Week 4a: 25-28 January 2026

Ready for a trip? We’re going to Luxor! We all gathered at the institute around 9 am and started with our first big task of the day: fitting our luggage into the bus. Once we were all inside, we started our road trip to the south. After an 8-hour drive full of taking naps, playing Uno, and listening to music, we arrived at our hotel on the west bank of the Nile. There, we checked in and enjoyed our first evening on the rooftop terrace of the hotel.

Our first day in Luxor started at Kom el-Hettan, the mortuary temple of Amenhotep III. Of course, we had to take a group picture in front of the Memnon Colossi. Then we got to meet Dr. Kathrin Gabler, the current director of the German mission working at the site. Dr. Gabler gave us a tour of the site and we even got to see some unique statues, like a sphinx with a crocodile tail.

Fig. 2. At Kom el-Hettan with Dr. Kathrin Gabler

After a quick pitstop at the hotel, we had lunch at the sun courtyard of the Seti I Mortuary Temple in Qurna. Fieke gave us an amazing tour around the temple during her site presentation and showed us interesting elements, like the depiction of the temple in the first courtyard behind the first pylon. At the end, we got to wander around for a bit, which is the best time to make some sketches for our kaskhuls. Once we were back at the hotel, some of us took a quick dive into the pool before heading towards the Luxor museum on the east bank. This was also our first time taking the ferry in Luxor, which resulted in a beautiful sunset view.

Fig. 3. At Seti I’s mortuary temple on the Theban West Bank

Our second day in Luxor meant an early start. At 7 in the morning, we got on the bus and drove all the way to Abydos. After nearly four hours on the rocky Egyptian roads, we arrived at our destination. Our first tour was of the temple of Ramesses II, given by Dr. Sameh Iskander, who also showed us his ongoing excavations.

Fig. 4. With Dr. Sameh Iskander and Dr. Nicholas Warner at Abydos

Then we met up with Dr. Nicholas Warner, who took us through the Osireion. We got to enter the sarcophagus room and were amazed by the many graffiti and unique texts (and snakes) displayed in the long tunnel of Merenptah. All of us were really happy to be able to see a site that is not easy for tourists to visit. Lastly, after a quick lunch break, we explored the temple of Seti I (this time in Abydos). We checked out all the chapels, especially the ones with the beautiful starry ceilings and the Abydos King List. After a group photo in front of the temple, we headed back to the hotel to enjoy the rest of our evening.

The schedule for the next day? Karnak Temple, Luxor Temple, and Chicago House. We started off with an introduction to CFEETK, where Elena showed us their two databases: ‘Projet Karnak’ and ‘Archaeogrid’. Afterwards, she offered to give us a tour around their different projects in the temple. This included the second pylon, an excavation at the open-air museum, and the complex of King Taharqa. After the tour, we explored the temple complex on our own. For lunch, we decided to sit down at the temple of Khonsu, where we also met Dominique Navarro from Chicago House, who was working on an epigraphic project at the temple. In the afternoon, we met Dr. Brett McClain, the director of Chicago House, who gave us a tour of Luxor Temple and Chicago House. Dr. McClain showed us the Chicago House project inside the temple, like the reliefs of the Opet festival and the Roman sanctuary. The walls of the Roman sanctuary were originally decorated by Amenhotep III, but were later plastered over for the imperial cult during the Roman Period.

Fig. 6. At Luxor Temple with Dr. Brett McClain

Today was also Jana’s birthday, so of course we ended the day with a nice boat ride on the Nile. Karin, the sweet owner of our hotel, had arranged a cake for us, which we enjoyed while we sailed into the dusty sunset.

Lenneke Pauwels