The weather early in the morning was more bearable than the mid-day heat. It was dry but windy, and the cool air certainly lifted my spirit. Our chef was kind enough to prepare breakfast box for each of us to bring along, but I wasn’t really hungry yet. Still, I ate bread just in case I faint along the way.
8 of our tour members were in for this, and a tiny van came along to pick us up. We arrived at a river bank and off we went onto a motor boat to bring us to the other side of the river bank. There was another short ride to the site where we flew into the sky.
What really got me frightened was that I found myself next to 4 gas cylinders. If they ever explode, I might be the first to die. Our big size captain leaped into the middle of the 4 gas cylinders when the hot air was sufficient, and we started to ascend into
The journey up was amazing; everything miniaturized slower and steadily. No, it was different from seeing the vast landscape from the plane, very different indeed. The cool breeze blew across my face, as I looked far and beyond. Moreover, I could look right through their roofless houses, seeing ducks chasing each other around the room. Now I understand what is going on behind the brick walls…
I was impressed by our captain when I realized that he could turn the basket round and round so as not to let anyone of us miss a scene on the other side. He did it by simply pulling some ropes!! We crossed the Nile River towards the other side of the river bank.
By then, the wind was very strong (9 to 10 knots) and we might be blown too far away. For safety reasons, our captain had to find a landing ground very soon. As he was descending, our basket nearly hit the power lines. Phew… We escape death…
Soon, we were instructed to keep our cameras and be in the landing position, which is to position ourselves with back facing the direction of the moving balloon, hold on to the handles and bent our knees.
No!!!! I don't want to land here!!!!!
Landing was fierce, 2 hard bumps before coming to a stop on the third bump. Once the basket was stable, we looked around and found ourselves in a sugarcane field.
What’s next?? We had to wait patiently for the crews to arrive. Since the basket is totally misplaced, the crew had to move it onto the nearby road. To save fuel, many were told to leave the basket but fortunately, I was one of the few to witness what will happen next. =)
That was how they deflate the balloon!!
The sun was bright and sunny as I walked through the farm to meet the rest. That’s it, USD 140 gone in one morning. But what I earned was an amazing once-in-a-lifetime experience and a certificate of participation.
Thank you!!
My friends from aboard!! Nice to meet you
Donkeys on the farm
After an eventful morning, the van brought us to the West bank to continue with our tour and meet the rest of our tour members. We arrived at the Colossi of Memnon, the only remains of the Temple of Amenophis III.
They can't sing anymore.... According to Ibrahim, the 2 statues used to sing/cry in the wind. They were made up of blocks of rocks and when wind blew through the gaps, it would create sound. However, the statues were destroyed in an earthquake years ago and after repair, they could no longer sing. How sad…
On my way to visit some tombs... "Hope I strike 4D" *Pray*
Next up, we travelled to the infamous Valley of the Kings. On first look, that place was none other than a narrow valley between lifeless shattered rocks. However, it was the tomb of more than 62 pharaohs of the 18th to 20th dynasty. Among them was the famous King Tutankhamun.
People queue as though they are queuing for 4D
I held a ticket visiting 3 tombs, but I forgot which tomb I had visited. If I didn’t remember wrongly, I should have visited the tomb of Rameses IV, Rameses VI and tomb of Seti I. There is nothing fantastic about tombs, because they were merely tunnels that lead to nowhere. No mummies, nothing. Photo-taking was prohibited inside tomb, so no photos here. However, you’re in luck!! I bought photo cards for 50 LE and I will be more than willing to lend, if you ask.
This tomb is really steep....
After Valley of the Kings, it is time to visit a queen. The Temple of Queen Hatshepsut is located behind the Valley of the Kings. Queen Hatshepsut is the first woman to rule Egypt in her own right. However, most of her images were destroyed by her step son or successor. It was a long walk from the coach but we had the comfort to sit all the way to the door step of the Temple in a tram.
Again, I don’t quite understand what the statues were about, but her resting place was so much prettier than the kings. I guess that was because women were more concern about their resting place than just digging some holes in the ground.
After the visits, we returned to our cruise and began sailing towards our next destination – Edfu. We will only reach Edfu the next morning, and it will be a long night for all of us.
We started sailing south towards EdfuSo looooooong we could sit in the balcony from morning till night.
I know we have seen enough statues to turn ourselves into one, but we do have a life. We didn’t sit there from morning till night; it was too hot and sunny. In between the time we took the photos, we went to the upper deck for afternoon tea as we cruise leisurely down the Nile river.
The upper deck
No, it wasn’t boring. Not a bit at all. That was the moment my jaws dropped to see how the Egyptians pirates attacked us. They threw “bombs” onto the upper deck, which were 4 and a half storey high. It startled everyone onboard to check what was going on. To our amusement, the “businessmen” row their little sampan towards us and started throwing more bags of clothes, forcing money out from us.
Pirates!!!! Run!!!!
I have never seen business began done like that!! Seriously, my jaws were left hanging in the air for the rest of the evening…
1 comment:
those cows look skinny~~
and i think lucky that u landed on BABY sugar canes
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