Two of the large statues outside the great temple of Abu Simbel in south Egypt

The great temple of Abu Simbel in South Egypt (located along the Nile (rather, on the shore of the huge Lake Nasser), at a distance of 280 km from the city of Aswan) has 4 huge statues of the Pharaoh in a sitting position on the outside of the temple. One of those statues is somewhat damaged, but in this photo, you can see 2 of the statues, and these are in a fairly good condition. You stand at the foot of these statues and admire their size, wondering about how these were built 34 centuries in the past and still stand there in such a good condition, producing admiration in the people who see these statues now.

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The passage way in front of the entrance to the Abu Simbel temple in Egypt

The passage way in front of the entrance of the Abu Simbel temple in south Egypt. The photo was taken standing right in front of the entrance to the temple, and since most people were only worried about going inside the temple, there was not a single tourist just a few feet away from the entrance to the temple. Some of the structures over there are decayed and have suffered damage over the many centuries that the temple has been in existence.

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Tourists at the shore of Lake Nasser at the Abu Simbel temple in Egypt

Tourists at the shore of Lake Nasser in Abu Simbel. The temple is located right at the edge of the Lake, and for those who were not aware of the history of the temple, the temple was built by the Great Pharaoh Ramesses II as a mark of his magnificence, and to intimidate travelers from the south. Then, in recent times, with the construction of the Great Dam on the Nile at Aswan, there would be a huge reservoir created which would submerge the temple. So an engineering effort was launched to take apart the temple and move it stone by stone to a higher location and save it, taking it to the current location.

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Statues lining the inner passage of the Abu Simbel temple in Egypt

As you enter the doorway of the Abu Simbel statue in lower Egypt (located at a distance of 280 km away from the nearest city of Aswan), there are a series of statues lining the inner passage (since there was a restriction in shooting photos inside the temple premises, this was the most I could shoot from outside the doorway of the temple). There was a great feeling of grandeur when inside the temple, both due to the age of the temple, and also because of the incredible engineering feat involved in the movement of the temple, stone by stone, from a lower level.

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The main entrance to the Abu Simbel temple in South Egypt

The actual entrance to the Abu Simbel is not a very broad doorway, as you can see in the photo. In the gap between the huge sitting statues, there is the doorway and with an actual wooden massive door where you can see a large key as well (not visible in this photo). The doorway is wide enough that more than one tourist can pass through at the same time, and inside there is a narrow passage that eventually leads to the inner premises of the temple. In this photo, you get an idea of the scale of the temple, since you are able to see the towering statues and also see the small size of the tourists entering or coming out of the temple.

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The hillock hosting the Abu Simbel temple and the tourists at the base of the temple

The temple of Abu Simbel is a magnificent temple located at a distance of 280 km from the city of Aswan, and located close to the border with Sudan. The temple was at a lower location, and was due to come under the rising waters of Lake Nasser (formed by the presence of the Aswan dam) and it was an incredible feat of engineering to get the temple, stone by marked stone, to a higher location. This was done successfully, and the restored temple is now at a higher location, the current location. The temple has these 4 magnificent statues at the entrance to the temple, towering over the human visitors who come to the temple to see this incredible monument.

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Carvings at the site of the Abu Simbel temple in south Egypt

As you get near the site of the Abu Simbel temple, and turn around the corner of the hill, you come to this section of rock where there are carvings in the rock. I have no idea what this meant, but these either are recent, or have been restored, because they look great. To the right, you can see the rise of the hill which actually houses the Abu Simbel temple and the huge statues.

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View of the 4 statues at the entrance to the Abu Simbel temple in lower Egypt

The temple of Abu Simbel in lower Egypt is an incredible structure, located at a distance of 280 km from the nearest major town of Aswan. It is also important because the temple of Abu Simbel was at a location where it would come under the waters of the rising Lake Nasser (caused due to the formation of Lake Nasser with the Aswan Dam). Due to an international effort, the temple was taken to a higher location by being taken stone by stone from a lower position to a higher position where it was safe from the waters of the lake. The statues of the sitting pharaoh look massive, impressing all the human visitors who come to see the temple.

