Before flying to Aswan the only thing I had known about the city was its famous dam, I now ashamed to admit. Once there I felt as though I was part of one of Rider Haggard’s novels. Turning to Sue on Elephantine Island I said, “I feel like Ayesha (of ‘She’),” and walked with an exaggerated swagger. The winding streets and alleyway, the chocolate-faced urchins scurrying about, the gigantesque boulders resembling elephants next to the Nile, and ruins of the Khnum temple left us quite out of breath.
Staring out towards the turquoise Nile River I was reminded of yet another classic, Agatha Christie’s ‘Murder on the Nile’. Would Sue and I meet with an exotic adventure on a boat, I wondered. As long as we didn’t get murdered, I thought wryly. “A penny for your thoughts!” Sue ribbed me with her elbow, “Hey! How about getting on to that felucca?” Feluccas are sailboats where the sails are made of canvas.
”Why are you staring at me so hard?” she asked, regarding my expression. Had she read my mind, I couldn’t help wondering. The two young boys who were manning the boat managed to steer it well. The breeze from the Nile fanned our faces and hair and we stared out contentedly at the sun setting fire to the Nile waters before disappearing behind the desert. A sight of breathtaking beauty!
We docked in at the Essa Island in the center of the Nile. Going by our watches it was 7.30 pm. Not yet dinner time but our tummies were rumbling. Moreover, we had heard about a great Nubian restaurant. We ordered Egyptian bread with chicken curry amidst loud music which we attacked with relish. Sue later ordered grilled fish cooked in conjunction with a local herb called ‘zaatar’. Feeling rather full I sampled a little. Quite nice.
We got back to our one of the world’s best hotels rather late accompanied by other tourists staying there. We felt sorry to leave Aswan the next day.
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