Luxor Local Customs

Many Asian and African countries, including Egypt, are predominantly Muslim, so the religious sites you are most likely to encounter, are, predictably, mosques. This is a brief tip of advice, written from the point of view of a non-Muslim, female traveler (yours truly!!!):

- Do dress modestly, covering arms, legs, shoulders and the like, no frivolous dressing will be allowed. Hire the modest dress if needed;

- Check whether you are allowed into the mosque at all, since most of them admit you only into the courtyard, and some do not admit non-Muslims at all. However, in several countries you may be able to visit the interiors of many mosques;

- Respect the boundaries laid and do not attempt to enter further (I saw such a thing once, and it did arouse ill-feeling);

- If possible try to avoid going even to the courtyard on Friday afternoon, since I remember this is the most important praying time of the week;

- If you are curious, feel free to ask questions (though not of people hurrying to pray) and most likely you will be answered: Iýve always found people proud of their culture and heritage and ready to explain it;

- Do not criticize things we in Europe and in the West might (such as separate praying space for men and women), for such are the customs of the land and mosques are the least appropriate places for such topics.

This advice is based only on common sense, but it allowed me to see something of the mosques and learn loads of interesting info on Muslim countries, their religion, and culture. Really helped me when we had a general education class on religions at University:))

As far as I could learn, there used to be two kinds of religious temples in the Ancient Egypt: different in some things, and very much alike in others. These were the funerary temples and the cult temples. The titles show the use of each kind plainly enough. The main purpose of the so-called ýcult templesý was to venerate the gods and their son, the pharaoh, while the son was still alive. The funerary temples do the same, but only when the pharaohýs dead and buried often in the temple itself.

It is traditonal for the locals to shake all tourists hands, presumably to check the quality of your jewellery. As the local vendors are hygiene phobic, it is wise to tke along some antibacterial hand wipes whenever you leave the hotel otherwise you will spend a fortune on purchasing bottled water to constantly wash your hands. Toilet facilities are not always available especiall at the more remote sites.

And just think, this was back in the summer of 2000, security can only have been increased since then! Just have your bags open for the men at the gate and leave all your sharp metal objects back at your hotel!

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The police are everywhere, along the roads, on the bridges, at the sights...Their job's to make the tourists feel safe.