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Culture meets nature and great weather!
With their Tea!
The Peristyle Court of Amenhotep III
St Joseph`s hotel in the background
Greetings!
Can anybody tell me if I need bug repellant in Luxor, Sharm, or Cairo? I'll be there from 12/24 - 1/6.
Thanks so much!
~Becca
An effective repellant is "Off", which is available in all Egyptian pharmacies very cheaply. My wife swears by it. It's made by Johnsons, a world renowned manufacturer.
I can't remember running into any mosquitos in Egypt during our trip (it was a November timeframe). Certainly not in Luxor or Cairo (we did not go to Sharm).
Mosquitos breed in stagnant water, and except for a very narrow stretch around the Nile and the Red Sea / Suez Canal, Egypt is 100% desert (mosquitos and the desert don't mix).
Thanks everybody...much appreciated!
so do I. I don't remember mosquito in Luxor, Cairo and Sharm.
Sometime a lot of flies, yes.. nothing particoular about mosquitos.
Living in Luxor for most of the year (at least 10 months) there are certainly mosquitos around for most of the time, although less in summer, think it is too hot for them ! Some people are just not aware of them as they do not get bitten, we have lived here for 3 1/2 years and my wife still gets bitten occassionally, although not as much as when we travelled here as tourists.
If you are one of the unlucky ones who usually get bitten take precautions just in case.
Yes, it is definitely the case that those who are rarely bitten simply do not know when they are about (and remember it is not just proper mosquitoes which can bite). Everything which bites loves me. :-( So, especially if everything which bites also loves the poster, then taking repellent and anti-bite stuff is essential.
These wonderful craftsmen are responsible for creating life in the stones. They work relentlessly for hours to create the magic in the stones. In the Alabaster Factory, they showed us the process to make beautiful articles from raw Alabaster chunks taken from the nearby mines. How they cut it, heat up, then carve the stone to give it a shape to make it an item for the showroom.
This process is going on for centuries, generation after generation.
We've bought The Illustrated Guide to Luxor by Kent R. Weeks (The American University on Caïro Press) and are very satisfied with it. It has background information, tours, tips and ... very good illustrations. It contains enough information to plan, look at sites and read it again and again when you're home ('sigh') again. It contains descriptions of Karnak, Luxor temple, the valley and many of the monuments. We paid Egyptian pounds 150 in the bookshop near the Winterpalace in Luxor. Worth every piaster.
ISBN 9789774248009 See: www.aucpress.com Karnak temple, the small temple of Ptah (found it thanks to the guide)
If you're tired of the busy streets or the many antiquities of Luxor, go to the Nile for a boattrip. To be on the water is very peaceful and relaxing. And look how beautiful and green the scenery can be.
If you have no plastic card (either a debit, or a credit one) and do not wish to be bothered with travelers cheques (where commission charges tend to be quite high) you will be better off taking with you determinate currency.
At present, these currencies are clearly Euros (#1, offering the best exchange rate) and US Dollars (as widely accepted but somewhat marked down by the Exchange Bureaus & banks due to the recent slide).
Some other currencies are accepted, but they are heavily marked down.
The West Bank of the Nile near Luxor or West Thebes is even more interesting in many aspects than the East Bank, which often has the name of East Thebes with its Karnak and Luxor Temples. Colossi of Memnon, Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, Valley of the Kings, Temple of Ramesses III (Medinet Habu), Village of Deir el-Medinah and others are the highlights of the West Thebes. They are the purls of the ancient Egypt history and culture.
The mortuary temple of Hatshepsut of untraditional appearance which appears to be in harmony with the surrounding environment.
The Temple nestles at the foot of the cliffs in a natural "bay" on the West Bank of Luxor. This area had long been sacred to the goddess Hathor. In the 7th century AD, it was named after a Coptic monastery in the area, known as the “Northern monastery”. There is a theory suggesting that the Temple, in the Early Christian Period, was used as a Coptic monastery.
After the introduction of Christianity, Hatshepsut’s temple was used as a monastery. Its modern name Deir el-Bahri is Arabic for "Northern Monastery."
The Temple served for her posthumous worship and to honor the glory of Amun and the other gods.
The individual parts of the Temple of Hatshepsut correspond to the classical form of Theban mortuary temples with pylon, courts, hypostyle hall, sun court, chapel for the royal cult, and sanctuary.
Admission price to the Temple of Hatshepsut is 25 LE ($5)
Open hours from 6.00 till 18.00 (in April).
Ticket kiosk is located 1 km to the North of Colossies on the cross of the road to the Nile and the road which is parallel to the Theban Hills.
You can buy all types of tickets for sightseeing of Western Thebes in this kiosk.
Colossies are free of charge.
Vt has the separate location for the West bank of the Nile (Thebes). I've put my page here with 21 tips and 74 pics. You may see more pics on my Travelogue
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