Luxon Dec 1953

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Luxor

Before sunrise, we boarded a small aircraft, carrying no more than 20 passengers, for Luxor. As the sky showed sunrise colors, the solemn call to prayer was intoned by a deep male voice over the speaker. The slanting sunlight revealed a barren but beautiful red landscape. Our hotel was on the shore of the Nile with a road separating it from the river’s edge. There were small sailboats (feluccas) on the water. We checked in and immediately arranged for the trip to the Temple of Karnak. On the way, we passed palm trees and fields cultivated by oxen-drawn plows and irrigated by a seesaw-like contraption that lifted water from the river into the ditches. These, we were told, have been in use for millenniums. Most of the vehicles on the dirt road were drawn by horses or donkeys.

The walk into the ruins was bordered by lines of sphinxes with sheeps heads. Soon we were among the massive columns of the temple. These ruins, which were in better shape than most I have seen since then, deserve to be recognized as one of the wonders of the world. It is hard to describe the tremendous size of the columns and the statues of Ramsses II. There are many columns, some of them fallen and in pieces. Considerable distance is necessary to get the whole of a column framed in a camera -too far away to recognize the face of a person standing next to it. I felt as a mouse might feel looking up at a dining table leg. No one could fail to be awed while walking among these columns. Carved in relief on the columns, the obelisks, and pedestals were hieroglyphics and people carrying offerings or engaged in a number of activities, as well as animals, birds, and scarabs. Huge stone beams rested on the tops of the columns, but the temple was without a roof, and the sun shone down through the columns. The ruins are extensive, and I will not try to describe from memories carried for more than 50 years what more recent visitors can tell in more accurate detail. Photos cannot do justice to Karnak. It must be seen and felt to be believed.

We spent the day in the ruins and made plans to cross the river to the Valley of the Kings the next day. I wanted to see the Nile in the light of the sunrise, so rose early, dressed, left my key at the desk, and walked out to the shore. The feluccas were already on the river. It was a clear, cool morning, and the early sun cast pink light on the water. After a walk enjoying the quiet peaceful scene, I returned to the hotel, expecting to return to my room before breakfast. The clerk found no key in the slot. The cleaners have it, he told me. I went into the hall and found the cleaners, who did not speak English. I dredged my mind to remember my Arabic lessons. Yes, I had learned the word for key. It was “miftah”. “MIF tah,” I said. Blank looks. What was wrong? Had I remembered the word wrong? Had I pronounced it wrong? Ah ! I remembered. Arabic words have the accent on the last syllable, not the first. “Mif TAH,” I said. “Ah, mif TAH,” said one of the cleaners, and he rushed off to get me my key. First successful use of my Arabic lessons in the real world!

After breakfast, we crossed the river on a felucca. The tour of the Valley of the Kings was on foot. The tombs here were cut into the cliffs. The frescoes and hieroglyphics were deeper in the interior after the first entry hall. These deeper chambers had been hidden and disguised to confuse thieves who might break in. The real sarcophagus and treasures intended for the pharaoh or important person to use after death were in these deeper chambers. There had been beds, chairs, food, jewelry, and clothing left there, but these were long gone before archaeologists discovered the tombs. None of the devices intended to deceive the thieves had succeeded.

Most impressive of the tombs was that of Queen Hatshepsut. From a distance, it looked like a palace with over a hundred columns lining three tiers of porticos at the entrance. Inside were the frescoes depicting life during the 18th dynasty. The tombs seemed gloomy to me far away from daylight, but what could you expect of a tomb? You have to wonder if it ever occurred to the pharaohs that even with all the treasures and luxuries left for their enjoyment, life might be anything but pleasurable in such surroundings. Of course, they expected to make a journey to the land of the dead, where they could hope for the delights of the gods if the heart was not too heavy with sins.

Between visits to the tombs, we stopped at a gigantic statue, probably of Ramses, which had broken into pieces. One piece was an enormous head, and brought to mind Shelley’s poem, Ozymandias, because it certainly lay in barren surroundings.

The last tomb we visited was that of King Tut, which escaped robbers until an English lord found it, filled with “wonderful things,” most of which are now in museums. Compared to the other tombs, this one is not impressive, though famous. After this visit, we sailed back across the Nile to our hotel, and I parted ways with Paul and Jan who had further travel plans from here.
I would fly back to Cairo in the morning.

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