To say Cairo is a city of contrasts is perhaps an understatement. It is an astonishing mix of reminders from an ancient world that sit, surprisingly comfortably, with modern day life. You can see historic buildings and market squares in Old Cairo, fabulous Mamluk and Ottoman mosques, Christian churches, swish hotels and contemporary commercial offices in Greater Cairo, lush parks, residential areas and the amazing area where the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx in Giza dominate the skyline and the city meets the desert.
To the west of Central Cairo are the Pyramids of Giza on the Giza plateau, not far from the site of the ancient city of Memphis and Saqqara. The last remaining Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the pyramids are the iconic image of Egypt. You can visit the Great Pyramid built for King Khufu of the 4th dynasty, the slightly smaller Pyramid of Khafre dated from around 2500 BC and the Pyramid of Menkaure. Dotted around are several smaller pyramids where members of the kings’ families would have been entombed.
To one side stands the much-photographed Sphinx with its body of a lion and the head of a human, while a short walk away is the Solar Boat Museum that houses a full-size ancient Egyptian boat that was discovered in pieces but put together again with much care. It is fascinating to see.
Saqqara complex of pyramids and monuments, the centrepieces of which are the Step Pyramid of Djoser and the Pyramid of Sekhmket, along with the city of Memphis that during much of the Pharaonic Egypt period was the capital city.
While the Pyramids of Giza and the beautiful Sphinx that ‘guards’ them date from Pharaonic times and are one of the oldest monuments in the city today, Old Cairo, or Coptic Cairo as it is known, is where the city actually began. In fact, the area, along with Memphis, Saqqara and Dahshur, predates the city as we know it today.
This page content and information provided by the Egyptian Tourist Authority Egypt. travel
