This is my travel diary of my trip to Egypt. It contains in detail my memories of what I did and saw.

Monday October 26, 2015

Egypt: Day 5, Part 2 – Khufu, Khafre, & Menkaure

One thing people always warn you is that the size of the pyramids make them seem like they are close enough to walk to…but they really aren’t. Which is why we had hopped back into the van near Khufu’s pyramid, and drove past Khafre. I strained to see it as we drove by. A short time later we were in front of Menkaure’s Pyramid, looking at the deep scar across one of its sides. (The damage done in the 12th century when a sultan attempted to dismantle the pyramids, but gave up when it found it to expensive and hard to do so.)

We got out and those of us who were going to ride the camels walked up to the far side of the pyramid to wait to get on our camels. You can read (and see photos) about my camel ridding experience here. Here are some photos of the pyramids (and queen’s smaller pyramids) from the ride.

Afterwards we returned to the van and headed to an overlook so we could see all 3 pyramids. While the Pyramids are close to the city of Giza on one side, on the other the desert does stretch on.

We took some photos of the amazing view, as well as many group photos. I remember the old Egyptian local who was taking our photos was saying some pretty funny/outrageous things to get our attention.

First Group Photo! Back Row Left to Right: Thomas, Linda, James, Carol, Sharon, John, Richard. Front Row Left to Right: Maxine, George, Magda, Mikel, Lillian, Jane, Marilyn, Tara, Me, Elizabeth

And then everyone broke out to take their own photos. Elizabeth and I also took a rather geeky “Weasley Vacation” movie where she held a photo of a rat (Scabbers) and I had a wand. It didn’t turn out how I expected but it was pretty funny the looks we got.

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I do have to admit I had major Hat Envy. I loved Elizabeth’s hat. It was the hat I envisioned an early explorer of Egypt would wear. I had wanted to get one like it, but didn’t for a few reasons. 1) Those hats don’t pack well, and I didn’t want to wear it on the plane (like my sister and her friends did when they shared a hat around the world.) 2) I didn’t want to spend money on a hat, I already had purchased so much for my trip. and 3) My parents had a hat I could borrow, which would pack flat. But, I regretted this hat the entire trip. My photos of it look awful to me, but the important part was it kept me from getting sunburned.

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