Luxor - Habu Temple

I landed in Luxor around 8:30 after a short one hour flight from Cairo. It took almost as long for bags to show up on the carousel as it took to fly to Luxor. I was relieved to see that my bag was the third off the conveyor, still paranoid after my experience in the Philippines last year at this time.

I grabbed my bag and headed out the door to meet my guide and we immediately left for our first destination of the day Habu Temple.

The first thing you notice in Luxor is the traffic, or lack of it compared to Cairo. Maybe because it was Friday (Muslim's day of prayer, like our Sunday) we had the roads mostly to ourselves. In addition there were not the crowds of tourists here as there was in Cairo.

You can rent Habu Temple for events, like the wedding they were preparing for.

The massive walls of Habu Temple—the mortuary temple of Pharaoh Ramesses III—stand like a fortress on the West Bank of Luxor. Stepping through its fortified gatehouse, you enter the grand, lasting testament to a turbulent age.

In the 12th century BCE, Egypt was reeling from the onslaught of the mysterious Sea Peoples. Ramesses III, the last great pharaoh of the New Kingdom, needed a monument to secure his legacy and, more immediately, to celebrate his survival.

The vibrant, well-preserved reliefs tell the tale. The stone comes alive with scenes of chaotic, hand-to-hand combat against the invaders: Egyptian archers, chariots, and naval battles where enemy ships capsize. It’s a spectacular, propaganda-filled chronicle of military might and divine protection.

But Habu was more than just a victory scroll. Within its fortified enclosure, it was a thriving administrative and religious complex—a city within a city—complete with a royal palace and barracks. It was a spiritual sanctuary dedicated to the great god Amun, designed to ensure the Pharaoh's eternal prosperity.
Even after Ramesses III, the sturdy walls of Medinet Habu offered refuge to the local population during times of unrest, eventually housing a Coptic Christian settlement. Through its long history, from a grand temple of the New Kingdom to a medieval stronghold, the temple has stood firm, an enduring echo of pharaonic power carved into stone.Leggi altro