Even if you are already suffering from severe temple aesthetic fatigue, you should not miss Abu Simbel and Karnak Temples.

The Karnak Temple was built during the Middle Kingdom and continued until the last pharaoh of the New Kingdom. During this period, Luxor (Thebes at that time) was the capital of Egypt, and the pharaohs were so keen on building temples, so the capital naturally gathered the most magnificent temple buildings. The overall shape of the Karnak Temple is "T", and it also includes a holy lake where priests purify themselves.

The first thing that comes into view is the pylon that the last pharaoh failed to complete. Although it was not completed, this pylon is still the largest pylon in Egypt (the second is the Edfu Temple). Because it was not completed, there are earth and stone stairs inside the pylon used to build the pylon, which can give you an idea of ​​how the ancient Egyptians built pylons.

As you approach the gate, you can see two rows of ram statues in front of the gate, which look very similar to those in the Ming Tombs. I wonder if the emperor of China borrowed this inspiration. It seems that the road of ram statues originally extended to the Luxor Temple, but it has not been fully excavated yet.

There are some statues and stone columns in the first hall, but the most spectacular part of the Karnak Temple is undoubtedly the second hall, which is the Hall of Columns. Entering the Hall of Columns is really speechless. This great Hall of Columns has 134 huge stone columns, which belong to Ramses II. The carvings on the stone columns record the scenes of Ramses II fighting with the enemy. It can be seen that these stone columns all serve as monuments. There is no completely closed roof above the stone columns, but huge stones of different heights are placed on the columns, so that light can partially enter the Hall of Columns, creating a sense of sacredness - of course, the Hall of Columns now has basically no roof at all. These stone columns are not carved from complete stones, but are made up of several cylindrical stones, so these 134 stone columns are basically completed at the same time - the workers first put the first layer of columns of all the stone columns in the designed position. Then fill the place without stone columns with sand to facilitate the placement of the second layer of stone columns, and then fill it with sand, and so on. Finally, after the construction is completed, the sand is taken out, and all the stone columns appear at the same time - a very clever method.

If you can come to the Hall of Columns in the morning or evening, the slanted light and shadow will definitely bring a more sacred color. In addition, "Death on the Nile" was filmed here.

After the Hypostyle Hall, you can see several obelisks. The most famous one belongs to Hatshepsut. Because the colors of the upper and lower parts of the obelisk are inconsistent, Milad said that it was because it was written on the obelisk that the obelisk was a gift from the queen to her father, the sun god. Later, Thutmose III did not want people to see this inscription, so he surrounded the lower part of the obelisk with stones. After a long period of wind and sun, the upper and lower parts of the obelisk became two different colors.

At the Karnak Temple, you will find that the lower part of most buildings has been repaired and rebuilt. It seems that because it was often flooded by the Nile River, the stone foundations of the buildings were severely eroded and collapsed. Later, it was restored to partially restore its former glory.

There are many more things to learn about the Karnak Temple. If you have enough time, you can learn more about it, such as making a wish around the scarab statue, the signatures of archaeologists on the temple stones, etc. Unfortunately, Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo didn't have much time, and the sunlight was too strong in summer, so they could only see the highlights.

Milad said: The Karnak Temple is dedicated to the sun god, while the Luxor Temple is dedicated to the sun god’s wife (in fact, the sun god is a trinity of husband, wife and son).

There is a sphinx road in front of the Luxor Temple, which leads to the Karnak Temple. It is said that the Egyptian government intends to concentrate on excavating the undiscovered part of this road. It is planned to restore this road. Maybe in a few years when I come to Luxor again, I can travel between Karnak and Luxor Temple along this road again.

The ancient Egyptians were also concerned about the love life of the gods. Every year, they would send the sun god statue from the Karnak Temple to the Luxor Temple to reunite with his wife and rest for a few days. The murals in the Luxor Temple also mainly record this ceremony.

One of the more unique features of the Luxor Temple is that there are ruins of three religions here. Of course, there is the polytheism of the Pharaoh era, and when the Arabs invaded Egypt, they used it as a mosque, and when Christianity emerged, Christians used it as a church. Mosque-style buildings appeared on the walls of the temple, and there are also colorful Christian murals inside the temple (Milad said it depicted the Last Supper), which is quite interesting.

