Cairo: Day Two

Our second day in Cairo we visited The Great Pyramids of Giza, Memphis, and Saqqara. Our lovely tour guide planned the itinerary and we loved seeing things that we would not have planned on seeing otherwise. We started our day with a visit The Great Pyramids. From pictures it seems that the Pyramids are located deep in the desert, but this is not the case. They are literally right next to the suburb of Cairo. It is a little anti climatic to get to, as you are driving along and you’re like, ‘Oh there are the pyramids.’ But they are still amazingly impressive. I mean they were built in  2560 BC. That is 4570 years old. And you can still go inside the three big pyramids. So not only are they old but they are in very decent condition which is quite astonishing seeing as you can climb all over them and touch whatever you like. There is basically no active preservation beside a few signs that say not to climb in certain places, but these are largely disregarded. When we were there the Great Pyramid was open so we were able to climb into the kings chamber. This pyramid belonged to Cheops. It was the first pyramid built in the complex, but definitely not the first or oldest pyramid in Egypt. The climb into the Kings chamber made for an interesting but not altogether pleasant experience. These ancient tombs have been empty for about 4000 years but the kings chamber still holds the sarcophagus as it was too large to remove from the pyramid. The tunnel that leads to the kings room are very narrow and you have to crouch most of the climb to the chamber. There is only one route in and out so you are also passing people going in the opposite direction the entire climb which makes it interesting in the narrow, low, and dark passage. 

After we climbed the pyramid we took some photos, were mobbed by children, and headed to the solar boat museum. The name is a little misleading, it is really just a boat museum. In the 1950’s archaeologists found a boat buried next to the pyramid where Cheops was buried. It was analyzed and the archaeologist realized that this boat was buried so that the king could have his boat in the afterlife, only unlike all his other possessions that were buried in the pyramid this boat was way too big to fit inside, so it was buried next to it. It was reconstructed and now on display in the Solar Boat Museum. Thankfully the climate in Egypt is dry so the condition of the boat is really excellent. The rope that latched the boat together was still intact (although no usable), and the oars were still there.

Oh hey I am all by myself...

30 seconds later I am surrounded by children wanting pictures. Time to move on. 

The triangle cutout was the original entrance but it was sealed off and now the entrance is lower down, where there is a line of people standing. 

There are two of the smaller queen/mother/sister pyramids at the site.

After visiting the boat museum we headed for a camel ride and a lookout point where you can see all three big pyramids.

Our final stop at the giza pyramids was the Sphynx. In the photo above I am standing in a building that was built for preparing the Pharaoh Chephren's body for burial. Chephern also commissioned the sphinx to be built. It was built as a 'guardian of the pyramid' and much later people started to worship it. 

People walk wherever. A kid walked right in front of the car without even looking but thankfully we were going at a snails pace so he was alright. There aren't really sidewalks or crosswalks everyone just walks in the road and crosses when they like. Let me mention that there was not a single car I saw that didn't have a scratch or dent on it. Last time Ben was in Cairo their taxi driver got into an accident. Considering how they drive it makes sense that all the cars are so damaged. There aren't lanes drawn onto most roads so everyone makes their own lane which usually involves two other people lane space. 

Our next stop was Memphis. Here Ben and I are standing in front of the sphinx of Memphis. Memphis was the capital of Egypt ruled by Menes. Menes united upper and lower Egypt in 3100BC and built the capital on the boarder between the two lands. 

My favorite thing at this site was this giant statue of Rameses II. The legs of this statue are located here in London at the British Museum. Next time Ben in home we are going to go to the museum and look at the legs. 

Our final stop for the day was Saqqara. We really enjoyed this as there we very few people there and the site was so impressive. The main highlights at Saqqara are the step pyramid and the ancient building and tombs.  

To get to the pyramid you walk though that door. 

Sitting break! Also that is Ben's co-worker who also popped over to Cairo for the weekend and did some touring around with us. 

The step pyramid was under renovation, which is understandable considering it is near 5000 years old. 

Even though I am dusty, hungry, and tired at this point I still have a spring in my step because Ancient Egypt is just that cool! 

This partially collapsed pyramid was our last stop before heading back to the hotel for some food. Here the burial chamber is below the pyramid. When you go inside there is hieroglyphics inscribed on several of the walls. The condition of the writing is simply incredible. 

Puppies!

After our day of sightseeing we relaxed at the hotel for a bit and then headed out for some dinner. Our hotel was right next to The Nile. The Nile is big, but is is not clean. There is a ton of rubbish just floating near the bank of the river.

Can't see any rubbish in this picture though. 

I couldn't quite figure out what this cart was selling but they were trying to get us to buy whatever it was.

This kid is selling cotton candy. And that concludes our second day. An amazing whirlwind tour of ancient Cairo, and an evening stroll on the Nile.