Kom Ombo and Aswan

We meandered through the Temple of Kom Ombo in the town Kom Ombo yesterday afternoon. Kom Ombo is located on the Nile and 65kms south of Edfu

Things of note in Kom Ombo area: Kom Ombo Temple, the crocodile God Sobek, and Nubians (a near extinct indigenous dark skinned group from southern Egypt).

The dual temple of Kom Ombo is known for its symmetrical sides - left half is dedicated to the crocodile God Sobeka, and right half is dedicated to the falcon God Haroeris (see picture 2 for excellent modern day representation using only shadows). Everything in the temple is doubled and perfectly symmetrical along the main axis of the temple e.g. twin entrances, twin courts, twin hypostyle halls, double alter in the centre of the court for both gods etc.

There is also a peculiar scene on the back wall of the temple which is thought to be the first representation of medical instruments for performing surgery dating from the days of the Roman Egypt. The Nilometre was also present - a measuring device designed to measure the rise and fall of the Nile. The Nilometre takes the form of a graduated column and sits well below the level of the Nile on a paved area at the bottom of a flight of steps. More tax is levied if the level rises.

The temple visit was followed by a relaxing sit down in a sheesha and ice cream tent. In the evening, we partied Egyptian style, complete with Egyptian style clothes & accessories.

The cruise style holiday is ... well very cruisy. Buffets three times a day and itinerary can as hectic or relaxing as you make it. The food has been very good. A good mix between traditional (falafel, baklava, moussaka, kunafa, shai tea) and non-traditional (lasagne, chips). There is a mini pool on the upper deck, but it is constantly half filled, perhaps because of the evaporation? And its always interesting to socialise with such a diverse bunch of travellers, from the typical annoying Canadian loud mouth to 4 Scots that look just like ABBA.

We docked in Aswan this morning. We have so far squeezed in a walk through the bazaar and experienced a camel ride in the desert in the afternoon. The camel ride reminded me of the scene in Spaceballs just before the group collapsed from dehydration. The camels were amazingly calm and responsive. Yet again I had to swap camels (though not before nearly getting bucked off) half way through the journey. Dismounting is a scary process. They are such cute creatures and they sound like chewbacca - for real!

We are now waiting for buffet dinner and then will go see a light show at the philae temple in Aswan. 2am star tomorrow morning for Abu Simbel!