Cairo Giza Pyramids Sphinx River Nile, the only remaining monuments of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, are a fascinating example of the architectural masterpieces that were built during the height of the Pharaonic Civilization.

The ancient Egyptians built pyramids as tombs for the pharaohs and their queens. The pharaohs were buried in pyramids of many different shapes and sizes from before the beginning of the Old Kingdom to the end of the Middle Kingdom.

There are about eighty pyramids. The three largest and best-preserved of these were built at Giza. The most well-known of these pyramids was built for the pharaoh Khufu. So, you though the Pyramids were out in the desert, far away from settlements. When driving up to the pyramidal area you realize. Above the roofs the two largest pyramids rise up. From some angles you feel like they're coming down from the sky, just about to land on the houses of Giza. The truth is not far from this. The residents area ends, then there is a border of shacks, before the bedrock carrying the pyramids rise some five metres above everything else.

Cairo, with its 14 million inhabitants is one of the most fascinating cities in the world, as so many civilizations and historical epochs are represented here. Nearby, the Pyramids of Giza, perhaps the most famous human effort ever, is located, along with many other impressive monuments.

The central Cairo is a bustling affair, often appearing like a group of major cities without real borders in between. And through the city, the life line of one of the world's earliest civilizations run, the Nile.

Cairo the Giza pyramids and its people are proud of their history. No matter what country you come from, their achievement is something more spectacular than other people have ever built.

The National Museum could be worth a holiday by itself. The museum (its official name is Museum of Egyptian Antiquities) holds some of the finest treasures of human history, and is filled far beyond the capacity of the 100 year old building.

The most attractive parts of Old Cairo are the Coptic quarters, with the Hanging Church, the friendly and attractive Coptic Museum, which reflects the period where ancient Egypt changed into Christian and Muslim Egypt.