Meet the majestic black mangrove tree, the Avicennia Marina. The mangrove (originally a West Indian word for salt tolerant coastal plants) is, as under statements go, a peculiarity in this part of the world.

Mangroves are considered to be "rain forests by the sea" and cover over 2.2 billion acres of the earth's surface. This is however almost the most northerly place you will see this plant, the most northerly being in the Nabq protected area which is just a bit further up the coast of Sinai. This is truly the pushing the edge of its range.

Valley of the Kings
The king's formal names and titles are inscribed in his tomb along with his images and statues. Beginning with the 18th Dynasty and ending with the 20th, the kings abandoned the Memphis area and built their tombs in Thebes. Also abandoned were the pyramid style tombs. Most of the tombs were cut into the limestone following a similar pattern: three corridors, an antechamber and a sunken sarcophagus chamber. These catacombs were hard to rob and easily concealed.

Hatshepsut Temple
A tree lined avenue of sphinxes led up to the temple, and ramps led from terrace to terrace. The porticoes on the lowest terrace are out of proportion and coloring with the rest of the building. They were restored in 1906 to protect the celebrated reliefs depicting the transport of obelisks to Karnak and the birth of Queen Hatshepsut. Reliefs on the south side of the middle terrace show the queen's expedition by way of the Red Sea to Punt, the land of incense.

Colossi of Memnon
Amenhotep III built a mortuary temple in Thebes that was guarded by 2 gigantic statues. All that remains now are the 23 meter (75 foot) high, 1,000 ton statues of Amenhotep III. Though damaged by nature and ancient tourists, the statues are still impressive. Ancient Egyptians called the southern of the two statues "Ruler of Rulers". Later travelers called them "Shammy and "Tammy", which may be from the Arabic words for "left" and "right".

The statues are made from carved blocks of quartzite quarried at Giza or Gebel es-Silsila. On the sides of the statues are reliefs depicting Nile gods joining together plants symbolizing a united Egypt. Due to an earthquake in 27 BC, these statues became known for a bell like tone that usually occurred in the morning due to rising temperatures and humidity.

The approach path to the Temple of Hathor is between two Roman fountains that end at the massive entry gate. Hathor was the goddess of pleasure and love and was generally shown as a cow, or woman with a cow's head.

The enclosure walls are mud-brick and date to the Roman era. Within the walls are the temple, two birth houses, a Coptic Basilica, a sanitorium, a sacred lake and the Temple of the Birth of Isis

The temple has a long history with evidence that Pepi I (Old Kingdom) rebuilt the temple, while other texts refer to reconditioning by Thutmose III, Amenhotep III and Rameses II and III (New Kingdom).

Additions were made during the Greek, Roman and Ptolemy periods.

Abydos in Middle Egypt is an ancient holy place and burial ground of the rulers of the late prehistoric proto-kingdom, as well as the first attested kings of the politically unified Egyptian state.

Buildings constituting the settlement area in northern Abydos dating back to Predynastic times have been found around Kom es-Sultan, while recent excavators have found an Old Kingdom residential area to the south-east which contains a street of mudbrick houses with courtyards and a faience workshop with its kilns.

Abydos is home to "The Cult of Osiris" , the god of the dead. It is said the head of Osiris was buried at the site after he was murdered by his brother.