Manal and Alaa's bit bucket

My neighbour Ibrahim Soliman has just returned for a one month trip to the US where he was in charge of a large exhibt over there. He loved the US and said the people were so warm and friendly. He couldn’t get over how interested the children were in Egyptology and in him. There is a [...]

One of the many new improvements being done to Luxor at the moment is a new exit from the temple. Now you enter from the Corniche but exit via the spinx avenue to a parking area at the back of Luxor police station. that is actually quite nice as looking back along the avenue [...]

not quite Chaucer but still ….. temperatures are starting to rise and the clocks have sprung forward so get up early and avoid the high temps. I know it sounds cruel but this is now the time of year to hit the sites at 6am. Temps start rising early and even at 9 am it [...]

I am sure lots of you planning to go to Egypt on holiday are worried about the implication of the bombings in Dahab. Firstly I wish to express my sympathy to the relatives of the dead and wounded and all the victims. Dahab is popular with a lot of low budget travellers and Israelis but [...]

After seeing the lovely work of this group some guests and I decided to pay a visit to the school. After checking with the organisers we visited on a Saturday morning class. Although me and my guests were very welcome our driver was not. So if you visit do explain to your taxi [...]

The recent news about gold cartouches being found with the joint names of Hatshepsut and Tutmosis III Yahoo News says that the find is in her temple but near her obelisk. Being as we already have evidence of this relationship from previous discoveries at Karnak near her obelisk I suspect this is really the location. [...]

I am sure many people have worried exactly what convoy travelling means to them and their holiday. Tourists have to travel in a police escorted convoy when going by road in south Egypt. So if you are going to Aswan from Luxor then this means a convoy. Any tour company/hotel/taxi driver knows exactly what [...]

I was lucky enough to speak to Dr Schaden in the Valley of the Kings on Sunday and got an update on progress. Conservation is on hold while their conservator Nadia Lukma is in China. There are still two coffins that are closed and the contents unknown. 16 storage jars have still to be opened [...]

Yesterday I took a group to Aswan and as they wanted to see Edfu. Ko ombo and Philae and the man was a train enthusiast so I suggest a combination of road and train travel. Because of the convoy system you have to leave Aswan at 14;00 which means you can’t see temples on the [...]

I recently was shown work from this school which aims to help the poor women of Luxor to eanr money from craftwork. As you can see from the photo there are some lovely pieces. If you want to find out more the website iswww.mosesvontheban.de. You can view the work of the school by contacting +20 [...]

There was a very interesting art exhibition at Malkata Art Palace on Tuesday night. Although they normally have several artists on display this was a one man show. The artist is question was Ammar Abo Bakr, 26 years old and an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Fine Art in Luxor. He is an established [...]

On a recent visit to Luxor the American Ambassador; Francis J. Ricciardone Jr. http://cairo.usembassy.gov/ambassador.htm invited all world to visit Egypt at least once in their lifetime Mr. Ricciardone was paying a visit to Luxor, Egypt “The City of History”. During his meeting with Dr Samir Farag, the Governor of Luxor, he declared an American [...]

It would seem Sunday is a good day to visit the temple of Tutmosis III. Normally the Chicago House team are working there and you can’t get access but when I went there today it was empty and there were no barriers so we were able to have a good look round. I love the [...]

I have been asked to let people know about the forthcoming art exhibition at Malqata Art Palace in El Gezira (corner building main road and small street to Gezira Hotel, first floor) . The first individual exhibition of paintings of the young Egyptian artist Ammar. the exhibition will open on Tuesday, 11th of April, [...]

Really sorry about this but on arrival tonight there was an annoucement that the lecture had been cancelled.

If you want to know more about train travel in Egypt try here www.seat61.com Captain Omar can be contacted omermohmed2001@yahoo.com or +20 (0) 124530329 More details about Miriam the massage lady can be found here

Visiting the temple at Abydos is normally a rushed affair where you have to race around in 90 minutes as you are dictated to by the convoy system. Now for a lot of visitors that is exactly what they want and being as you get to see Dendera as well it makes for a good [...]

Lots of new information and diagrams and the promise of a new improved website kv-63.com

A few days ago I got a call from my favourite boat captain. He was having the boat repainted and wanted to know the correct English to put on it. Would I text him. I was only to happy as the previous message ‘Captain Omar wish to you a nice trip in the Nile’ [...]

Monuments of Egypt’s Early Kings at Abydos –Dr Mathew Adams The team have been at Abydos since 1991 and it is a joint University of Pennsylvania, New York Fine arts and Yale venture. They have been excavating in the area of Um el Qa’eb (Arabic for mother of pots) where there are a number of 1st [...]

the Spanish working in Luxor have discovered another tomb HERE . Thanks to Sara for alerting me to this and giving me a nudge updating the blog. Sometimes it is difficult to find stories and I aprrciate assitance, although sometimes it is because I am busy

There is a nice write up of the discovery of the Queen of Amenhotep III HERE

Last week a TV crew from Al Jezera International visited luxor. They were doing a program about tourism and water damage to the monuments and i was lucky enough to be interviewed. This is a new TV station that will be launched soon and is the English version of Al Jezeera TV. They seem to have [...]

According to this story the mummy of Hatshepsut has been found http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/060324/DP.html Does any one have any further details? This is an astonding find and I would love to know more.

So don’t expect any posts today

I have had a wonderful father and daughter Japanese visitors to my flats. As a guide I do get some unusual requests but this was the strangest. Could they visit the Japanese House. Well I didn’t even know there was a Japanese House until that moment but fortunately my regular taxi driver had heard of [...]

TT320 a Re-examination by Prof. Dr. Erhart Graefe In 1891 one of the saddest events in Egyptology happened when the cache tomb of TT320 was cleared in 48 hours. No photos were taken, no notes and as a consequence much knowledge has been lost. The purpose of the German/Russian Mission was to try and get [...]

We are thinking about getting a horse and today went to ACE for advice and help. ACE is a preventative animal welfare organisation that has ended up get involved in everything with the closure of the Brook clinic. Kim the British boss was happy to help and lent us a great book. But knowing our [...]

See the story here . After the lecture on Thursday this was the inescapable conclusion of the early findings. Of course we all hold out hope of what may be in the unexcavated coffins but Otto’s comparisons with Kv54 were pretty clear. I find it amazing that such a quality shaft should [...]

Becasue of the excitement of last week i completely forgot to publish the subject of this weeks lecture. TT320. At the end Ibrahim Soliman was bemoaning the fact he had forgotten to tell people the subject and I asked him what it was and he sad TT320. It wasn’t till today that I remembered and [...]