What a day! Wow. We got off the train at 10:00 and went straight to the bus. (As a side note, the train adventure went pretty well. I didn’t sleep as well as I would like, but that was probably my fault and not the train.)
This was, according to Dr. Wright, to be more of a "fun" day. I guess by that he meant less educational about the ancient Egyptians? It was fun, for sure.
Our first real stop of the day was at the Granite quarry where we saw the famous unfinished obelisk. Actually, one of the guards at the side showed me around a bit and showed me a second unfinished obelisk, though it wasn’t as big and impressive as the first. Brad gave a great presentation on obelisks and talked about the methods that were likely employed in building and erecting them. The math and engineering behind some of these ancient buildings just stagger me. The painstaking, backbreaking work that must have been involved is a bit staggering too. I pounded a little with a couple of the dolerite balls they had there and didn't manage to do more than chip off a couple small pieces of granite. (Here I'm showing the lovely end of an unfinished obelisk.)
Our next stop was at the high dam which apparently supplies 40% of Egypt’s energy. The rest, our tour guide said, is supplied by solar panels and wind power. Hmmm… The dam and the talk of electricity makes me miss engineering. Speaking of engineering yet again, today was a good day for geeks. I got to talk about a waxing gibbous, rocks and volcanoes, fractals, and the Doppler effect, all today. (Mostly with Christina.) Yay, geeks!!
The last stop before lunch was on a temple (Philae Temple?) on an Island. The funny thing was, the temple had been moved from a previous Island which had become waterlogged and placed on a new Island sculptured to be just like the previous one. It was a pretty impressive place.
We ate lunch at the hotel. Wow. Nice hotel. Amazing lunch. I’m a fan.
After that we got on a another boat, crossed the Nile, and took camels up to an old Coptic Monastery. Camel riding is good fun.
I think I’ll have to do more of that. I wish I knew more of the commands and body movements they understand, and the proper way to sit and hang on. Oh well. It was fun, and I think I did fairly well. The Monastery itself was interesting. 
Mostly, it was interesting to see sand and some rocks stretching away into the distance. The difference between fertile river land and desert is stark, and the line between is so abrupt.Next we took the boat upriver to a Nubian village. There we got a brief lesson in our 123’s, abc’s. It was really fun. Then we joined a family for drinks (I had hibiscus) and music and dancing. It was fun. We even got to see their 3 pet crocodiles.
I have to say, I really like this area. The water, the shapes and types of rocks, the tall grasses and palm trees. I can see how life here in ancient Egypt could have been very enjoyable. Of course, we haven’t experienced the diseases and problems with wild animals and famine and all. I’m sure that at times life here was very hard. Still, it’s lovely. We rode the boat home in the dark and looked at the moon and stars. It was so peaceful.
After showering and having a lovely dinner back at the hotel, some of us set out to see the Coptic church. It is a very large church, and apparently had just finished a service when we arrived. There were quite a few people standing around in groups talking, much like at my church back home after a service. It made me feel that this church is more vivacious than many orthodox churches I’ve seen in Jerusalem. Perhaps that is in part because this is a church and those are pilgrim sites.
After the church, Isaiah, Christina, and I went down on the river walk a bit and sat. It was nice and peaceful. I rather like this place. It also has Internet. And a great view from the roof. 
And I need to go to bed again!
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