Shukran, Luxor; it's been fun.

Jan 26^th

Me and Zahara, the inspector of the site

Our last day on site was hectic. There were lots of amazing last minute finds, my special project to finish, and pictures to be taken. I can't believe we've been here for a month already. I'm really going to miss this place, the site mostly.  Waking up to the mosques, watching the sunrise through palm trees, and overlooking the temple while sorting through beautiful, ancient pottery is something I'll miss every day. I've been so lucky to have an adventure that so few people get to experience, Alhamdulillah. Hopefully I will return again soon, Insh'allah.

Me, my favorite qufti Sayeed, and Grad student Katie on the last day

My last Sekhmet pose of the trip

After saying good bye to all the workers, I headed back to Karnak to finish the rest of the temple. The place really is amazing. For our last night we dressed up and went to a fancy hotel on the West Bank called Al Mudira. We played dominoes and chess while we waited for dinner. The food was amazing and I was really happy to finally get a delicious salad. When we got back to the Emilio I said goodbye to everyone who was staying in Luxor to help Dr. Bryan finish up. Everyone has been so good to me and I can't thank them enough for making the trip as amazing as it has been; the grad students for taking me under their wing, returning to sites, and constantly sharing their knowledge with me, and of course Dr. Bryan for allowing me to come, paying for far more than she even needed to, and for the passes that gave us unlimited access to the most amazing places on earth. Without them, this trip would have been incredibly different and perhaps less meaningful.

At the entrance of Karnak Temple. We worked here (where I'm pointing)!

I then headed off on my most dreaded shopping trip of all time in the souk. The souk is a hilarious place for people not buying things.  For those who are, it’s pure hell (especially for someone like me and my shopping anxiety). I hate shopping in the U.S. so having people throwing things in your face to buy them, charging you 300LE for something that is worth 5LE, having to argue about absolutely everything and still ending up overpaying, and finding absolutely NOTHING for boys’ presents is the most horrid thing I could ever imagine. I refuse to buy shirts with incorrect hieroglyphs or shitty statues that are either so ugly or so poorly made (though they’ll tell you it’s real granite or stone) I would be embarrassed to give them to someone I love. It’s degrading and I understand most people who buy them are stupid and really can’t tell the difference, but I’m not stupid and I do know the difference. A month of this REALLY drove me insane and I have never been SO upset and SO happy to leave at the same time. I can’t believe how fast and how slow this month has gone by. Packing and waking up early will give me less than 3 hours to sleep… again! Hooray!

Karnak's sacred lake. I'm really going to miss this place.