Pyramids of Giza

Since we all went to bed early last night, the girls got up early this morning. They vegged for a few and then we got ready and went to breakfast on the roof. The pyramid view is excellent!! It was so fun to eat and gaze at them! Our driver (Mimo) arrived right after we sat down (we had arranged pickup at 9 am, and it was 8:15). Come to find out later, he showed up earlier because it's better to get going earlier with today's itinerary. Wish they had relayed that to us last night...they just let us pick a time (breakfast starts at 8). But it always has a way of working out.

First, we went to the Great Pyramids, then up and behind them to ride camels, then to the Sphinx. The pyramids are so towering and magnificent! We particularly liked going up and touching them. There is a small area you can climb up a few blocks and walk to the entrance (empty rooms inside). There are two different kinds of blocks that make up the pyramid - one that looks like smooth stone and another that looks porous: like a mix of materials. To this day no one knows what it's made of or how they constructed it. Crazy! Earthquakes have caused a lot of the blocks to tumble, especially the smooth outer layer. And the gold tip on the Great Pyramid was pillaged. Emma really took to Mimo and wanted to hold his hand and hang on him and have him carry her (even after all the talks we've give her). He was so kind and said he didn't mind- he has 4 kids too! He called the girls "My sweets" and "My loves". So cute! They drove us up behind the pyramids where they do camel rides. The price is government regulated, so no negotiating. That was really nice!

Everyone wanted to ride their own camels, but Emma was too young so she rode with Peter. Clara vacillated quite a bit, but was really happy she decided to ride her own. We all really enjoyed the camel ride!! It was quite short (20 min or so), but really fun to enjoy the pyramids from that angle! And the camels were nice and let us pet them! Then we drove to the Sphinx (all are within trekking distance, but it is a bit more spread out than I imagined) and after seeing the pyramids, the Sphinx seemed small. But still really cool- a protector of the tomb!

Second, we got lunch and went to the Egyptian Museum. Mimo stopped at a street vendor and we got meat sandwiches/tortillas and fries. They were yummy! We were walking to a hotel lobby to eat, but the girls just couldn't wait any longer, so we stopped on the street and sat on a ledge and ate. I preferred that anyway! Then we enjoyed the Cairo Egyptian Museum. The Grand Egyptian Museum was set to open a couple months ago, but it is delayed. So many artifacts and statues from tombs! I was most excited to see King Tutankhamun's exhibit. It was in a smaller room and no photography was allowed- bummer! The death mask and the sarcophagus' were so intricate - what amazing handiwork!!! 3 layers! Just wow! Mimo knew so much history and stories- he kept it interesting for all of us and that was awesome! He could see the kids were getting done, so had us skip to the "Animal Room" that he thought they would enjoy. Mummified animals filled the room. The girls really did like that! So nice to have his knowledge! Mimo told us the story of Horus and Anubis (cousins). He taught us that on King Tut's mask the Cobra is the symbol of power on the earth and the Vulture is the symbol of power in the sky. He also taught us the 7 things the ancient Egyptians believed they needed to make it to the afterlife: a tomb, a sarcophagus, their eyes open, a shadow, organs out except for the heart (would be put on the scale to see how good they were) and kidneys (cycle of water for our

bodies), food left out for their spirit to eat the spirit food, and sunlight and moonlight (silver and gold). Very fascinating! Mimo told us that the black dirt on the hieroglyphics is called Kimet. And it became the name for Egypt. It has had several renditions over the years.

Third, we visited Khan El Khalili (downtown market). It was huge!! It went forever and spread down every little street. Mimo took us winding through, and up some stairs and more winding through to some cheap shops where the price is listed. And no one pressuring you. Nice! He said he took his kids here too. Each girl got a little trinket. And one of the shop owners gave all the girls a gift and let Emma pick an extra thing because he thought she was so cute! Sweet. Addy also went to buy something from him and he told her "gift". She felt so special!! It was nearing 5 pm, so I said we wanted to go so we had time for dinner, but the traffic was so busy in the city that we sat on one bridge for more than 30 minutes! We saw a fender bender happen right next to us. I cannot describe adequately the driving here- the lane markers are mere suggestions (if you wanted a suggestion), they don't wear seat belts (& some cars aren't even equipped with them), a lot of them are on their phones while driving, and if we thought honking in Jordan was bad, we hadn't seen anything yet!! It took 2 hours to get back to our hotel.

Earlier in the day, Mimo heard that Addy really liked Hawawshi and said he would get her some of the best. On our long drive home he ordered some and picked it up from a street stand. He got enough for all of us! So kind! That really helped so we could eat right when we got back (it was really good! They didn't fold the pita, but one on top and one on bottom of the meat), hop up to the roof to see the "Sound and Light Show" at the Pyramids for a minute, then fall into bed.

Thankfully the hotel will keep our extra luggage for us (YAY!), so Peter and I ran down 4 rolling bags and 3 backpacks. That will make traveling SO much easier!

Theme today: Is it kind? (before we speak)

Our favorite things:
Emma: I liked my friend.
Clara: I liked going to the pyramids!
Leesie: My favorite thing was going to the pyramids and the Sphinx. It was just really cool to see!
Addy: I just liked all of it - it was really fun!
Kathy: My favorite thing was riding the camels!! I wanted to ever since reading about Egypt and it did not disappoint!! Super cool!
Peter: My favorite thing was seeing the pyramids and riding the camels. Also, it was cool to navigate to that cheap shop!

Miracles:
- Safe travels in this crazy traffic! We saw a 4 lane freeway turn into a 5-6 lane road. Crazy!
- The hotel will hold our luggage until we return to Cairo next week! Happy happy day day!