The pyramids were a stupid idea

The problem with the pyramids, as I found out today, is they're just screaming for a passing by grave robber to come along and steal all the treasures inside. Only a person trying to compensate for something would build their tomb underneath a giant pyramid for all to see and then hope no one gets the idea to get inside to grab all the goodies. Apparently this is the reason for the pharaohs moving away from pyramids towards secret under ground tombs, such as that found in the Valley of the Kings (or KV as the locals call it). They weren't very sucessful though as all but 3 of the 62 tombs found so far at KV were raided.

Valley of the Kings - map showing the 62 tombs identified so far in white.

KV is located in a valley surrounded by limestone hills in the desert not far from the Nile. According to our tour guide, this site was selected as it is secluded, has good conditions for storing mummies (ie dry) and the top of the mountain is shaped like a pyramid (top LH corner of pic), therefore still allowing the spirits to find their way out to the heavens. No photos can be taken at the site, however there is a really good website that has 3D drawings of each tomb and photos showing the painted and carved walls and sarcophagus inside.
http://www.thebanmappingproject.com/atlas/index_kv.asp?tombID=undefined

In the hills surrounding KV are also the Valley of the Queens, Valley of the Nobels, Valley of the Artisans as well as many temples build to honor them. The site is still under excavation so they are constantly finding new stuff and having to move entire villages to get access.

Hatshepsut Temple - Queen Hatshepsut was one of only a few females to be pharaoh and is the only woman buried in KV. The temple built for her is located on the other side of the hills to KV.

Statue of Queen Hatshepsut on the third storey of the temple. She is sporting a fake beard, which was apparently all the rage for pharaohs back then. The tour guide also tells me she was flat chested, not really sure of the relevence of this comment though, perhaps he wanted me to know that flat chested women can make it in a mans world? He tells me Egyptians are much more open minded about women than other arabs and allows all 400 satellite networks to be broadcast. Though I didn't point out that in my limited experience of tv here, all scenes involving kissing or worse are cut out. Swearing appears to be ok though. He also tells me that satellite dishs are about 1/10th the cost of air conditioners in Egypt thanks to the Chinese - wealth of knowledge my tour guide, I could go on but won't.

Painted walls of Hatshepsut Temple - the blank area once had an image of the queen but her step son hated her so much that he had it chiseled off the wall after she died

Dr Dopey standing in front of some big statues that are part of some temple that I can't remember the name of.

I've got to say (really quietly cause Warwick was still too sick to go) the Valley of the Kings was the highlight of the trip, particularly as the guide was so knowledgable and funny in a, I'm laughing at you not with you, kind of way. The tombs are much more interesting on the inside than the pyramids at Giza and the site has so much stuff that, back in the day, must have been amazing.