We arrived in Aswan late at night after a beautiful train journey along the Nile River. budget backpackers may seem cheap by never flying anywhere, but they get to see the countryside that jet-setters simply miss out on. Aswan is a sensational city set on one of the most picturesque areas of the greatest river in the world, so we knew we wanted to have a view from our room.
We found a great hotel ideal on the Nile with huge windows that opened up to let the breeze in with a best Nile vistas. We bargained the manager down to a price we like to pay and as always in Egypt it includes breakfast. who said you can’t get great rooms on a backpacker’s budget?
We spent a few days just enjoying the pace of life on the Nile and checking out a few of the markets. aside from the scenery, Aswan has a great charm, but it’s somewhat dulled by what budget backpackers call: “tourist pricing” and the general vacationer prejudices that come with it. It’s hard to get a fair price for anything (even passport photos) and everyone is out to get a buck. luckily we weren’t here for haggling, we were here for the felucca (sail boat) ride down the Nile River to Luxor.
Stunning view of the Nile River from our hotel room, Aswan, Egypt
Cat with crazy coloured eyes, Aswan, Egypt
We had agreed to meet our friends, Bernie & Toni at a Nile side restaurant at a certain date and time, and had used our other new friends Michel and Chisa to meet us there as well if they liked. turns out everyone showed up and got along well. 5 Canadians and a Japanadian, of course we got along, we’re all fellow budget backpackers!
In fact, somehow Michel and Chisa had already met Bernie and Toni. Anyway, Michel had met a few other Canadians in the Western Desert who had already taken the felucca journey and recommended a good captain. So a couple of days later we met the captain, Magdy, and went over the specifics. He only seemed a little dodgy, so we thought we’d opt for him.
He insisted that we make up the menu for the 3 night 4 day trip that was to follow. As we read out our somewhat elegant cuisine selection he nodded and agreed with each and every unlikely ingredient we had requested. We thought “Sweet! Was auch immer wir wollen”. Of course our time in Egypt could have rendered clues that this was not going to turn out how we expected but we carried on anyway to take a look at the boat with our new captain.
Sure enough, the boat looked glorious! Its sparkling new sail gleamed proudly in the moonlight. We thought, “Great! That boat’s way bigger than we thought!” then we accompanied the captain, Magdy, back to his house for sheesha, he confirmed that sheesha would be complimentary and there would be lots of flavours on the boat. We bid our farewells after a seemingly productive night of preparation and planned to sail two days later.
Going to see Tombs Of The Nobles in Aswan, Egypt
Goats On The road enjoying the view from the Tombs Of The Nobles, Aswan, Egypt
So the day came and we all got ready in our hotel and sure enough the captain was there on time. only the first of lots of problems arose on the way to the taxi. He didn’t get enough beer. Ok, no problem, he went to the beer store and replenished it.
Then we get to the boat and it was a completely different boat, it’s sad sail dangling dirty and frail in the morning sun. then as we hopped on the boat our meant captain waved goodbye from shore! Ummm WTF? haha, he had left us with a completely different crew then the one we had met prior. we all complained and grumbled a little bit, becoming all too aware of the scam which was unfolding. However, we weren’t going to let a shifty captain, new crew and a haggard boat spoil this remarkable experience.
Felucca boat for the journey on the Nile River, Egypt
We sailed to the police check point (as all boats do leaving Aswan) there was some problem and it took awhile but we eventually began sailing again. The views from the boat were breathtaking. The Nile is like glass in parts and the village life remains as it has for thousands of years on each of its banks. As we pulled away from the City of Aswan and into the a lot more rural regions a curtain of modernity slowly lifted revealing the age old, timeless traditions of farming and harvesting. kids ran along the banks waving hellos, while their sun weathered elders stood, doubled over, picking stocks of grain from the ground in the lush green farmland that stretched to the horizon.
Ready to set sail! Felucca journey, Nile River, Aswan to Luxor, Egypt
Nile River felucca journey, Aswan to Luxor, EgyptAfter our first couple of hours sailing, our first lunch was being prepared by Ayeman, our deckhand/cook. Ayeman was great but spoke little English so couldn’t quite answer when Bernie asked, “what’s for lunch?” Bernie has learned to speak what he calls “Nubanese” which is a sort of slow, cave man English which he believes is a lot more understandable for locals. “What cooking there?” Bernie asked. “Kartoffel? Potato GOOD, Lunch ready soon? We hungry”.
We would all find his speech to be as effective as it was humorous over the next few days. So we looked back on our planned menu to see what it was we were smelling. fine we all agreed, today must be tuna salad, dates, banana, melon, and bread. MMM.. can’t wait. What came out was still delicious but it lacked any protein, meat or fruit. hard to complain at this point though, looking out at the Nile we ate the delicious potato veggie stew and talked and laughed amongst each other.
Swimming in the Nile River, Egypt
After a great day of kicking back and enjoying the Nile go by, we prepared for dinner. Our menu suggested we would be having a roast chicken meal with potatoes and veggies. Needless to say it was a surprise when the falafel and bread hit the place mat, but again it was tasty, we all ate it up and continued chatting.
When it came time for bed we pulled up on shore at a slightly noisy village and the crew of Ayeman and Jimmy (Jamal) closed us in to secure us from mosquitoes. only problem was the 6 foot gaping hole in their protective cover. I guess it would siphon out all the mosquitoes that are too dumb to follow their nose to the massive opening, but for foreigners from a country with bug born illnesses with names like “the West Nile virus” we weren’t to delighted to be on the Nile exposed to the bugs.
