Cairo

We arrived in Cairo almost on sunset. You could sense the excitement amongst the locals that it was almost the end of their fast time. I don't know how they go a whole day in this heat without drinking. It was about an hour to the hotel on roads in very poor condition, the revolution is taking its toll, money is certainly not being spent on infrastructure. Tourists are few and far between. Our first sighting of the pyramids was amazing, they are truly magnificent. With a population of 22 million in a country that relies heavily on tourism, Cairo is doing it tough. Our guide doesn't normally work during Ramadan due to the heat and not being able to drink, but she was grateful for some work with our arrival. She spoke freely of the revolution, very interesting to hear a local point of view. Today we went to Memphis to see the Statue of Rameses II, a 10m statue of limestone discovered in 1820. On to Saqqara, the oldest pyramid built around 3000BC. Again, the restoration project has ceased due to the revolution. Then the Giza pyramids and sphinx. Ray was fascinated by the boat which was buried with one of the kings so he could sail away in the after life. It's 43m long and built from Lebanese cedar, and remains on site in a museum at the foot of the pyramid.