I’m so sorry for the delay in posting – I’ve actually been to Antarctica on a two-week trip and was unable to upload photos on the weak internet signal. I’m back to share these images and thoughts on visiting some of the best preserved ancient wonders anywhere on the globe!
Here I continue the story of my Around the World trip completed in January. We left the Serengeti in Tanzania and took an interesting route up to Egypt. The flight was about four hours long as Tanzania is located in east-central Africa. For some reason (and unlike other times that I’ve done this flight) we did not take a straight line north to fly directly over Khartoum the capital of Sudan. I was looking forward to this as Khartoum is located at the confluence of the White and Blue Nile rivers. Instead we tracked curiously to the northeast over Kenya, western Somalia, eastern Ethiopia, Djibouti and Eritrea, then straight up the gut of the Red Sea. Yep, this is the area where the Houthi rebels are presently firing rockets at ships (none were sighted). (I found out later in asking the captain of our jet that the reason for our detour was security – apparently flying over Sudan today is deemed “risky”. The detour was not unwelcome as it provided a highlight for me – flying over the Afar triangle. This is where the Arabian plate has pulled away from the African plate to form the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
Afar Triangle Flyover
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We obtained a peek at the top of Kilimanjaro, elevation 19,341 feet and the ‘Roof of Africa’ See my images from a trek to the top from 2014 here. |
I include (five photo’s below) a shot of the sinuous dark gray lava flows that are evident on the app here |
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A canyon system in eastern Ethiopia |
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Note the en echelon fault blocks of volcanic rocks on the northwest edge of the Afar triangle |
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As the Arabian plate began to pull away from Africa 5 million years ago, these blocks were faulted down and rotated |
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Here is the volcano center and associated lava flows depicted in the Flyover Country app above – awesome! Note the high-standing volcanic center and dark lave flows radiating out from there |
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A lone tanker ship cruises north in the Red Sea toward the Suez Canal |
Egypt
Finally, on the ground in Luxor Egypt!
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The entrance to Luxor Temple at sunset on January 16, 2024 |
Karnak Temple in Luxor
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On the West Bank of the Nile River, tributary streams have carved canyons called wadi’s into the limestone and shale rocks of the Theban Formation. It is Eocene in age, about 50 Ma, and was deposited during the final stages of the Tethy’s Sea. It was in this wadi that Egyptian kings were buried in tombs cut into the limestone. Members of our jet group were allowed to visit the Valley of the Kings after hours at sunset, after the throngs of tourists had returned to their hotels in Luxor. We had the valley all to ourselves! I snapped this photo of the Theban Formation on the drive into the valley. |
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The authorities open and close various tombs at staggered intervals, to allow for a reduction in outside air in the tombs. This is the entrance to one of the other tombs in the Valley of the Kings. |
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A painted hieroglyph inside this tomb showing a Nile River boat |
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Entrance to Tomb KV62, the archaeological name for King Tut’s tomb. Wikipedia has a great write-up of the tomb here, explaining how the tomb was robbed twice shortly after the young king’s death but then repaired with many funerary objects replaced. The tombs for Ramesses V and VI were later built just to the west of this and spoil from these excavations further hid the entrance to KV62. It was not discovered in modern times by Howard Carter until 1922! |
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I did not tickle his feet but was tempted… |
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Self portrait inside the tomb |
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The east wall of the tomb. This was an excellent visit to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings! |
What a fantastic visit this was to Luxor and the Valley of the Kings. But we were not done with Egypt just yet. After two nights in Luxor, we rebounded our jet and made a day stop in Cairo to visit the Great Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. That’s right – a 90-minute flight to Cairo, then seven hours on the ground in Cairo, then our six hour flight to Morocco, which will be the last posting for this trip.
Giza and the Sphinx
Again, seated on the left side of the jet, I was able to obtain some great views of the Nile River valley from the air. It was a perfect morning for flying!
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View to the south toward Luxor of the Nile River valley |
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Prior to 1964, when the High Aswan Dam was completed on the Nile River, everything you see in green was subject to the annual flood of the Nile River. These floods are what nourished Egyptian high culture as the fertile silt of the Nile refreshed the growing area of the floodplain. The source of these floods was an enigma to the Egyptians as the floods came in June and lasted until August – a typically very dry time in Egypt. However, it was the snow melt from the Ruwenzori Mountains in Ethiopia that were the source of these floods. Check out this article from Saudi Aramco Magazine (May/June, 2006) by John Feeney that describes the very last flood in 1964 to inundate the Nile. I developed a short lecture for our guests on the jet about this final flood. |
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Landing in smoggy Cairo – nearly 23 million people and growing like a weed! In 1950, its population was 2.5 million. |
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On the ground at the Great Pyramids of Giza! They are truly astounding. |
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Our visit included a lecture between the paws of the Sphinx from famed Egyptologist Dr. Zahi Hawass. What a treat! |
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Views like this are not normally obtained, unless one is with a special group |
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The lecture venue |
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A view from the southwest of the Great Pyramids of Giza |
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View to the northwest |
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Desert skies, even on the edge of 23 million people, are magical! |