Day 01
Luxor to Esna Temple and El Kab Tombs
- Connect with your tour representative, who will pick you up from your hotel in Luxor and drive south alongside the Nile, past picturesque villages, to Esna, one of Egypt's trade centres throughout millennia.
- Visit Esna Temple, recently restored and cleaned. It is a well-preserved jewel and an example of Ptolemaic architecture. Only the pronaos (portico), dedicated to Khnum, the god of the source of the Nile and creator of human bodies, and his wife Menhit, the lioness goddess of war and massacres, has been excavated; the rest of the temple rests underneath the city of Esna. Twenty-four magnificent columns hold the temple ceiling, with exceptionally well-carved palm and lotus floral capitals. The ceiling itself is adorned with the Ancient Egyptian interpretation of the constellations, moon phases, and astronomical figures.
- Cross the Nile to El Kab, a prehistoric and Ancient Egyptian settlement on the East Bank, where you will visit some of the rock-cut tombs, including Sobeknackht, a local governor who withstood a Nubian invasion; Ahmose, an admiral in one of the Hyksos wars; the priest Setau; and Paheri, a high official whose tomb is adorned with paintings of family life and religious themes.
- Have lunch in an excellent local restaurant before taking the drive back to Luxor.
Tour ends.
