Travelling has always been my passion. The happiness that I feel to get to know a new country is simply a joyous experience. My husband shares this passion. Perhaps, that’s why we chose to holiday in Egypt, the ultimate site for history buffs. One of the World’s great civilisations, Egypt’s lifeline has been the Nile River. Often referred to as the ‘Gift of the Nile’, its unified kingdom arose circa 3200 B.C and a series of dynasties ruled in Egypt for the next three millennia.

Apart for the pharoanic kingdom of the native dynasty, the Persians, Greeks, Romans, and Byzantines all left their indelible mark on Egyptian soils. From its ancient civilisation to modern significant breakthroughs such as the Suez Canal (1869), Aswan High Dam (1971) and the resultant Lake Nasser, Egypt has been a constant newsmaker.

Our first city in Egypt was home to the Pyramids of Giza. Though a very crowded city, Cairo set us in the right mood for Egyptian history. The iconic Pyramids are synonymous with Egypt and one is fortunate to view them at least once in one’s lifetime. Giza is located only a few kilometres south of Cairo.

One is taken by surprise as the giant limestone structures spring out of nowhere rather abruptly from the other side of a desert plateau with the last houses in southern Cairo, but a few metres away. It’s a good build up to the excitement that follows as you take a turn in to the road that goes up towards the wonders.

Within minutes you are at the base of the first of the three giant pyramids belonging to Khufu, his son Khephren and grandson Menkaure. Looking up at the mountainous structure made us feel rather small and humble. These architectural wonders really make you wonder how in a time of limited faculties and tools did the artistic Egyptians build such colossal pyramids.

Our curiosity took us right into a pyramid through a long passage, which one could approach only in an uncomfortable position of bent back and bent knees. The interiors of the centre of the pyramid had a small tomb, but was otherwise empty. It is believed that all the pyramids were robbed of its treasures by thieves.

Colossal Sphinx
Then there was the much-photographed Great Sphinx, a huge creature with the head of a Pharaoh and a lion’s body. This monumental statue, the first truly colossal royal sculpture in Egypt, is a national symbol of Egypt, both in ancient and modern times.

Next to the Sphinx is a funerary temple where priests performed the act of mummification of the kings.
To know Egyptian history and have a better understanding of its various monuments and rulers, the Cairo Egyptian Antiquities Museum is a gateway to the great civilisation.

Its most visited sections are the Tut-ankhamun’s tomb treasures and the Hall of Mummies. Our well-informed guide, Hamed, a History Professor helped us understand Egypt and its past better at the Museum.

Our next stop was Luxor (ancient Thebes), undoubtedly one of the most picture perfect cities of Egypt, with its beautiful promenade by the Nile River, its significant historic temples and sites and its very charming lifestyle. It had it all, to make one’s visit memorable.

No wonder, Luxor has been referred to as the world’s greatest open-air museum. We arrived in the wee hours of the morn and instead of crawling back into bed, sat spellbound at our hotel room balcony that provided a breathtaking view of the Nile and the valleys beyond. It was lovely to watch how the still waters of the Nile at day break slowly transformed to a busy port during the day, with several cruise liners docking in.
From the balcony we could also see the famed Luxor temple. Modern living and history co-exist here, a good blend of the past and present.

We set off energetically to attack Egypt’s history. We first visited the museum, which housed some of the most magnificent figurines of kings and queens, excavated from the temples.

We proceeded to the next historical wonder of Karnak temple complex. It is the largest temple complex ever built by man, and represents the combined achievement of many generations of ancient builders.
Karnak during ancient time was Ipet-isut, meaning ‘The most sacred of places’. We could feel the triumphs and tribulations of Kings Ramses, Amon Re, Tuthmosis and Queens Nefertiti, Nefartari, Hetshepsut, etc through their life size statues and obelisks. 

Small is beautiful
An enchanting monument is definitely the smaller but nevertheless magnificent temple of Luxor. During the ancient era, many festivals were celebrated in Thebes.

The Temple of Luxor was the centre of the most important one, the festival of Opet. Built largely by Amenhotep III and Ramses II, it appears that the temple's purpose was for a suitable setting for the rituals of the festival. Luxor temple was unique since it had the influence of Greek architecture as well during the reign of Alexander the Great.

Next on agenda was the highlight of our trip, the Nile Cruise. The three-day cruise would take us to some lovely historical towns in Egypt. Our cruise was all that we’d expected it to be. Sightseeing trips in the day, balmy afternoons on the deck viewing the breathtaking country scenery, gourmet meals and peppy nights.

On our first day on cruise we moved to the West bank of Luxor to witness a completely different side. While East bank looked pampered and glorious, the West bank was rather an under-developed village with green fields.
The Egyptians believed in the Sun god and since the Sun rose from the East which signified life and set in the West, signifying death, thus the east bank was full of life and the west bank was home to Valley of the Kings and Queens, where all the great souls were buried.

We visited the tombs in the wee hours of the morning to avoid the scorching heat. Some of the tombs retained their beauty of painted walls telling stories of that Pharaoh’s great deeds.

RIP King Tut
We visited the tomb of the famed young king Tut-Ankhamun amongst others whose was the only tomb to have been found intact with all the riches that now are the pride of the Cairo museum.

Cruising down the Nile, we visited some of the most handsome looking architectural delights at Edfu, Kom Ombo and Aswan and marvelled at the exquisite artworks in the pharaonic temples.

To me Egypt had always been related to the famed pyramids, Cleopatra and Tut-ankhamun’s tomb. However, it was an eye-opening experience when I visited the temples and towns down the Nile. This, was the real Egypt that boasted of its glorious civilisation.

Our final port of call was Aswan, a quaint sleepy town that boasts of  a good combination of an old, historical monument like the Philae Temple, perched on an island and dedicated to Goddess Isis against the world-famous High Dam, a 364-feet tall engineering miracle built in the 1960s overlooking Lake Nasser.

All good things must come to an end and so did our very enriching experience in Egypt. All I can say is, go to Egypt if you want to lose yourself in a different world. The place will hypnotise, mesmerise and overwhelm you and you shall definitely come back rich with memories of a beautiful civilisation.