Valley of the Kings

We had a lot to go see yesterday so we made sure to start our day early. We woke up at 5:30 and left the hotel around 6:30. We visited an after school program called Fantasia that is partners with our tour program. This program helps students who struggle with reading and writing to learn using art. Art is not taught us many of the schools in Egypt. This program also teaches leadership and other life skill. One of the ways they do this is by having some of their kids lead a group on bikes to their foundation. We took a boat to the West Bank of the Nile and then hopped on these bikes and road for a bit before stopping at Fantasia and learning about their project. The next thing we did was visit the temple of Hatshepsut. Hatshepsuts story was different from all the other rulers. When the king before her Tutmosis the second died his successor Tutmosis the third was too young to lead. The solution was to have him serve as king side by side with his step mom Hatshepsut. Hatshepsut was one of the most profound builders in ancient Egypt. Even once her step son Tutmosis was old enough to rule she still did not hand over the throne. She was very powerful and had gained the respect of her followers. In her temple she was depicted as a male pharaoh with male features and a false beard. When she died her stepson defaced her temple. Ruining her statues and erasing every mention of her in the temple. This makes the site quite unique. After we saw the temple we drove ten minutes to the valley of the kings. When the ancient Egyptians built the pyramids they were very obvious and were targets for grave robbing. Thutmosis the first was the first to have the idea to not have a pyramid for us tomb but to instead carve it into the mountain in order for it be well hidden. In the valley there are sixty two tombs, we visited five. We saw the tombs of Rameses the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and ninth. Along with king Tut. The first 4 tombs were very large with long Corredor‘s that lead to pillared halls and burial chambers. The walls were decorated with different scenes from the ancient religion. Once a new king took the throne they would begin working in their tombs. King Tut was 10 when he took the throne and 19 when he died. His tomb is made of 5 rooms and is the smallest in the valley. His tomb is also the only tomb in the valley that still has the mummy inside. We left the valley and drove to the ruins of an old temple where only two large statues are left. On our way to lunch we stopped at an alabaster co-cp where we saw people making hand made bowls and statues. We ate lunch at a local home. We had soup, bread, rice, chicken, pita and vegetables, potatoes and beans. When we finished we talked to the owner of the house about his family. In the house there was five levels. The first is a common living space. The second for the father and mother. And then each floor above that is for their sons and their family’s. After we ate we left the West Bank of the Nile on a boat and headed back to our hotel we we took naps and hung out by the pool. We went to dinner at a local restaurant. Alastair ordered a milk shake the was wildly disappointing so after dinner we went to McDonald’s for some McFlurries. We headed back and settled in for the night. That’s about all.

-dagny