Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12 As they wound through the streets of Luxor, Dan started to feel like Egypt was the oven and he was the turkey. He was glad when the cab drove down a small lane to a dock and he could see the green water of the Nile. He didn't feel any cooler, but it was better than looking at sand. "Where are we staying?" Amy asked Theo as they all grabbed their bags. Theo paid off the driver. He pointed with his chin to a small, trim white sailboat, sitting low in the water. "There." "Whoa," Dan said. "A boat? That rocks." "Exactly," Amy said. "And it doesn't stop." She'd never been crazy about boats. And it hadn't helped that she'd almost drowned when she'd been thrown off one into a canal in Venice.

"These boats are called dahabiyyas," Theo said. "Do you see the smaller sailboats out on the river? They're called feluccas. No trip to Egypt is complete without a Nile cruise on a felucca. My friend said we can stay for a couple of nights on his boat while he's in Cairo." "Hey, maybe after we go see Queen Neferfarty's tomb, we can go for a swim in the river," Dan said. "It's Nefertari, and whatever you do, don't swim in the Nile," Theo said. "There are parasites— worms— that could make you very, let's say, uncomfortable. The larvae penetrate the skin. And, of course, there's the occasional crocodile." "Okay, you convinced me," Dan said. "Come on, let's take our gear aboard." The cabin was trim and spare and gleaming. There was room for two people to sleep in the bow, and a seating area made up another bed. Bookshelves lined the sides of the cabin. Theo said he'd sleep on the deck. "To watch out for crocodiles," he said with a wink. "Now," he said, "I have to go see about those

passes to the tomb. Might take a little persuasion. You'll want to take a rest later when it gets really hot, but you still have time to explore the Valley a bit. Where would you like to start?" Amy thumbed through Grace's guidebook. On the plane she'd noted that Grace had outlined a site with light blue ink. "She said not to miss the Temple of Hatshepsut." "Brilliant. Both sites are on the Thebes side of the river." Theo looked at Nellie. "How would you like to see a real archaeologist's office?" "Really? I'd love it." Dan rolled his eyes at Amy. They had never realized that their smart-mouthed au pair was so capable of being… a girl. He'd practically gotten airsick watching them share their bags of peanuts on the plane. He wished Nellie would go back to worshipping her iPod. "Let's stroll down to the Corniche and I'll put you two in a taxi," Theo said to Amy and Dan. "Nellie and I will meet you at Hatshepsut's temple in exactly one hour. Then it's off to the tomb."

"I can't believe Theo said that it isn't hot yet," Amy said. "How much hotter can it possibly get?" She was about to grumble more, but ahead of her, an incredible sight was rising in the wavy desert air. The Temple of Hatshepsut sat at the foot of towering cliffs. It was built in three tiers, with columns marching along the front. A series of ramps and stairs led up to it. "Isn't it amazing?" she said. "Which part?" Dan asked. "The sand? Or the sand?" "Here we are, walking on ground that people walked on thousands of years ago. I was reading in the guidebook—" Dan held up two crossed fingers. "Lecture alert." "—that this temple was designed by the queen's architect, Senenmut, in the Eighteenth Dynasty. Later it was damaged by Ramses—" "I guess he wasn't a fan—" "—and it was even a Coptic monastery for awhile. They're still excavating parts of it. I think we should go right to the reliefs of the queen's

journey to the Land of Punt. Look at what Grace wrote." "Where's Punt?" Dan asked. "Is it next to Pass and Hike?" "No one knows for sure. They think it's present- day Somalia. Hatshepsut led an expedition there." They came to the wide ramp, which had shallow stairs in the center. The heat bounced off the pale stone and pounded against their bodies. The pale yellows and beiges of the sand and the cliffs turned everything into a pulsating shimmer. Amy was glad Theo had insisted they wear sunglasses and baseball caps. The glare was blinding. As they ascended, Amy felt more and more transfixed. It made her dizzy, heat and blue sky and cliff and the grandeur of the statues and the columns. "There she is," Amy said, pointing to a statue of Hatshepsut. "Whoa, she has a beard," Dan said. "The queen

is a dude!" "She called herself king," Amy explained. "So sometimes she's portrayed with a beard." "Whatevs," Dan said. "I still think she needs a shave." "Come on, I think the wall reliefs are on the second tier." Consulting the guidebook, Amy stopped for a moment. Dan tried to peer over her shoulder. "I think we go right," Amy said. "No, left." "Right. Then left, then right again—" "And turn and kick and jump. Are these directions or a cheerleading routine?" Dan tried to grab the book. "Let me see." "No, I've got it." "I haven't even seen it yet!" Amy wrenched the book from Dan's grasp. "I don't want you to lose it." "I'm going to lose it, all right," Dan muttered darkly. Amy hurried ahead. She didn't want the book