My Luxor by Bernard M. Adams

Whitstable Castle

28/9/2016

Whitstable Castle

The land was held over 700 years ago by a knight, William de Tangreton and later in the reign of Edward III.

The castle lies on the borders of Whitstable and Tankerton in Kent, UK, looking over the town and harbor.

Many private people have owned the castle. In the 15th century Queen Elizabeth I gave a license to Stephenson to search for deposits. “Copperas” (pyritic shale) found a few feet down, or as nodules of iron pyrites on the beach.

After the death of Stephenson in 1594 (the founder of “Copperas) Queen Elizabeth intervened again. The Mayor of Faversham gained control and built a copperas house on the almshouse site. Others followed and works were built where the Bowling Green at the castle is today and the Tower tea gardens.

The castle passed into many further hands during its history and in 1935, The Whitstable Urban District Council purchased the castle for the town for £10,000.

The bowling green was opened in 1936 and the gardens in 1948. After government reorganization in 1972, the castle remained empty until 1975 where the Whitstable Society used it for the town’s people.

Tower Tea room

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Maidstone Museum UK

25/9/2016

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Maidstone Museum – UK

A small but very nice collection of Egyptian artifacts in the town museum of Maidstone..
Photos:

1. Shabti – Painted limestone with Ba-bird (the human headed bird that watches over
    souls) on chest – New Kingdom – 19th Dynasty.
2. Lizard on bronze box - Guards against fever – Late Period –
    Hellenistic Period.
3. A collection of Orisis figures - God of the underworld, of the Nile flood and vegetation.
4. Painted Wooden Shabti – New Kingdom – 19th Dynasty.
5. Predynastic Jar.
6. Ta-Kesh Mummy – Daughter of the Door Keeper of Osiris,
     Pa-Muta’ - Brought to England in the 1820’s – 25th/26th Dynasty.
7. Ta-Kesh Mummy.
8. Ast Shabti – Dressed in kilt and carrying an overseer’s whip –
     Third Intermediate Period.
9. Ty Shabti – The Priestess ‘Chantress of Amen’ From Thebes –
     Third Intermediate Period
      – 21st Dynasty.

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Aylesford Priory - Maidstone UK

25/9/2016

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Aylesford Priory
Founded in 1242 when the first Carmelites arrived from the Holy Land. The Priory has many Chapels, Halls and Shrines dedicated to various saints, amazing grounds and gardens with many old matured trees that have stood here for centuries and will stand here for many more.
It’s been more than 44 years since my first visit to the priory. I must say, I thought it to be in better condition on this visit. The peace, quiet and tranquility along with the atmosphere still continue here; that for sure has not changed. It’s a wonderful place to visit and to stroll around, take a tea or snack in the old barn tearoom, visit the pottery where you can see the potter spinning his wares and the shop where all the finished products are on display and for sale. The pond has black swans.
Aylesford Priory is free to enter and there are plenty of car parking areas. The location is just outside of Maidstone in Kent. UK.

Gate House

St. Josephs Chapel

The Prior's Hall

Great Courtyard

Guest House

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Tutankhamun Tomb KV62 – Radar

26/11/2015

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Tutankhamun Tomb KV62 – Radar

Dear Friends,
28c

Today at 11-am, The Governor Mohamed Sayed Badr, Ministers, Directors, Scientists and Egyptologists arrive at the Tomb KV62.

I arrived just in time to see all the officials and their convoys pass me on my motorbike on the Kings Valley road.

I first met the governor who joked with me saying that he saw me on my motorbike running, I think it must have looked like I was in a hurry to meet up with the party of officials at the tomb.

I spoke to Dr. Nicholas Reeves who told me that the radar would be used at 5-pm tonight when it is quiet and cooler. They want to keep the tomb open during the day for tourists. In the meantime, the radar went into Ramesses II tomb KV5 for what they say is a test run. I believe it also gave them some free radar time to look for any anomalies in there.

Dr. Nicholas Reeves showing his evidence if where the hidden doorway may be.

