Felucca Fiasco

Things seemed to be running according to plan. We (my new Aussie friends and I) were transferred from the hotel to the felucca, it was a bright sunny day, a light breeze. Perfect for a cruise on the Nile! We arrived at the boat and met our 8 shipmates, and our two person crew and were pumped! They even offered to do a packy run for a few beers and some wine (hard to find in Egypt). It was great. They made us a light lunch and we were ready. But we didn't move. and we waited and waited. Finally the "captain" told us that it was too windy to sail. (Ironically, it was too windy for a sailboat, hmmm.) but in truth, the Nile was rough with whitecaps. We were moving to the other side of the river and then waiting for the wind to die down so that we could then sail up the Nile to Luxor. A couple of river crossings, and we were on the far bank waiting.

Well that is about as far as we got. So we spent the afternoon getting to know each other, relaxing on the banks of the Nile, having a cocktail or two. We had some dinner, a few more drinks and then we all (11 of us) staked our claim on a a bit of the deck of the feluuca and went off to dreamland. But it was cold. Very cold. I was wedged between a Japanese and an Aussie. Not a lot of room for all of us tosleep but huddling together kept us warm. The guides had warned that it gets cold, and wow, were they right. It didn't help that when I was jumping off the boat (to use the reeds for a bathroom), that I slipped and partially sat in the Nile. It took a few hours to dry (my pack was stored under the deck and too hard to get to), but eventually I dried out and caught a few winks.

In the morning we had our breakfast and then waited for the Transport to come to take us to a couple of temples along the way. Of course we weren't where we were supposed to be, but it seemed to work out ok. They picked us up and we were off to Kom Ombo (where we were scheduled to camp) on the banks of the Nile, and then to Edfu. (one couple was screaming that the driver, and then told me that I didn't know how to work "with these people". I told him he was racist.) The temples were amazing however, and big. They made the day worth it. We dumped some of our crew (and the annoying coule) at the bus station, picked up some locals (as a taxi service), took a side road through the sugar fields narrowly avoiding donkey carts, to avoid a police checkpoint, and eventually found our selves in Luxor. Only to find out that the driver dropped me at the wrong hotel. I found a cab and eventually made it to my hotel (which was paid for). Long day.

The best parts of the day: Making some new friends from Bozeman, Montana. These two great women. Kicking back on a felucca. The crazy driving and driver. Wondering about how my parents would enjoy Egypt and imagining them in the rickety van. Arriving a nice place near the temple in Luxor. Touring Luxor Temple at night.

The temple was stunning, but at night, even cooler. Really amazing, really big, just tremendous and worth every ounce of frustration to get here. Being there at night means that the crowds were leaving and it was lit up. Nice.

Tomorrow, Valley of the Kings, Karnac Temple and an overnight bus to Dahab on the Red Sea.