Luxor Egypt. Nothing is easy

13/3/10.   After days of going to the promenade to get photos of the Nile valley sun  bird and being hassled by all but one of the boat guys.today  I decided I would take a motor boat ride  on the Nile.  the first guy I met asked for 200 egp.   saying how expensive benzine was and how much he had to pay his  captain  who was one of the best captains in Luxor.  on refusal to pay such a vast sum of money,  he said " you will not get no one cheaper,  I know,  I am the boat manager,  so I said"   if I find a captain I will get the two hours for 50 egp.  as you like and gave some verbal abuse  like;   fufin tourist.  14/3/10 The next day I saw this guy  he said to some other tourists  I was with,   he is the manager for the taxi's??  these guys have one thing on their mind money, he did not recognize me,  even though the day before we had a very heated discussion over prices?  and as soon as he remembered he walk off with his tail between his legs,shouting,  no photo!  no photo!

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Getting A boat was the easy part getting it for the right price was the hard bit,  and I ended up  getting a boat to  banana Island for 50egp,     or so I thought? 

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As we where leaving one of the cruisers decided to give its engine a few revs  to make sure the pollution in the Nile stayed at its normal level,   see this on nile pollution.  http://www.myegypt.co.uk/index.php?f=data_home&a=1
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As we set off it was overcast  but the Nile was quite calm  passing  Pasha house  and the Luxor Temple this huge sand boat passed  leaving me in a tither as to being capsized  so put my camera away  and held on for dear Life as the wash  started to rock the boat.   its not that I can not swim but after my blogs on  Nile pollution,  I had no intention of taking in a mouth full of its polluted contents or getting a nice oily skin wash like the birds do.

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Why the captain went direct across the river is  not known to me  .  other than He does not have papers as a boat captain. and had to avoid the police.  when I asked him why?   he said  we go to banana Island .
    not on this side I said,  by this time we had exchanged names,   Told me his name was Adel,    no"   I want to know your real Name.  you are Muslim  not Copt.  how you know Mr tony.  well you have beads and a prayer mat on board  . ah they belong to the other man,    the owner  !  I said"   no the Captain,  oooh,  getting more interesting by the minute I thought, so I was ready to take our little liar  for a trip.   knowing he would have an answer too all my questions  on his lies.  where is this place,   I asked,  with all the horses.
 not horse  Mr Tony  Camel.  and how much for Camel ride  like those tourists have??   100 for one hour. you want to go?
Not today   Whats your name again  ?         usef,    well usef  thats a new muslim name to me   usually its muhamed abdul  or so and so.   my real name is  Ahmed  afiz,  but I like usef  its a muslim name  you know.  Already this guy has forgotten what he told me his name was.   and I am hoping he has not forgot where he is taking me  OK   I said no more talk  I need to concentrate on taking photos ,  until we reach "Banana Island " when the real hassle was going to start,
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twenty minutes into the boat ride the Nile was getting really choppy  and all the birds where leaving  as the mist started to come in the win also started to get a bit blustery  and one of them times I was glad I took a motor boat not a felucca sail boat that I normally do  on my Nile trips.



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 the scenery along the Nile is just awesome  I have loads of photos  from my cruise last year  on myegypt.co.uk website,  
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By the Time we got to what he said was banana Island I was ready to disembark  for Terra ferma.

And this is where the hassle started   Ok Mr Tony I take you on Banana Island . but this is not banana Island  this is the new banana plantation,  but mr tony you say you want to go banana island .  yes,  so take me there!
And I pointed to banana Island  across  the Nile.  but the police  will not let us go there .  oh" since when   about 2 years ag,  thats strange I said" does the guy who rents the Island know about this,  because a month ago when I lived there he took 1 euro from me to visit the island  there was no police to stop us going on the island,  Ah but Mr tony he does not pay bachsheesh to us for taking you there.   and how much does  mustafa pay?    who is mustafa?   the owner of the banana plantation.  friend for Sheihk Abru nassr.
how you know all this,  because as I said to you i live here,  but all you listen to is how much can you make from your 50  pound boat ride,  so please take me to Banana island!  but that is more money how much more?
50  more  ok"  I said.    not forgetting I had not handed this little liar any money yet.   mistake I made was not making sure before I left I had plenty of change. as we  arrived on the island I went to my wallet and realized I only had a fifty  and 200 notes.. so getting off the boat rather hurriedly  I gave him the fifty. and told him  I take the fifty for only one way trip.  and left him speechless.

