In the Valley of the Kings, Luxor

On Monday morning, we plan to take a taxi to the tombs in the Valley of the Kings. A boy on the street approaches us and says his father can drive us there, negotiating the price on his behalf. Eventually, we reach an agreement, and a middle-aged man named Mohamed picks us up.

On the way, he talks at length about his difficult life and harshly criticizes President Sisi, saying that even during Hosni Mubarak’s time—who was overthrown during the Arab Spring in 2011—the dictatorship was not this severe. He is the first local person who openly criticizes Sisi to us. At the same time, the whole country is covered in Sisi posters, as presidential elections are approaching to extend his already nine-year rule by another six years. Mohamed says that under Sisi, the poor have become even poorer, and that as a former general, Sisi has placed military figures in positions of power throughout the state institutions.

He also tells us that in Luxor, residents often find ancient artifacts on their land and trade them privately. Only items that are too large to move or have little value are reported to the authorities. He even offers to help us buy ancient Egyptian artifacts on the black market, but we are not interested.

In the Valley of the Kings, I visit the tombs of the following pharaohs:

• Ramses IV

• Ramses IX

• Tausert & Setnakht

• Ramses V & VI

• Seti I

In each tomb, there is a local guard who almost always follows you around—pointing out wall paintings, explaining something, allowing access to originally blocked-off sections, or offering to take your photo. One guard even grabs my camera and starts taking pictures of the ceiling paintings himself, as if I were incapable of doing it. In every case, this ends with the guard asking for a tip.

If you happen to be the only—or nearly the only—visitor in a tomb at that moment, it becomes very difficult to avoid tipping, even if the guard has been completely unnecessary or even annoying. When one guard mentions that all his children have studied to become doctors, we realize they must earn quite well from tips, since higher education in Egypt is not free.

Travel guides also mention that locals take advantage of the fact that Western tourists often feel uncomfortable saying “no” when unnecessary services are pushed on them. Although Lonely Planet suggests that the guards are poorly paid and therefore should definitely be tipped, I would advise against it. In reality, they receive generous amounts from other tourists as well. When I calculated how much we tipped (based on common tipping norms) and estimated how many tips they might receive daily, I concluded that they could easily earn around €2,000 per month from tips alone.

Eventually, the Valley of the Kings closes, and Mohamed comes to pick us up again. He says he is starting to feel ill, and we stop at a pharmacy where he buys some medicine. This time, he is less talkative. Still, he gives us his phone number in case we need another ride.