Frontier of the Pharoahs

Overview

Philae Pylon Photo - Philae Temple Complex, Aswan, Egypt

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Aswan has long been Egypt's gateway to Africa. Situated near the historic First Cataract of the Nile, the rapids beyond which uninterrupted sailing was impossible, it formed a natural limit to Pharaonic rule. South, the darker-skinned Nubians stood guard over the lucrative trade routes into the heart of the continent. It was in the environs of Aswan that gold, slaves, treasure and exotic animals were imported to Egypt, for transportation upriver. Aswan then was pretty much the world's first 'border post'. Although modern Egypt now stretches well beyond the High Dam, Aswan still owes its glories to its position. The ...Read More

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Salah al-Din

Restaurant

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A floating restaurant on the River Nile? That's got to be expensive right? Well no. I was very impressed with the prices at the Salah al-Din; almost as impressed as I was with the setting. The Corniche el-Nil is the prestige road of Aswan, a smart thoroughfare lined with banks that follows the bank of the Nile. It is only on this road and its namesake in Luxor that you will find that most un-Egyptian of objects, the traffic light. More amazingly, the drivers obey them! It is on this central stretch of road in Aswan that you will see the entrance to Salah al-Din. The restaurant is built down the bank, with at least two floors. But the real treat is at the bottom, wher...Read More

A floating restaurant on the River Nile? That's got to be expensive right? Well no. I was very impressed with the prices at the Salah al-Din; almost as impressed as I was with the setting.

The Corniche el-Nil is the prestige road of Aswan, a smart thoroughfare lined with banks that follows the bank of the Nile. It is only on this road and its namesake in Luxor that you will find that most un-Egyptian of objects, the traffic light. More amazingly, the drivers obey them!

It is on this central stretch of road in Aswan that you will see the entrance to Salah al-Din. The restaurant is built down the bank, with at least two floors. But the real treat is at the bottom, where a pontoon supports a floating terrace. Carpet underfoot and beer in hand the diner is able to sit and watch the sun sink behind the desert hills across the river in a last blaze of fire, and stygian darkness descend. Shaded from the city by the river bank, the only illumination out over the oily water are the floodlights picking out the Tombs of the Nobles and the Aga Khan's Mausoleum in soft orange glows, and the running lights of passing boats, fractured and reflected in the wavelets left in their wake. A flash of movement, a sigh, and a ripple in the stream is all that signifies the presence of wildlife - bats, swallows, I'm not sure. However you want to put it, this floating restaurant is an idyllic place to while away the evening.

Nor will you pay through the nose for it either. I went for 'Fish Tagen Nupien Style' - the local take on a Moroccan tagine, served in a casserole dish. The fish, which appeared in soft white lumps, was locally-caught tilapia. The sauce that accompanied it, based on tomatos and celery, was thankfully mild so as not to drown out the taste of the fish. And the price? A mere E£28 (roughly 2.50GBP). Drinks-wise, beer was only E£10, fresh orange juice E£8, and my beloved fresh lemon juice only E£6. Our wise-cracking waiter professed to be very impressed when I ordered an "Aseer limoon min fadlak". It was of course one of the first phrases I endeavoured to learn!

Following the meal the group headed upstairs to the lounge. In a complete reversal of British culture we went indoors to smoke. Shisha, the famed Egyptian 'hubble-bubble' cost E£4 per pot. Between the ten of us we ordered up four - three with apple tobacco, one with mango. The ornate shisha were provided for us, embers glowing under their protective covers. We were also provided with plastic nozzles to cap the pipe mouthpiece, each person to keep their own. This was a concession to hygiene I had not seen in Morocco, and which I found a bit superfluous. Still, it gives you an example of the standards that they set themselves here. The mango-flavoured tobacco I found a bit full-on and sweet for my tastes, but the apple showed why it is a favourite of tourists. Soon most of us were puffing away like good 'uns, experimenting with blowing smoke rings or - in my case - breathing twin plumes of smoke from my nostrils until I looked like a moustachioed Wing Commander. What I did find, and maybe it was just because of the sucking gulps I was taking was that I rapidly started feeling, well, drunk. Certainly light-headed and woozy. And I started to understand the appeal the shisha has throughout the middle east as a social lubricant when drinking alcohol is frowned upon. Certainly for me, this social activity topped off a very pleasant and memorable evening. Read Less

