Abu Simbel! And Philae, and the trip back to Cairo

Hey folks - the morning after the station frustration I headed south to Abu Simbel, one of the masterpieces of Egyptian temple show-off-ish-ness by Ramses II.  To see the temple folks have to be in a convoy leaving from Aswan at 4 AM to arrive at about 730 or 8.  We boarded a mini bus (we being some folks from various hostels and hotels in Aswan - none of whom I knew really at the time), and went to a military base to wait for about a half hour before heading south.  There were maybe 20 buses, some full sized touring buses, some mini buses like ours, all of which looked pretty comfy.  The convoy I think was to ensure that we were not stopped on the road by terrorists, or to make sure we were not stopped on the road by engine failure - it was desert almost the entire way.  Here are a few photos of the base and of the drive down (it was austere and stunning).

Yeah we got a little convoy, ain't she a sight ...

Sunrise!

Stone Sentinels

Mondoshawans?

The rock outcroppings looked like giant desert creatures, stone sentinels, something like Ents of the desert.  I was also reminded of the Fifth Element (a number of times in these temples, actually).  I imagined them, every few thousand years, shaking off their gravel skirts and lumbering around for a while, keeping an eye on the geology of things, or providing shade to a bedouin.  Also, I watched the sun rise, my first of two in two days.

The temple was absolutely stunning, really something.  We rounded a corner, coming down a hill and were almost eyeball to eyeball with a 20 meter statue of Ramses.  The Egyptians along with a number of other countries actually MOVED the temple when a dam was built - please give the wiki article a read, its pretty cool.  I also took a few photos inside (WHICH IS AGAINST THE RULES), but I did it anyway, just for you.  Please enjoy.

Aside from the pyramids, this was the most impressive sight of ancient Egypt

Proud of a slave heritage - in the Valley of the Kings, slaves were depicted upside down, with heads and hands cut off

Sneaky photos of I don't know what!

There were lots of these - some big dude killing a bunch of smaller dudes

The sun shines in twice a year, they had to find the right angle when they moved it (read up on it!  very cool!)

The temple of Nefertari (Nefertiti?)

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In the temple

Entrance to the temple - you can see how the sun would shine all the way in

Philae from the water

Very impressive facades - note the same killing guy

The facial details were quite soft and lovely

I think this part was Roman - or Ptolemaic Egypt, each column had a different top

The water had massive granite bits coming out - there is a watch tower at the very top if you look closely

Souk in Aswan

Every third shop looked like this though not all advertised turbo sex machines

Back in Aswan at about 4 PM, I headed to the train station to try my luck on more time for a ticket back to Cairo.  No dice.  We are told to buy our ticket on the train.  I'm pretty sure the trains were meant to be segregated (we were on one of several Spanish trains - there were also special Spanish trains - which I don't think was a style so much as a train for people from Spain).  We boarded fine and found seats in a very comfortable second class - tickets to Cairo, purchased on the train, cost 61 EL (about 12 dollars).  Nice.  About an hour in, we are told that after Luxor (about 3 hours in of 13), the train will be sold out.  We, having bought our tickets on the train, were not entitled to seats, just the train ride, and would soon be displaced.  We were told we could buy tickets to first class - there were three left (for three of us - hmmm).  We think we are fine and decide to risk it.  Luxor comes, we hold our breath, three of us now, the other four having gotten out at Luxor.  The train fills a little, but by no means is it full.  Yes!  Home free!  I even snap a photo to show how not full the train is.

The train after Luxor - home free?

 Nice huh, lost of real estate.  So we cruise onwards, I fall asleep.  An hour or two passes, we stop, and the train fills.  We get booted, twice, and are standing in an entryway.  People are sleeping on luggage racks and on the floor, it is 2 AM, the train will arrive at 7 in Cairo.  Stephanie, our French friend, manages to nab a first class seat that we are pretty sure should be full of an Egyptian ticket holder, but possibly one that either doesn't want to talk to or bother a woman.  Fine - Helmet, my new aussie friend, and I post up in the entry way for a while, I try the luggage spot, then finally cozy up behind the seats in first class and watch Avator on my phone, which manages to get more offensive each time I watch it (third time, second was on the flight to Sweden).  I see the sunrise for the second time in two days.  We pull in and I am exhausted but feeling fine.  Here is my little spot.

Not really - this is how I spent most of the night

Yesterday I navigated the clinic once again, did some passport business, and slept a lot.  I also visited my friend Kevin in his new digs here in Cairo, which was pretty cool.  Today, picked up the Indian visa, and am on my way to getting my scrips in a minute, then hopefully off to St Katherine's monastery and Mt Sinai this afternoon.  Thanks for reading!  Be well!