A full day from Aswan to the temples of Kom Ombo and Edfu, two of the best-preserved in Egypt, with an Egyptologist guide and a drive along the Nile.
ITINERARY
Edfu Temple
The Temple of Horus at Edfu is the most complete temple left standing in Egypt, and walking through its towering pylons gives you a rare sense of what these buildings felt like when they were in use. It was built for the falcon-headed god Horus during the Ptolemaic period, and the walls carry unusually detailed carvings of rituals, myths and everyday life. This is also the setting for one of the great stories of Egyptian religion: the place where Horus took revenge on Seth for the killing of his father Osiris, a battle recorded across the temple's stonework.
Kom Ombo Temple
Kom Ombo is unlike anything else on the Nile — a double temple, built in mirror image so that two gods could be honoured under one roof without either taking precedence. One half belongs to Sobek, the crocodile god tied to fertility and protection; the other to Haroeris, Horus the Elder. It stands on a high bend in the river, so the views are excellent, and among the carvings is a well-known panel of surgical instruments that tells you a good deal about ancient Egyptian medicine. Afterwards you settle in for the drive back to Aswan and a drop-off at your hotel.
