It has been 24 years since I visited Egypt. At the time, I was on a 38-day holiday and the last leg involved a border-crossing from Israel into Egypt and a Nile Cruise aboard a luxurious M/S Oberoi Riverboat. Awesome land of the Pharaohs — that, despite the chaos, noise and dust! I swear my heart skipped a beat the first time I set my eyes on these ancient wonders, let alone when I entered one of the pyramids feeling like an explorer. The sheer size of these monuments and ancient wonders is beyond imagination and I wasn’t sure how I’d feel going through the same experience 24 years since 1996.

Fast forward 2020. Climate change and Covid-2019 looms in the horizon. But we remain unfazed. We arrived in the evening in Cairo, eager to rest our tired bods following a long flight. The next whole day gets a good start with the Great Pyramids of Giza. And let me warn you, they’re not called GREAT for nothing. Standing at the edges of the Western Desert a few miles west of the Nile, this necropolis is this country’s iconic landmarks along with the Sphinx which lies east of the entire complex. Imagine Egypt without the pyramids is like thinking of Macchu Picchu without the citadel atop the mountain. The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt surely knew how best they can be remembered long after they’re dead. The largest (in Giza) and the oldest pyramid (in Saqqara) are the most visited ones but every visitor can’t resist being impressed even with smaller, satellite pyramids found in the sandy fields of Giza and Memphis. The “mastabas” for lesser royals add more charm to the entire necropolis.

Tourism absolutely thrives in Egypt. And every child must have gone through that phase wishing to be an archaeologist, or maybe even an Egyptologist studying and exploring these ancient wonders. Such an inheritance for this African country! And those camel touts must be doing brisk business too. Thank you Kings Khafre, Khufu and Menkaure. Your legacy lives on.

History comes alive in the evening’s Light and Sound Show. Some of my travel buddies braved the cold and sat, stared and listened in the open area as the sound and lighting system did its job. What a perfect way to cap the day!