NILE RIVER JOURNEY; PANORAMA OF LAND OF THE PHARAOHS.

Byline: Kingsley Guy Sun-Sentinel, South Florida

I stood on the deck of the Sonesta Nile Goddess listening as the amplified voices of muezzin calling the faithful to prayer mingled with the ship's pop music blared from loudspeakers.

Muezzin and Muzak in the middle of the Nile. What a wonderful metaphor, I thought, for the discordance between the First and Third Worlds.

On the river banks, people fished as their ancestors did thousands of years ago. On the ship, passengers returning from a temple tour were met with a hot, moist towels and a spot of mint tea.

In my youth, I would have eschewed the luxury of a Nile cruise, preferring instead to take a felucca, the picturesque Egyptian sailboat crafted to a design dating back to the dawn of civilization.

On the Nile Goddess, each cabin was equipped with shower, toilet, writing desk, comfortable bed and TV. The lobby amidships had a spotless tile floor and was illuminated by a crystal chandelier. A spiral staircase connected the three cabin decks with the spacious dining room.

Dinner the first night, like most of the subsequent meals, was buffet style. The food was excellent, but as Western as the passengers. I had been looking forward to hummus, couscous, pita bread, shish-kebab; I got meat and fish in European sauces, French pastries for dessert.

I drew the line at breakfast the next morning when pork sausage was served with scrambled eggs. Egypt is predominantly an Islamic country, and Muslims are forbidden to eat pork. ``This is sacrilege,'' I thought, and even though I'm not a Muslim, the sausage stayed off my plate.

Yes, yes, I know. A cruise is the mature way to see the historic sights along the Nile. Backpacks, feluccas and a steady diet of local foods are for resilient college students, not middle-aged editors. Ensconced in my little, air-conditioned culture capsule, I was protected from the searing heat and the street hustlers out to make an Egyptian pound.

Still, I made a point to strike out on my own and wander wherever the ship docked. Get away, even a few blocks, from the tourist spots and you are usually free of hustlers. In their place are energetic folks working from dawn to dusk in bakeries, foundries and repair shops.

Backward on the Nile

We were supposed to board the boat at Luxor for the five-day, four-night cruise on the Nile, but repair work on a river lock forced the Nile Goddess to dock south of Luxor at Esna. Instead of lunch on board, Sonesta provided passengers with lunch and courtesy rooms at one of Luxor's better hotels. The temple tour began in midafternoon.

Unlike most major rivers, the Nile flows from south to north. So when you travel from Luxor south to Aswan, you are going ``up'' the Nile and moving forward in history. When traveling from Aswan to Luxor, known also as Thebes, you're heading ``down'' the Nile and traveling backward in history.

The Pyramids and other sights in Giza in the far north date back more than 4,500 years. The temples at Luxor and the tombs in the nearby Valley of the Kings date as far back as 3,500 years. Those closer to Aswan date to the Greco-Roman period. In Egypt, the escapades of Mark Antony and Cleopatra 2,000 years ago are fairly recent history.

The Pyramids inspire awe, but no more so than the Temple of Karnak, located just a couple of miles from the smaller Luxor Temple. Karnak was ancient Egypt's largest place of worship and was dedicated to the sun god Amon-Re.

Its roof was supported by 130 columns 80 feet tall. Its Great Hall is thought to be the largest colonnaded room ever built.

The pharaoh Thutmose III (1490-1436 B.C.) is in large part responsible for the temple's grandeur. A brilliant general, his conquests brought in the wealth that financed its expansion.

After the temple tour, the group was bused to Esna, where we boarded the Nile Goddess in time for dinner. I initially was disappointed we wouldn't be sailing to Esna, but the bus ride had a redemptive quality in that it gave passengers a closer look at farms and villages.

Royal valley

After breakfast the next morning we were back on the bus, heading to the Valley of the Kings.

The valley, on the west bank of the Nile across from Luxor, is a giant necropolis. The stone tombs held the mummies of the pharaohs who ruled from the 18th to 20th dynasties, which lasted from 1567 B.C to 1085 B.C. The kings' wives were buried nearby, as were many noblemen.

Ramses II and Thutmose III were among the great pharaohs buried here. The best known, however, was a minor pharaoh named Tutankhamen, who died at 18 and had little impact on his nation's history.

