The other two temples

Written 26 Jan.

On to Edfu Temple with an added element, a 'Nileometer'. This was a deep well affair with a spiral staircase so that the ancient Egyptians could go down and measure how high up it the Nile had come.

Went out in the sun to write up my diary. Eddie was in the swimming pool. I worked out that it's four strokes across; so I would have to do 2800 strokes to complete a km. Decided to leave swimming until I get home.

Trains pass us; one in each direction. The line is on the east bank with the road beside it. Not very busy - a vehicle in each direction about every 30 seconds.

Afternoon tea is served on the boat at 5 pm. This is a cup of coffee or tea with three biscuits and a slice of plain cake. Some of our group are playing table tennis.

Out in the dark to our third temple of the day, Kom Ombo, floodlit. Man with two snakes on the footpath on the way. People came here for medical advice and often had to wait a long time. There's a place where two or three people have scratched the shape of their feet on the ground with a stone.

Two really interesting things here: drawings of 80 medical tooks, and a calendar showing when the Nile will flood and when the seeding, harvest and festivals took place. It's the only temple dedicated to two gods: Horus the elder and Sobek the crocodile God. The pharaoh came here to listen to the voice of the gods, which the priests provided by going underground and speaking a message up through a tunnel.