The East Bank...of Luxor

After spending a few days in Cairo, we headed south to Upper Egypt. And no, that's not a typo. The Nile River flows north, and for it to do that, southern Egypt has to be at a higher altitude than northern Egypt. We made the nine hour journey to Luxor by overnight train, arriving at 5 in the morning.



Nope, this is not that same morning. This is a few mornings later when we made the 4 km jaunt to Karnak Temple at sunrise in an attempt to miss the crowds.



The temples of Karnak include an incredible configuration of sanctuaries, temples, obelisks, and massive monuments dedicated to the Theban gods and, of course, to the glory of the pharaohs. The massive figures above mark the entrance to the Temple of Ramses III.



The site includes over 2 square km of monuments and temples, and the Temple of Amun, the complex's main structure, is the largest religious building ever built. The massive columns of the Temple of Amun were where the god Amun lived on earth. Not that we met him personally -- we heard he was visiting his winter home in southern Florida.



The site was built, added to, restored, dismantled, and enlarged for over nearly 1500 years by ancient Egyptians, the Ptolemies, and the early Christians. There were many incredible carvings in the walls, many of which still contained remnants of the paint that would have covered the entire temple when it was in use. Some of the carvings, however, seem to have been altered/censored. Looks like a messy divorce if we ever saw one!



We were struck by the mood captured by this photo -- it seemed to embody the kind of reflection and solemnity felt in such a magnificent place. It's incredible to think that in actuality, this caretaker had just finished spitting when this was taken.



Anyone up for an ancient jigsaw puzzle? Oh wait -- did we mention that some pieces are missing? And you're not really sure what you're trying to build?



For those of you who are not fluent in hieroglyphics, let us provide a brief translation:

Bird, bird, squiggly line, eye, squiggly line, bird.

Our guidebook claims this is from a religious text, but we like to think that it's some juicy gossip about Ramses II.



Contrary to popular belief, Egyptians seem to walk left foot in front of right foot, hands at their sides. Take that, Steve Martin!



The road leading to the Temples of Karnak used to be lined by sphinxes, some of which are still standing.



Nearly 3 km of sphinxes lined the road from Karnak to Luxor Temple, which was built in most part by the pharaohs Amenhotep III and Ramses II. Here it is beautifully illuminated at night, located just a few hundred meters from the banks of the Nile.



Pigeon is a delicacy in Egypt. Here, Justin handles this delicacy before eating it. Jessica did not handle his eating of the pigeon quite as well, quickly losing her appetite. Looks like someone is going to be returning to her vegetarian ways...