"Rest to the weary"

Well, we are getting on a bit, you know? And, at our time of life, we're allowed to take things as we do; slowly!

A short break at our favourite hotel was (is?) just the ticket. The Cataract beckoned!

As we prepared for our arduous 3 or 4 hour journey in a First Class Carriage on the VIP train up to Aswan, I had to do some shopping for essential supplies, biscuits and the like, for the trip. I got a great pic of the working at the Four Seasons whilst out and about:

I also had a rather frightening flashback when I passed a wagon near the station. Just look at this back spring, the very sight of it had all my weary old muscles aching at the thought of getting it out of there and then back in!

Thankfully, those days are now long gone, and only re-appear in the odd nightmare from time to time! They like their big Mercs here, and they always seem to be so high off the ground, that's because of those huge springs, of course.

Coming up here on the train I saw some great wagons! There were about 6 or 7 six wheelers with drawbar trailers and double height sideboards all together at one point, but I was too slow with the camera (OK phone camera!) but I did catch these at another place:

There are some areas of towns in Egypt which seem to specialize in certain trades. Close by to where I captured the tippers above, I also shot this:

Here, we have a little wrought iron workshop, as you can see by the lovely set of gates in the process of being made. But they also carry out vehicle repairs too, evidenced by the small tipper with the body raised and the short inspection pit to the right of the gates. Everything here is similar to what we see in our own countries, but on a different scale and usually with a lack of what we would term 'proper' equipment. The mechanics and artisans etc just get on with the job in hand, where necessity becomes, quite literally, the mother of invention!

We were allocated a room on the top floor of the Nile Wing of the Cataract, here's a quick panoramic view from our balcony, just to finish this little posting off|;

 That's the Mausoleum of the Agha Khan, the smallish looking square building towards the left and up on the desert sands, with the Coptic Cathedral behind the Old Cataract Hotel, to the right. Cracking view, eh?

Nearing the end of the Summer Season, but possibly the beginning of the Four Seasons?

Yes, Playmates, I was past the Iberotel last night as I went shopping at all of the supermarkets in the South of the town. I noticed the tower cranes, between Ibn Khalid Walid Street and the river, as I came along the Corniche on Mr Badawi's caleche.

I should have got him to stop earlier, as there's a gap between the old Novo and the new wall, where you can observe the whole site. But, I missed the chance. And so I ended up precariously balanced on the driver's seat of the conveyance, hanging onto the hood for grim death with my right hand, and trying to take a video with the phone in my left. Here it is for your delectation, Dear Reader:

They're certainly getting on with the job now! I hear a little rumour that some of Egypt's great hotels have been sold by the Government to the UAE! Of course, this would include our Winter Palace here in Luxor. We'll see, I suppose. 

If foreign governments are buying into Egypt's tourism sector, and foreign hotel chains are investing their cash here, maybe there's still a possibility for the Luxor population to rise from their torpor and to make tourists feel welcome again. I hope we can all hope and pray for such an outcome.

It's only by connecting with people from different cultures that we can possibly get to know what makes them tick. It's only then that we can begin to accept their differences, and admit that perhaps we shouldn't be trying to change each other's cultures, but to be fascinated and in awe of their otherworldliness!

This is what makes travelling worthwhile (to me, anyway) to find connections where we may not notice them in our hurriedness, and to just stop and admire 'le difference'. (My word, I'm getting a bit carried away here!)

Firstly, we went to the Forty Market on New Hospital St. All I managed to find there was the skimmed milk, fruit yogurts and crisps! Just along the way a little, is the fruit and veg bloke whom we know though our little (long dead now) mate, Mr Goma, for lemons and ginger. Next nearest was the little bakery where we get chocolate coated croissants and soft sweet buns for our cups of tea, and then on to the relatively new and flash Rayah market on Medina Street. I was looking for Lurpak butter, but I only found porridge there. I left the caleche while I walked back up the street to the Omar Market, we'd passed there on our way, but don't like to use it except in emergencies. (For historical reasons, which I won't go into at this juncture!) They had no Lurpak either, so it was back to the caleche and along the road to Kheir Zaman on TV Street. Now, of course we were on the wrong side of the dual carriageway, so Sayed dropped me outside of Mr Bahaa Sherif's underground (household goods) shop and left me to cross the road while he followed on up to the roundabout and came back down the other side. He arrived just as I emerged from the shop with two 200 gram packs of the beloved Lurpak unsalted butter!

During the journey, we encountered several folk to whom we had to have a natter, so it took quite a bit of time! On the way back, we were reminded of the very different culture yet again, this time one driven by religion. Coming up is the birthday of the Prophet (Muhammad), commonly referred to as the Moulid el Nabi. I'm not sure when it falls, as it's eleven days earlier every year due to them using the Islamic calendar! Anyway, here are a couple of the stalls selling the huge sugar dollies with their elaborate dresses, and the red sugar warriors. I'm sure that some of them have been in storage since last year, uuuurgh! Also the Turkish Delight, which bears no resemblance whatsoever to that which carries the Fry's name. (Could just fancy a bar of that now!)

Well that's about it for tonight I think, as it's shower time. Oooh, just in case you're the slightest bit interested, I bought another melodeon today! It's a 1 row Italian Busilacchio, possibly from the '30s. I hope it's as nice as it looks in the photo! 