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Carvings on the wall of the entrance to the Abu Simbel temple in lower Egypt

Carvings on the wall of the Abu Simbel temple in lower Egypt. The temple is located at a distance of 280 km from Aswan, to the south, near the border with Sudan. The entrance to the temple with these stone walls is full of carvings, such as you can see from this photo. The authorities do not allow tourists to take photos inside the temple, so there would not be too many photos inside (but I could see some tourists taking photos even then inside, without any worries about the restriction). The carvings look very good, and remain very well preserved; consider the fact that the temple was moved lock and stock barrel from a lower location to the current location.

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View of the entrance to the Abu Simbel temple and the 4 statues in front

The temple of Abu Simbel is an incredible structure. It was built by the pharaoh Ramesses II as a way to showcase his might and power, and also as a living god (and also, to showcase his might to people from the land of Nubia to the south). The temple had these huge statues at the entrance to the temple, with these 4 large statues in a sitting position, and the entrance to the temple between these statues. The temple looks incredible, with the entire hillock being over-shadowed by the presence of the temple in the midst, and looking great overall.

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Gate and inner portion of the Abu Simbel temple in lower Egypt

A view of the entrance to the Abu Simbel temple in south Egypt. The temple is located at a distance of 280 km from the Egyptian city of Aswan, and located on the shore of Lake Nasser (a man made lake created due to construction of the massive dam at Aswan). Because of the rise in the water level, the temple was threatened with rising waters, and it was moved from lower levels to a higher level. A large number of tourists come here to see this remarkable temple. Keep in mind that the camera can only capture this much, since using a camera is not allowed inside the temple.

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The huge temple of Abu Simbel in Egypt, with tourists all around

The temple of Abu Simbel is a masterpiece; you turn the corner around this hill, and you see these seated huge statues, 4 large statues out of which one of them have the upper body destroyed (and of course there would have been other weather related problems that would have happened over the years).
In this photo, you can see tourists all around the temple, some of them standing / sitting in front, and the other around the entrance to the temple (which can be seen as the gap between the sitting statues).

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Tourists at the foot of a structure right next to the Abu Simbel temple near Aswan

The Abu Simbel temple in south egypt is very famous. The temple was located at a lower level, and was threatened by the construction of the dam at Aswan, since the resultant Lake Nasser would have drowned the temple; as a result, along with European collaboration, the temple was disassembled from its earlier position and moved to a higher position (the current location), which is an engineering marvel, and the reason why the temple is so famous.
In this photo, you can see tourists standing next to a small structure, a short distance away from the actual temple.

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Carvings on the wall of the Abu Simbel temple, located a distance away from Aswan

Some weather worn carvings on the walls of the Abu Simbel temple in south Egypt, located at a distance of 280 Km from the city of Aswan. The temple was built by the mega pharaoh Ramesses II as a reminder to his Nubian neighbors to the south about the immensity of his power, and also a reminder to his people about his being a living god.
This is a photo of some of the carvings on the walls of the temple, and shows a person in action, many many years ago.

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Tourists outside the base of the Abu Simbel temple in South Egypt, some distance away from Aswan

Abu Simbel is a very popular tourist destination in Egypt, famous for the huge statues of the Pharaoh Ramesses II at the gate of the temple, and the movement of the temple to evade the rising waters of Lake Nasser in the 1960's.
However, at the same time, many tourists do not go there just because of the effort involved in getting there; you need to first go to Aswan, and from there either fly, take a ship on the Lake, or take a tourist vehicle to travel the lonely 280 Km to the temple (located in the midst of nowhere).

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Gap in the hill housing the Abu Simbel temple in south Egypt

A small gap in the side section of the hill. This is the hill which houses the replaced temple of Abu Simbel (when the temple was moved from a lower section due to the flooding caused by the creation of Lake Nasser, in turn caused due to the construction of the High Dam at Aswan).
This seems like a metal barrier constructed inside the hill, providing another access for certain specific purposes, and not meant for tourists.

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Tourists at the base of the statues at the Abu Simbel temple in Egypt

A large number of tourists outside the Abu Simbel temple in South Egypt (located 280 km away from Aswan, and both of them located along the river Nile). Abu Simbel is a world renowned temple, famous for the large statues of the Pharaoh and the Gods, and also because the whole temple was moved in the 1960's to prevent its submergence in Lake Nasser, formed by the construction of the High Dam at Aswan.

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