It is in death that he is remembered, for King Tut's tomb is the only royal tomb so far discovered that has escaped the ravages of grave robbers. Excavated in 1922, its treasures now reside in the Cairo museum, although King Tut's mummy remains in its original resting place.

For people who placed the highest premium on preserving the bodies of the dead, the Valley of the Kings is an ideal burial place. Enclosed by rocky cliffs, it is located in arid land just outside the lush ribbon of greenery that lines the banks of the Nile.

Because of the dryness, the tomb interiors are well-preserved. The gold and silver is gone, but the paintings and hieroglyphics remain, and it is from these that Egyptologists have been able to reconstruct much of the country's history.

Great care went into the paintings designed never to be seen by mortals. The Egyptians had an abiding belief prayers to the god Osiris would bring the scenes, as well as the dead, to life.

After a visit to a few other sights, including the mortuary temple of Queen Hatshepsut, who ruled for a time as pharaoh, we returned to the Nile Goddess for afternoon tea on deck.

The next morning, the boat set sail for a visit at the Temple of Horus in Edfu. After lunch, we sailed to Kom Ombo and a visit to the temple from the Greco-Roman period dedicated to the gods Sobek and Haroeies.

The river route

About 240 boats similar to the Nile Goddess ply this part of the river, ferrying tourists between a handful of Egypt's most impressive historic sites.

Nothing demonstrates that water is the source of life better than the Nile. The lush river banks are covered with mango trees, palms and poincianas. In places, the landscape is similar to parts of South Florida, where rain is plentiful. Along the Nile, it may not rain for years.

While on the river, it's possible to forget that just a few kilometers away is desert. I usually avoided the sun deck during the day, when the temperature surpassed 115 degrees.

Dusk was the most beautiful time on the river: The temperature became pleasant, and the light was still sufficient to see the fishermen tending their nets and farmers looking after their oxen.

Plenty of mosques line the Nile's banks, bearing witness to the deeply religious nature of the Egyptians. Few man-made structures are as graceful as mosques, with their domes and minarets. Add a dash of background color from a sunset, and the sight can be spectacular. Then add the voice of a muezzin, and it's possible to be transported to a mystical realm.

The last stop on the cruise was Aswan. The tour included a visit to the granite quarries and to the 2,000-year-old temple of Philae, which was moved stone by stone to higher ground three decades ago to save it from the rising water behind the Aswan High Dam.

The sightseeing ended with a visit to the dam and then a late afternoon felucca ride past the mausoleum of the Aga Khan and around Kitchner's Island, named after a famous British general.

That evening we were entertained with folk dances performed by Nubians, black Egyptians who comprise a sizable portion of the population of Upper Egypt. The colorful costumes and rhythmic drumming showed there's a strong sub-Saharan influence in this part of Egypt not found in points north.

The next morning we left the ship. On the plane back to Cairo, I thought about how a river cruise leaves no doubt Egypt is the Nile. The river nurtured a civilization that lasted 3,000 years and was responsible for creating monuments at which the modern world still marvels.

ON LOCATION

If you're young and adventurous, make the Nile journey by felucca. If you're not, take a river boat like the Nile Goddess.

The cost of my June trip was $1,419 and included three nights at the Ramses Hilton in Cairo; two days of sightseeing in Cairo, Giza and vicinity with a private guide and driver; five days and four nights in a single cabin on the Nile Goddess, all meals included; and domestic air fare from Cairo to Luxor and from Aswan to Cairo. Expect to add $200 to $300 to the price during the cooler months.

Information: [phone].

CAPTION(S):

5 Photos, Box, Map

Photo: (1--2--Color) A statue of Ramses II looms inside the entrance to the Karnak temple complex, left. Above, the 2,000-year-old temple of Philae stands on high ground, where it was moved to save it from the rising waters behind the Aswan Dam.

(3--4--Color) Great Pyramid and the Sphinx are Egypt's best-known sights, near right. At far right, the temple of Karnak, ancient Egypt's largest place of worship, once had a roof supported by 130 columns, each 80 feet tall. Dedicated to the sun god Amon-Re, its Great Hall is thought to be the largest colonnaded room ever built.

Kingsley Guy/Sun-Sentinel, South Florida

(5) A luxury cruise ship docks at a temple on the Nile.

Box: ON LOCATION (See Text)

Map: Egypt