معبد فيلة

Philae is the loveliest of Aswan's temples, a graceful complex dedicated to Isis, goddess of love and magic, whose worship lingered here for centuries after the rest of Egypt had turned to other faiths. Reached only by boat, it rises straight from its island, columns and pylons mirrored in the water, one of the most romantic arrivals in all of Egypt.

Its survival is a story in itself: when the dams threatened to submerge it, the entire temple was cut into blocks and reassembled stone by stone on higher Agilkia island in a UNESCO rescue. Wander its colonnades, hypostyle hall and Roman kiosk, and return after dark for the sound-and-light show that floods the stones with colour and narration.