Hot Air Balloon Ride, Felucca Sailing, Karnak and Luxor Temples

On Tuesday morning, we take a hot air balloon ride near the Valley of the Kings. It is truly impressive—very peaceful and an extremely pleasant experience. From my own experience, I can say that flying by helicopter over Tallinn in strong winds was far more extreme.

After that, we cross the river and visit one of the largest religious complexes in the world—the Karnak Temple. Once again, guards or workers approach us, offering access to closed areas where renovation work is underway. This time, we don’t let ourselves be persuaded.

At one point, a guard in what looks like a police uniform chases after an American tourist who has climbed somewhere he wasn’t supposed to. When he finally catches him, I assume a fine is coming. Instead, the guard offers him the opportunity—again for money—to visit a restricted area. The American declines and later tells us he also thought he was about to be fined, but apparently everyone here is simply trying to sell some kind of service.

After Karnak, we take a felucca ride on the Nile at sunset. First, we agree on a price with an older man who owns the sailboat, making sure there are no additional fees, including tips. The only possible extra cost would be if we needed a motorboat to tow the felucca back to the harbor on a windless evening.

Once the deal is made, however, it’s not the older man but a young man in his twenties who comes to operate the boat—the very same person we had told earlier in the harbor that we didn’t need his services. It turns out he works for the boat’s owner and is responsible for maintaining the boat, attracting tourists, and sailing them.

Since there is no wind and we simply drift in place for nearly an hour, I spend the entire time chatting with the young sailor. He lives on the opposite bank of Luxor, as we do. His father passed away long ago. They have their own house where his mother lives and takes care of his siblings. He works here to help support the family. Because he has had to work since childhood, he never had the opportunity to attend university. He has a girlfriend in the United States, whom he met almost a year ago when she was visiting as a tourist. They write to each other every day, and she visits him about every six months. He has no plans or possibility to move to the U.S., and his girlfriend does not want to move to Egypt. He says that if he ever marries, he would build a second floor onto his mother’s house and live there with his wife.

When the hour is nearly up and we want to disembark, he starts asking for a tip. He says he told us about his difficult life and that tips are his main source of income. I remind him that we had agreed with the boat owner that no tips would be added and that agreements should be respected. In the end, he gives up and politely says goodbye. We disembark where the boat has drifted—only a few hundred meters downstream. Soon we realize it’s a closed area with a locked gate, but fortunately a guard lets us out. Meanwhile, the captain remains behind, trying to push the felucca upstream with a long oar to get it back to the harbor.

By now, the sun has set. In the dark, we explore Luxor Temple in the city center. Illuminated at night, it is truly impressive. An interesting fact is that after being used to worship ancient Egyptian gods, the temple became a Christian sanctuary in the 4th century and an Islamic place of worship from the 6th century onward. A mosque built onto one side of the temple in the 13th century is still in use today (with a separate entrance), meaning the complex has functioned continuously as a religious site for 3,400 years. It is considered the oldest building in the world that is still at least partially in active use (for purposes other than just tourism).

Afterward, we have dinner at the market and take a boat back across the river to our accommodation.