The morning of our second day in Egypt began with a nice breakfast on board the boat followed by a visit to the west bank of the Nile. We began with these 3400 year old statues of the pharaoh Amenhotep III now known as the Colossi of Memnon.
We continued our journey with an amazing visit to the Valley of the Kings. I must admit that this was one of the selling points of the trip for me as I've wanted to visit this area ever since reading the book Beneath the Sands of Egypt by Donald P. Ryan. The Valley didn't disappoint. Rob and I splurged (since we were there and all) for tickets to see the tomb of Tutankhamun (aka King Tut) as well. In total we visited four tombs: Ramses I, Ramses III, Ramses IX, and Tutankhamun. Although much of the grand contents of Tut's tomb are housed in the Egyptian museum, he had the by far the smallest and least decorated tomb. All three Ramses had huge tombs covered in painted hieroglyphs. Unfortunately, these three tombs were looted in antiquity. If they had not been looted, I'm sure their treasures would have far outweighed those of King Tut. Oh, and also, no photos allowed in the Valley. Boo.
We made one more stop before we re-boarded the boat and began our sail down the Nile, the Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut. As you can tell this temple blends in beautifully with its surroundings. It is believed that in the days of Hatshepsut the causeway that Rob is standing on in the photo below would have been lined with sphinxes and the surrounding area would have had a garden filled with exotic plants and trees.
We made one more stop before we re-boarded the boat and began our sail down the Nile, the Mortuary Temple of Queen Hatshepsut. As you can tell this temple blends in beautifully with its surroundings. It is believed that in the days of Hatshepsut the causeway that Rob is standing on in the photo below would have been lined with sphinxes and the surrounding area would have had a garden filled with exotic plants and trees.
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