Seth On the Nile - Visiting the Temples of Kom Ombo and Edfu

Since the 19th century, the fashionable way to see Egypt has been on a Nile River cruise.  In the past, ships could make the journey all the way from Cairo to Abu Simbel.  Since the 1990's, the starting point was changed to Luxor.  We had wanted to book the Sun Boat IV, one of the top river cruise boats in the world according to Travel+Leisure magazine, but they weren't running on the days we had available.  Instead, we secured passage on its sister ship, the Sanctuary Nile Adventurer which is also run by Abercrombie and Kent.  The ship did not disappoint.  The amenities were luxurious considering the confined spaces of a boat.  There were five decks, the top containing a small wading pool to cool off and lounge chairs and canopied beds.  There was also a dining room, bar area, outdoor patio, small office, and smaller gift shop.  We were upgraded to a cabin on the main deck.

Our home for the next three days.

Our cabin was comfortable and cozy.

The bathroom was expectantly tight.

One of several indoor lounges

The bar area

Outdoor lounge

The outdoor dining area

On the top deck, there were several comfortable chairs and canopied beds for guests to relax on.

There was also a small puddle
pool on the upper deck.

The boat has 32 cabins, but I don't think we even had 32 passengers.  With the decrease in tourism, Mahmoud said that only 20 boats were sailing (compared to as many as 300 during the high season), and most were not full.  We probably had almost as many crew members as passengers, so the service was impeccable.

There was a hodgepodge of characters on the boat--the wealthy baroness and her new husband, his angry ex-fiancé, the trashy romance novelist, the young socialist, the embezzling American lawyer, the famous Belgian detective...wait.  Wrong boat.

No, our boat was basically divided into two groups--the English speakers (Brits and Americans) and the Italian speakers.  We conversed mainly with a delightful septuagenarian couple from England named Colin and Madeline.  She had lived in Egypt as a child when it was still a British protectorate, but it was his first time in country.  They were very spry for their ages, skiing and traveling to remote vacation spots (Conversely, many of my 70-something year-old patients need to use walkers or motorized chairs).  There was also a family from New York City who were the only other Americans onboard.  We were pleased that the guides also stayed with us on the boats.

 Mahmoud occupied the cabin adjacent to us and enjoyed the same meals that we did.  However, he was seated with the other guides during the meals and tended to avoid some of the onboard activities since he has seen them hundreds of times already.  In the end, it was still a job--one that keeps him away from his family for several days.  As for the quality of the boat, Mahmoud joked, "It is one of the better jails that I have been on."

Today would be a relaxing day.  We took a late breakfast before the ship docked at Kom Ombo at 10 AM.

The Temple of Kom Ombo is so close to the water that cruise boats can dock right next to it.

The temple was first constructed during the Greek occupation of Egypt (Ptolemaic Dynasty).  It is divided into two symmetrical halves and dedicated to the falcon god Horus on the west and Sobek, the crocodile-headed deity, to the east.

Kom Ombo Temple

While some depictions of Sobek are favorable, he does have a close association with the "evil" god Seth.  In fact, during one of the mythical battles for supremacy between Horus and Seth, the evil one escapes by transforming himself into a crocodile.   So why was Sobek, a god associated with an ill disposition, worshiped so highly at this temple?  During ancient times, this area was wrought with crocodiles.  The people of this area relied on fishing and farming near the Nile bringing them in close proximity to these aggressive reptiles.   Therefore, they believed that by appeasing Sobek with offerings, he would protect them from attacks.  Furthermore, the crocodiles were also useful for farming.  Roman historians reported that these reptiles would lay their eggs in the sand just beyond the level where the banks of the flooded Nile would reach.  This would help the locals predict the extent of inundation each year.

Hathor, Sobek, and their son

Sobek depicted in full animal form

A lion chomps on the hand of an enemy of Egypt.

Wooden dowels were used to keep the temple stones together.

The Eye of Horus conveys protective and healing powers.

In ancient times, understanding the time of year was crucial for farmers.  The Egyptians actually developed an early version of the calendar that we use today.

Mahmoud tried to explain to us how to read this calendar, but I'm a slow learner.

The temple of Kom Ombo was also known for its surgical and obstetric care.

Hieroglyphs of early surgical instruments

Pregnant women sitting on birthing chairs.  No epidurals for them!

A lady giving birth...OR crapping out a human-shaped dookey.

Wet nursing or motor boating?

This hieroglyph translates
into "ugly, bald guy."

Fruits and vegetables are depicted in this engraving.

In this relief, two goddesses crown Ptolemy XXII as Sobek looks on.

