January 15th, 2015 - Luxor Rest Day

A few of us got a hotel room in Luxor.  A good bed, a toilet and a hot shower!  The downside was no heat... so once again I slept with a fleece and a hat on and all the wool blankets I could find - at least I took off my coat.

We went to the Temple of Karnak.  It was incredible and built between 3,000 and 2,500 BC. 

We also visited the market area where I got scammed into buying a small handful of spices for 3X what they would cost in Halifax and now I have to carry them for another four months.  I paid the money so I could leave - they are very friendly and tell you stories about their families and how business is very, very bad, so you consider the money a donation.  

At night we went out for Egyptian food (chicken kabob) and then to another market area in search of shoes for one of our Egyptian cyclists; I found out that you can even negotiate the price of shoes in a shoe store. The pony taxis and shop keepers bug you to the extent that you avert your eyes, do not look at anything and totally ignore them. This seems very rude but you won't make it down the street if you partake in any conversation at all... even to say 'no thank you'.

We had a glass of sugar cane juice- very sweet, thick and tasty. The local fruit is incredible, oranges and melons.