Cairo: INSIDE The Great Pyramid!


(Another crazy keyboard!) Cairo was so busy. The traffic is really bad. Everyone told me but still it was a lot worse than I imagined. They make 3 lanes into 6 and it is rush hour all the time. The local people cross the street in the middle of traffic. Passing one car and standing in the middle of the road for the next one to pass. Just like a real life game of Frogger.

The first offical morning of the trip we started right out with the Great Pyramid. We left the hotel at 7:30 AM and were there by 7:40 AM. Couldn't get our tickets until 8:00 AM but we stood in line because only the first 150 people in the morning and afternoon can actually enter. And they will only sell to the actual person because they are afraid that the tickets would be sold on the black market otherwise.

To go inside the pyramid at first it is like going into a cave. But as you move further you have to go up this ramp where it is not tall enough to stand up straight so you are arched over. This one goes on for awhile and you come out to an opening where you can stand up straight only for a minute and you then have another ramp. The end is a long low wall that you crawl under. You come out to this room where you can stand up and it was the tomb. Coming back out was a lot worse because now it was getting really crowded and hot. That same way in is the way out so now we are sharing it with two way traffic. It was not as bad as I thought though but still I was happy to get to the outside. Especially after being stuck inside for about 5 min while a handicapped woman came up. Really! The lights stayed on for me, which was nice. But I still wore my headlamp. (Thanks Aimee!)

Next we went on a camel ride in the desert. Followed by the Solar Boat Museum and the Sphinx. We went to a papyrus making demonstrations which was really interesting. After lunch we went to Memphis and Sakkara. It was a long day but really amazing.

The next day was the Egyptian Museum and the Citadel. After we had lunch )the best meal yet -- calamari stew. Then we went to the bazaar and shopping for jewelry.

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