I was so relieved to board the boat and have a bit of luxurious comfort with a private, en-suite, cabin looking out on to the Nile. I slid open the large window and peaked out to see a local man riding a horse in the river next to the mooring, presumably to cool down in the water and the horse only just had its head above the water. The water lapping over the steps was surprisingly clear and not what I expected at all, but could see hundreds of little Nile perch and catfish darting about.
The boat was the M/S Marquis Nile cruiser, has 67 double cabins with 2 suites and the itinerary was from Aswan heading downstream to Luxor, taking only 3 days to cover 240km. I was surprised just how quiet and smooth the cruise was, with very little noise or vibration from the engines. On board there was a restaurant deck where the buffet breakfast, lunch and dinners were served, a bar deck above that and a huge sun deck on top which also had a smallish swimming pool. I think it would have been very difficult for anyone with mobility issues to navigate some of the stairs between the decks as there were no lifts.
There was an early morning visit scheduled to Edfu Temple. Begrudgingly we were woken up early to get there for about 06.00hrs purely to avoid the heat, the crowds of tourists and to ensure the boat departs on time. Once there, we realised the early start was worth it because we were the only tour group there. Edfu was a settlement and cemetery site from around 3000 BC onward. It was the ‘home’ and cult centre of the falcon god Horus of Behdet (the ancient name for Edfu).
Back on the boat by lunchtime with an ice-cold G&T in hand, we head off downstream, sitting on the sun deck lazily watching the world go by. The Nile is lined with green and lush palm trees of sorts but about 100m or so beyond the green seemed to be just baron desert, sand and rocks.
There were a few boats moored up, some Felucas tacking across the river with their sails high but generally the traffic on the river was very little. I was amazed at how quick the boat was travelling. At one point I paid a visit to the captain to say hello and he let me have a steer of the boat and press the horn. Felt like a big kid, but when am going to do that again? Found out that the captains of these boats have little education (otherwise he probably would not have let me have a steer…) but all have at least 30 years experience navigating on the Nile which is all done from memory to avoid the shallows etc. as the boats are not equipped with any kind of depth gauge or sonar.
There was a lock that the boat had to navigate through which was just wide enough for the boat. Some of the local traders know this is a ‘pinch point’ as the boats have to slow down, so it is here they mount an amphibious assault trying to sell their towels and shirts etc. Often rowing dangerously close in front of the boat and inside the lock too, while throwing samples in plastic bags to the top deck. Fortunate they were in plastic bags as well because one or two ended up in the pool. There was quite a bit of bartering and haggling going on over about 40ft but I don’t think anyone on board bought anything.
The dinners were a really nice buffet with the usual kind of things, rice, vegetables, chicken etc. and good puddings too. Afterwards there was an ‘entertainment show’ put on with a belly dancer and whirling dervishes but it’s not really as good as it sounds, so we headed to the sun deck and a had a few more drinks in the cooler evening air. It’s here I saw one of the other passengers who looked like Hercule Poirot so started to get a little concerned, especially if he were to call everyone together to identify the murderer. Fortunately it didn’t happen, but it was slightly disappointing they didn’t play more on the Agatha Christie theme.
Next evening we visited Luxor Temple which was a pleasure to visit at night, if for nothing else just to see a temple lit up in a different light. Very few of the temples and tombs are open at night as it would cost too much to power, despite solar becoming more available.
Next morning we had arrived at our destination and it was time to depart the boat. Shame as I could have quite happily stayed on board and cruised all the way to Cairo as it was so comfortable, but time just didn’t allow. Next on the agenda was perhaps one of the sites I was most looking forward to in Egypt, the Temple at Karnak – mostly because of the James Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me. Once again the scale and details of these temples is simply mind blowing. They made these about 4000 years ago on a truly epic scale yet find it difficult to make a decent road these days (probably due to funding I suspect). I could have spent all day here but it was too hot, needed to get the coach back to Cairo and sadly was getting a little ‘temple fatigue’.
Once again it was a 10 – 11 hour drive to Cairo but somehow the seats seemed so much more comfortable, probably because I had a double seat to myself. But a word of advice. If you come to Egypt and travel between Cairo and Luxor by road, unless you need fuel, please do not stop for a ‘comfort break’ at the road side services unless you are wearing wellington boots and have a peg for your nose. The toilets are simply disgusting. They are the squat type toilets where everyone has missed the target zone, the floors are flooded (over the level of sandals or flip-flops) with a pungent mix of poo, urine, water and dead flies. The guys working there have a squeegee mop but instead of actually cleaning up properly, they seem to just spread it about to ensure an even covering for some unknown reason. That smell mixed with the volume of living flies and the high 30s / low 40s temperature makes it repulsive. Better off stopping on the side of the road and taking your chances with Egyptian drivers.
But, it’s all part of the experience and am certain that on this Walkabout, I will experience worse… Fingers crossed I won’t, but am sure I will. 🙂
