The sleeper train from Cairo to Luxor takes about 9 hours, it leaves Cairo around 7.40PM and arrives in Luxor at 5.00AM. The train compartment look exactly like the James Bond movie. I shared the compartment with a British guy, who has worked in Luxor for last two years restoring Colossi of Memnon and doing research. So it was a great to talk to him about things to see and miss. One advice that he gave me that was useful was to avoid hours 10AM to 1PM in main temples like Karnak, Luxor because that is the time loads of tourists buses come visit. I took his advice for next two days and hardly had to deal with any crowds at all. The train ride itself was okay not very smooth, but the train does have bar to help you get good sleep.

I checked into a hotel just outside the railway station where I haggled the room rate down from 120 LE to 55LE!! I had good six hour sleep on the train so after an hours nap, I took off to see the Luxor temple which is 10 min walk from the train station.
The luxor temple is very impressive indeed. Particularly its location just across from the nile river, if you can stretch your imagination on how things must have been 4000 years ago....

After spending an hour in Luxor temple I took a boat ride to Western side. Took a shared taxi to the valley of the kings.

Your ticket to valley of kings allows you to visit only three tombs, which I didn't know. However some of the higher up, hidden away tombs can be visited by bakshish of 10LE, its a pain to go back and buy ticket.
It is bit sad to see that men and women have been leaving their calling cards behind in great monuments since 1858!!

It is interesting to see that archaeologists are still finding new tombs in valley of the kings. Some of the tombs have very well preserved paintings.

After visiting about five tombs I decided to hike from valley of the kings to the Temple of Hatshepsut. As you hike you get great views of the valley of the kings as well as the Hatshepsut temple itself.

I had not hired guide but had printed out about 30 pages earlier in the day from web site www.egyptsites.co.uk. The description on this web site is great and I would highly recommend solo travellers to use it. Also if you are going to hike from valley of king to Hatshepsut temple you really do not need guide, although you will be offered one many times. Make sure you take lots of water and food along with you, food prices are 10x once you get to the actual sites. No amount of words can describe the actual grandeur of this site. After spending an hour there walked over to Tombs of the nobels. Its bit difficult to locate all the tombs but you have to ask kids playing around where the tombs are and they will show them. The british guy had highly recommended these tombs as they depict daily life in Egypt, 5000 years ago. I would highly recommend Tomb of Userhet .
Most of the carvings in the temples are about 2-3mm deep.
From the tombs of the Nobels you get great view of the green fields irrigated by the Nile.

After spending couple of hours at tombs of Nobels, and finishing lunch went and visited Temple of Rameses II. Then took the share taxi to visit Temple of Rameses III. I thought this was the best temple in terms of amount colours, if you do visit this temple do not forget to look up, the top has some beautiful colors and paintings.

Makes you think for a minute these things have been in the open close to 4000 years and are still holding the colors!!

After about 8 hours of walking around I was bit tired so decided to go back to the hotel and catch some sleep and visit Karnak temple for the night show at 7.45PM. The night show is bit expensive 50 L.E. but I think it is absolutely worth it.

May be take a can of beer and some chips in your backpack to enjoy the show as during the last part you sit down for 45 min.

Next morning around 7.00AM visited the Karnak Temple. It is grand but I still think Rameses III is far better than Karnak during the day. Next visited small Luxor museum then spent rest of the day watching Nile and working on some beer with some fine Irish lasses I had met on previous day. Irish folks by far are the best travellers in terms of being open, funny and above all non-clanish like so many German, Dutch travellers.