So after Cairo it was a plane ride to the far south near the Sudan border, a rise in temperature to about 35C and the stunnining first sight of Abu Simbal. It was very wierd to actually be looking at something you have seen pictures of so often. We were not allowed to take pictures inside - which was full of heiroglyphics and carvings all in colour, the girls were as amazed as the adults - it was so frsh that it was hard to believe it was over 3,500 years old and the fact that the whole thing was moved is even more stunning when you see the size of both temples.

Here are a a few pictures







The Temple built by Ramses II, and the temple next door dedicated to his fourth wife (he had about fourty wives, 15o kids and lived to be 96 - not bad going he also signed the world's first peace treaty with the Hittites from Turkey but pretended he had beaten them in battle).



Detail of the sun god , and another one of us doing the stand in front of something famous and smile thing.


Then it was off to Luxor for the Cruise bit...........