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on January 17, 2008

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Nubian Museum

Attraction

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If only all museums could be like the Nubian Museum. It is a microcosm of Aswan itself - neat, approachable, and displaying itself to best effect. It is also an indispensible guide to understanding Aswan and the relationship between Egypt and its southern neighbour Nubia. First impressions are favourable. It is sited on a rise at the southern tip of town just past the Old Cataract Hotel (E£20 in a taxi, or a thirty-minute walk from the heart of town - I particularly recommend the stroll back in the cool of dusk as the shadows lengthen across the Nile). Opened in 1999 the Museum is a stunning-looking low pink granite building, fusing the most up-to-date techniques with traditional Nubian...Read More

If only all museums could be like the Nubian Museum. It is a microcosm of Aswan itself - neat, approachable, and displaying itself to best effect. It is also an indispensible guide to understanding Aswan and the relationship between Egypt and its southern neighbour Nubia.

First impressions are favourable. It is sited on a rise at the southern tip of town just past the Old Cataract Hotel (E£20 in a taxi, or a thirty-minute walk from the heart of town - I particularly recommend the stroll back in the cool of dusk as the shadows lengthen across the Nile). Opened in 1999 the Museum is a stunning-looking low pink granite building, fusing the most up-to-date techniques with traditional Nubian architecture, such as a strong fortress-like appearance and narrow windows (for defence and coolness). Within the exhibits are well-labelled in English, and much better laid out than Cairo's Egyptian Museum, clearly taking you on a chronological journey through the history of the Nubian peoples, ancient Egypt's southern neighbours who lived beyond the Nile cataracts. Those exhibits are so pristine and demonstrative I half-suspected they had been knocked up by a craftsman in the bazaar!

As outlined here the relationship between Egypt and Nubia reminded me of that between medieval England and Scotland. A dialogue based originally on mutually-beneficial trade, led to the weaker partner becoming subservient to the mightier. Pharaonic Egypt utilised its organisational and military might to gain predominance, hungry for Nubia's gold and control of the trade routes into Africa. Yet this predominance waxed and waned. When Egypt was strong (such as under Ramses II) Pharaonic rule over Nubia was absolute; when Egypt was weak the Nubians could raid north and - to continue the British analogy - pillage York. Indeed, Nubian invaders conquered Thebes in the eighth-century BC. The resulting Kushite dynasty reigned as pharoahs for almost a century. Most of the time however saw Egypt laying claim to Nubia in theory, while in reality controlling little more than their forts along the Nile Valley, similar to the English king's 'rule' in Scotland in the 14th century.

Descending into the main gallery you are presented with a route that takes you through the glories of Nubia. These range from the flint arrowheads of prehistory, through egg-shell porcelain, to an example of a round grave. Egyptian interest starts with a headless statue of Cheops (the pyramids were built with Aswan granite), a large smooth scarab statue, a monumental eight-metre tall Ramses II, and sample belongings of the militarily-powerful governors who were based in Aswan and held the territory in the pharoah's name. That the two peoples shared the same gods is demonstrated by the gold-coated mummies on display upstairs. Further on we get horse bardings and the icons of Christian Nubia, then the story of the area's Islamisation. Finally the visitor is presented with dioramas of traditional Nubian village life. These communities could be found scattered along the Nile valley south of Aswan until the building of the dams submerged their homeland, displacing an estimated 800,000-strong people, forcing them to relocate north of Aswan, or south of Wadi Haifa in the Sudan. The story of the relocation of the Nubian people is not really told however; instead displays focus on UNESCO's work to relocate the cultural sites of Nubia's heritage, most notably with a model showing the former and present sites of Abu Simbel in relation to each other, below and above the waterline respectively. Other temples were relocated to higher ground, such as Philae and Kalabsha; still others were donated to the nations who assisted in the mammoth undertaking of deconstructing and then reconstructing these primordial edifices, such as Spain, Germany and Sweden.

