9 November

My first real day on the Nile – and it was great waking up and seeing the bank going by. Visions of the Moscow to St Petersburg cruise returned, but the heat through the window and the different scenery made it obviously different. I was awake not long after 0600 and quickly up for breakfast at 0615 (I only had to shower, dress and go up two decks). Again, it was magic watching the banks of the Nile glide by while eating breakfast in comfort. There was no toast, but after a request, a basketful appeared (note: just because bread has been through a toaster, you don’t get toast, because here it came COLD). So Vegemite was on the menu again.
By 0730 we had docked and it was obvious where we were going – the temple of Kom Ombo was really just across the other side of the road. A short walk later, through the obligatory bazaar of souvenir sellers, we were at the temple. There was a lot to see and a lot to have explained (by the way, the explanations were too detailed to note here, but I may digest them from the Lonely planet guide and add them later) and after an exhausting hour and a half, we were back onto the ship and very shortly after, we were off again.
During our cruising south I chatted on the deck with Sue, Lin, Pattie and Margaret. As always in situations like this, regular mealtimes rule, so we were soon down for lunch before we docked again, at 1330, at Edfu. Here we were to go to the temple by horse and carriage, normally a unique and inspiring journey, but not when my horse allergy played up and I ended up sneezing and with a runny nose. So for Devika and me, in carriage 92, it was an interesting but short drive to the temple. The temple here could be best described as majestic and was a spectacle in the warm afternoon sun. Again we got the guided tour and a little time to wander, and then we were back into our carriage for our ride back. Our driver, who had been so good on the drive out, gave us the sob story on the way back just before we stopped, but we had already been briefed – Hesham had negotiated the rates and would pay them all once we all returned. We were on board but then saw drinks at a reasonable price, so ran back across the road to get them. We made sure we were back for our scheduled departure at 1530 but … nothing happened until nearly 1555 when a bus came to a screaming halt, the driver handed over a purse and scarf and then left, as we did. We found out not long after that some of the drivers had caused a scene over the payments and the resulted in a police report.
Very soon after we went under a low bridge – the sundeck awnings had been lowered and there was just enough clearance for me (although some watching didn’t think there was) – and soon after the awnings were up and we had afternoon tea. During this time I chatted with a couple from Perth and a couple from near Chicago, saw a great sunset and took some photos and ordered T-shirts as souvenirs with cartouches of names on them. I also arranged a massage for tomorrow, to see if that would help me unwind a little.
Then it was an evening of Egyptian entertainment with dinner, picking up the T-shirts (and paying for them), and then off to bed.