Wonders, Heat, and a Whole Lot of History: Our Adventure in Egypt
If you've ever dreamt of walking through ancient corridors, cruising the Nile, and feeling like Indiana Jones with a sunburn, Egypt is the place. Let me tell you - it was everything we imagined and more. Epic ruins? Check. Blazing heat? Double check. Memories for a lifetime? Absolutely. The most jampacked 10 days of our adventure. Three flights, 1 cruise, and over 45 miles of walking - mostly in the Sahara Desert.
The Great Pyramids and the Sphinx 🐫🌞
We kicked things off with a visit to the Great Pyramids of
Giza. We entered the Pyramid of Khafre and let me tell you... if the ancient
Egyptians didn’t invent the sauna, they were definitely testing the idea. It
was 🔥 in there. We assumed it would be cool as it
is deep under the pyramids, but nope - wrong. We were warned of being afraid of
tight spaces, but the long, sloped corridors only required a stoop-walk. A
little daunting but nothing to worry about. Hot and Sweaty? Yes. Worth it? Absolutely
100%.
Oh, and on the main pyramid, we spotted a dog relaxing on
one of the giant stones in the shade like he owned the place. He had
this look on his face like, “Yeah, I live here… but even I think this heat is
ridiculous.” And at only 103 that day it was bound to get worse. 🐕🦺☀️
Can you spot the real guardian of the Great Pyramid? 🐕🔺 Where’s Waldo, but make it ancient Egypt edition.
And seeing the Sphinx up close? Surreal. Eric’s first
comment was “Jerry Garcia played here with the Dead” - 4500 years of history
and that’s his first comment?
Also, watch out for the peddlers around the pyramids
or anywhere in Egypt - they are relentless. They'll try to sell you anything
from camel rides to fridge magnets to "authentic" papyrus scrolls.
One particularly determined woman shoved a headscarf under Eric’s arm and
absolutely refused to take it back. So... Eric got a new headscarf. 😅🧣
Museum Hopping: Ancient Edition 🏺👑
Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) – This beauty just opened
in February 2023 (grand opening is July 2025) and is packed with amazing
artifacts. It’s the world’s largest archeological museum dedicated to one
civilization. We needed roller skates to see it all. Two main exhibits were not
open yet - Tut’s and Horus’s solar boat. Even without those we spent hours
meandering through rooms that house some of the greatest historical artifacts
known to man. And to top it off, we sat down for an authentic Egyptian meal and
looked across the courtyard to see - what else - but a Starbucks. 😅
The Egyptian Museum – Built in 1901, it’s the oldest museum in the Middle East. Right now, it still houses King Tut’s Mask, chair, and many other artifacts from Tut Ank Aman’s tomb, but not for long. Come July 2025, those treasures move to the GEM. (So, if you’re into vintage museum vibes, go now!) This museum was all Eric could talk about. The building itself was old, the artifacts - some of them simply sitting on pallets in the corner - were amazing. Handwritten notes often were the only documents telling you what the piece was. And Tut Ank Aman’s funerary mask, his golden chair, and the other pieces were unreal - especially after understanding the process to preserve them.
As we drove between museum stops and different parts of
Cairo, we couldn’t help but notice something unexpected, old VW buses. A
surprising number of them! Who knew Cairo was a vintage VW hotspot? 🚐
Its not, but they still use them as their public transportation in Cairo. Eric
was practically hanging out the window every time we passed one. Let’s just say
his ’65 at home would’ve fit right in. 😄
Day Trip to Alexandria – Coastal
Breezes and Ancient Secrets 🌊🏛️
We
couldn’t visit Egypt without making a day trip to Alexandria, and it was
absolutely worth the early morning start. Alexandria has a totally different
vibe - more relaxed, breezy, and mixed with layers of Roman, Greek, and
Egyptian history.
First
up was the Catacomb of Kom El-Shoqafa, an underground burial site that’s
part tomb, part labyrinth. The mix of Egyptian and Greco-Roman architecture is
wild - you’ll find carvings of Anubis dressed in Roman armor.🏺 Not as large as the catacombs in Rome
but worth the trip all the same.
We also explored the Roman Theater where there are remnants of school rooms, homes, and, of course, the Roman bathhouses.🎭 The Pompey’s Pillar stop was a quick one, but impressive. The history of this area and the sheer size of that pillar is mindboggling on how it came to stand there.
Finally, we wandered through the Qaytbay Citadel, a fortress built on the site of the ancient Lighthouse of Alexandria - one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The views of the sea were stunning, and the wind was a welcome relief after days of desert heat.
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