In this secret alcove, priests could hide from
worshipers and listen to their prayers. Their
disembodied voice would be mistaken by
pilgrims as the voice of the Oracle.

This prisoner actually seems to be grinning.

Most of the columns at Kom Ombo have been destroyed by earthquakes.

The columns that do remain exhibit their intricate engravings...

...and sometimes small amounts
of their residual paint. 

This colorful lintel depicting vultures against the backdrop of a blue sky, has retained more
of its original paint mainly because it has been shaded from centuries of harsh sunlight.

In ancient times, the Egyptians kept 'tame' crocodiles in a pit near the temple.  When they died they were mummified and buried nearby.

The remains of crocodiles (not humans)...

...filled these coffins.

A large cache of mummified reptiles now sit at the adjacent Crocodile Museum that opened this past year.

These crocodile mummies were wrapped and preserved just like their human counterparts.

Mummified crocodile eggs and fetuses have also been found in Kom Ombo.

Crocodile figurines were also buried within the temple.

We spent most of the late morning and early afternoon lounging by the pool.  This section of the Nile seemed sparsely inhabited.  Herds of cattle grazed on green fields along the banks of the river.  We would occasionally see men in small boats fishing with only lines--no poles or nets.  We passed only a few other cruise ships and their decks often looked fairly empty of passengers.

We saw a lot more cows than people along the banks of the Nile.

Not only were the cruise ships empty, but even the barges weren't full!

The only interruption to our stupor was a 'BBQ' lunch out on the deck below.

At 4 PM we docked at Edfu.  Included in the cruise itinerary is a 10 minute carriage ride through the city to get to the temple.

Included is a 10 minute carriage ride to get to the temple.

The route traveled through poor areas with rubble-strewn streets.

Edfu has the second largest and best preserved temple in Egypt.  The current monument sits upon the ruins of a much older New Kingdom structure.  The temple was completed by Ptolemy XII almost 200 years after construction was begun.  Edfu Temple is dedicated to the god Horus.  Its sister structure for his goddess-wife Hathor is located down river in Dendera.

The temple's outer wall shows an athletic Ptolemy XII smiting his
enemies.  In truth, he was actually a corpulent and unpopular
pharaoh who's only talent was playing the flute.

The temple doors are flanked by large statues of a falcon
(representing Horus) wearing the double crown
of Upper and Lower Egypt.

Columns topped with floral patterns and eroded statues of the god Bes

The view of the temple from the entrance

In ancient times, Edfu was considered the site of the mythical battle between Horus and his evil uncle Seth for control of Egypt.  The treacherous Seth had already killed Horus' father Osiris and challenged him for rulership of the world.  Sequential carvings tell the story of Horus victory over his uncle.

The evil Seth, in the form of a hippopotamus, is subdued by Horus' spears.

An elaborate mural in the entryway

The sanctuary room where the statue of the god was stored in a granite 
altar.  The divine boat is in the foreground, resting on a pedestal.

The top of this column is decorated with leaves as if it were a palm tree.

A depiction of the pharaoh erecting two obelisks.
In reality, I'm sure he had others helping him.

Dance like an Egyptian.

Hieroglyph for "Lego block"

The symbol for iPod

Since it was galebeya night on the boat, I purchased one from a vendor near the docks.   The wife got hers on the boat, which was of better quality.  Mahmoud told us that the local men generally use a few colors--white for the hot daytime, dark grey or brown for the evenings, and a baby blue often worn by farmers.  The women tend to wear suffocating black galebeyas.  The 'bedazzled' ones with all the flair are marketed mainly at tourists.  Mahmoud was a killjoy and didn't wear a galebeya.  He gave a lame excuse that wearing westernized clothing was "dressing up" for him.

No respectful Egyptian would be caught dead in these silly costumes.

I'm pretty sure that Colin's "galabeya" was
actually a left-over from a hippie commune.

Back on the boat, the chef had a 30 minute cooking demonstration.  He showed us how to make three dishes--baba ganoush, okra tagine, and um ali (a bread pudding-like dessert).  That guy loved his salt and sugar which was off-putting for some of the passengers but welcomed by me.  For the theme dinner, there was buffet of Egyptian foods.  Overall, they were very good.  However, the spices were a little watered down to accommodate the blander palates of the North American and European passengers.  Dinner was followed by dancing afterwards.  The passengers (egged on by the staff) really enjoyed the popular folk songs and contemporary Nubian music.  Then the music switched to YMCA and then the Macarena.  The placed cleared out before they got to the Electric Slide.

The passengers and crew gyrate unrhythmically like a bunch of epileptics.