The thing that decides your pictures on the Luxor balloon is which side of the basket you end up on, and nobody mentions it until you are already in there. We lifted at ten to five. Sunrise is around twenty past at the moment, but the sun does not clear the hills behind the east bank until nearer half past, and until then the whole west bank sits in blue shade. The Colossi look grey and flat. Then the light arrives almost horizontal and everything is orange for maybe eight minutes before it turns white and useless. Ask the crew which way the wind is pushing before you climb in, then take the side facing away from the sun. Pickup was 3.50 from the east bank hotels. 21 degrees on the ground, a little less up in the air. Long sleeves, that is all you need.
