Just when I thought the early mornings couldn’t get any earlier, the alarm rang again…this time at 4:00 a.m. This was an optional tour, so our group was much smaller for the first half of the day!

It was another painfully early start, but today’s destination would become one of the highlights of my entire trip to Egypt: Abu Simbel.

After a short flight, we arrived at one of the most breathtaking archaeological sites in the country. Built by Pharaoh Ramses II over 3,000 years ago, the Great Temple of Abu Simbel is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Four colossal statues of Ramses II stand guard over the entrance, each towering nearly 70 feet high. Standing at their feet made me feel absolutely tiny.

Like so many places we visited throughout Egypt, the temple has an incredible story of its own. In the 1960s, the entire complex was carefully dismantled and relocated piece by piece to higher ground to save it from being flooded by the construction of the Aswan High Dam. It’s hard enough to imagine building something this magnificent over 3,000 years ago, but moving it in modern times was an engineering feat all its own.

Inside the temple, every wall seemed to tell another story. Massive columns, intricate hieroglyphs, and beautifully preserved carvings filled room after room. It’s impossible not to wonder how ancient craftsmen achieved such precision with the tools they had available.

Just a short walk away stands the smaller temple dedicated to Queen Nefertari, Ramses II’s favorite wife. Although smaller in size, I thought it was every bit as beautiful. The fact that a pharaoh built an entire temple honoring his queen says a lot about how highly she was regarded.

After soaking in as much history as possible, it was time to return to Aswan and finally board our Nile cruise ship.

I had been looking forward to this part of the trip for months.

There’s something surreal about sailing the same river that has been the lifeblood of Egypt for thousands of years. Ancient civilizations rose and fell along its banks, and now here I was watching the scenery drift by from the deck of our ship.

One of our first excursions from the cruise was a visit to a traditional Nubian village.

We traveled there aboard a felucca, a traditional wooden Egyptian sailing boat featuring lateen (triangular) sails and no engine. As we silently skimmed across the Nile, music played, we danced, and before we even reached the village, it already felt like a celebration.

The Nubian people have a rich culture that’s distinct from the rest of Egypt. We were welcomed into the village and received an education on the Nubian way of life. One of the most profound things the elder told us was how they work a little to live a good life. His claim to being healthy and not looking his 74 years of age was simply, “No stress. Stress kills mankind!”

It’s such a simple philosophy, yet one that’s stuck with me ever since.

As the sun began to set, we climbed back aboard our felucca, singing and dancing all the way back to our floating hotel. Watching the Nile glow in the evening light was the perfect ending to an unforgettable day.

Tomorrow we’d continue sailing north, visit more incredible temples, meet crocodile mummies, and celebrate with an unforgettable Egyptian Gala Night aboard the ship.

The adventure was only getting better.