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 and there he goes a rather pissed off Muslim  driver  who has no papers so he has to head back to the other side of the river in case the police stop him.  the boat that is docked has just brought 20 people to the Island
 each person will pay 1 euro to ahmed the guy who rents the place leaving a nice commission tip for the captain.  not worth bringing one silly guy with a camera. 

Avenue of the sphinx Luxor to Karnak

Today is the 12/3/10  and its 4 days past our dear president Hosni Mubarek  opening the first section of the avenue,   the reason he could not be here in Luxor  He had to get hospital treatment in  Heidelburg
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's condition is improving after successful gallbladder surgery in Germany on Saturday, a hospital spokesman said on Tuesday.
The spokesman added it was unclear how long the 81-year-old Mubarak would remain in the hospital in the western city of Heidelberg, but the medical team would give an update on his condition in the next two days.
And a  swift recovery  is wished  Mr President.
 in this area 2 years ago was a Mosque  and the local police station  while taking the later down many people came  to throw stones at the once prison cells.  we can all guess why,  and I wonder if the police and  imprisoned persons knew they where using a urinal that was depositing its contents on the heads of  the sphinxes, or did the people  going to prayer know that the bathing water would also be cleansing the once Gods of Egypt ,
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since the people realized the president was not coming much of the newly  laid stone path has been dug up
 and laid properly,    and the mud brick walls are now in place  so as when in the future our rich tourists will get a feel of the ancients that took two days in ceremony  to walk this 3 kilometer path to the Karnak temple.
 they say this new walk way of sphinxes is going to cost an estimated 50 million dollars.  but will be regenerated by the tourist in twelve months after opening,  so this means  that we will have to pay to walk the 3 kilometers to Karnak or vice versa. the next shot is the new dig after taking some of the buildings down.
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And another view from the church to the temple in time will be adorned with the sphinxes 
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Like this photo shows not much of the original stone has been found  to date from all the digs only one almost  complete sphinx has been recovered,   also note the mud and brick walls.
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the last dig before the church  this is how the whole dig has been all they have found are remnants of the bases to the once proud standing Sphinxes. gone are the buildings hurriedly taken down and carted off to some landfill project.
The newly unearthed avenue of the Spinx looking from Karnak temple towards Luxor Temple soon all in its path will be demolished 
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Looking at the new dig near the Luxor temple  Only one Spinx up to date has been found almost complete,
 photo taken 20/2/10
 


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these are the mud bricks that are being used to back up the concrete walls. so when walking along the avenue it will give a feeling its very  old   but the Spinx themselves are being rebuilt in whatever stone they find from the dig and mortar in place of what they think the Spinx looked like 3500 years ago. now if I was too build myself a home in this area say 200 years ago. and found a load of stone ( From the avenue)  I would have built my home in it,  especially the foundation stones  because the Nile level was much Higher than what it is today  building my foundation in mud brick as i would  the rest of the house  would have been a bit of a miscalculation of what Water and mud  does  (not Mix) ,   but this Job of demolition of the houses was done at such speed with large bulldozers and  mechanical shovels 50 ton Lorries carting the debris away to some place maybe to the reed beds.   no one knows if the the stones from the avenue where also carted off .   so in a few hundred years time  we will have another Egyptologist  finding what looks like the head of a sphinx. and digging up all of  what  was  reed beds thinking he is going to find another avenue of sphinxes,  and  a vane  of asbestos and gypsum. 

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after walking one block some 200 yards we come to the next part of the dig  looking towards  Karnak temple 
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and back towards the Church and Luxor 

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The crane is in Karnak Temple and has been there for the past 8 years for me to know. 

18/3/10   the next phase of demolition is underway

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the project involves the restoration of a 2.7-km (1.7-mile) alley that connects the grand temples of Luxor and Karnak on the east bank of the River Nile.Lined with a number of statues in the shape of sphinxes -- thus the name "Avenue of Sphinxes" -- the alley was built by the 30th Dynasty king Nectanebo I (380-362 B.C.), who replaced an older path dating from the Eighteenth Dynasty (1550-1292 B.C.).
The pathway was the location of important religious ceremonies in ancient times. One of the most important was the Opet festival, whose main event was a procession with a cult statue of Amun carried from Karnak to Luxor, the site of the ancient city of Thebes.
 "The avenue had some branches with rest places and shrines. Queen Hatshepsut recorded on her red chapel in Karnak temple that she built six chapels dedicated to the god Amun-Re along this route," Sabry Abd El Aziz told Discovery News.

