve shirt that I had bought in Cairo earlier that day.
I wasn't "picked up" at the train station so I walked half a mile to the hotel that I was to check in at. The problem was that it was closed for renovations. Uh-oh. I ended up calling my contact number and they picked me up somewhere downtown and took me to the right hotel. They said they couldn't find me at the station (but that was a load of crap). I had a sinking feeling about this package trip already and things weren't getting better!
I was given a nice enough room with a good view. There was even a pool on the rooftop, so it wasn't that bad.
Naively, I signed up for an additional trip to Abu Simbel, a temple out in the desert, for more than double what I should have paid for. I was getting more and more pissed with this package tour, but more pissed with myself for getting duped.

Downtown Cairo at night

Downtown Cairo at night
Originally uploaded by bastchild.

The original limestone casing on the Pyramid of Khafre

The original limestone casing on the Pyramid of Khafre
Originally uploaded by bastchild.