                            I'll have to wait another 6 or 7 weeks to find out.

Friday Night's 'Amami' Night!

Is there anybody out there who is old enough to remember that TV advert? Ladies giving their hair a 'home perm' so they'd look their best for the weekend!  I doubt it, or at least that you'd remember it anyway, Dear Reader. 

Well here in Luxor (as in most of Egypt, and other Muslim countries as well I suppose) the ditty would be that, "Thursday Night is Wedding night!" It's thought to be a good omen to start your wedding on a Thursday night as, after sundown, it becomes Friday; and Friday is the Muslim Holy Day, when thoughts turn to Allah and his Messenger.

So, here we are on our first Thursday back in Luxor, and there's this wedding celebration across the school yard. thankfully, it only went on until about 1.30am or something, I'm not quite sure, as I eventually fell asleep. But, God bless them anyway, they'll need all the help they can get, getting married just now here in the Land of the Pharaohs!

Talking about weddings.....we've come back to the news that our neighbour and friend, Mr Adam (of coffeeshop fame) is preparing for his eldest son to be married! They're so far on that they are building on the roof across the alley, so that No. 1 Son, Hagagg and his new missus can move into the family building. This is the traditional scenario, the young wife moves into the family home and becomes the helper of the mother. (Or, I've been told, often the slave of the mother!!!) I've no doubt though that Mrs Adam will be a welcoming and loving Mother-in-law. God bless them all, as well. 

Here it is after the first day of building. Two labourers mixing and carrying all day, one (seemingly) apprentice bricklayer and one gaffer bricklayer. You can see the new brickwork against the wall of the next building, as well as that at the edge of the roof above the alley. 

I'm pleased to say that it looks as if it won't impinge on our still stunning view of the West Bank Mountains! I love to sit in my chair in our living room, where I can peer out at this view, day or night!!!

Now then, I know that one or two of you might be thinking that I've lost interest in blogging about our favourite place,  but I'd like to assure you that that's not the case! We've had a difficult few years recently; along with both of us catching (lol) cancer and being operated on to remove it (successfully in both cases, I'm very grateful to report) we've also had to nurse the other three members of my family as they all sadly died, I'm the only one left! 

Although we both love Luxor and wouldn't have missed our 15 years of being here for the world, we have been slowly coming to the realisation that as we get longer in the tooth, we cannot carry on indefinitely in travelling back and forth and looking after guests from all around the world. (Even though we'd love to!) So we are going to sell our beloved home here, and retire properly to our first home back in NE England, in good old Windy Nook.

So, if you're young at heart and fancy completely changing your life to one which delights you every day with new experiences and challenges, then we could help you achieve that for a surprisingly affordable sum of money. Drop us an email with any questions to ourluxor@yahoo.co.uk 

Oh, nearly forgot; we came via Hurghada and stayed at the Marriott hotel overnight. Come the morning, I thought that I'd almost persuaded Freda to jump into the water with me at the private beach, but then we came across this sign...... foiled again!

                                              It's no fun being orphans!

                                                             TTFN

 

Who's a clever boy then?

Yes, I have to admit, it's ME! I've figured out how to get videos from my new (to me!) phone. It used to belong to my No. 1 Son and it's a very fancy Google Pixel 4. I've only had it for about 3 months or something, and am ever so slowly getting the hang of it.  

I've started to use it instead of my camera; 'cause it takes better quality pictures, is quicker and it's also more convenient, in that I only have one piece of electronic wizardry to carry around. What's not to like?

I'm sure that there's some way of converting the videos it takes to the correct 'format' (see, I'm even picking up the jargon!) for the Blog to accept, like Wav files or mp4's or whatever. Our Richard (my recently deceased brother) knew all about that sort of thing, and would often show off and embarrass me with more jargon that you could throw a stick at! But I wish he was still here.

Never mind, I've just found out that I can load videos straight to YouTube, and then use the Blog to pick them out of there! So here are a few recent ones for your delectation...........

We'll start off with the two which I posted links to in the last post on here. It turned out to be a right mess, don't know how; couldn't have been anything I did, surely!!!

This is a taste of the 'Stick Fighting for Abu Haggag' which has been a tradition here at Al Hod (just outside of our building) since heaven knows when. It's a recognised part of the Moulid of the said Sheikh, which ends 15 days before Ramadan. I took this from the first floor of the 'Fat Brother's' building next door.

This next one is also a regular feature of the Moulid, but happens at ad hoc times and places with different people and styles, too. It's the same sort of thing as the Whirling Dervishes. who are properly a sect which is banned in some Muslim places. (And not just an entertainment of sorts on the Nile Cruisers.) The rhythmic movement (or so I'm told|) tends to alter the normal pattern of blood-flow through the brain, creating a trance-like effect where the participant feels in closer communion with Allah. It's obviously a very personal, if public, experience, and being so I asked if  was OK to film it before commencing. 

I'm absolutely fascinated by this sort of thing! This seems to me to be the same as what is described as a Zikr, in some of my elderly (19th Century) books about Egypt. But my neighbour called it something entirely different, which I couldn't get the gist of!

As you will remember, Dear Reader, I spent a lot of my life repairing road going vehicles, cars, wagons and buses, so the following vid is a bit of an indulgence. It's what we in England would call a "Back Street Garage" except that it's on a main road here.