Indeed, remains of the chapels built by Hatshepsut (1502-1482 B.C.), then reused by king Nectanebo I in the construction of sphinxes, have been found along with remains of Roman wine factories and a huge cistern for water.
During the first part of the excavation, in which about a third of the pathway has been dug up, Egyptian archaeologists have unearthed 650 sphinxes out of the original 1350, and several reliefs.
One of the reliefs features the ancient symbol of Cleopatra (51-30 B.C.). According to Dr. Zahi Hawass, chief of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, Cleopatra likely visited the avenue during her Nile trip with Mark Anthony and implemented restoration work that was marked with her cartouche.
The fragmented sphinxes are now under restoration. Soon they will be placed on display along the avenue.

Luxor Egypt

The reason I am doing this type of blog is,   silly billy me  forgot to put the memory card in my camera  and went off to get some photos on my daily walk.   not until I got back on my computer did I realize  the card was still in the transfer box.  AH WELL "  some born every minute,
 then I came across this blog
   http://www.all-about-egypt.com/luxor-egypt.html   and decided to spice it up a bit,   now if the person who made this page did not steal photos to put on the site.  I would have let it be. 
I go to a lot of trouble  and get a lot of hassle to take photos to show you

And so here is the truth about Luxor Egypt .
Luxor is the premier travel destination in Upper (southern) Egypt and the Nile Valley. In antiquity, the city, known as Thebes by the Greeks, was the dynastic and religious capital of Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom Egypt. Today, it has much to offer the traveler, from vast temples, to ancient royal tombs, via spectacular desert and river scenery and a bustling modern life, Luxor is becoming best known for its hassle. from a taxi ride to buying a cap to shade from the blistering sun , so be prepared for the hassle,and the heat,

The modern city of Luxor is on the east bank..  This area has the airport,  outside of the new Luxor Airegypt terminal there is a sign with prices to get to Luxor centre @ 25 EGp, but it seems that we are all illiterate because when you get in the taxi and arrive  assuming the price is 25   its suddenly gone up to 100 EGP.  maybe its an extra charge because you have luggage ,   Luxor also has a train and a  bus station,the train station is in the centre of the city and close to all the sights and cheaper what they call,  backpackers hotels  that I would not recommend unless you really want to get ripped off on the tours etc  that you came here to Luxor to see.   TRAINS,  we are told to book in advance if we need to go to Cairo  or Aswan,   we are also told the price is from , IF  going to Cairo 180 EGP  that fare price  is from Aswan. and if going to Cairo the price is 180EGP  that is the same price if traveling from Aswan,  complicated?   not really,   the computer cannot cope with  empty seats, and if I want to go to Quena   and visit Abydos some 65 Kilometer from Luxor.  I am not allowed unless I buy a ticket @ 180egp for Cairo   and get off in Quena, but travel on the local trains that leaves for Cairo every hour its 4.50 piestas  and the same if I was to travel by local microbus but its forbidden for tourists.  I do it Because sometimes I have to go to the  justice departments that are in the city of Quena,    see why .  most of the hotels and restaurants have prices to suite the guide and tourist,  for  the lucky tourist who manage to get a tour guide  the price may vary within 70%  depends on how nice your guide is.  The coffee shops:  if you go on your own the price will be  for a tea and bubble pipe 15  to 20 EGP,   as a local I pay 2 egp.  well up until they read this blog.    we have also some   museums,  and hassle free tourist shops, ( well the sign outside says so  unless I am getting more lies)

Visitors usually stay on the east bank and travel across to the west bank of the Nile, Main reason for that is  the west bank has a bad name for con men  read the  British Embassy warning on the west Bank. of Luxor. there are also a few blogs  about the con merchants  both on east and west bank of Luxor   http://www.liarscheatsandbastards.com/  or   http://bloodylyingbastards.blogspot.com/
then  you need to cross into mafia country if you want to see the splendid  memorials such as the  Valley of the Kings and the mortuary temples of the pharaohs. plus all the other tombs such as the tombs of the Nobles

To do in Luxor Egypt  see  the latest balloon ride on 

A balloon flight is the latest tourist craze in Luxor, Egypt. It offers an unbeatable view of the city,( that is as long as the sugar cane fires are not made) the west bank and the Nile river. As the balloon gently rises into the dawn sky, tourists witness the beauty of the early morning Egyptian sun rising over the east bank, illuminating the city and mountains, . enjoy magnificent views of the Temple of Karnak,(if you can see through the haze and smoke) the Temple of Hatshepsut, the Colossi of Memnon and the Ramesseum.  In the distance, the hidden Valley of the Queens rests peacefully in the mountains while the farming villages below wake up and begin the day by sending the kids out after the balloon  to Hassle the rich tourist,

