Unforgettable Abu Simbel

temple of Ramses II at Abu Simbel

Thirty years ago, we brought our young children to Abu Simbel as part of a tour of Egypt, Jordan and Israel.  Then, there was only an airstrip and a dusty military base--and two magnificent temples rising above the blue water of Lake Nasser, the huge, 300-mile long reservoir formed when the Aswan High Dam was built in the 1960's.

Lake Nasser from the plane

None of us forgot this barren and beautiful place, so we visited it again this morning with our group of 11.  Abu Simbel has become a town, with a tourist infrastructure and trees.  Many more tourists were visiting the temples than were there 30 years ago, but the temples are as mesmerizing as I remember.  They were raised from the valley below as Lake Nasser began to fill with water, cut into huge blocks and lifted into their new place by cranes.  UNESCO made this possible, for which we should all be grateful as a true world treasure was preserved for us to see.

Nefertari and Horus

Getting to Abu Simbel is a bit of a hassle.  We left our hotel in Cairo at 3:00 a.m., caught a 5:00 a.m. flight to Aswan that continued on to Abu Simbel, visited the temples, and flew back to Aswan in the late morning to join our Nile cruise boat.  We're all more than a little weary, but all thought this visit was more than worth the early morning and big effort.
These temples were built for Pharaoh Ramses II and his queen, Nefertari.  Unlike most Egyptian temples, these were carved into the rock cliffs rather than built stone by stone from the ground up.  Today, they stand side by side overlooking Lake Nasser, the one for Ramses II larger than Nefertari's temple.  But this is a rare temple where the queen and pharaoh are the same size.  Usually, queens are a fraction of the size of the pharaohs, given their inferior standing in life and death.

warrior lashing out

Both temples have enormous statues guarding the entrances and incredible carved friezes covering the walls inside. showing Ramses II and Nefartari as well as warriors, gods, warfare and offerings to the gods.  Archaeologists believe the temples were built to celebrate Ramses defeat of the Hittites at the Battle of Kadesh, in the 13th century BC.

Cow god's face and ears.

Over the millennia, sand covered the great temples up to the necks of the colossi guarding their entrances.  The explorer Giovanni Belzoni, excavated the temples in the early 19th century.
If you're coming to Egypt, I recommend Abu Simbel enthusiastically.  Rounding the corner of the path that goes to Lake Nasser from the entrance to the site, you can't help but be awestruck by the beauty and enormous size of these temples as well as the stunning location in the midst of the Nubian Desert, broken by the waters of Lake Nasser.  Even better are the beautifully carved friezes inside depicting Ramses II and Nefartari and the battles that gave birth to the temples.

hieroglyphics above door in Nefertari's temple