Tombs are hott

This morning we got another early start on tours in Luxor. First, we went to the Valley of the Kings and went down into 3 of the tombs. Everything had been removed and put in museums, but it was still really interesting to see the wall decorations. and the small areas where so many objects had been stored for the afterlife. The heat wasn't so bad in the desert because it was so dry, but going down into the tombs were another story. It was so SO humid and significantly hotter than the outside air. Plus it was smelly. But WICKED COOL. Unfortunately they don't allow you to take pictures, so I don't have any for that visit.

Next we took a break and went to an alabaster shop. I bought a candle holder that is an interesting green colored alabaster but I probably got ripped off. Oh well, it was bound to happen eventually.

After that we went to Queen Hatshepsut's Temple, which is between the Valley of the Kings and the Valley of the Queens, because although she was a woman, Hatshepsut ruled like a king (her tomb is in the Valley of the Kings). It was a really cool location and the statues of her were really interesting (she wore a false beard to be more like a king).

The last stop was the temple of Ramses III, which was small but very well preserved because the figures and hieroglypics were carved so deep into the stone. It had really nice preservation of some of the color as well.

For the rest of the afternoon we went swimming and relaxed by the pool. Saturday night we flew back to Cairo, ending our Luxor sight-seeing extravaganza.

1. sunscreen: I'm not one to judge, but I would just like to point out that several of the guys got sunburned in Luxor but not a single girl did. I was handing out my aloe vera like candy.

2. baksheesh baksheesh?: Baksheesh means "a tip" in Arabic. Bottom line in the tourist attraction in Luxor? EVERYONE wants a little baksheesh. A guy would shine a flashlight into an empty tomb and want baksheesh. A guy would suggest something for you to take a picture of and want baksheesh. A guy would allow you to stand in front of a fan that he probably doesn't own in a 120+ degree tomb and want baksheesh. A guy would direct you down a hallway when there was literally no other way that you could have gone, and he would want baksheesh.

3. pictures!
man explaining how they make things from alabaster
Hatshepsut's Temple

Ramses III's Temple