That first taste. That first glimpse. It’s never enough. It only serves to whet the appetite, as the saying goes. Likewise my first glimpses of Cairo. Plans are swirling.
This is a business trip and, despite knowing that there will most likely not be time to take in the sights, I plan in spite of myself, hopes soaring. All the childhood stories of pharaohs and mummies, reading River God as a teenager and growing up with the biblical and other historical images swirling through my mind. It seems a place of stories and legends and yet, here I am.
The trip starts well and now that I have discovered the sushi bar in the Emirates First & Business Class lounge, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to go back. The lounge feels more like a luxury hotel lobby and there are at least as many staff as there are patrons. The flight is full but comfortable and despite boarding through the first class lounge (it’s not what you know!) my seat is firmly in economy. I settle in and respond to some emails, edit a few documents before succumbing to a movie.
On arrival the first class treatment takes up again, thanks to my business companion and the Ahlan VIP services, which essentially provides a private customs and immigration experience. Within 20 minutes of landing, our visas are stamped and we’re in a car being whisked off to the hotel. My hope soars again as plans swirl and optimism creeps in. Perhaps there will be time after all, thanks to this swift service. In the meantime I enjoy the car ride. The city is certainly eye opening, not to mention the traffic. Reminiscent of China, the beeping, honking and weaving goes on all over the place. The roads are not marked and there are obstacles everywhere – potholes, rubbish, crumbling gutters and sand – that makes the game of chicken with the other vehicles even more alarming. I focus, fascinated, on the views of the city out the window. I catch my first glimpse of the Nile and sightseeing desires swirl along with the dark water below.
After check in my hope still runs high. I change and rush downstairs, quickly agreeing to hire a driver for the 2-3 hours it will take to get to the pyramids, watch the sound and light show and get back again. Will we make it? “Okay ma’am”, it’s out of my hands now. I sit back and let fate decide.
It’s dark now and as we zoom along what I am told is Avenue Charles de Gaulle, it couldn’t be more different from how I might have imagined. There are a few shops open, mostly small cafes and food kiosks selling shawarmas or other local street food. I see a place with a long line and assume they have a particularly great local specialty, only to read the “spark plugs” sign as we go by. I look out over the city and for the first time really notice the lack of lights. Whole apartment buildings are dark and I wonder if they’re still under construction or abandoned or something else. As we pass a donkey and cart my attention is brought back to the street, it’s almost close enough for me to reach out and touch. We also pass a few more donkeys, both with and without carts, some horses and a few small flocks of sheep, sleeping in the gutter or on the sidewalk. Some stand close enough to the road that if they took a step back or a vehicle suddenly swerved, well….we continue along, my eyes wide open, I grin to myself.
After what can only be described as a gripping ride, we arrive, unmarred. There is a ticket booth and I am told to meet my driver back here at 8:30pm – I have 1 hour & 10 mins. I buy a ticket for the Sound and Light Show and wander in to look up and behold my first sighting of the pyramids. They loom large on the horizon, even bigger than I had imagined, given how far away we are from them. I wander up to the front of the seating to snap some pictures. I sit and gaze and realise how peckish I am so I head back to the popcorn at the entrance, even though I had lunch on the flight, that’s now 6 hours ago.
At exactly 7:30pm the area goes dark and a voice booms through the speakers. The story of the pyramids begins. I watch as the lights change on the pyramids and pictures are projected on the enormous stone and sphinx in front of the crowd. It follows the story of the pharaohs that built and now rest in these majestic tombs, of the hundreds of thousands of men that built them, of the Giza plateau and the mighty Nile that feeds it. My mind wanders and I lose track of the story as I gaze at the slabs of rock, each weighing up to 2.5 tonnes, each stacked up, one upon the other into a perfect ancient mathematical equation come to life.
I can’t wipe the smile from my face as I take in the rest of the show and make my way back to the car on its conclusion. I am asked if I enjoyed it but enjoy seems the wrong sentiment – I am inspired, astounded, in awe. “Incredible” is all I can come out with at the time. It was that and so much more – just a taste, just a glimpse of the rest that I now long to see – those enormous stones up close, to see the tombs, feel the coolness of the rocks on entering inside, to explore around and ride a camel across the western plain to see them in the glow of sunset.
The ride back is equally enthralling and I brave the dust and smog to have my window down for the full experience. Even in the car I feel conspicuous as several people smile and wave to me – including two young ladies who shout out a friendly “hey!” smiling and waving from atop another donkey.
I’m hungry now and ask the driver if we might stop somewhere for a shawarma. As we get back to the old town, he pulls into a street, not too far from the hotel, I’m told to stay in the car. He chats to the vendor and I see him carving the meat off the rotisserie as a cat crosses between us, watching hopefully. Having procured the sandwich as requested, the driver returns to the car and hands me a foil wrapped package, hot and smelling delicious. My mouth waters but it seems rude to dig in straight away and I wait to be dropped back at the hotel.
It’s nearly 9:30pm as I unwrap my shawarma and log back into finalise a few things for meetings in the morning. After a shower I flop into bed. It’s nearly midnight and it’s been a long day. As I take one last look at the lights shining down on the Nile, I’m utterly delighted with my first taste, my first glimpse of Cairo. Plans to come back for more swirl as surely as the water of the Nile.
Would I Return?
Yes. I really only saw the mighty pyramids from afar. I want to go exploring – the pyramids, the museums, the old town. It’s all there, waiting.
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