People coming out of the East antechamber. Throughout the latest story of this tomb, people have been going in and coming out of this antechamber. As I have never been inside, I can only assume that there is further evidence to support the hidden room. It just, maybe, that they can make further investigation from within this small room that had no decoration in it at all.

North Wall.

East Antechamber.

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Tutankhamun's Hidden Chambers

22/8/2015

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50c (122f)

What wonderful news concerning Tutankhamun’s Tomb. It is so pleasing to see Dr. Mamdouh Eldamaty, Minister of Antiquities taking a positive approach to Dr. Reeves research study.

It is an exciting issue, not only for Egyptologists and Archaeologists but also for all like-minded people throughout the world. Especially here in Egypt and in particular, Luxor, where news like this is received with excitement and we all look to the next episode.

We live in a world of negativity where a lot of things are debunked, unless of course, you are the one that thought of it or discovered it first. You see words being stated such as “Just speculating, Attention seeking or just a Theory”

Most things in life start off as theories and from them come great discoveries. The evidence of this can be seen throughout history where we have seen so many times that great men with ideas and theories have been put down. Where would we be today if these great men never got past there theories, ideas and thoughts, never got the chance to put forward their research. It is human nature to always want to be the first person to do something, discover something first or have the first idea. But that should not give certain people a reason to scoff at others people’s idea.

The strengths do not only come from those researchers but also come from people willing to look into their research and reasoning; whether they be of high officials within that particular field or Government positioned Ministers.

Not all ideas and theories will come to fruition but that should never stop us looking into the possibilities of “what if” “if only we did” “we missed the opportunities” If nothing is found or proved, then at least we tried, it’s a step that pioneers can not afford or want to miss. Two words come to my mind “Howard Carter”

Well done Minister Dr. Mamdouh Eldamaty for taking this positive step forward. I wish Dr. Nicholas Reeves success and hope his research bares fruit. I look on with anticipation and excitement.

Drawing by Dr. Reeves Paper - Academia.edu

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The Crow is Dead, “long live the Crow"

29/6/2015

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Hi,
40c

The Crow is Dead, “long live the Crow"

After four years of being plagued by this crow and being woken up at dawn with it’s squawking and pecking at my windows. By putting on my window ledges rows of nails so it could not land on the ledge, by putting up fishing nets on all my balconies to keep it away from my windows, by putting up cloth so that it could not see its own reflection in my windows and then, even by it hanging upside-down on one foot from the netting and pecking at my windows, the crow finally got caught up in the net and died. I found it quite late in the morning when I got up, it must have died from exhaustion and from the heat.

I was not sad. I have hung it up outside on my balcony as a warning to other crows.

Perhaps now after three years, I can get some peace.

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Pioneering Days

1/6/2015

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Pioneering Days:

In the early seventies there were only three people producing and making hang gliders in the UK. I purchased mine from a BAC design physicist from Bristol. Mine came as a kit of parts that had to be cut and riveted together, the nylon fabric wing and cables came ready made. The kit contained duralumin tubing that was cut to size and riveted together to make the correct lengths of 5.2 meters. There was a three-point aluminium plate at the front where the three wing tubes came together. The wingspan was 6.7 meters.

The control frame (A-Frame) was connected mid point under the wing and a seat hung precariously by nylon cords via a 13 cm high tensile steel bolt. Yes, my life hung by this bolt when flying. It took me three weeks to build and put together, to balance and align it and make sure that the whole structure and curvature of the frame was correct for flight.

When finished and ready to fly, I did my test flight at some burial mound sites on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. They were just high enough for me to gain some experience of its handling. I got permission from the farmer that owned the fields and so started my test flights.

First it was necessary to lift the hang glider into the air with the aid of a light wind; the glider weighed some 7 1/2 kilos and needed a wind to hold it up. The idea was to run along a flat surface in a controlled straight line keeping the glider airborne and then to learn how to steer it where I wanted it to go as opposed to where it and the wind wanted it to go. Once I got the hang of controlling it, it was time to get onto one of the burial mounds and take it to the air. The mounds were at varying heights, so I started from a low one and worked my way up to the higher ones. These mounds were only to serve as a launch point where the glider would take my weight and fly only a few meters but enough for me to get acquainted with how it handled. After several times at these mounds, it was time to get a little more ambitious and to take it to greater heights.