Just one more, as it's time for my beauty sleep. This is a 'pop up shop' which is selling  Fawannies! Fawannies being the plural of Fanous, and the Fanous being the representation of the lights which were traditionally displayed to light the way home for the pilgrims returning from the Hajj at Mecca. In recent years, most of those I've seen for sale have been disgusting plastic things from China, but I'm delighted to see that these are proper, very thin and lightweight, tin plate examples, and probably made here in Egypt. Most homes which can afford one will have at least one hanging somewhere prominent for everyone to see. Rather like Christmas decorations in Christian countries. Anyway, enough rabbiting........

That's all folks!

See you all again soon, Insh'Allah.

Did I say, "The work is actually going along at quite a pace"?

 Actually, yes I did, I've just checked back!

Well, I went past the building site again on the local (1.75LE) 'bus, and was so surprised that I asked the driver to stop and got off, in order to have a better look. That shows real commitment in a "journalist" doesn't it? (You can reimburse me the fare when we next meet, Dear Reader.)

Here is another shot of the works:

I think that they've poured a lot of concrete in the past couple of days, and there are quite a few individual bases there now. Mind, I'm surprised that those rocks in the foreground haven't been dug out yet. It could be a serious task, though.

Anyway, from there, I walked up Ibn Khalid Walid Street a bit and then turned off to pass the, dead before it was finished, Morris Hotel (which is up for sale, if you have any spare sponduliks) and call to see our long-time friend and travel agent, Mr Bahaa, in his new office nearby. On the side road I couldn't help but notice the following:

I may have shown you these before (my memory, you know?) but that isn't just a roof, it's (I believe) Luxor's first attempt at harnessing the sun's power to create electricity. I seem to recall that the wiring wasn't up to the job, and burnt out with the intense heat. I cannot imagine that much electricity would be produced with that much sand on the receptors, what do you think, Dear Reader?

Another complaint I have is regarding what was formerly a lovely park area behind the Temple, opposite McDonald's. Years ago, it was a pleasant oasis in the heart of town, with trees and grass and lots of local families. Some just stopped to rest in the shade of the many trees, some had picnics others came with their children to just spend time with their neighbours or whatever. It was lovely!

Then, the powers-that-be decided to excavate what turned out to be some Roman remains, and the trees all went the distance! Now, the whole area has been fenced in, and it's become a haven for the flying rats (otherwise known as pigeons!) whilst local people now have nowhere to just chill. It's very sad!

Here are the pigeons, in their element it would seem:

You have to look through the fence to see them, as they all gather at this end, where people feed them!

I almost forgot! Some whizzkids were on with the fancy laser lights again last night, in the Temple, I presume. We were watching Netflix on our laptop on the roof terrace at the time, so I only got a couple of minutes of video for you. 

Ha! They're on my Google Pixel phone, and I cannot find a way to get them off and onto the Blog, sorry. Here's a taste, by way of a still picture: 

Sorry about that, it was a good little video as well. By the time I get up-to-date with technology, I'll be in my box.

See you later, alligator!

A posting of little observations and snippets from our favourite place; Luxor!

This visit, we went back to using EgyptAir for our travel. Although we found the TUI flight from Newcastle to Hurghada and coach across the desert very easy last time, EgyptAir's direct service was more cost effective for this journey, and it was a breeze! Even the BA flight from Newcastle and the treck between Heathrow's Terminals was hassle free. Of course, there was nothing to report regarding the actual flight, except that I managed a night time pic of somewhere in Egypt from the air:

I've noticed that whatever time of year it is, the farmers on the West Bank are forever burning stubble. Is this because they have several growing seasons each year? I hate it, as their fires always deposit large bits of burnt straw (or whatever it is!) on our nicely cleaned roof terrace and stairs, the beasts! Almost on the first day I noticed this as I made my way, by caleche, along the Corniche:

Mind you, and this is only really of interest to regular visitors, I was both surprised and pleased to see the following:

If I remember correctly, I snapped this on our first day back. It is, of course, the site next door to the Iberotel (Novotel) on Ibn Khalid Walid Street. The story goes that the Four Seasons group have had an option to build a super-duper hotel here for years, and it now, at last, seems to be coming to fruition! If nothing else, it goes to show that such a big concern believes that Luxor tourism is expected to pick up considerably, and that has to be good news for all. The work is actually going along at quite a pace, and much more groundwork has been accomplished in the last two weeks. It's really quite exciting to see!

Being Egypt, catastrophes (or catsaftermes, as friend Stan Laurel would have it) still occur regularly. And so I found myself, once again at the Awad's (the collection of plumbers shops just down our street) looking for bits and pieces! Whilst in the queue, I couldn't help but notice the following, just lying there:

If only I'd known about this in the '60's, when I was running those old rust buckets, it might have saved me a small fortune! Who else knew that Jaguar had produced their own anti-rust stuff for use on their cars?

This picture below is of something I was very surprised to see!

Yes, that's right; it's a rather portly Egyptian out jogging, complete with sweat gear and headphones, but with a rather large and hairy dog running alongside. Dogs here are usually only kept as watchdogs, because of them being ritually unclean they're not supposed to be kept as "pets". Perhaps the bloke's a Christian, as they may not have the same aversion, who knows?

