Aswan is the upper limit for the river boats. There is a dam there and no way past. The original dam was built in 1900 by the British at the Nile’s first cataract. Although this was a major construction for the time it was still not enough to fully control such a vast river. It was raised, twice, and then a second dam, the High Dam, was built a short way upstream by the Egyptians in the 1950s. The High Dam also incorporated a hydro-electric power station.
We docked in Aswan late in the evening. Next morning we could get up at a sensible time for breakfast. First trip of the day was to the Unfinished Obelisk. There is a granite quarry close to Aswan where much of the granite used in ancient Egypt was obtained. The massive sarcophagi of Saqqara that we had seen a few days earlier came from here. The quarry also specialised in obelisks. Tall pillars of solid stone that are still seen quite widely. Cleopatra’s needle at Victoria Embankment in London was made here as was the Luxor Obelisk in the Place de la Concorde, Paris. The largest and most ambitious obelisk was begun around 1500 BC but unfortunately it got broken. I like to think some careless craftsman hit it off centre and a crack appeared. Oops. The more mundane reality is probably that the cracks were already there and only became apparent as they worked the rock.
We had a wander around the quarry. It is actually quite interesting, as quarries go. Then we ran the gauntlet of the ever-present vendors and headed for the Temple of Philae. Philae Island was occasionally submerged, along with its temple after the low dam was built. With the advent of the high dam it was destined to vanish underwater forever. An ambitious project was established the move the temple to the nearby Agilkia Island. This was completed in 1980.
The trip began by running a vendor gauntlet down a slipway to a waiting boat. A short trip out to the island gave us a clear view of the British, Low Dam. Reminded me of the dams around Longdendale where we used to live. These were built around the same time. The little boat brought us to the island quay, tightly packed with vendors, from which we emerged in front of the temple.
The first temple building was probably built around 500 BC. Most of the main temple structures were bult in the Ptolemaic era of 100 BC. The site remained a focus for worship through to the Christian era when five of the temples were converted into churches. The Victorians had a bit of a fixation on Egypt. The island was very popular in the 19th century. Today, after the successful relocation it is absolutely heaving with tourists. We followed our guide round for a while but, well, some guides just can’t keep my attention. So we pottered off on our own and arrived back with the vendors at the appointed time. On our trip back to the mainland a couple of vendors hopped onto the boat. They spread their wares on a table in the centre that was so convenient it could have been made for the purpose.
We enjoyed a couple of vendor free hours back on the river boat and then went off to see a Nubian village. This was on the downstream side of the low dam so to get there we simply went in a smaller boat that docked right next to our river boat. A few young lads on old surf boards grabbed hold as we motored past them. They tried to sell us some essentials before they could hang on no longer. The twenty-minute journey was quite interesting. There were some birds and other wildlife. We stopped at a sandy area called a beach so that we could experience paddling in the Nile. At the same time some handy vendors appeared in case we needed to stock up on plastic replica necklaces or knifes made out of camel bone.
Nubians are a Nilo-Saharan speaking ethnic group indigenous to northern Sudan and southern Egypt. They originate from the early inhabitants of the central Nile valley but differ culturally and ethnically from Egyptians. Near Aswan, they maintain their own villages, culture and society. They welcome tourists as a source of income and to explain something of their culture. Our visit began at a school. I think Diane enjoyed that more than me. We walked through the market at dusk. It was very colourful and noisy. Many camels were being led or ridden down the main street. The tour culminated in a family house where Diane was handed one of the pet crocodiles. After a cup of tea we were led back to our small boat and then sailed, down the Nile, in complete darkness, to our river boat. Time for an early night.
Up long before the sun to clamber into a minibus for the drive south to the Temples of Ramses II at Abu Simbel. Four hours later we were close to the border to Sudan. The Aswan High Dam created a reservoir here, Lake Nasser, one of the largest man-made lakes in the world. Obviously, a lot of land got flooded. Tens of thousands of Nubians were displaced. Not everybody was happy about this. The benefits to the remaining land are immense. We saw hundreds of acres of farm, that would otherwise be desert, rich with crops under large, rotating irrigation systems. The temple was also due to be flooded. A multi-national cooperation headed by Unesco saw the entire building complex being moved to higher ground. The temples were originally carved out of the hillside, so the hills needed to be moved as well. I thought this was quite clever. Not only was it a terrific technical achievement paid for by international funds but it also meant that Egypt could keep charging tourists to visit it.
A short walk from the vendors bazaar brought us to the temples. They are magnificent. The twin temples were originally carved out of the mountainside in the 13th century BC for Ramesses II and his wife, Nefertari. Pictures and carvings inside celebrate their lives and achievements. A few hundred years later, the temples were no longer visited and became buried by sand. At the beginning of the 19th century, the temples were rediscovered by some of the great explorers of the time. Even so, it was another hundred years before the sand was completely cleared away and the full scope of the monuments revealed. We took our time looking round and taking a few photographs. Guides are not allowed inside the temples. This make them rather pleasantly quiet although there were still crowds of people.
After that came a pleasant stroll back. A quick check to see if there were any Chinese mass-produced souvenirs that we had been avoiding but really wanted. A cup of coffee and the four-hour drive to Aswan. It was a long day but a rather good temple. We have seen enough temples now that we can spot a good one.
