Travelers of All Ages: The Original Pyramids

Saqqara and Dashur, Cairo

I’ve written this article about the original pyramids at Saqqara and Dashur. These Pyramids existed long before the Great Pyramids. If you didn’t know, Pyramids are giant stone structures built to house the pharaoh, or ruler of Egypt, after he dies. They are important because they are engineering marvels, huge in size, even by today’s standards. Most people only know about the 3 famous ones at Giza, but there are several equally important pyramids only a few miles further south, at Saqqara and Dashur. If you are at all interested in Egyptian History, you have to see these places in order to get the rest of the story. The pyramids here are the missing link between the simple stone-bench constructions of earlier times and the mammoth Pyramids at Giza. I was able to cover these all in a single day from Cairo.

The Original Pyramids:

Why You Should Go:

These pyramids rival the famous ones at Giza, and yet barely any tourists know about them. This means that you can have them almost to yourself if you decide to go. Egypt is a ghost town right now in term of tourists, as many people are afraid of being caught up in the turmoil of the revolution. I would encourage you to go. I found the people to be very friendly everywhere I traveled in Egypt. There is no better time to go, because the hordes of tourists are almost nonexistent.
There are three main pyramids worth seeing; the Red Pyramid (Dashur), the Bent Pyramid (Dashur), and the Step Pyramid (Saqqara). I think the Red Pyramid is worth seeing just for its sheer size. It is the second largest pyramid in Egypt. The Bent Pyramid is unique because the builders had to change the angle of the sides during the construction (see pictures below). I enjoy looking at it because of the strange and elegant shape that this produced. Finally, the Step Pyramid is important because it was the first pyramid ever built. It might also be the first large scale stone structure on Earth. The Step Pyramid complex also boasts the first forty stone columns ever erected by humans. I think that it is just mind boggling that columns, which seem so intuitive to us today, at one time had to be invented. Also, there is one minor Pyramid that deserves my mention, and that is the Pyramid of Teti at Saqqara. I quite enjoyed going inside this one, because it is one of the first Pyramids to be inscribed with Hieroglyphs and painted. That makes the interior look spectacular, even if the outside now looks like a dirt mound. I also like to think about how incredibly old these pyramids are. They were here when Moses led his people out of Egypt! Going to Saqqara and Dashur is vital for any trip to the Middle East.

How:

Saqqara and Dashur are both in the general area of Cairo, but you still need a guide/driver with a car to get there. Seriously, Egyptian traffic is crazy. Just riding in a car to the Pyramids was nearly as heart-stopping as seeing them. Stoplights are almost completely non-existent, and the few that are around are ignored in most times. Just as often, camels and their owners weave in and out of traffic. Take a tour. My favorite tour group in the entire Middle East is South Sinai Group. They have a rather confusing website at www.southsinai.com and contracting through www.viator.com is difficult, but it is worth it. They offer tours with your own private driver, coordinator, and Egyptologist guide! However, it is important to know that they don’t run an official tour to all three sites. In order to see all three, you have to talk directly to South Sinai Group, which is pretty difficult. They don’t respond to emails (at least, not when I tried), and the only way to contact them is through their hotline, which is open during Egyptian daylight hours. I believe that Isram World still contracts through them, but sometimes they don’t notify me when they make a change. Of course, I’m only 13 J. If you do take a South Sinai Tour, ask for Marwa. She is one of their Egyptologists and my personal favorite guide in the entire Middle East. South Sinai was a real pain to schedule with, and a real pleasure to tour with.

I suggest going to Dashur first, before Saqqara. This may seem counterintuitive, because Dashur is farther from Cairo than Saqqara, but there is a perfectly good reason to do so. Dashur is almost completely ignored by tourists, and the site often closes earlier than official closing times. In order to guarantee seeing them both in the same day that you visit Giza, you must go to Dashur first. Also, if you go inside any of the pyramids, I recommend the Red Pyramid at Dashur. Though it smells really bad (you wouldn’t read that in a guidebook! J) it is worth it by far. Bring a small, handheld flashlight for the dim interior.

Though you can enjoy these sites without a whiff of knowledge about Egyptian history, it does make the experience a little more memorable to know what you’re seeing. Besides, you can’t ask the guides to show you what you don’t know about. I liked the Egypt Pocket Guide, by Alberto Siliotti, about the Pyramids. He has published a series of these pocket guides including ones for Karnak, the Valley of the Kings, and Islamic Cairo. I also loved the documentary Engineering an Empire: Egypt, from the History Channel, for explaining these pyramids and other Egyptian landmarks.

Don’t climb the Pyramids.

I was very tempted, but apparently it’s illegal because dozens of people have died trying. I feel sorry for those that died, but I personally can’t imagine how you could fall off of a pyramid.

Email me at michaelworldtravel@gmail.com with any questions or feedback. Especially if you’re related to me.