Visiting Kom Ombo: The Dual Temple of Horus and Sobek | Egypt Travel Blog: Day 5 (Part 36) 04D19

Egypt Travel Blog: 10 DAYS Egypt Explorer - Felucca Cruise & Red Sea

Temple of Kom Ombo | The Double Temple Dedicated to the Crocodile God Sobek and the Falcon God Horus | Kom Ombo & Aswan

After passing through rural Egypt, we finally arrived at the Temple of Kom Ombo. This is an unusual temple located between Kom Ombo & Aswan. Surrounded by fields of sugarcane and corn, Kom Ombo Temple is located in a pleasant agricultural town overlooking the Nile.

The Temple of Kom Ombo was constructed during the Ptolemaic period from 108 to 47 BC. Here, in the ancient Egyptian place of worship, some unique engravings have been found which are thought to be one of the first representations of medical and surgical instruments.

The Temple of Kom Ombo is a two-in-one temple, dedicated to not only one but two gods. The eastern half was dedicated to the crocodile-headed god, god of the Nile and creator of the world, Sobek and his family. The western half of the temple was dedicated to the falcon-headed god, god of the sky and protector of the king, Horus and his family.

Just before entering the complex, you will notice that it is made of two parallel temples, and both are perfectly symmetrical. The Temple was constructed mainly with limestone in a rectangle shape.

The Temple of Kom Ombo starts with a front courtyard, then a hypostyle hall (replete with fifteen columns decorated with lotus floral capitals and sun images), you will see three inner halls (ten thin columns with engravings depicting various events of the gods) followed by two sanctuaries dedicated to Sobek and Horus.

There are seven chambers, many antechambers, and smaller rooms that were used for different rituals and purposes located in the both the east and west parts.

Although the Temple of Kom Ombo is the most preserved and complete temple that is 2000 years old, I saw lots of parts that are damaged or missing. Some parts looked like modern-day alleyways, but smaller and on both sides of the walls they had engravings describing stories. Our tour guide explained most of them – so fascinating!

From here, we would visit the Crocodile Museum, which I will talk about in the next post.

Spending the Night in the Middle of the Nile in a Felucca Cruise Boat | Egypt Travel Blog: Day 4 (Part 34) 03D19

Egypt Travel Blog: 10 DAYS Egypt Explorer - Felucca Cruise & Red Sea

Felucca Sailing Cruise on the Nile Under the Stars – Part 5 | Aswan

After leaving the Nile’s sandy bank, our felucca started to move slowly. The cook almost finished cooking and other crew members started to arrange the food in the middle of the cushions. There were many items, just like lunch. They even cooked some specialty foods for those who were vegetarians, but we could eat from any of the dishes.

Taste wise, I couldn’t describe how delicious they were. I was blown away. There were desserts after dinner and drink options such as soft drinks, tea, coffee, or beer. I stuck with water only.

After eating, the boat was moving slowly and I was enjoying the moments and scenery after sunset on the Nile. I will likely never have another opportunity to enjoy such sights again. There was a white light far off in the distance and we were supposed to anchor close to it for the night in the middle of the Nile.

As soon as it was dark enough outside, the crew started to prepare the beds for the night. A canvas shade was pulled around, covering the whole boat, retaining heat and keeping us safe from mosquitos and bugs. We all settled in our spots with our blankets and pillows for a good night’s sleep.

However, it was a huge problem for me. It was just past 8:00 PM and sleeping that early was not in the cards for me. I brushed my teeth with bottled water, washed my face and stayed awake for another couple hours in the dark.

The quietness, pitch-black dark Nile (with some visible city lights far away) at night and the stars above made the whole environment feel unreal. I was immensely emerged in that moment and sensing every moment of the night.

It was getting chillier fast, which was a stark contrast with the desert heat in the daytime. I had to layer up with a sweater, although I had blankets. I was surprised that I was able to sleep that early, but woke up a couple of times before dawn.

It got even colder around 2:00 AM, which was hard to believe the weather in desert areas can fluctuate so rapidly. I lifted up the canvas to feel outside and yes, it was a lot colder than inside our felucca. We would leave the boat in the morning to Kom-Ombo.  

Spending the Night in the Middle of the Nile in a Felucca Cruise Boat | Egypt Travel Blog: Day 4 (Part 33) 03D19

Felucca Sailing Cruise on the Nile Under Stars – Part 4 | Aswan

Egypt Travel Blog: 10 DAYS Egypt Explorer - Felucca Cruise & Red Sea

We started slowly going near the shore of the Nile and the boat crew anchored the felucca. The place we landed is a village, with Aswan city now on the other side of the Nile. The boat created a pedestal bridge to descend to the ground from the boat.

