Firstly, I was surprised to be asked for my passport when I went to change some cash at the Egyptian Exchange on Sharia Karnak. Luckily I had Freda's little red European thing in my pocket (no idea why????) and he knew we were married, so
accepted that.
There's a new supermarket on Station Street, about a third of the way up from the Temple. It's a branch of Kheir Zaman (otherwise known to foreigners as Kaiserman). The stock is possibly not quite so extensive as the main local branch, but near enough to save us trailing up to TV street every other day! I've decided to shop more at KZ than the Forty Market, simply because of the difference in prices. The former standard of friendly service at Forty clinched the deal, but not any more, I'm sorry to say.
I was disappointed to see a new metal fence had been constructed around the Temple entrance and the whole of the plaza (the former park with shade trees) outside of the Abu Haggag Mosque. It's probably a good idea to stop the quad-bike boys operating their dangerous hire business, plus the one's who hire out horses to trot around the same pleasant area frequented by families with small children in tow. However, to erect the fence right on the kerb, means that pedestrians have to walk on the busy road or run the gauntlet of the shopkeepers (including little Mahmoud the mad T shirt seller) on the other side. Perhaps that's the whole reason, who knows?
The new pedestrian area paving and all-round decoration along the Nile Corniche looks very good, but until the unpleasant felucca touts and caleche men are discouraged from hassling tourists, the foreign money still won't hang out along there. We've yet to travel Ibn Khaled Walid Street up to the Nile Palace, so cannot yet give any news about the "Little England" area, but that should be remedied on Sunday, as we're meeting a good friend there for tea in the afternoon. I'll keep you posted, no doubt!
Ooh! Another change is that the Egyptian market (running on from the Tourist Market and all the way to Abu Jude) is now a main thoroughfare! All the southbound local buses come down there (it seems to be one-way) instead of along Sharia Karnak. They then turn right onto Youseff Hassan Street and pass the front of the Emilio Hotel before turn left and joining Sharia Karnak along to the Temple and towards Station Street. Obviously, this change has devastated the traders in the market, changing the character of the place altogether, irrevocably! No more can the sellers sit on the road with their wares spread for everyone to see and haggle over, those folk have all gone. All that's left are the proper shops, and even they have no ladies underwear or galabeyas brushing the hair of passers by as the garments were draped across the street on bits of string. What will become of the poor souls who've been moved away is anyone's guess. There were three ladies selling tools and general hardware, in the first 100 yards or so, as you enter from Youseff Hassan street. I used to buy from them quite regularly, but where have they gone, from where is their income now derived? Who knows, or should the question more rightly be, "Who cares?"
For all it seems as if more and more tourists are returning to Luxor, my friends in the tourism business aren't seeing any more cash in their pockets. In fact, one excellent English and Japanese speaking tour guide of my acquaintance tells me that he is finding less work than at this time last year! I was quite shocked by this revelation.
My beloved (whom I'm thinking of renaming "Hatshepsut", because she thinks I'm her slave and beast of burden) bought some lovely new curtains for the guest apartment livingroom. I wouldn't dare tell you how much they cost, except that they would have funded my melodeon habit for a couple of years, I'm sure! Anway, I've been tasked with taking down the old curtains and rails and providing and fitting new rails and mounting brackets. Not as straightforward and easy as you might imagine, as the concrete beam is extremely difficult to drill with my super-duper Chinese machine. I got one side done, only to realise that it had been too much for my operation region. I ended up having to get a caleche to bring me back fro the shop last night, as I just couldn't walk any further due to the pain.
Maybe this scar picture could be more than you want to see. Don't look if you're squeamish!
As you can see, there are six of them, top to bottom is abut 13 inches, and they've healed well. I thought that 9 or 10 weeks (or whatever it is now) would have been sufficient time to be able to act normally, but it transpires that I was mistaken!!!! I'm sick of it, I can tell you!
So, now I'm just about laid up again, shoving Paracetamol down my neck and getting bad-tempered. Perhaps Hatshepsut will have to get rid of me, no shirkers wanted around here! Only problem there, is that she'd be lost without me, as I would be without her; 48 years is a long time to grow together!
Goodnight all.
(I'll try to include some more pleasant piccies next time, promise!)
accepted that.
There's a new supermarket on Station Street, about a third of the way up from the Temple. It's a branch of Kheir Zaman (otherwise known to foreigners as Kaiserman). The stock is possibly not quite so extensive as the main local branch, but near enough to save us trailing up to TV street every other day! I've decided to shop more at KZ than the Forty Market, simply because of the difference in prices. The former standard of friendly service at Forty clinched the deal, but not any more, I'm sorry to say.
I was disappointed to see a new metal fence had been constructed around the Temple entrance and the whole of the plaza (the former park with shade trees) outside of the Abu Haggag Mosque. It's probably a good idea to stop the quad-bike boys operating their dangerous hire business, plus the one's who hire out horses to trot around the same pleasant area frequented by families with small children in tow. However, to erect the fence right on the kerb, means that pedestrians have to walk on the busy road or run the gauntlet of the shopkeepers (including little Mahmoud the mad T shirt seller) on the other side. Perhaps that's the whole reason, who knows?