When we were here in November last year, and the Kebash Road was officially opened, the floodlights on the West Bank mountains were either cleaned or replaced; it made a huge difference to the view from our terrace. Well, I'm pleased to report that they re still lovely and bright, what a difference to before the CoronaVirus pandemic:

We've had one guest while we've been here; a lady who was previously staying at the Winter Palace. Somehow, she hadn't originally booked the full length of her sojourn in Luxor, and the hotel was fully booked when she came to extend her stay there. Unusual, I think you'll agree, but never mind. Where else could she possibly upgrade to for the few days left to her in the "Largest Open Air Museum in the World", other than the splendid "Our Luxor"? Sadly, she could only enjoy the delights of our guest apartment for three nights, but she definitely appreciated our unmatched hospitality.

We also have another guest, but of the non-paying sort! (And, with a burgeoning family!!!)

Yes, there she is, ensconced on top of our bedroom air-con unit, as large as life! I spent ages screwing the non-aggressive anti-bird stuff all over the place to stop these little devils pooping everywhere, and still one of them finds a little chink in the armour where she can build her nest. What a liberty! Still, though, I can hardly turf out an expectant mother, can I Dear Reader?

Freda bought us a new tube of toothpaste;

The paste, more like a gel, is the same colour as the tube would you believe? Probably so that you don't notice the blood leaking from your gums, which, according to the scary ads on the telly, means that you're going to die of mouth cancer almost immediately! And I don't know why that couple are smiling so, could it be that they enjoy brushing their teeth with stuff that's obviously made from old Elastoplasts? That's exactly what it tastes like!

But maybe the tourists don't know about that yet, as they certainly seem to be here in increasing numbers. 18 balloons up for the first trip this morning, I know this 'cause we were up at the unGodly hour of 5.30, and watched them; rising like spectres from the gloom of the early morning mist and smoke on the Side of the Dead. I got a picture of a goodly number of them for you:

In the meantime, even here in Luxor, the acquisition of melodeons must carry on! I've bought two of them via eBay since we arrived. One is this old old Hohner:

It's obviously scrap. But at 99p I can find some useful parts from it, I'm sure. The other one was considerably more expensive, but I'll make something of it when I get back to good old Windy Nook. It's another Hohner, but an "Erica" this time, I quite like it.

I expect I'll find them both at Number 1 Daughter's shop when we return.

I think that's all for just now, but I will be back!

Keep well, everyone.

As I've said many a time, "It's no good being poor and looking poor!

We were moved to our proper room when our original booking date (Saturday) arrived. They knew exactly which suite to give us, as there is a set of shelving in the small office which was obviously designed to accommodate a serious collection of melodeons. If only I'd realised, I could have brought the lot, instead of a solitary1 Row!

I have to say that the suite is palatial. It's bigger than our flat in Luxor, and also bigger than our home in Windy Nook! Would you like a look around, Dear Reader? I'm sure that my beloved took a video. (Actually, she now tells me that she took 4, so that they might load more quickly.) What do you think, Dear Reader, have we fallen on our feet yet again, or what?

I wondered about these new lights in the floor towards the bar, as they seemed to be running off-centre! 

But then realised that they were reflections from these beautiful chandeliers:

It's always worth staying in the best quality places that your finances can stretch to, Dear Reader. At the Cataract, they even had something which we at "Our Luxor" hadn't even envisaged:

No, Dear Reader, not the trousers, but the double electrical socket which they've craftily concealed in the wardrobe, just in case you're passing by and feel the sudden need for some instant electricity! I was also rather taken aback when spying this in the room:

For a moment, I thought we'd travelled back in time to the sixties, and Rediffusion TV! (For those who aren't English; Rediffusion was a company providing TV signals, via a hard-wired cable network; every customer had one of these [or something VERY like it] on their window sill, for changing TV channels.) But his turned out to be a volume switch in the bathroom, for the TV or Bose radio and music system, which I didn't have a clue how to work, so left well alone!

We're struggling on here, making do with room service meals, as we cannot be bothered to go to the fabulous and famous '1902 Restaurant' in the old building. (We found it more conducive to slouch, in our oversized bathrobes, in front of one of the giant sized TV sets, watching junk movies from the USA.)

We've got some food on its way just now, so I'll say "Au revoir." until next time. Mind you, it's so nice here, that when our Premium Bonds come up, I think we should start to winter at the Old Cataract in Aswan!

"It's nice here, isn't it?" exclaimed Abdou the West Bank Donkey Man, for the umpteenth time!

Yes, he was a lovely fellah as he took Number 2 Daughter and I on our donkey tour of the West Bank farming lands and villages, then stumbling over the mountains from the King's Valley to Hatshepsut's Funery Temple. Great fun was had by all, including him as he had to keep stopping my donkey from wandering into the path of the fully laden six-wheeled tipping wagons coming pelting down the road from the Valley area.

Of course, that was many a long year ago, when she was a little girl, instead of the fully grown beauty queen and devoted mother which she now, who (just about!) singlehandedly runs the pharmacy at our local hospital! But we still have a laugh when any of us comes out with Abdou's catchphrase.

