Up and away

Today was my favourite day so far. It was an absolute corker!
Up early for our hot air balloon ride that began with a disco style motor boat across the river before a bus took us to our balloon launching pad (??).
There were over 45 balloons that we counted and it was an unforgettable experience. We soared across the Valley of the Kings, above the temple of Hatshepsut and tombs of hundreds of nobles, over farmland and excavation sites, with the Nile River in the background and as the sun was rising. It was magical & peaceful, broken up by the occasional blast of fire and I loved every moment. We landed smoothly and joined the rest of the group who had opted out of the balloon (I bet they are regretting that decision!). I was on a high for hours ☺️☺️☺️
Next we drove to the Valley of the Kings which is actually a cemetery and I had no idea what to expect. What looked like some rocky, sandy hills in the middle of the desert, was actually filled with hundreds of tombs of noblemen and Pharaohs, including Tutankhamen.
I went into 5 tombs in total and holy moly 😳😳😳
Each one is cut into a hill and some had remained completely hidden for thousands of years. You literally walked down a ramp/stairs, without having to duck your head at all and walked varying distances up to 150m along tunnels that were painted and carved in magnificent hieroglyphics. Ultimately they come out into the actual tomb where the Pharaoh was laid to rest in their sarcophagus. The size of these tombs is astonishing. I had NO idea. Unfortunately most had been completely stripped of their treasures many thousands of years ago, all
except Tutankhamen’s. He is the only Pharaoh whose actual body remains in its resting place and his tomb is the only one that had not been disturbed; hence all the treasures that were found there. Most others still had the outer sarcophagus as it was so ginormous and too heavy. One was so incredibly big that archeologists believe the tomb must’ve been built around it as it couldn’t come anywhere near close enough to fitting out of the tunnel and door.
There are still excavations happening today and watched one that being done. There are apparently still hundreds, if not thousands to be discovered.
This is like walking through a make believe world. Everything is so, so different to anything else on the planet - it’s other worldly yet is real life and that, to me, is insane
We then went to Queen Hatshepsut’s tomb which, in my opinion was the best one there; second only in impressiveness (?) to the pyramids.
Back to the hotel where we picked up our bag of washing (washed, dried and ironed for $5) and I had a massage while Jim had a swim in the pool.
After a heavenly afternoon nap we wandered down to have a wine in the hotel bar and then headed off to explore the Luxor Temple that we can see from our veranda. What a site that is all lit up after dark. The shadows that are cast add to the mystical atmosphere too. And the columns! Wowzers!! The Roman influence here is so clear. It is assumed that this temple was used for coronations and the more we walked around, the more I believe this to be the case. We have loved this part of Egypt; apart from being endlessly hassled by the horse and cart people. The temples and tombs and treasures are stunning 🤩Read more