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Published: December 31st 2023
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Actually not really, but places where dead people had been…and if you’re Eloise, that’s basically as bad as lying in the sarcophagus with them.
A grumbling early start as we scoffed breakfast and headed for our adventures on the West Bank. Not too long of a trip and we were at Medinet Habu, a temple for Ramses III. It was all about him really, what a strong warrior he was and how he killed lots of enemies. And the usual chumminess with the gods. He understood the importance of really making his mark, so he made the carvings very deep so they could never be removed or worn away. Some beautiful colours, not many other people and guards who were keen to earn a bit of coin on the side meant we were shown all the ‘best’ photo spots.
Next stop was Valley of the Nobles. Geoff and I had great memories of coming here on our last trip but were amazed at how much things had changed - no one was living in the local village anymore as they had been moved to make way for excavations. And what once was a hill was now pock-marked with tombs.
So we headed into three tombs - Userhat the scribe, Khaemhat the accountant and Ramose the Prime Minister.
They were decorated with a variety of techniques but differed from what we had seen before - not as much painting colour but some beautiful carvings. The Prime Minister’s one was unfinished because the king changed and started up a new religion with a new capital so he hitched his wagon to that and choofed off.
Next stop was an alabaster factory to see the craftsmanship they had been practising in these parts for centuries…and tea and a toilet. Next off to the Valley of the Kings. Our last visit was bakingly hot and crowded so we were hoping today’s cooler temps and the huge drop in the number of tourists would work in our favour.
First stop was Merenpetah, the son of Ramses II. They liked their tombs deep this family, and also with a massive sarcophagus. Unfortunately they didn’t have the foresight to include either airconditioning or escalators so our visit was brief. Next was Ramses IX. Not quite so deep but far more decorative in the entry ways. Lucky because the number of photos being taken
at the bottom and the massive queue it caused gave us ample opportunity to enjoy them.
Next stop was Ramses III who also chose to invest in some serious decorations in the entry way but sadly not aircon. Note to future pharaohs in their prep for the afterlife - Fujitsu, god of coolness and airflow, deserves a look in.
The girls were all sweated out and ready for an icecream so they rested in the shade while Geoff and I tackled Ramses V and VI - an efficient and space saving approach to tomb building which came about because V died young so they decided to share. Luckily this gave them a bit more time and cash to spend on decorations. We’d all had enough by then so we headed back to the hotel for some lunch, a relax and a swim.
The girls were keen to continue with the relaxation but Geoff and I took the opportunity of a small tour our hotel offered into the local village and surrounds. We gathered a huge fan base of kids running along behind our salubrious flat bed tuk tuk and lots of adults even waving hello and welcome.
It was the first day of sugar cane harvest so the workers were busy with that but not so much that they couldn’t throw a random lamb our way.
A quick stop on some dunes to admire the view and a weaving factory where they support divorced women before we were back at the hotel…and the girls hadn’t moved an inch. Dinner and some wine before bed!
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