Egypt: Karnak Temple

Karnak Temple is reputedly the largest religious complex on the planet, although I'd like to defer to an impartial fact checker before completely endorsing it. A road between it and Luxor Temple was recently discovered and so naturally the Egyptians began bulldozing hotels, houses and shops that had been built over it in the last three thousand years or so. That it is lined with sphinxes is surely enough to quell any would-be Dale Kerrigan led movements.

A lot of Karnak Temple is closed off to the public, be that due to restoration - using cranes for this seems like cheating, no? - or ongoing excavation. The columned room after the first courtyard is imposing; 134 columns, intact and tightly packed give it the feeling of walking through a stone forest. Tourists can disappear in under ten paces... so that's what I did.

Columns!

I doubt Peter will ever understand this, but his guided tour is lackluster. It's basically a rerun of Habu Temple and Valley of the Kings. Is that a fair criticism? If these monuments are built to the same gods for the same purpose, won't each of these have an element of sameness to them anyway?

Peter takes my wandering poorly. He tries to scold me for wasting the group's time as they waited for me (a whole two minutes). I return fire with the hour we spent at a tourist shop that none of us wanted to be at, then the over priced buffet that only two of us ate at but we all went to.

He looks angry.

Is it my fault that he got this group of people? This souvenir averse, streetwise bunch of adventurers? It's an uncomfortable marriage.

After a holy room past some obelisks he gives us some free time - a half hour - I use it to follow a few people on a photography tour (I'm not convinced they know what they're doing; there's a lot of expensive gear and grey hair on show but the questions being asked are... concerning) before throwing my lot in with a few people from our group, Muna from Canada, Devvrat from India and Alejandro from the Dominican Republic.

A man follows me for a bit, essentially photobombing. Then he gets indignant, grabs my arm and demands money for my taking his photo.

I have trouble with this. Is he some sort of nefarious scumbag or are things here that desperate? I protest and walk away, he spins me around. I cuss. Presumably, he does too. He disappears, with a pound. What else to do in an otherwise fucked situation?

Caption suggestions welcome, I have nothing nice to say.

Karnak Temple is pretty cool though. As to whether or not Ramesses II was responsible for it or not is of little consequence to me. Egyptologists posit that it predates him and he simply came through and wrote his name all over it like some sort of architectural graffiti artist. Well played to him either way. The enjoyment to be found here for me is in the private moments, just wandering and appreciating the place for what it is.

Sadly, those moments are genuinely hard to come by.