Crocodile Museum & Karnak Temple, Luxor

We had to get up just after 5am, it was a bit chilly still on the Nile! We had breakfast and then went by bus to Luxor, a four hour drive. We passed through a lot of rural area, and saw many people farming sugar cane, corn, cabbages and cauliflower. It seems that all work is done by hand with little mechanization. There were many carts along the sides of the roads, pulled by donkeys, and stacked with sugar cane, a cash crop. We saw some kind of smelter from the mining done in the area. There were many villages along the highway, where there were enormous speed bumps to slow the traffic. The men mainly wore the long robes, and the women wore headscarves or complete burkas. Most of the homes were not completed, with one or two floors completed and occupied, with another floor started, but apparently most of them never actually get finished. Again, the garbage and plastic along the sides of the road was very noticeable. When we arrived at our hotel in Luxor, we had a shower and got settled. We went to the Crocodile Museum and Temple which created crocodile mummies, (the whole idea of appeasing the evil gods by mummifying crocodiles can’t be comprehended) and there was a huge temple with excellent sculpting. Again, the way it is at any temple or palace, there are older men who wear their long robe around and try to show us things and then want money for it. Then after a break, we went to the Karnak Temple, which is HUGE, with so much sculpting, and columns, and all kinds of amazing things. Outside every pyramid and historical spot, there are vendors trying to sell things from T-shirts and sculptures to trinkets and sculpted anything. They drive Sharon crazy because they are so persistent and bothersome and rude. We stopped at a perfume and essential oils factory, but after having to listen to the man talk and show us the products for half an hour, our group left without buying anything. We went to dinner on the 6th floor of a restaurant, overlooking the Luxor temple across the street, with a row of amazing sphinx. The history here is quite staggering.Read more