And so it was, as we gracefully made our way up the Nile on Mr Ramadan's Nile Cruiser, the Royal Viking. "It's nice here, isn't it?" I must have said that to Freda at least a half dozen times, and each one raised a smile for both of us. It IS nice, and genuinely so! I'm ever grateful to our good friend Mr Ramadan Hagaggi for helping us to travel on her, as we do really feel like part of his extended family. (He's a nephew of our dear departed neighbour [the English speaking Egyptian Guide, Licence No. 9 in all Egypt!] Uncle Mohamed, whom we had the privilege to help and care for during the slow decline towards his death, and whom we still miss greatly!)

We've been fortunate enough to cruise the Nile on this vessel about 5 or possibly 6 times, now, and I love it. I cannot honestly put my hand on my heart and tell you that it's the most luxurious Nile cruiser on which we've sailed, but the very fact that we keep on returning to it must tell you something? It's comfortable, certainly clean enough; and with every usual Nile cruiser facility available onboard, the crew/staff are attentive and kindly as ever, and the food is very good, even improved upon previous visits! Roll-on next time, we can hardly wait!

(If you type 'Royal Viking', into the little search box at the top of this page, you'll find lots of posts about her and also the Cataract, as the two have often gone hand in hand.)

The main purpose of the cruise was to get us to Aswan, and our pre-booked stay at the glorious "Old Cataract Hotel". I've probably told you all this before, Dear Reader, but the Cataract is my No. 1 favourite hotel, ever. There is the old building, known as the Palace, and also the concrete monolith which was formerly the "New Cataract", which was in the same style as the equally awful (but both adequate and cheaper) "New Winter Palace" in Luxor. Now, it has been almost re-built (a few years ago, I blogged about it at the time!) as "The Nile Wing" and is the very apogee of luxury and modern style! I'm writing this very Blog in the office part of our suite in that building, who's a lucky boy then?  

Here's the view from the balcony, of the room which we were allocated on arrival, I think it's outstanding!

Mind you, this room on the 6th floor wasn't what we were really expecting, but we were glad of it, nonetheless. Our original booking was for Saturday, but the cruiseboat leaves Aswan in the very early hours on Saturday, so we had to leave her on Friday. Frantic phone calls and emails etc to the Cataract manager had him struggling to find room for us in an hotel which was already bursting at the seams. But, star that he is, he did it, good old Mr Osama Saied! Thank you.

The room was very nice and well appointed, but........twin beds? Really, for old folk who've been married for a month short of 50 years?

Thankfully, by the next night, our proper room was available and made ready for us. But that's for another story!

The Egyptian Orphans!

Orphan pictures, that is. I hadn't forgotten about these, but they somehow just didn't make it into any of the Blogs I've done so far on this visit. I hope that at least some of you find them of a little interest.

And here we go! 

Firstly, one or two shots taken at the Marriott Hotel, where we spent our first Egyptian night in almost two years. It was a bit pricey for just an overnight stop, but it came recommended and we didn't want to end up in some flea pit!

Those two were taken from the hotel's private jetty, the little beach is really quite nice! The next pic, however, shows that even expensive, modern 5* hotels in Egypt, just cannot get it quite right:

Mind, I suppose that ladies, who are often the most critical, might not even have noticed those missing!

We travelled across the desert to Luxor in a GoBus coach, and I would recommend this mode of transport to anyone! I found it much better than the private transfers which we've taken before. Better ride quality, more room to move, and better views. And that's without the certain knowledge that, in the event of a collision, you're always safer in a larger vehicle. I was rather taken by the other traffic on the road, especially the heavy goods vehicles. What was that about having only red lights showing to the rear?

So, that more or less brings us the the place we love, that's right, Dear Reader; Luxor, and in particular; Our Luxor, where we'll really feel that we have arrived and can settle in comfort once again! Of course, Luxor was in the throws of preparing for the Grand Opening! (Of the Sphinkes Road.)

"Surely, that's not it?" I can hear you exclaim. No, that's a shot of them re-surfacing the Corniche in preparation for the world's dignitaries. Except that it's not! It's some sort of viscous black paint, to make the road look fresh, I did notice that the zebra crossings had been masked off beforehand. By the time that they'd renewed the white and yellow lines, you couldn't tell, honestly!

Of course, we had been warned that we'd find everything in Luxor in a state of flux! We knew that the Winter Palace, along with everything else which was facing a main road, was being given a fresh coat of paint, and the surrounding pavements were renewed and planted with lovely flower arrangements and the like.

When we arrived at the hotel, we were surprised to see a gang of men heaving on a rope, leading skywards! 

                              A similar scene was spied at the St Joseph Hotel in "Little Britain":

Back at the OWP, I was dismayed to see that they've been installing heavy iron gates at both sides of the entrance. Not quite the welcome which holidaymakers would be expecting, methinks?

 

                                        

Of course, there were the ongoing and seemingly never ending rehearsals every night, with the lasers beaming through till dawn and also the singing practises going on till all hours.

Being the nosiest couple in Luxor that I know about, meant that we had to venture out to the Old Winter Palace on the day of the festivities, just to see who was who and what was where, you know? 

On the way, we stopped to peer over the low wall, near the Emilio Hotel at the bottom of our street, which encloses the Avenue. I got this little video, which includes the three Solar Barques to be used in the procession. They look as if they're mounted on tea trolleys! What do you think, Dear Reader?

In the foyer of the OWP (where anybody who's anybody can be seen) we came across a lady who was alone, she was Macedonian! I've never met anyone from there before! 

