First Day in Luxor

Our first full day in fantastic and magical Luxor. We’re staying at the Hilton Luxor which is situated right on the Nile a little bit to the north of Luxor city.

Luxor is on the east bank of the Nile, while most of the historical sights are on the west bank.

It used to be an ordeal getting to the west bank because until recently there was only one bridge in the Luxor region that crossed the Nile. It’s location south of the city meant it could take 45-50 minutes to get to our first stop today which is the Temple of Hapshetsut.

Hatshepsut is, according to Egyptologist James Henry Breasted, “the first great woman in history of whom we are informed.”

Hatshepsut’s reign was seen as going against the patriarchal system of her time. She managed to rule as regent for a son who was not her own, going against the system which had previously only allowed mothers to rule on behalf of their biological sons. She used this regency to create her female kingship, constructing extensive temples to celebrate her reign, which meant that the public became used to seeing a woman in such a powerful role. This ensured that when the oracle declared her king, the Egyptian public readily accepted her status.

But like many women of power, Hatshepsut was also embroiled in controversy. Her successor and stepson, Thutmose III, tried to erase her image from the Egyptian mind by chiseling her name and symbol off everything. And then he moved her to an obscure tomb and left her there to dry up with only a mummified nurse for company.

Hatshepsut was usually carved or drawn as a man, complete with muscles and a beard, as was the artistic tradition for pharaohs (some have called her the first Drag King).

But historians knew the truth: She always made sure the art included a reference to being a woman, such as “Daughter of Re” or “His Majesty, Herself.” When she died in 1458 B.C., Egypt would not see as powerful a female ruler for another 1,400 years, when Cleopatra came to the throne.

We then set our sights on Dendera. This is a temple complex about 60km north of Luxor and is not generally well visited because it is inconvenient to do so. But we had hired a driver for the day and so scheduled this as a stop for us. Even with the driver we had to provide a copy of our passports in advance and our driver purposely took some backroads in order to avoid checkpoints. Just details in case you think of visiting Dendera on a whim.

The complex is dominated by the beautiful Temple of Hathor and has been standing here for 2,000 years. It is said to be the best preserved temple in Egypt.

The best known example of ancient Egyptian architecture are the Egyptian Pyramids, while excavated temples, palaces, tombs, and fortresses generally feature large columns. Hathor is no exception and as you entered the building you were greeted with a room filled with grand columns.

Walking around among the columns was wondrous. Each column had hieroglyphs etched in their side expressing a different story.

So incredibly photogenic.

Stunning to see in person!

The Egyptians clearly had a story to tell, and told it using hieroglyphs.

The entire temple was just astounding. Every wall was filled with something.

Tempting to spend a whole day but not possible with our schedule.

There are dozens of separate rooms throughout the temple, and at nearly everyone you have a guy sitting there like this.

They are hoping to show you something you don’t know or let you into a secret room that isn’t always available when you buy a ticket. The unsaid deal is that you’ll tip them for their services. We think that LE50 was the right amount because they seemed pleased with that. LE10 or LE20 brought a sour look and pleading for more.

No thanks, no “shukran” to that ladder and tiny opening. We found plenty else to see.

One of the key parts of the temple to see are the stairs that they used to get up to the roof of the temple. This is where the priests used to travel to and from the roof of the temple.

So beautiful that you must come here if you are in Luxor.

Our last temple for the day was back in Luxor city with the obvious name of Luxor Temple.

Located right in the city center it has been here for thousands of years.

Lots of really impressive architecture to see in and around Luxor. Tomorrow we’re headed to the famous Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens along with Karnak Temple. See you then!