Audience Participation Night is great fun when one can buy or hire costumes and pretend to be Pharaohs and Queens of Ancient Egypt. Everyone has a great time accumulating memories to last a lifetime. We had stayed late at Luxor Temple, so the party started without us, hence our absence from the group photo, but we were able to join in most of the fun, as the ship sailed on overnight to our next port of call at the town of Esna.

    The evening entertainment is colourful and brash. Nubian folk dancers strut their stuff and encourage the tourists and crew to join in with them for some good clean fun.

 

We're all going to the party

 

    Sue, the Ship's hostess, cajoles all the men into wearing Egyptian gear, the ladies not needing any persuasion to wear a dress fit for a queen. Meanwhile, in our cabin, I already have the gear, so I am indulging in my favourite pastime, consuming water melon, so big, so red, so juicy, I love them, but they can be a bit messy. The photo is 1989, shirt off and big bib. The up to date method for eating water melon in Bulgaria is to get under a warm shower, no clothes, a big red melon, and go for it, dribbling everywhere.   Whatever turns you on ... LOL.

 

    Most of the company are already in fancy dress but we will catch up with them after dinner. This is Egyptian time .. whenever.

 

 

    Pantomime Horses and Wild Men from the Jungle pursue the squealing young ladies with enthusiastic gusto. It doesn't look like this young lady really minds being caught, does it?

 

  

     Tanoora, the Whirling Dervisher can spin in circles for half an hour with his twirling skirts without getting dizzy. The Egyptian national pastime of Belly Dancing is usually confined to hotels but beware of being dragged on to the dance floor if one has knobbly knees.

 

    Nubian Band                       Whirling Dervisher                  Belly Dancer fun

 

     Really, a picture is worth a thousand words, so watch the show ... the Twin Man does a fabulous illusion of being two small dwarves, dancing together .. the Nubian Dancers ... the Belly Dancers ... and not forgetting the passengers who were persuaded to dance the night away ...

Time to meet some of the crew of the Queen Isis - click on a thumbnail.

 

 

    In the morning we will have arrived at the Esna Barrage which raises the shallow river level to a navigable depth south of the town. Here we must pass through the locks onto the upper reaches of the river. Not many people know that the river Nile has these locks to allow the cruise boats to traverse the river up to Aswan.

 

The barrage and locks at Esna Town

 

Tomorrow we visit the Temple at Esna which was buried under the town.

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