After spending far too much time over tea, coffee and conversation, we were eventually asked (most apologetically, I must add) to move into the bar. Obviously they were expecting someone even more important than Mr and Mrs Edward! In conversation with Mr Ahmed (the hotel VIP butler) he told us that he wasn't yet sure whether President El Sisi was staying with them or not, as the decision is always taken at the very last minute, for security purposes.

When we left the hotel, we crossed over the deserted Corniche El Nil to view the Nile. I've never ever seen it so.... empty!

 Later on, we ventured out yet again, ever hopeful of seeing some of the festivities from the low wall of the Avenue of Sphinkes at the bottom of our street. There were policemen of one sort or another very few yards (or maybe even metres, them being Egyptian!) but no-one seemed too interested in two old kawadgers (a term often applied to tourists, but which really refers to invaders, or conquerors, or so I'm told) nor the old Egyptian man and his wife who were also tourists, but from Cairo. 

However! After a short while, we were asked to move away from the wall. The Egyptian tourist's protests didn't cut any ice, I fear, and we had to make do with standing on the pavement at the end of the Emilio building. Mind you, a kindly youth, from a shop around the corner, insisted that he would bring us two chairs, as he recognised me from when we bought the beautiful Guest Apartment livingroom carpet from his father Mr Magdi, 16 or so years ago. Good memories these blokes!

But, after another short while, the forces of Law and Order decided that we old codgers were still a real and present threat to the combined security apparatus of The People's Republic of Egypt. And we were moved on again, this time as far back as Chez Omar's Garden Restaurant. We were unceremoniously dragged in there by one of the identical twin owners, and had cool fresh lemon drinks forced upon us! (Isn't life hard?) The café has been revamped for the umpteenth time and looks lovely! 

They seem to have taken in some sort of partner/chef (that's him, standing next to the grill) and are now doing take-aways as well as the sitting down trade. I hope it all goes well for them, they're a canny bunch whom we've known for 20 odd years.

The other couple eventually came and joined us and we talked, drank hot chocolate, and watched the live TV of the Grand Opening until we were bored to tears with all the pre-amble and the dancing and singing. Then we went home to watch the real stuff on the laptop. It was great! At the end was the firework display, which we actually watched and heard from our roof terrace. We managed to catch most of it on camera, just for you, Dear Reader. 

I think that's all for just now, I'm worn out, but I'll see you soon, insh'Allah!

We have a new little "Our Luxor" video!

You know how we like to keep freshening the look of the "Our Luxor Guest Apartment"? Both Freda and I are always on the lookout for anything which would enhance the physical fulfilment of our dreams of classic Egyptian/Arab/Turkish/Moroccan style and décor which we endeavour to bring to life for the delectation of our guests. (And, of course, YOU Dear Reader!)

The latest additions are a couple more wall hangings, one of camels, and the best one of a silken camel! How ingenious? Camels in Egypt? And how original? OK, see for yourself:

You may also notice the new curtains at the windows and for across the room. I'm particularly pleased with those, as the two pairs at the windows were actually bought NEW from M&S. I'll leave it to you to imagine the cost of those!!! (I had to lie down for a week, when the beloved told me.)

Anyway, please tell me if you think we're going in the right direction?

Luxor tightens security in readiness for the "Grand Opening of the Kebash Road"

I had my first expedition to the wilds of Awameya today, Dear Reader. Intrepid as ever, I donned my mask and boarded a crowded arabeya (local 'bus) bound for the said nether regions. Sitting in the suicide seat next to the open door, I had to keep leaning right forward to allow female passengers to board and alight without brushing their upper torsos (!) against my shoulder.

No worries, I gave my hand to one older lady, to help pull her up the 'high step'. (High step, is in inverted commas to bring it to the notice of some of my old coach driving mates who will immediately recall many old dears moaning, "That's a high step, driver!"

Never mind, as the 'bus neared the roundabout at the bottom of TV Street, he was very obviously in the wrong lane for turning right onto Salah El Din Street towards Awameya. When he did actually turn left, there was uproar from the back end. "Awameya, Awameya!" they were shouting. Of course they didn't realise that the Police had closed both the Corniche and Ibn Khaled Whalid Street (running from the Iberotel up past the Sonesta and Nile Palace etc) to traffic; the driver had no choice!

The Awameya bound passengers had to alight at the junction of Medina Street and New Hospital Street, amid many protests. I was bound for the Aboudi Bookshop on Passport Street to visit the widow of old Mr Aboudi (of Bookshop and photographs fame) whose picture has previously graced my blog pages along with his cousin, Uncle Mohamed, also his minder. It was he who sold us our two apartments here in Luxor. 

After leaving Passport Street, I decided to cross over the road and pop my head into the Nile Palace, seeing as we haven't yet been there for our usual tea and English cake. I was delighted to come across Mr Hashem, a manager whom we've known since the hotel opened. He also seemed pleased to see me returning, and we chatted and 'caught up' a bit before I let him rejoin his party, and I made my way outside again.

Turning left, where (the much reviled by his former English wives) Mr Ala Anwar (*) used to have his shop in front of the Lotus Hotel, I was surprised to see that all those shops had gone! In their place were two new, drive-in, entrances to the hotel. 

