Day 4

Today it was Edfu. According to the guides "the most preserve-ed temple in Egypt" Again it was an early start but we were getting used to these now.

The authorities have been doing a lot of restoration work around the outside of the temple. Some more walls and buildings have been unearthed and the entrance is now at the front of the temple instead of the back like it was 3 years ago. There is now a lot of Greco-Roman influence at the front and the public do not see the rear walls of the temple, which we had found very impressive last time. This temple is dedicated to the falcon god Horus, who was the son of Osiris and Isis and was the protector of the king.

The story goes that Horus was conceived after his father Osiris had been killed by his brother Seth and cut up into pieces and scattered all over Egypt. Isis and her sister Nephthys, Seth's wife found Osiris's body parts and brought him back to life for long enough for her to become pregnant and Horus was the outcome. This temple has some amazing carvings and also demonstrates how sunlight was used to illuminate the inner parts from windows high up in the walls.When we were inside one of the smaller chapels, Ray took Wendy on one side again to show her the hieroglyphs, and would you believe it he caught her again with his Tesco bill.

After a talk and a quick tour round by Amin, we were given about 20 minutes to wander round on our own before returning to the bus. We cornered Amin and started asking him questions and discussing the renovations. We kept him talking for so long that we were the last to get back to the bus. The trouble with the cruises is that they have to keep to a timetable so sometimes it seems as if it is a rush around but it is understandable because there is so much to see and it is better to see a bit of everything than see less sights.

We then returned to the "Oddessey" for lunch and immediately set sail once more for a 6 hour voyage to Kom- Ombo. After a lazy afternoons sail we docked at Kom-Ombo and we all piled down the gangplank and walked 200 yards up to the entrance. This temple is dedicated to 2 gods, Sobek, the crocodile god and Haroeris the falcon god.

The earliest king named at the temple is Ptolemy XII but the temple is thought to be much older as it lies on one of the main trade caravan routes. The whole temple can be seen to be split into two parts for the worship of the 2 gods.

On one of the walls behind the main sanctum can be seen carvings of medical instruments, showing that the ancient Egyptians practiced fairly advanced medical techniques for their time. Another wall carving shows an offering calendar showing what offerings should be given to the gods at various times of the year. The reliefs at Kom Ombo are carved deeply and are still very clear.

Today was again extremely hot and consequently our visit was kept short. We returned to the boat in time for a very welcome cup of tea and the boat set off again towards Aswan. Afterwards we all retired to our cabins to prepare for Galabiya night. All week we had been bartering with George, the boat's shop owner to buy an outfit for tonight. He has the gift of charm with all the ladies, trying to sell them the most expensive outfit ( not that they are expensive at £5). Ray had asked him for a galabya in cream or beige. George eventually produced him one that was pale yellow and two sizes to big but he wore it anyway.

The entertainment for tonight was an Egyptian theme. Most of the passengers dressed for the occasion in Egyptian costume of galabiyas. The food at dinner was a buffet of traditional Egyptian food and afterwards the management had prepared entertainment in the form of games and competitions. During the meal and at almost every meal afterwards Andy had us all in stitches by getting the word Galabiya wrong. It was a "garibaldi" a "jeroboam" or a "galabash".

Although there were only 40-50 passengers on board everyone joined in and had a lot of fun. We played pass the bottle, (like pass the parcel) with a few variations. Several couples tried their hand at making their partner into a mummy with Egyptian toilet rolls - not an easy task - as the paper is very thin and splits at the slightest pull. Ray and I got ourselves involved in a game where we had to dance and when the music stopped we had to stand on a newspaper together without touching the floor. Not so easy when they make the paper half its size at each music stop. We were laughing so much our eyes were streaming. Prizes for these games were Egyptian cocktails, which were very colourful but not very alcoholic, and not the best tasting but we all had fun.

Meanwhile, whilst we partied the boat continued its voyage towards Aswan. We docked quite late but not too late to sit on deck for a while to unwind after the hilarity of the party and to take in the night life of Aswan. The town was buzzing with activity. Many locals were walking around and crazy cars were charging around the streets. We eventually retired for the night to prepare ourselves for the next day's hectic schedule.

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