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Egypt Travel and Destination Guide
PLACES TO SEE
Marsa Alam
Marsa Alam is a fishing village on Egypt's Red Sea Coast. It sits on the T-junction between the Red Sea Coast road and the road to Edfu, 230km (142mi) away on the banks of the Nile. Swimming and snorkelling in the area are magnificent, but be very careful - much of the region is mined and unsigned.
Cairo
Cairo isn't a gentle city. Home to more than 16 million Egyptians, Arabs, Africans and sundry others, the 'Mother of the World' is an all-out assault on the senses. Chaotic, noisy, polluted, totally unpredictable and seething with people, the sheer intensity of the city will either seduce or appal.
Aswan
Aswan, Egypt's southernmost city, has long been the country's gateway to Africa. The prosperous market city straddles the crossroads of the ancient caravan routes, at the 'other' end of the Nile. In ancient times it was a garrison town of importance to early Coptic Christians.
Lake Nasser
Lake Nasser is the world's largest artificial lake. Its statistics are staggering - an area of 5250 sq km (2027 sq mi), stretching 510km (316mi) in length and between 5km (3mi) and 35km (22mi) in width. Numbers aside, the contrast between this enormous body of water and the remote desert surrounding it makes Lake Nasser a place of austere beauty.
Temples of Karnak
A fitting monument to Egypt's New Kingdom power, Karnak is a mind-blowing complex of obelisks, columns, sanctuaries and pylons dedicated to the Theban gods and the glory of Egypt's pharaohs. Built and added to for over 1500 years its million-plus square metres a offer a crash course in ancient Egyptian architecture.
Dahshur
Dahshur is an impressive 3.5km-long (2.2mi-long) field of 4th- and 12th-dynasty pyramids, older cousins of the Pyramids of Giza. Of the original 11 pyramids here, only the Bent and Red Pyramids remain intact. Also worth a look are the mud-brick remains of the Black Pyramid, which contain a maze of corridors and rooms designed to deceive tomb robbers.
Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx
The sole survivor of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Pyramids of Giza live up to more than 4000 years of hype. Their extraordinary geometry and age render them alien constructions rising out of the desert. The Sphinx sits nearby, a 50m-long feline character carved from a single block of stone.
Egyptian Museum
More than 120,000 relics from almost every period of ancient Egyptian history are housed in this remarkable museum. Beyond arranging the exhibits chronologically, little has been done to present any sort of context to the exhibitions but the museum's eccentricity is part of its charm; accidentally stumbling across treasures in somewhat musty rooms is half the fun.
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