The Valley of the Kings

From the Temple of Hatshepsut, we drive the short distance to The Valley of the Kings. I think this was the place I was most looking forward to seeing. We watched a brilliant BBC2 documentary about it by Dan Snow just before we came away - it really piqued my interest.

Nabil's idea of going here second didn't really work as the ticket machine had broken down and we had to wait 90 minutes for him to get our tickets! Some of our party were angry about it. What's the point? You're travelling in Africa, just go with the flow!! 😀

When we finally got in, Nabil explained a bit about the site and then recommended the three tombs he thought we should visit. Each entrance ticket includes 3. If you want to visit more, you have to buy more tickets. Tutankhamen's tomb carries an extra charge. Because he died so young, his tomb wasn't finished so, stripped of its treasures it's not one of the most interesting tombs in the valley. However, to encourage visitors to pay, Tutankhamen's mummified remains have been returned to the tomb. Three of our group paid the extra 300 Egyptian pounds. We didn't!

We visited the tombs of Rameses IV, Rameses III, and Rameses IX. They were jaw-droppingly beautiful inside! Because they lay undiscovered for so long, the unrestored wall paintings are as colourful now as when they were created around 3000 years ago! Some of them are so well-preserved they actually look fake! They reminded me of the film set for the movie 🎬 Cleopatra which we saw at Atlas Film Studios in Morocco 🇲🇦 😀

The photos accompanying this footprint 👣 were taken in the tomb of Rameses IV. I will post the others in subsequent footprints.Read more