Winter Palace garden, dinner on the Nile and Luxor Temple

After a dusty morning traipsing around tombs and temples, the Winter Palace Gardens were a delightful escape from the afternoon heat.

We enjoyed a tasty lunch at the poolside restaurant, watching other mad dog tourists bake in the midday sun.

Wandering the grounds after lunch felt a bit like stepping into Wonderland. 

After lunch we retreated to our room to wait for sunset, then ventured out to a corniche-side restaurant for dinner. El-Kababgy is directly across the road from the Winter Palace and offers excellent food in a prime Nile-side location.

Felucca rides are a popular pastime in Luxor, and the boats dock right in front of this restaurant. I was alternatively entertained and horrified watching the teenage boys clamber up the ship masts to wrap and tie sails while wearing no shoes and no safety equipment. They seemed to be having a great time, calling out and racing one another to the top.

After dinner, we strolled down the corniche intending to visit Luxor Temple, which is usually open – and best viewed – at night. However, the temple closed at 8pm and we were only able to walk around the perimeter. I’ve included a couple of photos from an earlier visit to give a sense of the eerie interior.  Luxor Temple is dedicated to the rejuvenation of the ruler (rather than a god) and includes bits built by multiple pharaohs, although the statuary is dominated by his Bombasticship, Ramses 2.