During the night the cruiser laid to in Aswan. At half past six we´re up and getting ready. A taxi takes us to Shellal where the motorboats take off to Philae. It costs us 130LE and the guy waits for us for four hours! Entry to the island cots 40 LE per person, (35 LE last time) plus an extra 20 LE for the camera pod.

I take out the photo of the guy who took us out there two years ago, and wave it around. Ohyes, they all know who it is, but he is "asleep" now. His uncle (or at least some older relative) is happy to take us out there, for he works on the island.

At eight o´clock in the morning, it´s even worse at Philae than at Karnak. Groups are unloaded one upon another and are sluiced through the temple, clam up the passages and fill the shrine. Guides rattle off their stories, which are not altogether very trustworthy, but hey - all for making a good impresison. Tourists tire easily and lean against the columns, looking absently towards the cafeteria.

I go to Hadrian´s Gate as the first thing. The temple is anyhow filled up right now. The reliefs there are badly damaged and it takes a while before you can make out what is what. There is Osiris being carried on the back iof a crocodile to the Netherworld and there is a djed-pillar and the symbol of Abydos.

Later I walked back to the Hypostyle Hall, hung around the Shrine room, diving for a breach in the stream of visitors, and a guide took pity on me and held his group back just long enough for me to get a good pic of the bark stand. You really have to make a point of what you want, or you won´t get around much.

Out in the Second Court, I sat resting a while by the altar of Taharqa, just looking and enjoying. Then I tried to take a pic inside the Mamissi, of Horus among the papyrus reeds but those pics all came out bad, it´s too dark in there and I didn´t want to use the flash.

Out in the First Court is a small ledge where you can sit and admire the First Pylons. I did that for a while, it was such a pleasure, and that almost dreamy feeling of unreality. Was I really here again?

There is a small cafeteria on the southeastern island, where you can sit down and have a drink. From there, the view is magnificent across the flower bushes you look out over the easter shore in the distance. You can see there are houses there. It´s Nubia. Not too far out in the water, the old fundaments from when they moved the temples, are sticking up above the water.

The chapels of Arenshuphis and Mandulis doesn´t give much to see and the inner rooms of the chapel of Imhotep are used for storerooms. In the outer room there are reliefs of Khnum, Satet and Anuket - the triade of Abu. But there is still to be seen the old opening which once lead to the older nilometer, in the western colonnade, if you look carefully.

Around midday, when the sun is high, you can walk into the Kiosk of Trajan and play hide-and-seek with it by moving around the columns. If you succeed, you will get a beautiful shot as the corona of the sun lights up the columns from behind.

The little Temple of Hathor is still closed off due to "construction work". We never saw any work being done there and it´s fairly simple to sneak inside, to get a few shots of the Bes figures on the columns. He plays different instruments and makes little dance steps.

Another walk into the temple revealed that it was full. Quite absurd. After a few more photos we decided to move on. We had been there for four hours.

On the trip back, the driver made a little roundabout out to the fundaments so I could get a good view of them and also a little bit of Bigeh. Everywhere the tourist police keeps an eye out so you have to be quick about sucuh things or pay them.

I have the feeling I will be back once more.