Tourism

Horseback Riding at the Giza Pyramids

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View of Giza’s Great Pyramids.

I was very fortunate to be invited by my friend, co-worker and fellow Cascadian Becky to join a desert horseback ride to see the Giza Pyramids. She has been taking lessons at Cairo Horse Riding School, which has beautiful facilities in Giza.

Goat traffic on the way to the riding school on a small, country road in Giza. This is not typical of Cairo traffic at all!
Goat traffic on the way to the riding school on a small, country road in Giza. This is not typical of Cairo traffic at all!

Although the last time I rode a horse was during a childhood summer camp, I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to experience a different perspective of the pyramids. The owners of the school, Tamer and Jenny, were very friendly and patient with this beginner. Tamer stayed near me and led my horse, Sumayah, a white Arabian.

The first glimpse of the Pyramid Complex!
The first glimpse of the Pyramid Complex!
I like this picture because of the contrast of the desert on the left and the green farmland of Giza on the right.
I like this picture because of the contrast of the desert on the left and the green farmland of Giza on the right.

Especially because I’m not too keen on riding a camel due to ethical reasons, I definitely recommend the experience as an alternative way to see the villages and stables in Giza and the neighboring Great Pyramids.

Jenny, me and Becky on our Arabians with the Giza Pyramids in the background.
Jenny, me and Becky on our Arabians with the Giza Pyramids in the background.

It was a very quiet and peaceful experience. Parts of the desert felt like we were in another world or the set of “Star Wars,” which was filmed in Tunisia, not too far from here, I guess!

View of desert riders and the city of Cairo in the distance.
View of desert riders and the city of Cairo in the distance.

We saw Egyptian riders at full gallop enjoying the wide, open space of the desert. Because it is December, it wasn’t too hot, but the sun is still pretty powerful. And there was a desert wind, as the sound on my short video reminded me.

The desert "café" is a great place for riders to stop and take a rest.
The desert “café” is a great place for riders to stop and take a rest.
Tamer leading the horses to a resting spot.
Tamer leading the horses to a resting spot.

When we reached the viewpoint of the Giza Pyramids, we stopped at a tent, where a man came out to take our order for tea and cold beverages. I could get used to this view and service! And now I have seen the pyramids from the north, east and south (desert).

Me with my mint tea enjoying the view. As I get older, I’m less shy about doing new things!
Me with my mint tea enjoying the view. As I get older, I’m less shy about doing new things!
The three largest Pyramids of Giza and the three smaller ones on the left are the Pyramids of the Queens.
The three largest Pyramids of Giza and the three smaller ones on the left are the Pyramids of the Queens.

Thank you for the unforgettable experience.

Video: Horseback Riding at the Giza Pyramids

If You Go…

Cairo Horse Riding School Desert Rides

  • Giza, Egypt
  • About 2-3 hours for saddling up, riding and rest break
  • Very safety-minded, using helmets and precautions
  • Horses are very well taken care of
  • About $20 USD

Great Pyramids Sound and Light Show

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Great Pyramids Sound and Light Show

I definitely felt like a tourist when I decided to go and see the Giza Pyramids sound and light show, but I didn’t care. I am part tourist and part temporary teacher transplant. I read online that the show was a little cheesy and that is exactly what convinced me to go. With a free weekend night, I set off.

My entrance ticket outside the gate. The English show runs every night.
My entrance ticket outside the gate. The English show runs every night.

Although there are a multitude of tour companies offering to pick you up, deposit you onsite and take you back home, there is no need to book a “tour” to do this. Just arrange a taxi, driver or Uber to take you and wait out the hour-long show. Even as a foreign woman alone on a Friday night, it was fine.

I paid 135 Egyptian Pounds (about $8 USD) for a “front row” seat, but as most tourist things in Cairo, even on a weekend, it was not busy nor did I have to fight the crowds. As soon as I walked in, I saw the Sphinx in front of the outlines of the three largest pyramids. I think that was worth the ticket price alone. Although I had seen the pyramids from afar, this was my first up close and personal. And with the lack of crowds, you really do feel like you have a private audience with the pyramids.

