Stay Date : 19/12/06

Living with the 'Lucky Man' Label

A customer who stayed at 5* Le Meridien Pyramids in Cairo - Egypt wrote this review.

I don't believe I have ever visited such a bustling city and the experience of roller-coaster vehicle manouvres and the constant sound of car horns will remain indelibly etched on my mind. The people of Giza were extremely friendly, if partly motivated by their entrepreneurial desire to sell you perfumery (for which we apparently overpaid), to ride in their taxi or to experience approaching the Great Pyramids on camel or horseback. I was escorting my beautiful parntner, 23 years my junior, and she was constantly being approached and complimented on her beauty and likened to an Egyptian Queen. I was called "Lucky Man" more times than I care to remember and refused countless offers of camels for her hand. Our only concern with the friendly banter that the locals engaged in was their overuse of the phrases "Tally-ho", "Lubbly jubbly" and "I have a cousin who lives in Essex" as their opening gambits. Our replies of "Am I bovvered?" were lost on them. The sense of awe and wonder that we experienced at the site of the Great Pyramids was definitely a highlight, as was the visit to the Egyptian Antiquities museum in Cairo. The latter was enhanced by the presence of a personal guide who also worked as an Egyptologist in the museum. His guide repertoire was excellent. However, we were somewhat disappointed with the Coptic Museum as we would like to have seen the lost gospel of St Thomas which is reputed to be stored there. The artefacts that were on display were unimpressive. More impressive was our sense of resolve, stamina and adventure as we scrambled into the centre of the Pyramids, often on all fours. Some of the locals tried to deter us from the task citing that the final destination did not warrant discomfort that we would experience. Yes, it was physically challenging, the heat and claustrophobia uncomfortable, and there wasn't much to see inside - but how many of us can say that we have been inside one of the Great Pyramids of Giza!

Scores are based on 1 (poor) to 5 (Excellent)