Aswan Favorites

Favorite thing: It's not safe to drink from the tap. You can buy bottled mineral water, which is very much available everywhere in shops and hotels.

It cost about 6EP to 10 EP for one large bottle in hotels, and 2EP if you buy from shops.

The brands that i took were Nestle and Baraka.

Some of my tour mates boiled the mineral water but i didn't. It's not really necessary.

Favorite thing: The very first thing our tour did after landing in Aswan, was to visit the Aswan High Dam. If you have time for it, be sure to stop by, but if your schedule is booked and you're looking to skip things, skip the dam. There wasn't a lot to see unless you are impressed with dams. :) There were two displays like the one shown and other than that, you could just take pictures from the dam. Also, the vendor didn't have any water at the refreshment stand, so be sure and bring your own water! He did have soft drinks and the Sprite was good, but it wasn't water!

Fondest memory: I was very interested to hear the statistics of how many artifacts they lost when they dammed up the river... I believe our guide said there were about 80 artifacts/historical sites they had to try and save at the time the dam was built, but they were only able to find the funding to save 17 of those!

Favorite thing: With the big crowds at most of the ancient temples here, it can be quite trying to take the picture that you want.

One way is to try and shoot at obtuse angles, or to take pictures of the upper details of the temples to try and cut the masses out of the photos...

Its a rare opportunity when you see an unimpeded view. So, if you see a shot you want, take it right away. Should you hesistate you may very well be swamped by a Japanese tour group or the like...

Favorite thing: You will encounter this kind of thing quite a bit...

I was trying to line up a picture at the Philae Temple, and there were a couple of French people in the line of sight. I wasn't in a hurry, so I just patiently waited for them to move on.

One local guy saw this and came running over. He fairly abruptly shoo-ed the French couple away so I could take the picture.. (as you can see, he even jumped in the middle of it...)

Afterwards, he was obviously looking for a tip for services rendered : "Oh, Bakeesh, please sir, bakeesh..."

Pretty harmless, but It is probably best to have a few small bills on you at all times to take care of this kind of thing, as it will happen fairly often...

Favorite thing: To truly appreciate the temples of Ancient Egypt, you must strive to gain some level of competency in interpreting the many writings on their walls.

Here we find the bird headed guy faced with a dilemma. Should he accept the smaller glass of wine from the guy in front of him (with the potential of getting three full bottles of wine on the head) ? Or should he turn his back, and be immmediately gratified with the larger glass of wine from the girl behind him...

Tough call, but since they built this temple in his honour, I'm confident that he made the right choice...

Favorite thing: As you travel thru the different stops along the Nile, most everywhere you will likely be hounded by touts trying to sell you a felucca ride.

The one place that I would recommend that you take this offer up is in Aswan. The waterfront setting of the City, with its many rocky outcroppings, and 4,000 year old tombs over looking the river from barren hillsides could not be more picturesque...

Favorite thing: One thing that sets the Philae temple apart from the others is its beautiful location. Set on a small island just south of Aswan, between the two dams.

Actually this island is not the original setting for the temple. The original island is now submerged due to flooding caused by the dam. It was moved block by block to its current home. (Good move, though the thought of diving an Egyptian temple, does perk the interests...)

Favorite thing: The local vendors huddle to discuss the days sales strategies:

"OK guys, this is what we are gonna do: We buy low and sell high.... And just look what's a coming, a whole fleet of dem tour buses just full of them Euro-packing Teutonic tourists...."

The hawkers in Aswan can be a bit pushy, though they don't hold a candle to the ones in Luxor... (The undisputed top hassle location on the Egyptian Tourist circuit...)