Afternoon Treats

Feb. 27: Part 2.

After returning to the ship, we had some laid back cruising time in perfect weather as the captain took us farther south to Aswan. The sun deck got a lot of use. The afternoon gave us the opportunity for a felucca ride on the Nile. The felucca is the traditional Egyptian sail boat that has worked the Nile River for hundreds of years. The single triangular sail and long rudder give the boat excellent manoeuvrability. We had about a dozen people in our boat, with room for more, as we tacked upstream, then sailed with the wind back south.

Feluccas working the Nile River at Aswan


The West Bank of the Nile River, north of Aswan.

The two man crew sang traditional songs and Akram gave us details about the boat and the sights we were passing on shore.

Later in the afternoon, we went to the Old Cataract Hotel, built in 1899 for the British visitors. There, we enjoyed afternoon tea on the terrace overlooking the Nile River.

The Old Cataract Hotel front gardens

The Hotel Lobby


Afternoon tea on the terrace by the Nile.

Agatha Christie visited this hotel and made it the setting for her novel, 'Death on the Nile.' Some scenes from the movie of the same name were also shot here and at some of the temples we have visited. By the way, the tea was excellent and included the triple layer tray of goodies. Most took the bus back to the hotel, but we walked back along the elevated sidewalk parallel to the river.

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