As you can see, there are two very impressive gates and it looks very secure. Of course, I'm sure that I've been told that the Lotus belongs to the Police, and that could explain why many single foreign women stay there?

*Although a man with a poor reputation amongst single foreign females, Ala was a good friend to us for many years, and always the perfect gentleman as far as Freda was concerned. We'll miss his smiles and jokes over the coming years, I'm sure.)

My next port of call was the new office of Mr Bahaa's Sunrise Tours. He is now situated on a street which runs between the afore-mentioned Ibn Khaled Whalid Street and Medina Street, it's behind and to the left of the still unfinished Morris Hotel. Here's a look:

Although he's now in a place with little passing trade, he is expanding his Internet presence, and continues to do good business with flight tickets. You can see the airlines for whom he acts as agent, on the right of the shopfront. If you come across it, he has a clean toilet and small kitchen where his staff can make tea even!

Anyway, on the way there, I passed the St Joseph Hotel (amongst others) which is getting its fresh coat of paint for the coming extravaganza! 

It seems as if the whole world is beating a path to Luxor for this grand opening of the Kebash Way. It's supposed to be a sort of re-enactment of the "Beautiful Festival of Opet". (This is also what the annual Moulid of Abu Haggag is meant to represent, remember, Dear Reader? Only the Moulid is financed by locals and doesn't involve closing half the town for day after day!)

I also stumbled across a cache of caleches! (Now there's a phrase that you'll not come upon every day!) I was told that there were 45 of them stored here.

You'll notice that they're all rigged with either lights or reflective bits and bobs. They must be going to be used in the official parade which is going on along with the other celebrations. I wonder if they've been commandeered from the owners, or hired for the duration?

It's a pity that we won't be able to see the ceremonies in real life, but if that were the case, then I suspect that every Tom, Dick and Harry would be there with their cameras and the (probably State) TV crews wouldn't be able to cash in on it in order to partially refill El Sisi's national coffers. I do hope it's the roaring success that everyone expects, and has a massive impact on tourism. They really need it!

On the way home, I got off the 'bus at the Station (Mahata) and walked down to the baker on Station Street for some of his lovely aish fino (white bread rolls) and some chocolate croissants. Meandering through the back streets towards Our Luxor, I had to pass the Saint's Tomb (which I've mentioned a few times before, if you remember) and noticed that it has had another new covering. It just had to be photographed again, especially as there were no fierce looking ladies on guard this time!

After getting back home and relaxing for a while, my beloved alerted me to the fact that there was a strange man on the roof of the building over the road! On jumping up and having a look, sure enough, there he was as large as life! 

In all the years that we've been here, we have never seen anyone on that roof before. It was Freda who twigged that he was probably some sort of security bloke! From that particular roof, a sniper would have a clear view all the way down Youseff Hassan Street and with a high powered rifle could easily pick someone off on the Avenue. He was there for a while, and seemed to be speaking into a phone or something. I just hope that they don't make the poor b****r stay up there till it's all over!

Oh, got to go. Freda is almost finished preparing the chicken, spaghetti and potato wedges for our evening meal. It's truly scrumptious!

See ya!

Up on the Roof!

 Well well well!

Young Mr Abdou turned up early! That's a new one in Egypt, Dear Reader, as I'm sure you're aware. He was armed with an electric drill and a black plastic bag full of nice wide headed screws with which to tightly clamp the roofing sheets to their timber frame.

When he got up there, it didn't take him long to shout down to tell me that we'd actually lost two sheets! Obviously, they would have to be replaced before the winter really takes hold, before any (granted unusual) heavy rain came along and ruined our inside decoration again.

Now then, it's over eight years since the roof was modified to its current configuration, and the roofing sheets of wriggly tin were 72EGP each, this figure was confirmed by Mr Abdou. Now, they are a staggering 250EGP each!!!! Yes, Playmates 250EGP!!!!! That's quite an increase, and I was doubley pleased that we hadn't lost any more than just the two.

Of course, in my state of panic at having to spend so much from our dwindling budget, I completely forgot about taking any pictures or videos of the job in hand, or the expedition in Sayed Hair's caleche to collect the 2.5 metre long sheets. Suffice to say that we got them, and dear young Mr Abdou managed to get them securely fastened to the roof timbers. We're now safe from the unusual Egyptian weather patterns which are possibly caused by me riding around England in an old 3.2 litre diesel powered Mercedes Benz car. (Certainly not by China increasing their production of coal, to produce electricity, by 1000,000 tons per day!)

Meanwhile (back at the ranch) due possibly to my colour blindness, Freda invented a new culinary delight!

You already know, of course, that Freda is turning Egyptian, evidenced by her reluctance to leave the house. So, Mr Muggins has to do all the shopping, like many a doting Egyptian husband. All well and good, I hear you say, Dear Reader. Except that my disability (completely unrecognised as such and ignored in England) can cause the odd problem. I've previously brought home green potatoes, but this time I brought home lentils (said so on the packet!) which were yellow insted of the customary orange; all I knew was that they weren't brown.

Freda recognised my mistake straightaway, needless to say! "Never mind", says she, "it does say 'lentils' on the packet, but they look more like split peas to me!" She duly mixed them with the remainder of the real lentils and away she went making the soup.

Deep in the recesses of what passes for my brain, I had a dim recollection of something occurring once before regarding lentil soup????? Now what was it?

