Luxor is on the Nile, and you have a wonderful perspective of the Nile valley, with the irrigated band on either side of the river, and the arid desert and mountains beyond that.  Look carefully in the hills above the sails and you can see some tombs - 3000 years old. We visited 3 tombs in the Valley of the Kings, including Tutankhamuns' tomb.  Inside the tombs many of the colored paintings are still intact after 3000 years, although the many visitors must have a negative effect. More interesting than the tombs were the temples erected to various gods, and the tombs of the skilled artisans who worked in the Valley of the Kings.  The art inside the workers' tombs was in better condition and not as stylized as that of the Pharaohs. The temples were amazing.  The size and good condition of many were impressive, as were the carvings and colors that remain so vibrant after so many centures.  Imagine these temples fully colored and not as monochromatic as they are today. The egyptian columns were styled after open or closed Papyrus reeds, or Lotus flowers.  We found them very beautiful. The temple of Karnak at night and evening, in Luxor. As a diversion we took an hour ride around Luxor in a local carriage.