By Danielle Rizkallah
Here, in Luxor, on the West Bank, between the Pharaohs resting in the mountains of Thebes, and the great temples in Luxor, lies a gem of a hotel, an oriental palace called Al Moudira. The sun has called it home, and colored it in gold, pink and blue.
The hotel opened its doors in 2002 to people looking for serenity, history, art and comfort. Zeina Aboukheir, the soul of this cosmopolitan hotel chose this unique piece of land to build her dream. A guest house inspired by Turkish, Moorish, Italian and Lebanese design. An empire of beautiful things with 54 different rooms where one is privileged to peacefully enjoy some unforgettable moments, amidst hibiscus, bouganvillea and palm trees.
Aboukheir has teamed up with Olivier Sednaoui, a famous architect and a disciple of the Egyptian architect Hassan Fathi. Sednaoui’s work is defined by a construction linking the infinitely small and the infinitely big. Dual spaces, arcs, corridors, alternating shadows and light like an oasis in the desert.
Rooms and suites are grouped around sunny patios with fountains and arches. Every room is decorated differently, domes, colored glass, columns, internal fountains and painted walls. Each making life sweet and nonchalant.
I like travelling, far from life’s stresses and the heaviness of the real world; into privileged places where one feels invited into an ideal world of discovery, and dreams.
Luxor and Al Moudira are one of these places and I have accepted this invitation many times before.
