We don't have too many pictures as Sudan has a strict no pictures law for tourists and in the past they have been stopped and lost cameras or SD cards. Also ...no alcohol ( which was a blow as Shira law rules here.
Lest you get the wrong idea we should tell you that Sudan has the friendliest , most welcoming people we have yet met As just one example we stopped to fill a propane tank and the attendant said " Welcome to Sudan" and filled it for free. Since Sudan sees so few travelers there are none of the hustling touts or scam artists...nice.
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| Kitchener's gunboat |
We spent a few days in Khartoum which is surprisingly modern; tree lined streets and big beautiful buildings. One of the more dramatic is shaped like a bowling pin..no photo. Visits included the Omdurman souk and the National Museum. The museum includes three temples moved there from the rising water of Lake Nasser. An interesting side bar is that our campground, the Blue Nile Sailing Club, is home to Lord Kitchener's gun boat.
Next was a visit to temple sites quite far into the desert..where we had to use the sand plates to get the truck there and we still aren't too sure how Rogan found them. Further desert driving brought us to the Mero Desert site ( 2 clusters of steep sided pyramids dating back to 600 BC).
The pyramids pretty much had all their tops until an Italian showed up in the late 1800's and preceded to lop off every top looking for treasure. This set up one of our best campsites of the trip ..in the desert on the far side of a sand dune next to the pyramids.
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| Desert campsite |
Our desert adventure continued as we left the north bound road to follow the disused train tracks which cross the desert to Wadi Halfa. A series of memorable bush camps taught us to keep our tents well zipped; otherwise the wind pumped in steady stream of fine sand.
There is little to say about Wadi Halfa as we waited for the passenger ferry and to rent a barge for the truck. We can say Wadi Halfa seems to have a soft spot for pro wrestling. Our hotel was about as primitive as you can get with mud walls and reed mats for the roof which let in light and more sand. We like to think of this as a family site so we won't describe the toilets or the shower.
The ferry finally showed up and Sudanese good well evaporated as we elbowed our way through the endless border procedures. This marked our entry into Egypt. Jane had a little adventure when we met Stuart , a young high school teacher from England staying in the same hotel. He had peddled his bike all the way from Cape Town ..and intends to carry on all the way to London. Jane rode the tandem from the village to the ferry. We spent the night on the deck. This included an evening call to worship with a very agitated imam ; and was followed by the usual sunrise wake-up call.
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| Good morning on the Lake Nassar ferry - we trust madame had a good night's sleep? |
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| Aswan from our hotel rooftop |
We have nothing but good things to say about the excellent Nubian museum in Aswan. Of note is the description of the dislocation caused by the High Dam....a good lead in for a trip highlight- Abu Simbel. UNESCO must be credited with saving this temple from rising waters...an amazing engineering feat. A 3:00 am start and an escorted convoy brought us to the two temples; one dedicated to Nefetari , number one wife, and the other to Ramses himself. Four 20 meter statues greet you. The real treasure are the incised figures that fill the interior walls. many still have the paint that was applied 3500 years ago. ( sorry , no pictures allowed inside)
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