The Karnak Sound and Light Show is another favorite tourist attraction. The show begins as visitors walk along the Avenue of the Sphinxes, passing through the towering facade into the Great Court. Walking through the complex, a booming Pharaoh's voice narrates the history of Upper Egypt and the New Kingdom as the various additions left by rulers such as Tutankhamun, Ramses II and Queen Hatshepsut are illuminated against the night sky. The second part of the Sound and Light Show at Karnak finds you seated overlooking the mosquito filled  sacred lake as the temple complex is illuminated and the story of Egypt continues  along with the mosquito bites. Please note, while the show is suitable for all ages, younger children might be frightened by the darkness of the area and the roaring sound of the speakers  but after a few days should be OK  because they should have become immune to the blaring speakers from the minarets  . The ground in and around Karnak is uneven and sandy, so please wear comfortable, flat walking shoes.

One of the best displays of antiquities in Egypt is located at the Luxor Museum. They include a carefully selected assortment of items from the Theban temples and necropolis, including pottery, jewelry, furniture, statues and stelae.

There are a number of exhibits from Tutankhamen, including a cow-goddess head from his tomb on the first floor and his funerary boats on the second floor. A superb statue of Thutmose III (circa 1436 BC) is one of the best pieces in the entire collection. Another splendid attraction features 283 sandstone blocks arranged as a wall from the ninth pylon of the Karnak Temple.

The east bank of Luxor has two of the most impressive temples in Upper Egypt - Karnak and Luxor. Visitors walk along the magnificent Avenue of Sphinxes  and soon will be able to travel the distance  from one temple to the other along the new Avenue of the sphinxes.
to enter the immense complex with its massive facade. Karnak (Ipet-isut ) was a city for the priests of Amen within the ancient city of Thebes. Various well known pharaohs, especially those of the 18th and 19th dynasties provided for the construction of pylons, collonades, obelisks, chapels, granaries and administrative buildings. The deeper you go into the complex, the further back in time you will travel, with the oldest ruins dating back over 3,000 years.

Walking through the Great Court into the Great Hypostyle Hall, it's hard not to be overwhelmed by the 134 columns towering above you like an ancient forest. At the rear of the complex is the sacred lake where centuries ago pharaohs and their offerings to the gods were purified.

Luxor Temple (ipet resyt) is one of the finest expressions of the Egyptian style. Built by Amenhotep III, it was once joined to Karnak by a 2 kilometer long Avenue of Sphinxes. The entrance is dominated by imposing statues of Ramses the Great, who expanded the construction. The inner walls and columns are decorated with intricate and beautifully carved hieroglyphics and images depicting the Festival of Opet, in which a cult statue of Amen was paraded down the Nile from nearby Karnak Temple to stay there for a while, with his consort Mut, in a celebration of fertility.

New entrance to Luxor Temple
In the past, the site was entered from the west side, by the Nile, which created crowds of people near the Nile. Now the SCA has built a new entrance on the east side, with a new parking lot and an X-ray machine. There is also a new gift shop and café for people to relax and enjoy after visiting the temple.(prices are the same as heathrow Airport)  The buildings and police station that were located north of the temple have been removed, and for the first time everyone can see Luxor Temple as a whole from the north side.

 And for those brave enough to go through the hassle,    for goodness sake do not go on invites for tea and to see how poor your taxi driver  and family are. keep out of the taxi drivers insistent stops like the  alabaster and papyrus factories. where he can make up to 70% on your purchase.  if you want presents try the souk (Market)  I know you will get a lot of Hassle but at least you can barter for what you want  and we all need a hat or a scarf a piece of pottery , papyrus not to mention the  cuddly camel or a  water pipe  that you will never smoke once the tobacco that comes with it is finished. unless you decide to come back for another dose of hassle next year.  and too finish off  Its taken me seven years to get used to the hassle. if you can call it getting used too. lets say put up with  because I have to for the time being.  you will know what I mean if you  get to read the .     see why . 
Working on the new avenue of the sphinx.

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And A break from the hassle  in Hamees coffee shop  opposite the Luxor Temple  where the prices are reasonable,  IE  a pint of stella beer is 8 egp 

"Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that’s creative."

— Charles Mingus ,    maybe he  did not meet any Egyptians.