Quite frankly, I thought that E£40 (less than £4GB) for such a confident and impressive introduction to several millenia of history was a very good deal. As with many museums I visted in Egypt it served to make the flagship Egyptian Museum in Cairo look dingy and disorganised. Moreover it was sparsely occupied at the time of my visit, enabling me to actually scrutinise the exhibits and read their blurbs, rather than craning my neck over the crowds and moving on. Be aware that the museum does close between three and four in the afternoon. My recommendation would be to visit as soon as it reopens; that way upon leaving you get a lovely walk down the Corniche as the sun sets - as long as you can ignore the persistent caleche touts. I would also urge you to make this your first stop in Aswan. It will really allow you to understand the background behind the construction of Abu Simbel, and the Nubian bands you will assuredly see and hear. Read Less

Member Rating 5 out of 5 on January 17, 2008

Nubian Museum
downtown
Aswan, Egypt

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Abu Simbel: Sun Temple of Ramses II

Attraction

An Insignificant Mortal Photo - Aswan, Egypt

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Getting to Abu Simbel is not easy. The great rock-hewn temple complex of Ramses II and his favoured wife Nefertari is located 175 miles south of Aswan, a mere 25 miles from the Sudanese border. That's a lot of very sparse terrain to cover. The logistics involved meant that, when faced with the option of visiting the site only four of our company of nine took it up. But I knew of Abu Simbel, and the very idea of visiting Aswan and of not making the effort to go and see one of the most famous ancient monuments in the world was not one that I was prepared to consider for long. Hell, if necessary I would have made the journey on my own! There are two ways of visiting Abu Simbel. For ...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on January 17, 2008

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Abu Simbel: The Hathor Temple of Queen Nefertari

Attraction

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Adjacent to the larger Sun Temple of Ramses II stands the temple to Hathor, goddess of love and beauty, of his wife Queen Nefertari. Nefertari was but one of the pharoah's wives, though clearly his favourite. Reputedly of Nubian descent she has been remembered as being very beautiful ('Nefer' in ancient Egyptian meant 'beautiful'). It is no susprise that here she is identified with the cow goddess Hathor, as shown by the cow-horn crown on the depictions outside the temple. Here six figures grace the facade, three each side of the entrance, depicting Nefertari, Hathor... and of cou...Read More

Adjacent to the larger Sun Temple of Ramses II stands the temple to Hathor, goddess of love and beauty, of his wife Queen Nefertari. Nefertari was but one of the pharoah's wives, though clearly his favourite. Reputedly of Nubian descent she has been remembered as being very beautiful ('Nefer' in ancient Egyptian meant 'beautiful'). It is no susprise that here she is identified with the cow goddess Hathor, as shown by the cow-horn crown on the depictions outside the temple. Here six figures grace the facade, three each side of the entrance, depicting Nefertari, Hathor... and of course Ramses himself. The number of surviving collossi of Ramses II in Egypt is breathtaking. Clearly this was a man with a monstrous ego. If it weren't for the fact that he reputedly sired 250 offspring I might think he was overcompensating for something... Two of their children stand knee-high between the couple.

Compared to Ramses' temple, the interior layout is simpler - a main chamber leading to a sanctuary, and only two chambers leading off to either side, whereas her husband has eight in total. Ramses makes a reappearance in here, as reliefs show him smiting his enemies once more (again with the smiting!). But here Nefertari stands cheering him on, or making offerings to the gods. In the sanctuary at the end Ramses is depicted worshipping his deified self.

The temple is not in its original location - originally it stood 61m lower down the hillside, in a location now fully submerged by the waters of Lake Nasser, as shown in an imporessive diorama at the Nubian Museum in Aswan. When the waters of the Nile begn to rise following the completion of the Aswan High Dam in the 1960s UNESCO, the United Nations' Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation spearheaded a massive relief project to save the temples, and other relics of ancient Nubia (such as Philae and Kalabsha). A waterproof wall was constructed around the site, and the hillside was dismantled into over 1000 sawn blocks of sandstone. Within two years, and at a cost of over $40m, the temples had been reconstructed on an identical axis higher up the mountain, with the surrounding terrain sculpted to resemble their prior setting.

Entry is covered by the E£70 entrance fee to the complex. Read Less

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on January 17, 2008

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Philae Temple Complex

Attraction

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The Temple of Isis at Philae is a modern complex. Well, compared to many of the other sites you will visit in Egypt it is. Its remains date from the period of Ptolemaic and later Roman rule, and hence were constructed at least a thousand years later than, say, Abu Simbel. These new interloper dynasties (hailing from Macedonia and Italy respectively) found it made sense to associate themselves with Egypt's indigenous pantheon to win over their new subjects. Of all the Egyptian gods and goddesses it was that of Isis, the loving and mysterious mother-goddess, that spread furthest thro...Read More