On the north side of the island there were some high cliffs, up to about a hundred meters. When the tide was out at a distance of about 2 kilometres and on the turn and coming in, it would create an onshore wind that when striking the cliffs would create an updraft of warm air along the cliffs edges. These were the perfect requirements and conditions for hang gliding where you could glide along the cliffs edge in this uplift of warm air and for perhaps as long as 3 kilometres.

It was an amazing and exhilarating experience where you feel as near to a bird when flying in silent conditions. There was of course a down side to this. It required a leap of faith where I would run up to the edge of the 100 meter cliff and launch myself into the on coming air flow. I had to be a little crazy to do this as sometimes I did not launch and crashed over the cliff, not so bad as it sounds and most times I could get the glider to come down to the ground like a parachute in the wind. Sometimes the wind was so strong that at the very edge of the cliff the wind would turn me upside down and land me some meters back from the cliffs edge. All a great experience but if asked would I do this again, my answer would be no, I was 25 then, I am older now and life is a little more precious.

The best memory of my hang glider days was the experience of a 3-kilometer flight along the cliffs edge. As I gained about 20 meters in height above the cliffs within the on coming air, I was flying some 30 meters in land and over a caravan site. When the people and children saw me, they all come running towards me shouting out to me in the air. I was the first person to fly a hang glider on the Isle of Sheppey, so I think I was their first experience of one apart from the then news media. I had strapped to my A-frame a height and speed instrument along with an air horn. When I saw all the people, I sounded my horn and waved down to them. It was as exciting for me as it was for them.

As I lost height and went down below the level of the cliffs, it was time to make my landing plans. I saw a ridge ahead of me and thought I might be able to fly over it and land on the beach, alas, this was not to be, I could not get over the ridge and instead, I crashed into it. As the hang glider stood against the ridge in a vertical position with me hanging up side down in it, I just took a breath and realized what an amazing experience I had just had. The glider was ok but it was now time to fold in the wings and walk back the 3 kilometres I had just flown.

Sadly my hang gliding days came to an end after I lost my nerve for flying following a glider crash at a gliding school for Air Cadets.

I was a Glider Pilot Instructor at an R.A.F gliding school for Air Cadets where I crash-landed a glider. During the enquiry that followed (normal procedure with the RA.F.) I found that I had lost my nerve for flying, this included gliding, hang gliding and power flying for which I was qualified. After a period of 7 years, I got back to flying but never again hang gliding. I had previously sold on my hang glider to three men who I believe crashed it.

Good days, crazy days, but what an experience to talk about.

Photos: 1-Test flights near to burial grounds. 2-Test flights from 10 meters to 100 meters. 3-Getting more ambitious.

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Free Tomato Plant

9/5/2015

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Free Tomato Plant.

A pigeon was kind enough to leave me a little deposit in a flowerpot on my balcony. This deposit has grown into a small tomato plant with nine baby tomatoes each less than half a centimeter in diameter.

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Cooling of in the Heat

9/5/2015

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Perhaps not the correct way for this dear soul to cool off while taking a tea. I believe a fellow customer politely put him right.

Sometimes the heat gets to us but the locals looked after this man.

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Avenue of Sphinx - New Bridge

19/1/2015

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Avenue of Sphinx

I went to take a look at the new bridge built across the Ave. of Sphinx at the Karnak end. It has been competed and you can see where some work has gone on to excavate the ares that were once under the bridge. I tried to walk down the provided steps to the avenue to take a good picture of the new bridge from the walkway, alas, I was approached by a guardian who warded me off, so I took my pictures elsewhere.

You can see in the photo that there are lights that run from Luxor to Karnak. I don’t know if they are working yet but they certainly seem ready to.

There will be many more bridges that will have to be built across the avenue before it will be a complete thoroughfare from Luxor Temple to Karnak Temple.