The Great Karnak (Modern Luxor) By Chris McLaughlin Pd. 8 12/14/12

The History of Karnak Karnak is located in the city of Luxor, Egypt. It is the largest temple complex ever built by man, an achievement of many ancient builders. The temple was built when Ramesses lll was King. Karnak Temple was the center of worship of the Ancient Egyptian god Amun. Almost the entire property was owned by the temples that belonged to the god Amun, evidence by the stupendous buildings at Karnak. Although very badly damaged, no site in Egypt is more impressive than Karnak. The city is located east of the Nile River in upper Egypt. The longitude of Karnak is ° N and the latitude is ° E. The modern name of this temple is Karnak. The ancient name was Ipet-isut which means “The Most Select (or Sacred) of Places.” This huge complex was built in a thirteen hundred year period. The temple of Karnak has actually three main temples. The main temples of Mut, Montu, and Amun are surrounded by giant brick walls. The main complex, The Temple of Amun, is placed in the center of the entire complex. While the Temple of Monthu is north of The Temple of Amun and next to it, on the inside of the enclosure wall, is the Temple of Ptah, while the Temple of Mut is to the south, with other smaller enclosed and several outer temples throughout the entire complex. The temples and monuments were built to celebrate gods and the living gods who were the Pharaohs.

Travel Airfare prices vary from airline to airline. You can leave from PHL (Philadelphia International Airport), EWR (Newark Airport), JFK (John F. Kennedy) Airport just to name a few. Then you need to determine the airline you want to travel on, some of these are Egypt air, United Airlines, Swiss International Airlines, and British Airways to give you an idea. Prices range from low $900’s, round trip, all the way to $10,000, if not more. The non-stop fares are the more expensive than the two stop fares. Sample airfare prices: Philadelphia Airport to Luxor, Egypt, leaving on Egypt air runs approximately $1,808 for a round trip. Flights from Newark Airport to Luxor, Egypt on Virgin Air run approximately $3732 to $3892. Also, there is a flight from PHL to Cairo which is $947. From there, you would have to take either a bus or a rental car to Luxor. Rental cars are $32 a day. They have all types of US car brands. You could also get there by taxi. It depends how long the trip is to see what you have to pay.

Great Hotels There are a total of sixty one hotels in the entire city of Karnak. These prices are per day, The Karnak Hotel -$14+, Hilton Luxor Resort and Spa-$164+, Sofitel Karnak Luxor-$38+, Sonesta St. George Hotel Luxor- $56+, Sherton Luxor Resort- $67+, and Philippe Hotel Luxor-$25+. Those were just to name a few of the many hotels in Karnak.

Restaurants Karnak has many different restaurants to choose from. They range in different prices ranges, least expensive to very expensive. Anyway, here are just a few for your information: The Paddleduck, The Lantern, Pizza Roma-it, Jewell of the Nile, Gerda’s Garden, The Karnak Restaurant, JJ’s Bar and Restaurant, El Karnak, Crocodile Bar Restaurant, and Palm Restaurant, all located in the vicinity of Luxor.

Fun places to visit in Karnak When you hear the word Karnak, you think of desert, flat land, boring. Well, actually Karnak is not boring because Karnak has great architecture that was man made and as a matter a fact, Karnak is where they filmed a lot of popular movies such as, Transformers Revenge of the Fallen, the final battle between Optimus Prime, Megatron, The Fallen, and Star Scream. They face off in the hypostyle hall at Karnak. There are other movies such as Watchmen, The Mummy Returns, and The Spy Who Loved Me. It was also a featured location for the popular PC game, The Sims3: World Adventures. Here are a couple of great attractions to visit while you are in Karnak. The Temple of Karnak, The Temple of Medinat Habu, Valley of the Artisans, and Luxor Temple. Also, Karnak has a sound and light show. The show starts with an introduction covering the birth of the great city of Thebes and the erection of the Karnak Temple. The show also narrates the glorious achievements of some great Pharaohs.

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