Day 136:

The museum, last night, was quite striking. While the Cairo museum was a nice old-world affair - very much an "Indiana Jones stayed here" kinda place - the Luxor museum is a modern, well thought out, informative and engrossing place. The history on display really does reach out and grab you. This is a good thing, because the Luxor museum contains the same statutes and pharonic relics as the Cairo museum, which I couldn't really relate to.

If anyone reading this managed to get to Luxor, I highly recommend exhibit 61, "Statute of King Thutmosis III," excavated from the nearby Karak temple. It's one of the finest examples of ancient Egyptian sculpture I have yet to see. It's fine details and wonderful restoration are breathtaking in all of it's essential simplicity. That piece alone makes me want to return to the museum for a second visit.

I spent today taking in the sights at Karak. The temples is all about columns and statutes. And a horde of visitors. It made for a pleasant few hours of walking and gawking under the hot sun. As usual, though, there is little y way of explanation on sight - perhaps to create work for the local tour companies.

The heat here has me moving at a snail's pace, spending a few hours touring each day, and the remainder of the day just reading, writing and napping. Tomorrow I plan to travel to the other side of the Nile to see the famous Valley of the Kings and all of the famous tombs therein. Exciting!