The sun kissed the horizon & the prayers from the mosque filled the air as our techno colored balloon glided over the ruins of the ancient Egyptian temples & tombs, our guest house and the small village near of KomLoLa. Tiny men cutting sugar cane, women hanging clothes, cows & goats in stables, water being pumped in rice paddies, donkeys pulling cart loads of grass & veges, truckload of men on their way to work, roofs storing grains & straw...such a menagerie of scenes with only the occasional donkey bray & the whoosh of the fire lifting our balloon breaking the silence. Our first balloon ride...an excellent & uplifting experience !!
We came down from our high & took off most of our 5 layers of clothing then went off to explore the Rameseum ruins built by Ramses II who called it his Temple of a Million Years—that's a man with a vision! He'd be disappointed that only 29 of the original 130 columns still stand and the 18' statue of himself is mostly huge chunks lying at his feet...& it's only about 3000 years old.
As we finished eating lunch, we met Nubi who told us he was the grandson of the man who showed the famous archeologist Carter where to find King Tut's tome. He proudly pointed to the picture hunting in the restaurant showing his grandfather wearing the golden belt of King Tut & standing next to Carter. How can you doubt him?
Between admission fees, balloon ride, taxi rides & the every need to tip, it was time to find an ATM. When we asked about finding one, Nubi, of course, was a taxi driver too & you'd think in the Valley of the Kings that would be easy...wrong. Nubi took us to the nearest one. No go. Took us to one farther away. No go. So finally he dropped us at the ferry so we could cross the Nile to the East Bank of Luxor—much more developed part. With a sigh of relief, we found on ATM that worked.
It was close to a McD so, why not?? It was the first McD (besides India) where I couldn't just get a small burger...smallest one was the 1/4 lb.
Right across the stree was the Luxor Temple with a mosque built within the ruins. We were escorted first into the mosque where there were several open matted prayer rooms & 2 overly decorated caskets of a beloved sheikh & his son who lived 800 yrs ago. As we exited, our guide looked us in the eyes and said so sincerely, "All people, Muslims, Hindu, Christians should not look at faces but only into their hearts. All should live in peace." Shalom is a common greeting here. Wish it was everywhere!
We then checked out the rest of the Luxor Temple. This one is bigger & more preserved than ones we've already seen. I know...how can that be?? Almost 30 sphinx line both sides of the entrance...and the archeologist are still uncovering them. They believe the line of sphinx extends 3km to the entrance of the Karnak Temple! Imagine that!! Seeing all these magnificent carved stone work makes me thing of the slaves & Moses' words, "Let my people go." (Not sure if the time frame fits —will have to check that out.)
Back on the ferry (always one of my favorite rides), we went back to KimLoLa and our cozy guest house.
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