Giza and Sakkara Pyramids:
A Cairo Daytrip
Guys, I don’t even know who I am anymore. I mean, I’ve been to Egypt twice this year. To the PYRAMIDS twice this year! And I still haven’t climbed any of them! I feel like I’m losing what was once an integral part of my identity!
I mean, I think I’m still the same person right? Given the opportunity to either fly directly from Dubai to Vienna or take a ridiculously long and uncomfortable routing from Abu Dhabi via Cairo to Vienna, I elected for the second for just that brief stopover in a distant and barely-explored land.
And it was totally worth the lack of sleep and uncomfortable smelliness after a full day and change without a shower. (Note: I had a row to myself on the Cairo – Vienna flight. One must wonder if these two ideas are somehow related.) Since my first trip in Cairo was all about the Old Town and Egyptian Museum, I elected for the second to head a bit out of town towards the historic sites at Sakkara and Memphis.
Sakkara was great, with far fewer touts than Giza and literally two other tourist in the entire vast complex. Ok, maybe the Pyramids aren’t quite as Great as Giza; the atmosphere is the same though and as a bonus the admission price is waaaay less.
I also headed out to Memphis, which while super important historically is at present basically a small city with a smaller museum. It was sort of novel given the role the city played in Egyptian history, but end the end it was just a few more statues – far less worthwhile than the Egyptian Museum in Cairo for example.
In the end, heading back to the airport anyways, I stopped off again at the Pyramids (just a few kilometers away). Since I’d done the obvious angles last time (and since the sun was significantly higher this visit) I decided to walk through the desert a bit to find a unique angle. Totally worth it. If you’re ever in the area trying to take some photos, head to the bluffs overlooking the cemetery and Sphinx; preferably towards sunset.
Heck, I’d go back once more just to take those photos. And who knows, maybe then I’ll be able to do a little off-trail exploring?
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I visited Sakkara and Giza while working as a photographer for GetYourGuide on one of their tours. Giza and the Great Pyramids are meant to be pretty easy to get to via public transport of taxis. For Memphis and Sakkara, though, you might actually do better to go with a guide or at least hire a private driver for the day.
