Egypt can be a hard place negotiate. The language is different, the writing is different, predators are rampant (at least in the touristed areas). Plus it's hot. But things are generally cheap, the real people are extremely friendly, and there's a lot to see, and more importantly, experience.
I've heard people say that Cairo was not their favorite city. It's a big a city to walk, and it can be hard to get around using public transportation. There's a great Metro, but it doesn't go many places. The buses are the hop on/jump off while moving variety. And the taxis are unmetered and ready to take advantage of tourists. Plus traffic is heavy, and cars will hit you if you don't get out of the way. Combined with the language barrier, this can make it a little difficult to get where you want to go.
I spent a number of days here, and checked out a bunch of the sights. Yes, I saw the Pyramids. But to be honest, I was underimpressed - maybe it was all the hype. They look best from afar - from close up you can see the centuries of decay at work. There's not too much around, (and under) the Pyramids either (though there are a few cool statues and heiroglyphs). The Sphinx is not in much better condition, despite a recent restoration effort. But there is a great view from the Pizza Hut across the street.
I went to the Egyptian Museum, home of most of the Tut stuff. That was pretty cool. Howard Carter found a big room-sized box in the corner of the tomb when he opened it up. It contained another big box, which contained another box, and another. This contained a stone sarcophagus, which contained a wooden sarcophagus, which held a gold gilt wood coffin, which contained an ornate solid gold one. This contained the mummy, wearing the solid gold head piece. Talk about Christmas presents.
The part of Cairo I liked the best was the huge Islamic section. Starting from the original city walls of the Citadel in the South, there are tons of mosques (including one of the world's largest) and other architecturally interesting buildings. At the north end is the huge market area of Khan-al-Khalili. This is an awesome bustling area of sidewalk sales, tourist trinkets, water pipes, jewelry, and just about everything else. I had an awesome walk through the spice section: an olfactory delight! Plus there are these cool guys walking around with big urns of tea on their back, selling it by the glass. What's not to like?
I also saw some Sufi dancing here. This is a religious sect that uses dance as a "personal expression of god." Sound interesting? It was, although not what I was expecting. Accompanied by a band of instruments, guys dressed in multiple layers of colorful skirts would whirl around in a circle for 15-20 minutes at a time. They would remove the skirts, one at a time, and spin them around their heads, bodies, standing up, on the ground - you name it. Definitely a religion of perserverence (if not good balance).
How shall I explain...this town was a godforsaken shantytown of resorts, plopped down in the middle of the desert. I felt like bolting as soon as I got there. The hotel consisted of a set of concrete stand alone bunkers, in various states of disrepair. Quite charming. But I stayed and beached it one day, then took a boat out to some reefs near Tiran Island the next day. The snorkeling was decent, and there were plenty of fish around, with warm water and good visibility. But there also seemed to be a lot of dead coral. Indonesia seemed a bit better. The next day I decided that I had had enough heat, sand, and desolation, and headed back to Cairo.