Found it: https://ourluxorflat.blogspot.com/search?q=Lentil+spread ......and that was just over 10 years ago!

Maybe it was the addition of Freda's Egyptian bits and pieces (herbs, spices or somethng?) but it didn't actually taste like pease pudding at all! Here it is:

Whilst it was obviously NOT ordinary lentil soup, it wasn't quite a pea soup either. I found it relatvely palatable but Freda wasn't struck, so I ate most of it myself.

So here I am; special soup and pudding all consumed, and now I'd better get back to work. 

So; what is it that you miss?

We all miss something, surely? My list is too long to write in one day, I think. But I'm currently missing something that I never imagined in a million years that I ever would. Here's a clue, Dear Reader:

No, surprisingly enough it's not a bench full of dirty dishes, it's my little slimline dish washer at home in Windy Nook! My mam will be turning in her grave (well maybe if we'd had her buried, that is!) to think that any son of hers would resort to such a bourgeois device. This is the lady who always made her squeezy (Primula) cheese sandwiches by squeezing a thick layer on one piece of bread and then folding it over. Then there was no need for a knife to spread it or cut it, and then have to be washed. She didn't even use her cooker top for the last 10 years or so of life 'cause it would need cleaning if she did! Housework and her just didn't get on, even though she did manage to keep it clean in spite of herself. That's another thing I miss, having my mother just downstairs.

But here in Egypt, some things that would be readily available at our other home are just not. 

Edward of the 3 vacuums had a bit of a catsafterme again today. My trusty Kirby (now about 30 years old) gave up the ghost. But thankfully, not altogether as I was able to raise it from the dead with the help of little Mr Hany the plumber. I haven't used it yet since returning here, but today was the laying of the large carpet in the guest apartment livingroom. We love this carpet; 4 x 3 mtrs and over a year's worth of handknotted artwork! It gets rolled up with plastic bags over each end when we leave Luxor, till we come back again. This (hopefully) prevents any mice or moths getting inside the roll and ruining it, it's worked so far I'm pleased to report. So, I unrolled the first yard or so, with the back uppermost, and vacuumed off the accumulated dust with my lovely yellow K'Archer.Then it was unrolled (with bated breath, I might add, just in case the bags hadn't done their job) laid flat and in position and then out came the newly cleaned Kirby Legend. Switched it on to find dust blowing through the zip on the outer bag, horror of horrors! I opened it up, struggling with the zip as it was clogged with dust too. As I thought, the bag was new (from 2020) and hadn't burst at all. What could it be? On closer inspection, the corrugated flexible link pipe between the machine and the bag had snapped! Then I remembered, this happened before, and I had shortened the pipe in order to re-attach it with the broken end cut cleanly off. But, of course, there wasn't enough pipe left to do that again.

I knew that I'd seen piping of this type down the street at the Awad family's group of plumbing and allied businesses shops, but would theyhave the right size? Think positively, Mr Edward! Americans use inches and Egyptians use metric, but refer to bits of wood as 2 x 3 etc, which is, course 2 x 3 inches. It's all very confusing to simple pensioners like myself. Nevertheless, Mr Hany found a length of pipe with a 'similar' inside diameter. We made it fit with the addition of some Sellotape and a couple of big jubilee clips. There was a, deliberately manufactured-in, problem though. See if you can find it in the picture:

Obviousy, the blue is the new pipe and the black the old. Notice the difference? The wire reinforcing is 'threaded' in the opposite direction. Deliberately so, so that a proper permanent repair can only be made by purchasing a new pipe from Kirby, no doubt at an extortionate price, insted of the, less than, £2 which the blue stuff cost me today! The original threads onto the machine like a large, left hand thread, nut, but not any more, the blue stuff is just clamped onto the spigot end with the clips, fingers crossed, eh?

I'm also missing easy access to a range of recognisable breakfast cereals which I prefer. You can get many western 'style' cereals, like Temmy's corn flakes (also expensive Kelloggs!) and usually porrige oats (mainly hailing from Germany) and the usual overly sweet kids things in varions guises. But no Shreddies or Shredded Wheat, which is what I really like.

I miss watching the world go by from our livingroom window in Windy Nook. What most folk in Tyneside flats have as their main bedroom, we chose to have as our livingroom, specifically because we're avid people watchers, as I'm sure you're aware. Here, we only have this to look out on in the evening:

The laser lights are being shone all over the place in practice for the official openng of the 'Kebash Road' (The ancient ceremonial way of the gods.) between the two temples. The West Bank illumination is much brighter and clearer than it has been for years. I'm sure its just because they've bothered their bums to give them a good clean! I suppose that I shouldn't complain though, as many folk would love to have such a view, and I do find it thrilling at times.

I also miss (but not too much) pork products, particularly sausages! I'm sure that one day, I'll persuade Mr Hany (he's Christian) to take me to a butcher who sells pork, and I'll find some bacon!!!

What I don't miss (and this is for sure!) is the RAIN. I know some people, who live here permanently, yearn for rain, but I think they must have a touch of the old sunstroke, I can well do without it, thank you very much.

I'm sorry to be so negative tonight, perhaps I'm just getting tired of cleaning, and it's bringing on a certain semse of melancholy? Who knows? But one thing I do know; it's getting near to bedtime!

Goodnight and God bless, Dear Reader.