Nile cruise

Carrying on with why the Nile is polluted. http://nilelife2.blogspot.com/2010/03/luxor-egypt.html
On the riverside berth of the Famous ss Sudan (karnak)
. the kind chef and his crew feed unwanted bread  for the birds and delight in watching the rats scurry off with a chunk of bread  down a hole to feed its young,    who one day may get to have a trip down the Nile on board this expensive vessel,  and of course even though they live here in Luxor they will not have to book  on line  the normal practice for us humans if we need a trip.   and a rather  expensive way to get the shits.

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http://www.steam-ship-sudan.com/en/index.asp

  advert from the site.  

                          The Eternal River

As the Nile flows from South to North, your cruise will leave from Aswan and end in Luxor. In this four-day journey, you won't miss any of the impressive sites outlining the river flow. This cruise is equally an occasion to discover the riverbanks of the Nile River

and  should read ,     for   1.028 euro you can get to see the Nile   with its rats and pollution.  who knows you may get to feed  one or two  in the onboard restaurant, life is full of surprises even for the rich and famous  as this boat is,   this is the SS Karnak  featured in Agatha Christie's  Death on the Nile. 

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even the black headed gull is fed from the steam ship Sudan.  but of course its not a steam ship its run by diesel power  so it can belch out more  pollution into the Nile. 
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looking from the promenade down to the Nile   I can see  they have a way to catch the bottles etc. with the diesel oil line   or is it the sewage waste pipe?  who knows  who bloody cares?

You can see my photos of the Nile  on without getting a delhi belly.

http://www.myegypt.co.uk/index.php?f=data_home&a=6

Sinbad Luxor Egypt

 7/3/10  23.30
Drunk and incapable of adding up a bill,  or so the owners of Sinbad's Caffe shop think .
all the electric was off in the Luxor Hotel this included the rented areas  such as my favorite bar Hamees coffee shop,  who honestly  said sorry Mr Tony no food and no water pipe tonight as all the electricity is off. OK I thought will try next door the sinbad 's,       oh yes , we are still open!    do you have wine and the bubble pipe ?  why not this is a coffee shop!  OK how much is a bottle of wine?  60 egp . bit more than Hamees my wife said,
 ah! but we are open and for food!  OK,   seeing it was Pam's last night in Luxor, and I did not want any hassle not our fault the lecy was off in the area,  and it was quite a nice evening everything was lit by candlelight. but as all good things they come to an end.
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. no blaring lights on the area, the temple looked fantastic all lit up,   how it was a few years ago  when I first came here in 2002,   before they changed the whole area and put these football stadium lights up that glare in your camera when a photo is taken..

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We  quite enjoyed the evening out  and the ambiance of the place,    something I had not done in a long time actually enjoying Egypt the weather was absolutely fantastic and could not wish for a nicer evening to spend together , I had  two sishas and ordered 2 bottles of wine. adding up mentally what we where spending as going along  . we knew there would be added tax etc,  and me being me thought  OK we are spending money  so what!   its a nice evening and Pam for the first time in the month is quite relaxed.   when we were ready to leave I asked for the bill. but not wanting to make a fuss or spoil the evening,   the bill was under 200 so I did not query it,  paid and left.
When we got back to the flat,  our flat is only a  few hundred meters away,  I was ready for bed,   but then Pam  said ,   you made of money or what?   I asked what do you mean,  and she gave me the bill,    it did not really  sink in for both of us , until we got back home and read the bill how much we where overcharged.
the bill should have been  126Egp+tax  I60 .60  we had a bill for 194.00.   why are we complaining about 34 Egp.   if they do that with all their customers  who want a nice evening out cos its the last night in Egypt   and nobody is to complain look how much they make.  the waiters get 10 egp per shift, and the customer gives the tips even though 14 % is service charge and 10% tax. the waiters see none of the money only what we give in backsheesh, (tips)    so tomorrow we make a stand,    if I did that tonight  it would be  Oh look at him he is drunk,    and off with him to the Jail,  even though these are Muslim owners selling beer,  they think nothing of phoning their brother  police man.  about the guy who has been drinking in their cafe and causing a fuss over being over charged.    bloody infidels drinking in Egypt,      but what will we do without their  money they say!   they just do not get  that people enjoy going out for  a drink.. even though half the Muslim  men are alcoholics and drink  stuff that we will not touch, oozo  most family's here have a problem with a male alcoholic.   everything behind closed doors. ( or a brown paper bag)
 Any way I enjoyed my evening   a bottle of good Wine and I am still blogging. tell it how it is,  that's me and bollocks to the rest. if they do not like the truth well that is there problem.  and 16.00 tomorrow I will cause a stir in  Sin bads ,  focusing on being conned.
so you folks coming to Egypt Hamees is still the best place to have a beer and a good meal and not get ripped off, ( when the lecy is on)   shall put photos on tomorrow as shots do not come out well in the dark.                     and that even being a bit inebriated  is the best spelling in quite a while without my word perfect on,
good night...

