Aswan, Egypt.

Friday 22nd Sept 12.58pm

Still having fun!!! I have just walked through the Aswan bazaar and the smell of all the spices were awesome. They were all heaped in little bowls like mini pyramids in such diverse colours, deep blue (dye), bright yellow saffron, brown cumin. I just loved walking amongst the vibrancy of the local (and tourist) markets. I am getting a teensy bit annoyed with all the 'Hey lady, hey lady, come into my shop, you pretty lady, everything for you is free, hey lady hey lady, where you from, you got husband, I give 200 camels for you, hey lady hey lady, come in and look, I have scarf, you want scarf, hey lady hey lady (are YOU annoyed yet?)
I am becoming heartless and ignoring a lot of people which feels rude, but is a necessity. I am tempted to buy heaps but then get back to my room and look at my backpack and am glad I didn't buy anything.

The donkey ride was fun (but one arse didn't agree with the other one). The getting up was hard but supremely worth it. The approaching dawn over the pale green fields was tranquil and beautiful. The mountains that are home to the Valley of the Kings were deep red and contrasted sharply against the green lower valley near the Nile. Hot air balloons took off up into the sky and you could hear the fire burn the air as they rose and fell. It felt like we were in another world.
Thankfully I didn't fall off but decided to forgo the pleasure of a return donkey ride to the boat. There was only a worn cushion between me and my escort and it didn't even have cup holders as one of my friends pointed out. Jonathon and Andrea are a married couple from Canada. He is funny and she is sweet. I get along well with them. My roommate Terri is from England and we get along well also. The pipes in Egypts toliets are really small and block easy so you cannot put toilet paper in them (sorry more dunny stories). You have to put the used paper in a basket next to the bin. So Terri and I are probably as close as roommates can be because of it. (Mum I heard Santorini is the same - be prepared)
The Valley of the Kings was interesting. We went into 3 tombs and saw amazing colour - the best I'd seen so far. Afterwards I climbed the mountain above it and got an amazing view of the valley, some other temples and surrounding areas. It was tough going - over 40 degrees again, but worth the 20 minutes of exhaustion when we eventually stopped. We went to the village of the workers and artists of the Valley of Kings. They worked for 9 nines in the adjoining valley and then got one day off to visit their family, pick up supplies and create their own tombs. We saw 2 of them and it was interesting to see the difference of their perception of the afterlife. Their paradise was working a lush farm, instead of the pharoahs sitting amongst jewels. On the way back I chatted to a few of the other people in my tour group and it was nice to get to know them too.
We set sail when we got back and it was glorious to cruise the Nile. I spent the afternoon catching up on my journalling and gazing at the passing scenery. I would recommend it to anyone. Egypt is amazing, truly! Just the time spent on temples and statues astounds me. The ancient Egyptians were fabulous artists. We stopped at Edfu Temple the next morning then cruised to Kom Ombo Temple and docked their for the night.
That night we had a traditional Egyptian night. We all dressed up in our version (westernised) of local dress and had a great meal. My stomach is standing up fairly well against all the different oils and foods. I must admit I am stuffing my face as it all tastes lovely. Afterwards we had a Sufi dancer (that spins and spins and spins) which I must admit was a bit skeptical about when they consider it entertainment. How long can you be excited about someone spinning in a circle for 5 minutes. I was impressed that he walked a straight line after the performance and he did keep my attention. Then we had Nubian dancers and they got many of us up to join in. When they left about 6 of us got up and danced. We had an awesome time and I saw a different part of a shy Chinese guy named Bruce. From the energy he displayed I was sure he had tried a 'special' sort of Egyptian spice. It was absolutely fantastic. I went to bed exhausted and slept through breakfast. Luckily my lovely roomie got me a plate. Then I set off for the centre of Aswan. And here I am.

As I will miss out on lunch too if I don't go now - I will say goodbye. This afternoon I will go on a felucca ride (traditional Egyptian boat) around the islands here and then tonight a sound and light show of the Philae (fil-eye) Temple to worship Isis. The temple worships the God Isis, not me. Then I have a 3am wake up call to go to Abu Simbel. You would have seen a picture of it. Next to the pyramids, it is the most famous Egyptian symbol. I hope to blog tomorrow to bore you with more Egyptian tales if I can. (the reading as always is optional - I'll just pretend you can't leave the house until you've read my ramblings)

Thanks again for the comments. I miss you all and wish you could come with me down the bazaar (to surround me and protect me from the 'hey lady hey lady', not because I want your company or anything - just kidding).

Love from me...
Kym