All of our crew got off the boat. Some girls wore 2-pieces to swim in the Nile. Some guys were swimming too. I only put my feet in and stayed away from going too deep in the water.

I saw some villagers grazing their cows and donkeys. Some villagers, mostly boys, came close to watch what these tourists were up to.

The water felt cold, but not too cold. I sank my GoPro underwater and took some videos. The Nile’s water looked clean and I was able to see through it. I was expecting polluted water, but it looked like it was still fresh. These days it’s hard to find river waters that are not polluted around the globe.

We stayed at the Nile bank for 45 minutes to close to an hour. Everyone seemed to enjoy being off the boat and mingling with nature and people. Even the grazing cows and donkeys were curious and looking at us!

Getting back on the boat, I settled on the roof to watch the views, but then smelled cooking and came down to check. I saw one of the crew, the one who had cooked before, had started to cook dinner. Although I was not hungry, the food smelled like heaven. I videoed him cooking. They asked me if I’d like some tea and their plain black tea with sugar tasted incredible.  

Spending the Night in the Middle of the Nile in a Felucca Cruise boat | Egypt Travel Blog: Day 4 (Part 32) 03D19

Felucca Sailing Cruise on the Nile Under the Stars – Part 3 | Aswan

Egypt Travel Blog: 10 DAYS Egypt Explorer - Felucca Cruise & Red Sea

Once we settled down on our spots reclining on the side of the boat, the crew started to cook our lunch. I watched the cook cooking in traditional ways sitting on the floor.

I was shocked to see how many items he was able to cook in such a short time. All together, there were 8 to 10 items. There were fried fish, fried eggplant, bread, and other Egyptian items I didn’t know the names of and there were even salads.

All the items were arranged in the middle of the boat on cushions set beside each other. We all sat on both sides surrounding our food and started to eat.

I don’t know what it was, whether it was the fisherman’s style of cooking or the fresh items, but everything was too delicious. I kept eating and eating and tried each item available. There were even sweets served at the end. These were some common Egyptian sweets such as Basbousa, Kunafa, Baklava, etc. There were also teas, coffees, beers, and soft drinks. I’m not sure how they managed so much food.

After eating, the crew raised the sail and we started off. As we were moving away further from the dock, the shoreline opened up with nice views with lots of boats, luxury big ferries, and small fishing boats.

Some people moved to the rooftop for better views and winds. I stayed a while on the roof. There was a round low table and small round cushions to sit on. Two girls from our group took the opportunity to sunbathe. By now, we in the Tour Group became friends and comfortable with each other.

Some guys were going heavy on beers. Beer was not included, but available to buy. The price was very cheap compared to Canada. The surrounding sceneries, warm weather, sweet breeze … it all made those moments unforgettable. Soon, we would land on the other side of the Nile to swim and walk.

Spending the Night in the Middle of the Nile in a Felucca Cruise Boat | Egypt Travel Blog: Day 4 (Part 31) 03D19

Felucca Sailing Cruise on the Nile Under the Stars – Part 2 | Aswan

Egypt Travel Blog: 10 DAYS Egypt Explorer - Felucca Cruise & Red Sea

Our designated felucca is a medium-sized boat, good enough to hold 15-20 people comfortably. Like a traditional felucca, it had only a canvas sail and no motor.

The main floor or deck of the boat had cushions and pillows where we would sit and spend the day and night. The roof was like a half deck where we were able to sit or lie down to get the sun and Nile breeze while relaxing with a beer and enjoy the open views.

Between the main floor and the roof, there was no shade during the day, so you would touch the water from the main deck while sitting on the side. There was also a bathroom.

The boat had 3 to 4 people who would be with us on the boat. They spoke fairly good English to carry on basic conversations. It looked like they live on the boat permanently and the boat earns them money by providing services to tourists.

On the front deck, they set up a nice mini-kitchen to cook and serve us food. The cooking had to be done in sitting as was low and there was no way you could stand and cook. I was surprised this small boat managed to stack so much food and drinks to feed all of us for almost 24 hours.

Our full trip on the boat was not that far. We would go up to the white bridge, which we could see from far away. We would stay in the middle of the Nile at night and would stop over at the banks to swim or just walk along the riverbank at dusk.