Luckily Ayeman remedied this small draw back by using mine and Dariece’s blanket to cover the hole. Being such spoiled foreigners we explained that we needed a blanket to sleep, so with a polite apology Ayeman ran into the village and brought us back a blanket. No matter how lots of things were to go wrong over the next couple days we soon pertained to realize that it was not Ayeman or Jimmy’s fault. They were also duped by Magdy and would do whatever they could to help us feel a lot more comfortable.
So, Ayeman ran into his home in the village and grabbed us a new blanket. All we know is that somewhere in that village a camel was cold that night because Ayeman had taken it’s blanket to give to us. The blanket smelled like feet so we pushed it aside, but we were still touched by his generosity.
Morning on the Nile River, Egypt
We all slept pretty rough on the 2X4’s with couch cushions that night and woke up to the sun rise a little stiff. but as soon as we moved our blanket and peaked out the hole in the cover all our complaints were washed away by the morning sun. The village we were parked at was just waking up too. Donkeys and goats walked along the banks followed by young kids with sticks. men dressed in standard jellibas (dress length collared shirts) and head wraps sat on their porches having morning tea. little school kids skipped their way to school or work and the glass calm Nile reflected the sunrise perfectly, its colors danced in the sky and on the waters surface with equal beauty. we all started to see how epic this trip would be. This is what backpackers live for.
Man enjoying the sunrise at a village on the banks of the Nile River, Egypt
As budget backpackers, we must be used to eating light. Well, day two started with what appeared to be deep fried eggs, deep fried toast, and a side of oil. each day the bread became a lot more stale but Bernie explained how he liked the bread. “The bread’s great,” he said overjoyed, “It’s just a little TIGHT.” we all laughed and the expression “tight” became a humourous catch phrase in the group for stuff that sucked.
We cracked some early morning Stella beers at around 9am and sailed towards a temple called “Kom Ombo”. We stopped for a swim/morning bath in the Nile on the way. By the time we reached Kom Ombo it was pretty hot. Bernie and Toni had seen so lots of ruins in Egypt already they claimed to be “ruined” (pun intended) and so they stayed back on the boat. Michel, Chisa, Dariece and I headed up and taken a look at the temple. Kom Ombo is a massive temple overlooking the Nile that was built in the 19th dynasty in honor of the Crocodile God. Its massive pillars and hypostle hall are perched on the rivers banks creating an nearly ominous glow reflecting off of the water. We walked through the maze of reliefs and carvings in awe of how something so massive could have been created thousands of years ago.
Amazing Kom Ombo Temple, Nile River, Egypt
When we were done weaving our way around the pillars we returned to the felucca and ate the delicious fish lunch that Jimmy had prepared. He explained to us how he had caught the fish with some drawings and hand gestures. We vaguely understood that he used a trap near the village the day before. The fish itself was amazing, we were finally eating well on a backpacker’s budget but we found it slightly odd that we had gone the entire first day without any meat, and in this second day lunch we had Nile fish with a side of canned tuna.
A best reflection. Nile River, Egypt
Anyway… after we ate we started sailing again. We sailed for a couple of hours to reach some rock tombs that were carved out of the cliffs and again loomed ideal on the edge of the Nile. we all attempted to hike up to see the tombs but one by one we all succumbed to the intense heat of Egypt and returned to the felucca without actually entering any tombs.
No one was in a rush to go anywhere so the people waded and drank beer in the Nile while the girls kicked back on the boat. At one point a gigantic cruise ship went by and Bernie, Michel and I couldn’t resist, we had to moon it. The rich tourists on the boat swiftly scrambled to get their cameras and take a shot of the three white Canadian asses on the Nile. Something I’m sure they weren’t promised in their brochures. I guess there’s a few a lot more pictures of my ass floating around the Internet now.
After the excitement died down we boarded the boat and prepared to leave. There’s no way to describe how surreal the views were from our position below the tombs, except to say that it was yet another moment in travel that I will not soon forget.
The people enjoying a dip in the Nile River, Egypt
men acting like boys! mooning the passing cruise ship. Nile River, Egypt
After swimming for a couple of hours we set sail again, only this time in search of the sheesha we were all promised. Ayeman finally identified a tiny lawn hut with what looked like sheesha pipes glowing in the late afternoon sun just as the day was pertaining to an end. We got off the boat and sure enough there was a little “cafe” in the middle of nowhere complete with sheesha. we all sat down and the young man who lived there used us all coffee. we all accepted, expecting the normal Nescafe that comes in Egypt. instead he brought out fresh coffee beans in a small metal container. He lit a fire and while we smoked away on the potent sheesha pipe he roasted the beans over the fire.
Roasting coffee beans over the fire. Nile River, Egypt
The aroma was better than any Starbucks has ever smelled. He added a little bit of ginger into the beans which seemed odd at the time but actually gave the coffee a great flavor. The young Egyptian took a liking to Bernie and after they had talked for a while Bernie gave him a necklace he was wearing. clearly touched by Bernie’s generosity, he thanked him in Arabic, “Shukran, Shukran”, and got up to run into his small hut. When he came back he was holding a small glass vile which he gave to Bernie in return. The vile contained an Egyptian cologne which we all doused ourselves in before saying goodbye to our new friend with the coffee shop in the middle of nowhere.
Our sleep on that second night was much better and we all woke up rejuvenated as the sun peered over the horizon and once again, set the green pastures aglow and brought the villages to life. Das ist