The new pedestrian area paving and all-round decoration along the Nile Corniche looks very good, but until the unpleasant felucca touts and caleche men are discouraged from hassling tourists, the foreign money still won't hang out along there. We've yet to travel Ibn Khaled Walid Street up to the Nile Palace, so cannot yet give any news about the "Little England" area, but that should be remedied on Sunday, as we're meeting a good friend there for tea in the afternoon. I'll keep you posted, no doubt!
Ooh! Another change is that the Egyptian market (running on from the Tourist Market and all the way to Abu Jude) is now a main thoroughfare! All the southbound local buses come down there (it seems to be one-way) instead of along Sharia Karnak. They then turn right onto Youseff Hassan Street and pass the front of the Emilio Hotel before turn left and joining Sharia Karnak along to the Temple and towards Station Street. Obviously, this change has devastated the traders in the market, changing the character of the place altogether, irrevocably! No more can the sellers sit on the road with their wares spread for everyone to see and haggle over, those folk have all gone. All that's left are the proper shops, and even they have no ladies underwear or galabeyas brushing the hair of passers by as the garments were draped across the street on bits of string. What will become of the poor souls who've been moved away is anyone's guess. There were three ladies selling tools and general hardware, in the first 100 yards or so, as you enter from Youseff Hassan street. I used to buy from them quite regularly, but where have they gone, from where is their income now derived? Who knows, or should the question more rightly be, "Who cares?"
For all it seems as if more and more tourists are returning to Luxor, my friends in the tourism business aren't seeing any more cash in their pockets. In fact, one excellent English and Japanese speaking tour guide of my acquaintance tells me that he is finding less work than at this time last year! I was quite shocked by this revelation.
My beloved (whom I'm thinking of renaming "Hatshepsut", because she thinks I'm her slave and beast of burden) bought some lovely new curtains for the guest apartment livingroom. I wouldn't dare tell you how much they cost, except that they would have funded my melodeon habit for a couple of years, I'm sure! Anway, I've been tasked with taking down the old curtains and rails and providing and fitting new rails and mounting brackets. Not as straightforward and easy as you might imagine, as the concrete beam is extremely difficult to drill with my super-duper Chinese machine. I got one side done, only to realise that it had been too much for my operation region. I ended up having to get a caleche to bring me back fro the shop last night, as I just couldn't walk any further due to the pain.
Maybe this scar picture could be more than you want to see. Don't look if you're squeamish!
As you can see, there are six of them, top to bottom is abut 13 inches, and they've healed well. I thought that 9 or 10 weeks (or whatever it is now) would have been sufficient time to be able to act normally, but it transpires that I was mistaken!!!! I'm sick of it, I can tell you!
So, now I'm just about laid up again, shoving Paracetamol down my neck and getting bad-tempered. Perhaps Hatshepsut will have to get rid of me, no shirkers wanted around here! Only problem there, is that she'd be lost without me, as I would be without her; 48 years is a long time to grow together!
Goodnight all.
(I'll try to include some more pleasant piccies next time, promise!)
and good to see you are back, I had already given up on you wandering what had happened. When I saw your Picture I thought you had been stabbed!
ReplyDeleteWe spent one month there before Christmas and enjoyed ourselves by just resting most of the days and going for long walks on some - hardly any tempels and tombs this time.
It is a long time since I last wrote to you and I do not know what prompted me but went on your always interesting site. I was in Luxor in January and February 2020 and was very surprised when going to the money exchange place to be asked for my passport. So I had to go all the way back to the flat I rented to get my passport. I was also surprised when going into Vodafone to try to put credit on my phone with an Egyptian sim card I had had for years.I was told it was no longer in service.So I was forced to buy a new sim card.I am an observer and I noticed that not only did the person in the Vodafone office take a copy of my passport but also took a copy of the visa. I then a few days later got a text which was in English which was a first that the sim only lasted as long as the visa.All in all Edward this was not my best experience of Egypt.Because I am aging like you decided to get a flight with Turkish Air from Manchester going via Turkey.There was only 1 hour and 5 minutes between flights and I questioned whether this was long enough to make the change and was told yes.However on reaching Turkey and being directed to area for change on looking at flight board there was no sign of Luxor.After a lengthy look for a Turkish Air office finally came across just a desk in the middle of the floor area.This was on a Monday and on showing the man there my papers he said the flight had left. I said what do I do now and he said you can get a flight out on Thursday. It was only when he looked at my passport and saw my age that he seemed to take pity.After all it was not my fault the flight had left they should never have sold me the flight in the first place.He told me to go back to the desk in an hour but after a while he shouted out my name.I went to the desk and he had got me tickets for a flight to Cairo and from Cairo to Luxor.But these flights were for the next day so I asked him where can I stay.He told me to go find hotel reservations and I was under the impression they would pay for the hotel.After asking a number of people where the hotel reservations was it turned out I had to go through passport control.So then I had to go and find an office to get a visa which cost £20.After a while I was accosted by a smartly dressed guy who asked what I was looking for.I explained that I had missed my flight and was looking for a hotel for the night.However this cost me £180 which was an extortunate amount. This whole experience left me very stressed and I did not enjoy my stay in Luxor at all. Take care and stay safe. Gordon. Chester.
ReplyDeleteHow nice to hear from you, Gordon. Unfortunately, we haven't been back to Luxor since last March!
ReplyDeletePlease drop me an email if you get a chance. It's ourluxor@yahoo.co.uk
Look after yourself and keep social distancing!