PYRAMID POWER

The return flight to Hurghada on Petroleum Air Services was happily uneventful and we were safely on the Clio in good time. Today we will sail to the port of Ain Sokhna on the Red Sea. From there a bus will take us through Cairo to Giza and the great pyramid complex.

Cairo is one of the world’s largest cities, more than 20 million people mill about among the antiquities. Over 40,000 people per square mile are dodging cars and camels and donkeys… a travel guide calls it a, “city of a thousand minarets” and the Islamic architecture gives the city its character. More than three times the size of New York, Cairo is the center of culture, education, industry and religion for Egypt and much of the Middle East . The place is also the center of pollution, decay and traffic chaos.

Before we are cut loose at the pyramid complex we are taken to lunch at the historic Mena House Hotel, a classic hotel that was frequented by Winston Churchill, Agatha Christie and Charlton Heston. As we munch, we can see the pyramids from our table and more than one person is commenting that they want to cut lunch short so we can get from so-so hummus to one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In yet another absurd juxtaposition Uber is doing a corporate event in the hotel plaza complete with television cameras and champagne.

Finally, we are able to walk to the Great Pyramid and its two companions Khafre and Menkaure. We are suddenly at 2589 BC and the place is genuinely awe inspiring. We are advised that we can actually go into the Great Pyramid but there is a caveat…those with bad backs are warned that much of the passage will require a bent over frog walk. Only three of our party opt to travel into the pyramid, the rest of us are content to climb the exterior to the entrance and enjoy the view of Cairo which is laid out for us behind a line of camels that wait patiently for tourists.

We also tour a relatively new structure that houses The Solar Boat. The Solar Boat was a ritual vessel in which the deceased King would sail with the Sun God Ra across the heavens. The gods themselves used the Solar Boat to sail between the worlds of Gods and Man. This particular Solar Boat was found in more than 1,400 pieces in an excavation behind the Great Pyramid. Restored, the ship is massive and believed to be 2,400 years old. Also known as the Khufu Ship, she is 143 feet long and 19.5 feet wide. Even at this size, the ship is graceful with beautiful lines…fit for a King.

A quick ride then gets us to the famous hillside where tourists can take the required picture. The lay of the land makes it possible to create the illusion that one is standing with a finger on top of the pyramid. Judging by the crowd of photographers few miss this photo opportunity.

As the day wanes we make a last stop at the Sphinx that stands guard at the site. The Sphinx is a guardian carved from a single, massive limestone slab. It stands on the West Bank of the Nile predictably facing east toward the domain of the rising sun. The riddle remains.

On our way back to the Clio we pass between the dogs, camels, horses and donkeys on the streets of Cairo. Looking forward to our passage through the Suez Canal.