Airbnb in Luxor, West Bank

After a one-hour flight from Cairo, we arrived in Luxor, known in ancient times as Thebes. Luxor was the capital of Egypt during the New Kingdom, at the height of Ancient Egypt’s power.

Luxor is bifurcated by the Nile River, separating the city into the East Bank and the West Bank. The part of the city that is on the East Bank is more developed and modern with many more shops, restaurants and hotels. The West Bank retains a more rustic atmosphere with smaller villages and where much of the land is still used to grow crops. In ancient times, the Egyptians identified the East Bank as the land of the living because the sun rises in the east, whereas the West Bank was the land of the dead because the sun sets in the west. Our Airbnb was located on the West Bank along a dirt road that was divided by a small canal. We planned a six-night stay in Luxor because there is simply so much to see and do in the ancient capital of Thebes. 

When we arrived at the Airbnb, Yasser, the house manager greeted us warmly. He ushered us onto a gravel walkway and through a set of metal doors. We entered into a shady courtyard with an inviting pool at the center surrounded by lounge chairs. We opened the front door that had a handsome geometric floral motif and entered into a spacious entry area. Just past the entry area was the living area, kitchen and dining area combined into one large room. We love open kitchens because we enjoy cooking together as a family and having a large space allows us to be in the kitchen together.

The kitchen had everything we needed to cook most of our meals. And not far from the Airbnb, there were several convenient places to buy groceries. On the first day that we arrived, we prepared the ingredients for sandwiches for lunch. After RY cut the tomatoes and cucumbers, AY lent her artistic flair to the platter and created a beautiful display for the vegetables.

We took turns organizing the meals and we enjoyed RY’s pasta bolognaise with roasted cauliflower and stir-fried chicken and green beans served with rice. I prepared a Trini stewed chicken, that my roommate from college taught me how to make. I haven’t prepared this dish in a long time, at least 15 years. I can never forget how to make it because of the unusual sequence of preparation and also the secret ingredient. I also made a minced beef, cauliflower and potato curry served with stir-fried zucchini. Amber made cinnamon rolls and in the absence of baking pans, improvised with the equipment that we did have.

The home had more space than we needed and was made up of three separate two-bedroom units over two levels. On the first floor, behind the kitchen was the first unit. My parents stayed in one room and Leo and I stayed in the other. Upstairs, the kids took one apartment with the girls in one room and the boys in the other. My brother occupied the third apartment.

Above the second floor was the rooftop which had a variety of seating areas, a pool table, and the washing machine. The rest of the family didn’t spend much time on the rooftop because it was blistering hot up there so close to the sun. I found myself on the rooftop quite a bit doing laundry and when the sun wasn’t so fierce, I found myself lingering a bit longer to enjoy the views and the solitude, after hanging the clothing out to dry.

There was a lot to look at from the rooftop. There was always some kind of exciting activity happening within view, out on the dirt roads, like donkeys pulling carts, children running home or men on motorcycles racing off to somewhere. I watched the villagers tending to their crops that were divided into neat plots of bananas, corn, alfalfa, sugar cane and others. I saw the building next door being constructed, brick by brick, by workers under the sweltering sun. Sometimes AY or my mom went upstairs to hang or retrieve laundry and I thought they must be taking in the panoramic views too.

I think the kids’ favorite part of the house was the pool. When we came back after a day of sightseeing, it was a treat to jump into the pool to cool off. Regardless of the time of day, the pool was always inviting. During the day, it was shaded from the blistering sun and at night, the atmospheric lights called to the kids like the siren’s song.

Yasser told us that the desert was just around the corner from the house and suggested we watch the sunset one night. I wasn’t sure how far he meant because we seemed to be in the middle of lush farmland. We weren’t exactly sure what we would find so one night at dusk, Leo and I went to explore and walked in the direction that Yasser pointed us in. It took us less than 10 minutes to reach the actual desert, which surprised us and reminded us of the power of irrigation. Pity we just missed the sunset by about 15 minutes. We did, however, catch the last violet and indigo hues in the sky that faded with the retreat of the sun. We climbed atop the nearest sand dune and tried to make out any shapes in the distance but it became dark very quickly.

We gathered everybody a few days later to return to the desert to try and catch the sunset again. The kids were taking too long to get out the door and we knew we were in danger of missing the sunset again. We sprinted on the dirt path to the desert, passing the local mosque where the same three men we last time were resting on the bench outside. As we burst around the bend in the dirt path, the men looked amused and cheered us on. We made it to the desert but missed the sunset by a few minutes. The children played on the sand dunes while we looked longingly in the direction of the sun that had already descended beyond the horizon. RY and Jiu Jiu noticed a group of about six local boys playing soccer and ran over to join them. The boys were more like teenagers and young men, who warmly welcomed them to join the game.

Football is a universal language that needs no words, just a common understanding of the rules. RY and Jiu Jiu were split onto separate teams and got right into the game. AY, DY and EY played on the sand dunes nearby. The light held out just long enough for a few good plays, some fake outs, some passes, some cooperation, some face plants into the sand, some laughs, some high fives and a totally unforgettable experience. Only when the night descended and the desert was pitch black, we returned back to our Airbnb regretting that it was our last night in Luxor.

We were greeted at home by an electricity outage. There were a few men outside of our Airbnb, one perched atop a ladder, playing with the wires trying to get the power back on. They told us it would only take ten minutes. We couldn’t go inside without any light, so we sat by the pool with our flashlights and waited. After half an hour, we went out to see what was happening. It turns out the men ironically didn’t have sufficient lighting themselves and were struggling to see with just the headlight of a motorcycle. Leo lent the electrician his head lamp and that seemed to improve the situation. After over an hour, the electricity came back on and being no worse for the wear, we went into the house.

The next day, under the full strength of the morning sun, we said goodbye to Yasser and left our Airbnb to board the Nile Cruise.