The Pyramids

No trip to Egypt would be complete without visiting the pyramids, and we headed straight for them our first morning in Cairo. Our first stop was the step pyramid of Saqqara. This pyramid is 5000 years old. It is amazing to think that for 5000 years, day and night, this building has been sitting there in the desert. We went around the back side of it, and were easily able to get up the first step. We though that we would be able to climb the whole thing, but there were guards on the other side that were armed with machine guns. “Think about it,” Dustin said, “Those guys stand out here all day with loaded guns that they never get to shoot. I would jump at the chance to pick two Americans off the top of the pyramid.” He was right, so we headed back down. This pyramid has an aura about it that is pretty amazing.

Next we headed to Giza. These are the pyramids you see in pictures, where the Sphinx is. We rode around the area on horses, and Dustin almost fell off the side at a full gallop. It is hard to imagine how these huge structures were built. I know that these pharaohs had hundreds of thousands of slaves at their disposal, but these structures are an amazing accomplishment, and are hard to believe even when you are looking right at them.