The Temple of Isis at Philae is a modern complex. Well, compared to many of the other sites you will visit in Egypt it is. Its remains date from the period of Ptolemaic and later Roman rule, and hence were constructed at least a thousand years later than, say, Abu Simbel. These new interloper dynasties (hailing from Macedonia and Italy respectively) found it made sense to associate themselves with Egypt's indigenous pantheon to win over their new subjects. Of all the Egyptian gods and goddesses it was that of Isis, the loving and mysterious mother-goddess, that spread furthest throughout the Roman empire. As wife of the slaughtered god Osiris and mother of Horus, with whom the pharoahs associated themselves, she attained the honoured position of quasi-mother to the rulers of Egypt. And the complex at Philae, opposite the holy Biga Island where part of Osiris' dismembered body was supposedly buried, was one of the cult's centres.

From Aswan you will need to hire a taxi to take you to Shallal, south of the British 1902 dam. Here there is a flotilla of simple boats that can ferry you across to the island. Apparently some of them can even get there in one trip without sputtering to a halt and requiring you to transfer to a second boat, but I wouldn't know about that!

The trip there takes you along the west side of the island, the dun coloured temple suddenly appearing between green palm fronds and the towering piles of grey boulders that frame the lake. You chug past a ceremonial gate constructed in the reign of the Emperor Hadrian, the side of the tall wedge-shaped pylons, and a long colonnade topped with carved flowers to reach the landing stage at the southern tip of Philae. Disembarking, you progress down columned collonades (the western once looking over towards sacred Biga Island) to reach the large first pylon with its preternaturally clear carvings of gods cheering on the Ptolemaic pharoah Neos Dionysos (more smiting). The passageway is the site of yet more European graffiti, left by Napoleonic troops in Year 7 of the French Republic. Beyond there is a jumble of chambers, all adorned with engraved gods and supplicants, and telling the story of the raising of the infant Horus by Isis. A hypostyle hall leads down to the sanctuary. Apparently you can access the roof where there is sited a shrine to Osiris, but I found all the dark stairways forbiddingly gated off.

The remainder of the island is dotted by the architectural follies of a string of Roman Emperors, including Augustus, Trajan, Claudius, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius and Diocletian. The most eye-catching is the Kiosk of Trajan, a square roofless shrine which - with its angles thrown into clear relief by the afternoon sun, looks to have been designed by MC Escher. It has been nicknamed 'The Pharoah's Bedstead', for reasons that become clear upon viewing. Make sure you save space on your camera for one more shot of the Kiosk as you leave, as the boatride circles the isle to the east, offering a magical view of it overhanging the water.

On the trip back you may have pointed out to you some metal rods protruding from the water. This was the original site of Philae Island. After the British built the first Aswan dam in 1902 the temple would be submerged for half the year - tourists would peer down at the angles of masonry below them in the water. Once it became clear that the new Soviet-funded High Dam would drown the temple complex forever a UNESCO-sponsored operation dissasembled the brickwork and reconstructed it on the higher Agilka Island, painstakingly landscaped to resemble the topography of the original. The only difference is that its orientation no longer looks west towards Osiris's holy isle. Instead the god's remains are underwater somewhere to the east of Agilka Island.

Entry is E£40, but this does not include the cost of transport. The doorman at our hotel organised a Mercedes taxi to take us to the landing stage for another E£40 roundtrip - this included boat fare which our taxi driver arranged for us (but not the baksheesh expected at the end of the trip). If you do organise a return make sure you are clear when and where your driver will be waiting for you. We had an anxious ten minutes contemplating a sweaty walk back to town when ours failed to turn up as expected.

Philae also hosts a son et lumiere show several times an evening. I did not go, but those of my friends who did rated it very highly - it takes you on a tour of the temple whilst relating the myths behind it. They also said that the voiceover was 'narrated' by a donkey, but I think they were pulling my leg... Tickets for this cost E£60, which is not much more than a normal unescorted ticket, and so works out as a pretty good deal.

