Cairo, Egypt - Day 39

We docked at 7:00am in Port Said. We had a nice surprise when we disembarked and noticed that our driver was the same man we had in Alexandria. He had driven from his home in Alexandria for the three hour drive in to Cairo to pick up our guide and then drove the three hours to Port Said to pick us up. The port authorities made us wait at the port until 8:15 so that we could caravan with other tour groups and guards for the trip to Cairo.

After an hour, we were able to break away from the caravan and speed towards the Great Pyramids of Giza. What an awesome sight! We spent an hour or so at the site but did not go inside the pyramid or ride a camel. We did go to the Solar Boat display at the base of the middle pyramid. Four years ago, they discovered this several thousand year-old wooden boat enclosed inside a stone tomb. Makes you wonder what else is buried out there in the sand.

Next, our driver took us over to the Sphinx and the Valley Temple. It was amazing to finally be that close to one of the wonders of the world. It is hard to believe that until recently, they allowed people to walk right up beside it.

Then it was on to lunch at an open air bazaar. We had chicken and lamb served on little barbeques. They had little old ladies sitting around small fire pits cooking home-made pita bread. Delicious! We drove to the Step Pyramid. This pyramid is older than the Pyramids of Giza and shows how early attempts at pyramid building was done.

Finally, we were delivered to our hotel located at the foot of the Great Pyramids. The picture below is the view from our balcony which was quite inspiring. We relaxed for a few hours and then at dusk our driver took us to the Light and Sound Show at the base of the Sphinx. The setting was breathtaking with the Pyramids and Sphinx bathed in lights but the show was incredibly bad. Upon return to the hotel, we had room service and then crashed for the night.

What an incredible day!