Arrived back in Luxor shortly before 1:00 pm. Airport near empty. Half a dozen cab drivers fighting over our bags and not even listening to what we want, where we want to go, let alone telling us how much the ride to the ferry will be. Denny raises his voice and tells them to back off. We finally agree on a fee and itinerary with a driver and embark on a white-knuckle ride to the ferry.
Adventure!
At the ferry, same story. Smaller boat operators offer us 'deals' that are really twice the rate of the public ferry (2 Egyptian Pounds or about 35 cents) while trying to pry our bags out of our hands. I think the last time I said 'NO' that many times I was two years old, had just learned the word, and reveled in its power...
Pleasantly rustic, the El Fayrouz hotel -- the name means pineapple -- is a walkable distance from the ferry, but, with my hip acting up and the heavy luggage, I'm glad we took a cab again for the short ride.
We're on the top floor in a dome ceiling room that will be our home for the next two weeks. On the roof terrace above the room, we get a clear view of the great colonnade of Luxor temple, across the Nile to the east, while turning to the west I can see the mortuary temple of Hatchepsout in the distance. After spending the rest of the afternoon mostly relaxing and taking short naps, we catch the last of the sunset from the rooftop before walking down to the garden for a dinner of traditional Egyptian delicacies...
Tomorrow will probably be spent doing a whole lot of nothing. The tour was intense, exhilarating, and exhausting. I need to absorb and process the wonders we've been privileged to see. New explorations can wait until Monday. I may also skip a day or two of blogging and internet, unless the withdrawal symptoms become too strong to bear. No new photos today, the cameras stayed safely in their pouches all day.
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