Temple Tour, Part Two

The next day we left early for the Valley of Kings, where generations of pharaohs were buried. Sadly you can take photos outsides of the tombs, but not the interior.

After the Valley of Kings, we went to the Temple of Hapshepsut. When looking at the temple you have to image it originally being covered with bright sculptures and lush plants.

While the tour was fun, it was unbearably hot. Sweat was running down into my eyes. We returned to the cruise ship and began to cruise down the Nile. (No, that is not our cruise ship!)

As luck would have it, two days prior to leaving Luxor, Arlene, a fellow traveler, gave me the book, Down the Nile by Rosemary Mahoney, as she had just finished it. Mahoney wrote about her experience rowing down the Nile, something virtually unheard of in Egypt. Though our trip was opposite of hers, (She started in Aswan, and followed the river flowing northward, we went up the river.) it was incredible to follow her story as we were surrounded by the beauty of the Nile. While I did not have the same experience that she had in Luxor, I certainly agreed with many of her observations of Egyptian life.

Bibliography

Art historians read a lot. We research and like to look at subjects from different perspectives and debate (read: argue) their merits. When I grade papers, I often start with the bibliography. If the sources are interesting, there's a good chance the essay will follow suit. In that vain, I thought a bibliography would be appropriate for my trip. What am I looking at before I go?

Now personally, I do go a little nuts with the research. I will recall books that are vaguely related to my topic just because they strike my fancy. This explains why I have a copy of Coptic Monasteries: Egypt's Monastic Art and Architecture by Gawdat Gabra amidst a whole stack of books which are part of my "To Do" list. Do I have a good pair of walking shoes yet? No. But I do have the following books at the ready.

Books which I have actually finished reading:

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert (Not the most academic choice, but you can't read heavy stuff all the time...)

Culture Smart! Egypt by Jailan Zayan

I will not even begin to list the Rick Steve's and Frommer's guides (plus back issues of Budget Travel) from the library.

Books I'm most likely bringing with me:

Lonely Planet Egyptian Arabic Phrasebook

Blue Guide: Rome, by Alta Macadam.

Islamic Monuments of Cairo: The Practical Guide, by Caroline Williams.

Books I am currently reading, and may actually complete before I leave:

Venice: Lion City: The Religion of Empire by Gary Wills

Miramar by Naguib Mahfouz

Books that I have, but have as much chance of reading them before my trip as I do losing 25 pounds:

The History of Egypt by Glenn Perry

The Art and Architecture of Ancient Egypt by W. Stevenson Smith

Egypt, Greece and Rome: Civilizations of Ancient Mediterranean by Charles Freeman

Egypt: An Economic Geography by Fouad N. Ibrahim and Barbara Ibrahim (Well, I did read a couple chapters... does that count?)

I also wanted to read Orientalism by Edward Said. Plus today I met with a lovely colleague who suggested several academic articles and books by Irene Bierman.

With all of this reading, you think I would have a golden ticket to lay in the hammock and get some of this reading done. But sadly, this is the reading I really have to do:

Exams. Two classes worth. Oy-vey.

(Am I missing something in my bibliography? Let me know in the comments below.)