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Any more of this wine I will be asleep. 
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Sinbads in the day time and after all the sorry's.   but it was dark and the boy make a mistake.  no need to be angry  we give you your money back.  I let Pam deal with it,  because she knew that if I dealt with it  somebody will be very angry.     when we went back to sinbads  we where pointed in the direction of the manager.   I had already been conned by this guy 2 years ago  and warned him then,    problem is here in Egypt  they make so many dodgy deals  they have to close shop  and always start up again under another name.  this particular guy owns a few taxi,s and small food outlets like the breakfast bars.  and keeps his face out of the business until he is asked for by an Irate customer who threatens  that he will be going to the tourist police.  anyway Pam got her money back.  and said its ok,    we know you all do it  bit this time you did not get away with it.   

Hamees  is in the next garden to  Sinbads,     in Hamees  stella beer is 8 le and the wine is 50le  per bottle plus taxes, the food is also very good and reasonably priced. only once have I complained in all the 4 years I have been eating and drinking there.  the beer was warm,   because they where that busy in the summer the fridge could not cope with the volume. so they got another fridge. and that curred the problem./
some of the hotels and boats charge  35le  for beer and up to 180 for obolisk wine.

Nile cruise boats.

This is the little white Egret.
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not the usual sparkling white bird we all see near wherever there is water.
this is one of a few that has found a place where food floats on the Nile  it is perched on one of the many balcony rails that the cruise boats provide for them to clean up the Nile after they throw the garbage overboard,
 not only do they provide feed for  them but give the feathers a  nice gray oily look by letting diesel and sump oil flow in the Nile waters.
Now if this bird was seen on British or any other European soil or coastline a full scale inquiry would be under way looking for the vessel that caused the once white feathers to turn the colours they have.  and would call it an oil spillage and a crisis.   not here in Egypt,    even though thousands of people  have to take thousands of tablets to get rid of the tummy upsets they get from coming into contact with the Nile waters,   ah! I hear you say,    but  they do not feed or swim in the Nile waters.     No need too!   the boats kindly offer free water for bathing  washing your bums after going to the toilet  or in the showers. even water to clean the teeth with. and wash your hands after using the bum cleaning facilities.  not only that but they make sure all the food in the kitchen is washed to make sure none of the dust from the farms and streets of Luxor can be seen on arrival at the well laid out food bar,   be it Breakfast lunch or dinner.  must not get a piece of grit in ones teeth must we, that will cause a complaint and the chef who prepared the food will get instant dismissal for not washing the food with the contaminated water that the ship provides for free.
But you see the birds cannot complain  not even when their beaks turn a  nice colour purple or when the yellow feet that nature has given them turn black. and the feathers go a funny gray colour. or why its mate was floating lifeless down the Nile.  and even those of us who do take the time and effort to speak for the wildlife
 no one listens or do they give a damn,   as long as it does not harm the purse of Egypt's economy  where they can build a twenty million dollar cultural centre and knock it down 3 years later because its built on the avenue of the sphinx that is getting re vamped  ensuring another 50 million dollars revenue from the tourists each year.  was the avenue not there three years ago when The presidents wife   decided that was a good location for the multy million dollar project.  the new one  is twice the size and no one can say how much that is going to cost??   how about spending  A bit on cleaning the Nile  before more harm is done.  every living  thing near the Nile depends on it  for water, only 3% of Egypt is fertile and most of that is near the fast flowing Nile.


This is the White egret in its natural state.  the place where this photo was taken  on the reed beds Near Banana island is no longer there. filled in with contaminated waste from the old Luxor hospital. and God knows what contaminated material was in there, but after I made a complaint  it was covered over with more fill from the other buildings that have been taken down. 
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 some of the buried  toxic waste,,  that is what knauf plaster boards are made from  (power station waste)
plus material from heating ducts that contain asbestos a banned material in the EU. and has to be buried under health and safety official supervision,  not here ?   with its out of sight out of mind policy,
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. more on Nile pollution on my website   http://www.myegypt.co.uk/index.php?f=data_home&a=1