The shrine also has some characteristics. The outer layer was built during the reign of Amenhotep III, and the inner layer was built during the reign of Alexander. Alexander built the shrine here to prove that he was qualified to be the Egyptian pharaoh. One detail - the reliefs of the outer layer during the pharaoh's period did not depict human toes, and there were no detailed ups and downs at the knees. The reliefs of the Alexander period were carefully depicted, which also reflects the difference in art in different periods. Milad explained to Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo that the pharaoh on the mural worshipped the god of fertility (Milad called it the "cock*ba*god"), which solved a question that Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo had about the Abu Simbel Temple... It turned out that the conspicuous statue in the Abu Simbel Temple was not the god Amon as Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo originally thought, but the god of fertility.

Leaving Luxor, it takes 5 hours to drive to Hurghada, a city on the Red Sea. It takes a long time and it is very hard. Because I visited many scenic spots under the scorching sun today and took a long bus, I was almost falling apart when I arrived at the Red Sea. However, the Red Sea is worthy of being a holiday resort. I felt alive as soon as I entered the room of the resort. The facilities here are relatively high-end. The room is spacious and comfortable. You can see the sea when you open the window. Have dinner, take a shower, get rid of the fatigue of the day, and have a good rest before continuing the next journey.

By the time you arrive in Luxor, you may have become a little tired of the temples, but the Valley of the Kings is a completely different concept from the temples and should not be missed.

If you have the chance in Luxor, you can also go to the Valley of the Queens. There is a mural in it from Nefertari. Just looking at the pictures online, I feel that it is beautiful. There is a perfume shop in the resort where Nalanshiqi and Yunluo stayed. Tourists from other groups said that it was cheaper here than the place the tour guide took them to, so Nalanshiqi and Yunluo also bought some. But no one can tell whether it is true or not.

Egyptians are very welcoming to Chinese people, and many people will greet you with "Hello". One shop owner even wrote on the door "My wife is Chinese, so you can get this cheap price, love your Chinese neighbors". You can stay longer at the Karnak Temple, and it would be better if you can go in the evening.

Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo can drink as much as they want at the resort for free. However, they can only drink the drinks in the room refrigerator and at the bar counters. If you want the waiter to bring you a full bottle, you will be charged.

Why is the Red Sea called the Red Sea? Milad said it was because of the red corals. The book that Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo read said that the red color was due to the setting sun shining on Mount Sinai. In short, the water is not red. The Red Sea is a holiday destination. Since it only takes about 3 hours to fly from Europe to the Red Sea, many Europeans come here for vacation.

There are many cities to choose from for vacation in the Red Sea, the most famous of which should be Sharm el-Sheikh at the top of the Sinai Peninsula, but it should be more luxurious there. Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo's itinerary was not here. Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo went to a place called Hurhgada on the west coast of the Red Sea. There are many translations, such as Hurghada, Hurghada, Honggeda, etc. In fact, the resorts here are also quite high-end, at least in the eyes of Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo.

Nalanshiqi and Yunluo's group can choose between sandboarding and glass boating. According to the participants, they are not bad, and the fees are 60 US dollars and 55 US dollars respectively. Sandboarding means "rushing into the desert", which is not a sandboarding project like Nalanshiqi and Yunluo imagined at the beginning, but someone drives a jeep to take you to race in the desert. This project also includes watching the desert sunrise, riding camels, and Bedouin villages, but it needs to start at 3:30 in the morning, which is a bit tiring. The glass boat is a boat going out to sea. The lower layer of the boat is glass, so you can see the fish and corals in the sea, and you can also snorkel.

Since Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo did not participate in any self-funded projects, they did not have to get up early. Although Yunluo woke up at 5 o'clock, it was considered that he slept until he woke up naturally. Compared with the fatigue of the previous day, it was very comfortable~ Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo planned to spend a comfortable morning on the Red Sea coast, enjoying the sea breeze and sun~ (I wanted to watch the sunrise over the Red Sea, but unfortunately I didn't catch it)

In fact, Yunluo thinks that if you don't have much time like Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo (basically only half a day in the Red Sea), it's better not to participate in any self-funded projects, just step on the water and swim at the beach to adjust the fatigue of the journey. Of course, if you have plenty of time, it's best to participate in diving - not snorkeling, you can get close to the fish and red corals of the Red Sea, which should be more interesting than other projects.

There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!

Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo came to the beach early in the morning. There were almost no people on the beach in the early morning. It was quiet and peaceful, with only the sound of waves. The sunshine was not that strong, and the sea breeze made them feel soft and comfortable. The sea water was almost transparent, and there was almost no salty smell. The coast was very clean, and they could even see two or three hermit crabs. After breakfast, the beach gradually became lively.

Most of the people here are Russians, and many of them are reading and sunbathing on the beach. Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo may seem a little different in the crowd, because there are almost no Chinese people, and Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo are not wearing swimsuits and are hiding under parasols. (To be continued...)