We had a guide for the next two day to take us to the Pyramids and then Islamic Cairo. Which is a good thing since unless you have a book or know what you are looking at, you are just a tourist in the desert. Our guide studied for 4 years to be an archeologist then realized it wasn't for her and turned to being a guide. I remember thinking as a kid I wanted to be an archeologist too, digging in Dad's garden or on the beach.... ha. Anyways, our first stop was Saqqarra, the oldest stone structure. The main pyramid hasn't faired well due to it's construction and the earthquake in 1992. They continue to search and just last year found another tomb. The graffiti on all the pyramids amazed me. There are tourist police everywhere but most seem to be dozing off in the sun while kids tag away. The tagging goes back centuries - inside the complex there are the original markings made in the 12th century - always leaving our mark. Giza was wonderful but I felt like I was in a story book from childhood. You see the images so often that when you are there it feels unreal. There wasn't much to see inside the middle pyramid but we went in and now I can say I did. One of the saddest sides of Cairo is the garbage. Everywhere. Even out in the desert you find water bottles and other scraps. The city is a whole other garbage fiasco but I didn't expect to see it everywhere in a tourist destination as well...
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