The Niles’ astounding 4,160-mile course from Burundi to the Mediterranean makes it the world’s longest river: And for every mile there are vestiges of more than 4,000 years of history. Antiquity meets modernity at Aswan High Dam, Which generates electrical power and controls the same nutrient-rich floods that enabled the ancient Nile Valley culture to flower into a great civilization. Follow the path of great pharaohs, and travel through time:
Cairo-Egypt’s capital and Africa’s largest city, Cairo is a bustling, modern, riverside metropolis as well as keeper of ancient artifacts. It’s almost forbidden to miss a visit to the Egyptian Museum, home of King Tutankhamun’s treasures–including his 450-pound gold coffin–as well as other statues of pharaohs Ramses II and Cheops.
Giza-The Great Pyramid of Cheops, and the somewhat smaller pyramids for Chephren and Micerinus, are clearly not your run-of-the-mill burial sites. Master building? Indeed. Even the track used to haul 2.5-ton quarried blocks for these immense icons of eternity took ten years to build.
Carved out of bedrock, the Sphinx stands watch nearby, and your guide will no doubt reveal that drifting sand has repeatedly buried the statue up to its neck throughout history.
Luxor and Karnak-Although the climate may be similar, and advertising campaigns make their claims, Luxor is not anywhere near Las Vegas. It is the ancient site of Thebes, for centuries Egypt’s prosperous capital. Today you can wander the lively souks and visit Karnak–famous for its clusters of ancient statues and temples replete with unparalleled grandeur and detail. Definitely not to be confused with a fellow of former Tonight Show fame, Karnak includes Amon temple, quite large enough to contain Notre Dame Cathedral.
Valley of the Kings-South of Luxor, one ventures into the misleadingly barren Valley of the Kings to Discover hidden tombs, notably those of Tutankhamun, Ramses VI and Ramses IX. It’s an authentic den of antiquity, where archaeologists found still colorful depictions from The Book of the Dead–and struck real gold with King Tut’s treasures. Let your guide regale you with the legends involving these relics that have launched countless B movies and doctoral theses.
Well we hope we have enticed you to visit this ancient treasure James TravelPOINTS -1-800-538-7461, www.travelpoints.com.
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