The illuminated Sphinx, with the body of a lion and the head of a person, is quite smaller than the pyramids but still impressive.
The illuminated Sphinx, with the body of a lion and the head of a person, is quite smaller than the pyramids but still impressive.
From smallest to largest: Pyramid of Menkaure, Pyramid of Khafre and Pyramid of Khufu.
From smallest to largest: Pyramid of Menkaure, Pyramid of Khafre and Pyramid of Khufu.

Somebody corralled me and told me where the best seat was (the far right, front). I sat down and waited for the show to start. With a booming narration and moving lights, the show tells the story of how the pyramids were built and how they survived the ages. There are images projected onto stone walls as well as the Great Sphinx of Giza himself.

The Great Pyramid Complex illuminated by colored lights. If you have a tripod for your camera, bring it with you.
The Great Pyramid Complex illuminated by colored lights. If you have a tripod for your camera, bring it with you.
The Great Sphinx. Can you spot his lion paws? The Sphinx is thought to represent the Pharaoh Khafre, whose pyramid is behind the Sphinx from this view.
The Great Sphinx. Can you spot his lion paws? The Sphinx is thought to represent the Pharaoh Khafre, whose pyramid is behind the Sphinx from this view.
In this view, the Sphinx is superimposed with a mask, a nose and a false chin/beard.
In this view, the Sphinx is superimposed with a mask, a nose and a false chin/beard.

If You Go…

Great Pyramids Sound and Light Show

  • 100 EGP for regular or 135 EGP for “VIP”
  • English show every night
  • From May 1 to September 30: 7:30 p.m.
  • From October 1 to April 30: 7:00 p.m.
  • Make sure to specify the east entrance of light and sound show near the Sphinx, not the regular pyramids entrance, which is more to the north
  • Bring a jacket, it gets cool and windy at night, especially after October
  • Don’t have high expectations, it’s just for fun and snapping pictures!

Whirlwind: India, Nepal and Thailand

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February 2015 Trip Collage

The world is a big place. We’ve tried our best to take advantage of our current locale to visit parts of the world that previously seemed unreachable. In August 2014, we spent two weeks traversing Australia. Japan on its own could fill years of travels, but we’ve started chipping away with trips to Kyoto and Osaka, Fukuoka and Mt. Fuji among others. However, our latest adventure has been the most epic yet. Spanning 33 days, three countries and every transportation method imaginable, we’ve had a taste of southern Asia that’s left us hungry for more.

Travel Map
From Tokyo to Delhi, Kathmandu to Bangkok… our 2015 tour de Southeast Asia. Click on the image for a closer view.

Beginning in Delhi, India, we toured the northern part of the world’s seventh largest country before crossing into Nepal. From Kathmandu, we flew to Thailand, where we lounged on amazing white sand beaches, explored national parks, lived with the locals and wandered through one of the world’s greatest cities.

Helpful Couple
A couple on vacation from Krabi helped us get settled in Kiriwong

Along the way, we met amazing people with both heartbreaking and heartwarming stories. We experienced the “real” India, Nepal and Thailand, but could also see the impact that tourism is having on the identity of these cultures. We ate what the locals ate and what the tourists ate—spoiler alert: they’re not the same.

Delhi
The streets of Delhi

This trip was not only a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but also a perspective-altering one. The reality of seeing developing countries in different states of progress trumped anything I’ve ever read in Time or Newsweek. Our eyes and minds opened as we struggled to understand a way of life that flew in the face of what we know to be “right”—arranged marriages, extreme poverty, access to education and gender inequality.

Mud Hut
Our made-from-mud duplex in Nepal

It also brought new opportunities. I can now say that I’ve played cricket (on the banks of the Ganges River, no less) and I generally understand this sport that mostly remains a mystery to Americans (despite being the second-most popular sport in the world). We slept in overnight trains, mud huts and bungalows—the latter included a 5 a.m. wake-up call from both a crowing rooster and a flying chicken landing on our roof with a thud. We gained a better understanding of Hinduism as well as the role it played in shaping Indian society and many of the world’s religions. And we learned a thing or two about toilets around the world (“squatty potty” anybody?).

Enough with the teasers. Let’s dive right in with a look at some of the best food we’ve ever eaten… anywhere! Meet northern Indian cuisine!

More on our February 2015 Adventures