For those of you into ancient remains, Philae is *the* site to see between Luxor and Abu Simbel. Moreover it is a darn sight easier to reach than Abu Simbel. At the very least its atmospheric columns and pylons, sited in the middle of a lake, make for a memorable visit. I think a trip will appeal to children in particular. Read Less

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on January 22, 2008

Philae Temple Complex
Agilkia Island near Aswan
Aswan, Egypt

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A Nubian Feast

Story/Tip

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It had been arranged for us to travel upstream to Sehel Island on the Tuesday night. Sehel is home to a thriving Nubian community. Recognising that their culture is very different to that of the lighter-skinned Egyptians, the Nubians have taken to tourism big time. All along the Nile you will see Nubian felucca crew, musicians, and hotel staff well out of proportion to their actual population. Dinner trips to Sehel Island for a traditional Nubian meal are one facet, and probably one that you will be offered whilst in Aswan. The great thing here is that you will be dining with a local family, and so you are guaranteed that any money you spend will go directly into the community ra...Read More

It had been arranged for us to travel upstream to Sehel Island on the Tuesday night. Sehel is home to a thriving Nubian community. Recognising that their culture is very different to that of the lighter-skinned Egyptians, the Nubians have taken to tourism big time. All along the Nile you will see Nubian felucca crew, musicians, and hotel staff well out of proportion to their actual population.

Dinner trips to Sehel Island for a traditional Nubian meal are one facet, and probably one that you will be offered whilst in Aswan. The great thing here is that you will be dining with a local family, and so you are guaranteed that any money you spend will go directly into the community rather than being divided up by a sea of middlemen.

Omar and his family were to be our hosts for the evening. 4.30 saw us climbing aboard their launch on the Nile, looking tiny and toy-like where it was tied up between two monstrous cruise ships. Casting off, we were steered upstream for our 45 minute boatride. Other than the ride across to Philae that afternoon this was my first experience of sailing on the famous river Nile. Even within the limits of Aswan itself there was plenty to see as the sun started to dip. We puttered past the back end of Elephantine Island to see the smoothed boulders that did indeed resemble a bathing heffalump. Then we went up past the famous Old Cataract Hotel - and from the river the balconies and palms make it look every bit as lovely as it is supposed to be. It was a lovingly-crafted antique among the bland concrete constructions that often pass for hotels. I could really envisage a stay there in the '20s, sipping an iced tea on the verandah, Agatha Christie writing 'Death On The Nile' off to one side, Winston Churchill daubing watercolours on the other. I really was born a century too late!

Once past the Old Cataract with dusk bruising the sky the crew pulled out handheld drums. We were treated to - and had to join in with - Nubian entertaining to get us in the party mood. Their music is strong on rhythmic drumming and call-and-respond singing: or at least the version offered up to visitors is. Ohh-a-lay-lay!

Sehel Island has streetlamps, but not much in the way of streets. Climbing the trail up through the sandy scrub from the beach leads to a cluster of building built in a squarish stucco style, similar to that of the Nubian Museum. There were a few taller blocks (one of which we visited as it held the school, with a playground on its flat roof - rain not being a common problem here) but largely the houses were similar to Omar's. Passing through a blank doorway revealed a sprawling compound of courtyards - as the family expands, so too does the family dwelling, spreading up the hillside as each new generation adds on their own annex upon marriage. This stepped nature meant that when we were settled on rugs (shoes off please!) we were in what could only be described as a roof / yard.

Our meal had been paid for before, but there were other things to buy. Soft drinks (no alcohol) cost E£3, and a selection of souvenirs - embroidered skull caps, carved wooden crocodiles - were produced. One of the women of the family also offered henna tattoos - E£10 for a solitary image, E£25-35 for an entire hand. She could not draw freeform however, and your tattoo has to be picked from a book of designs. Three of our party opted for tattoos. Rather than the reddish hue I associated with henna these came out very dark, lightening over the next fortnight. More entertainment came in the form of an overly-inquisitive toddler who delighted at our reactions when shot with his toy gun. I do hope we weren't encouraging him!

The food arrived en masse. Salad, rice, pasta, fried potato slices, veg casserole, flat bread, and finger-lickin' spicy-coated chicken. I'm assumimng the spicy chicken is a Nubian speciality as I was to have it again before reaching Luxor. Which was fine by me! Refills of food kept coming until we gestured for them to stop. It was all very tasty.

I can't remember how much we paid for the meal - I think E£30 per head - but it was definitely great value compared to a restaurant. Plus you got the experience of dining with a Nubian family on rugs in the open air, the noise of village life (the hum of a generator, a dog barking in the distance, a dimly-heard snatch of music) drifting up around you. As we sailed back down to Aswan we lay on the roof of the boat counting the stars, the sky as big as our bellies. Read Less

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Aswan Journals

Frontier of the Pharoahs