Our Egyptian odyssey continues with a flight from Cairo to Luxor. Our last visit here was actually only on the plane at the Luxor Airport in 1997! 68 people were killed in a recent Islamic terrorism attack and our tour guides wouldn’t allow us off the plane. This year we happily returned to this part of Egypt.

Our first stop was at the Luxor Museum.

The museum is not large but contains many woderful sculptures and exhibits. This is the magnificent statue of King Thutmosis III (1490 – 1436 B.C) from the Karnak Temple.

This is the dramatic head of King Amenhotep III (1403 – 1365 B.C.) which was once part of a colossal statue.

The statue of King Amenhotep III alongside Sobek, the ancient Egyptian crocodile god of the Nile, known as a deity of fertility, military prowess, and pharaonic power. 

We stayed overnight at the Hilton Hotel in Luxor.

The modern and ancient world coexist in Luxor.

Our guide Ashraf with Marla on our Felucca sailing excursion.

One of the Felucca crew members steers the boat.

A fabulous sunset on the Nile near Luxor.

We visited the amazing Luxor temple after dinner on our ship.

Massive sandstone columns and a guardian statue.

Nighttime is the best for visiting the Luxor Temple, even with all the crowds.

Impressive statues of Ramesses II and massive papyrus columns.

The next day we left our Nile ship early in the morning for the entrance to the famous, Valley of the Kings.

The sign shows which tombs are open for visiting.

The tomb of Seti I was my very favorite to visit.

The Tomb of Seti I is renowned as one of longest, deepest, and most spectacularly decorated tombs in the area. It was discovered by Giovanni Belzoni in 1817.

Marla descends into the grandeur of the tomb.

It is famous for its exceptionally preserved, vibrant reliefs and detailed, painted astronomical scenes. 

The mortuary temple of Hatshepsut was built during the reign of Pharaoh Hatshepsut of the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt. Located opposite the city of Luxor, it is considered to be a masterpiece of ancient architecture. This fascinating temple is very popular with tour groups.

Statues of Queen Hatshepsut.

We enjoyed a day of wonderful discoveries.

A view of the ramp and stairs leading down from the temple.

A limestone sphinx statue guards the temple of Queen Hatshepsut.

An evening visit to the Temple of Kom Ombo. It is an unusual double temple in the town of Kom Ombo. It was constructed during the Ptolemaic dynasty, 180–47 BC. Some additions to it were made later during the Roman period.

Photos: Dick Gentry. Not to be used without permission.