Nile River Cruise

One of the high points of our honeymoon was a Nile River Cruise. Make no mistake. I am not a cruise guy. I've never had much of a desire to cruise before but there are three cruises I have definitely wanted to try...cruising the inside passage, cruising China's Yangtze River and Cruising the Nile. The Nile did not disappoint.

Our four day cruise began in Luxor, site of ancient Thebes. We spent a day and a night there, visiting many of the most well known temples and tombs in Egypt. We cruised to Esna and stayed the night. Then it was early morning to Edfu and the temple of Horus. That afternoon we cruised to Kom Ombo and spent the night docked next to the temple. After an early morning visit , it was off to Aswan and the final evening of our cruise.

The setting was picturesque, the staff couldn't have been more friendly and we received semiprivate tours of many ancient sites. Our only real complaint was that they fed us far too much - including the thoughtful cake below.






	Our cruise ship, the Star Goddess, part of the Sonesta Line. Views from our balcony along the Nile, south of Luxor. Below: Esna at night and in the morning. This is the first place we docked.




	I'm still trying to identify the ruins above. I found them on google earth but there is no named associated. Located between Edfu and Aswan, they could be ancient ruins or a modern ghost town. Above, the Temple at Kom Ombo - The view from the Star Goddess. Our guide, Ismael. He was our guide for all of the excursions during the cruise. To the left is the "Internet Cafe" at Kom Ombo. A broom closet really. Below: A whirling dervish performing on board the Star Goddess. Technically not authentic since true whirling dervishes eschew permanent employment, but an entertaining show nonetheless.