Day Four begins with breakfast on the Hadeel. I could certainly become accustomed to being waited on hand and foot, and having food brought at my beck and call. We took the bus to the Valley of the Kings in Luxor(Thebes) on the west bank.
The dry wadi, austere and dusty, was exactly as I had picutured it my whole life.
There were several active digging sites, and these workers had
the unenviable task of putting pot shards back together!
We did not see King Tut's tomb, as we had already seen his treasure in the Museum, but we all got pictures of ourselves in front of the sign. We did see three tombs, and they were all fascinating. Some of our party had decided to hike across the ridge to Hatshepsut's temple, but Karle, Diana and I decided to take the bus around the headland. After seeing the hike (I am not a hiker!) I am glad that we went by bus rather than overland!
Hatshpesut, the only female pharoah, has always been one of my heroines. Instead of ruling as regent for the young Thutmose, she decided that she was going to be PHAROAH! She even wore the false beard, a sign of divinity reserved for males only. Her temple was most impressive.
Group photo of us in front of Hatshepsut's temple
Statue of Hapshepshut (note the false beard)
If you enlarge this picture, you can see the "telltale" bump indicating Hatshepshut's divine birth as the son of Amon Ra
Anubis
Overview of temple
This depicts the offering table for Hatshepsut (note the cow at the bottom)
Overhead view of the sky
More village pictures of Magalta, where the Hadeel was moored
I may have already posted this picture, but I do love it. It was taken through the bus window!
Even in the village, there was a traffic jam. The donkey pulled cart was piled high with produce
Very graphic doorway in the village
We also visited the Colussus of Memnon and Karnak temple, but they will have to wait for another day.
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