Egypt: Day Nine, Kom Ombo

Cruising into Kom Ombo, the so-called "dramatic" view of the temple, which overlooks the Nile, was somewhat marred by 2 cruise ships moored right in front of it. We ran the gauntlet of shop keepers and boys selling bracelets as we made our way up to the temple, which is dedicated to both Sobek, the crocodile god, and Horus the Elder. There are two separate temples, side by side. It was very scenic -- looking out over the Nile. There were a lot of hieroglyphics about healing and also showing tools for embalming.

Being Spoiled
Some general trip notes:  The steward Haras always puts a smile on our faces, remembering our favorite beverages even when we don't; waiting to greet us with a tray of delicious fruit drinks (apple, mango, guava, orange, etc.) after our excursions; surprising us with exotic mixed fruit drinks in the late morning when we're cruising (mint and orange; strawberry/mango/guava, etc); keeping us satisfied with tea morning, noon, and night; and refilling our lunch soup bowls for us.  

Mustafa, the chef, cruelly tantalizes our tastebuds in the hours before lunch, with rich aromas of garlic and spices wafting their way to the upper deck. Some favorites of mine so far: corn soup, baba ganouj, hummus (very different from the hummus you get in other countries -- heartier, with more lemon), salad with corn/carrots/pomegranate seeds, kidney bean salad, roasted potatoes, etc. Mustafa is a culinary genius and very attentive to my food restrictions. We'll be thinking of him for the next month as we try to get all this weight off!

Ali, who cares for our rooms, surprised us last night with a man made out of pillows, wearing Sweetie's jacket and my sunglasses. We took pics in bed with the "man." Here you can see one of Ali's other creations.

This morning we all got up and took a walk with our guide Amro  around the idyllic island where we had moored.  Amro pointed out that Bales (the company we booked the trip with) accepted no responsibility for any cow dung we stepped in:-) ).  The island was quiet, full of nature, and beautiful.

Today we are cruising to Aswan.

Aswan
We took a small motorboat across the river, which is dotted with many scenic islands, to Aswan.  Then we hopped on a minibus to the Old Dam and the New Dam.  The New Aswan Dam is ENORMOUS.  It's 1 km across at the base and 40m across at the top and generates 2/3 of Egypt's electricity.   It was very scenic with a great view of Lake Nasser and there was a park on top of the dam.

After that, we took another boat to the Temple of Philae.  It had gorgeous views since it is on an island (it was relocated years ago from a nearby island that was submerged 9 months of the year after the building of the new dam).  There was quite a bit of damage done to it and lots of Christian crosses were carved inside (it had been turned into a church at one time).  

Several more boat rides were involved to make our way back to the Nesma.  On our final jaunt, the young man controlling our little motorboat skipped over some rocks and we stalled out.  We drifted...and drifted...
and wondered how much time would pass before someone realized we were missing....Finally though, he managed to restart it and before long we were safely back on the Nesma at its very private mooring, surrounded by sunflowers and bougainvillea.  We promised not to tell anyone....