Luxor Museum and Karnak

Karnak Temple
Originally uploaded by kden604.

Today was a really great day so far!

I started the morning not coughing (too much)... my lungs are getting much better... I bought some anti-biotics the other day and it seems to be clearing up the problem pretty good.

One thing I really like about Egypt is the ability to self-administer normally over the counter drugs. I e-mailed a buddy of mine in the medical field and asked him what a good anti-biotic would be for such and such symptoms.... and you walk to the store, show the money and boom there you go... no prescriptions... and reasonably priced in original manufacturers boxes.

Anyways LOL...

I went to the Luxor Museum this morning and they had some really fantastic artifacts. I have to say that I probably enjoyed this museum more than the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. It was beautifully layed out and not too cluttered. The writeups were in Arabic and English and were generally very informative. There are two Mummies on display here at no additional cost and there is also some really neat stone working tools and design tools.... Beautiful Sculptures!

After that I walked along the Nile towards Karnak temple, it's lined with trees and the shade is welcomed in the heat. From Luxor Museum to Karnak Temple is perhaps a 20 minute walk at a decent pace.

Karnak Temple is a seriously impressive site... Its hard to describe just how big everything around you really is. The pillars in the temple are probably 4-5 stories tall and everything else too is just amazing.

Rows upon rows of carved creatures and statues are in the Karnak temple and its a picture takers paradise. The only down side is the massive crowds of tourists. Most of them seem to be Russian LOL.

What seems to make Karnak Temple special for tourists is the fact you can walk amongst almost everything... you are inside the temple walls and you are "there".... if you took out all the other tourists and imagined for a second you would literally feel like you were in the New Kingdom at this colossal temple.

I meant to come back to an Internet Cafe last night, but I decided to pack it in early because of my chest cold. But I did go out around sunset and snap a few amazing photos along the Nile. The colours are just so intense here that I cant help but snap picture after picture of the sunsets. Perhaps one day I'll get my butt up early and see what a sun-rise looks like!

Oh, I need to include one more thing...

I got an e-mail from Daniel, the Edmonton Guy from Cairo... He wants me to tell everyone how cool he is... especially all the women that read this blog.... LOL He and Don are on their way down to Luxor on tonights train and will arrive tomorrow sometime.