They are one of the Wonders of the World, people have talked of and about the pyramids to me since I was knee high to a grass hopper. They are one of the most iconic structures on the planet and the reason why 14 million people come to see them each year.

The Pyramids are some of the most magnificent man made structures in history. The building of the pyramids date back to around 2500 BC and required millions of stone blocks to form the construction of 482 feet. It is beyond comprehension that it could be built, and even more so that it is still here today.

I’d heard that the area in Giza leading up to the Pyramids entrance was full of touts and locals hassling tourists to sell or scam them. I’d set myself up with a tour guide because it was recommended as a good way to avoid this, at least to some degree. Getting scammed by the guide however, is a bit more tricky. I paid way over the odds here, though because I’d researched the visit I sort of knew, and factored that in. It’s kind of a tourist tax that will get you one way or another.

Having visited here with my guide, Abdullah, I am absolutely certain I had a much better experience for having him with me, in so many ways. For the cultural exchange of walking around with an Egyptian, the photographs he was able to take of me at the pyramids and the plethora of details and history he was able to add to the depth of the visit here.

I’d just flown in from Doha, Qatar arriving at 6am in the morning. Within a couple of hours of touching down at the airport I had been transported to Giza and was staring at one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Life is nuts.

The Pyramids are the only remaining wonder of the original ‘Seven Wonders of the Ancient World‘. They are also part of the new ‘Seven Wonders of the Modern World’, and I am up to having seen four of them. Maybe at some point I will get to the remaining three – the Great Wall of China, Machu Picchu, Peru and Chichen Itza, Mexico. Though I have to say, it is not something that interests me greatly, which in itself is strange for me, because it would seem a likely ‘travel completist’ adventure.

My guide took me around the three main pyramids, Along with the enigmatic Sphinx and other smaller tombs and monuments, Giza has three principal pyramids: Khufu (originally 481 feet high, and sometimes called Cheops, or the Great Pyramid); Khafre (471 feet); and Menkaure (213 feet). We were able to go inside, though this is an extra fee. It’s a back breaking crouch as you find your way down and in towards the tombs.

Fortunately, it was a bright sunny day and not too hot, but it was wonderful to wander at a nice calm pace. There were of course some tourists, but not loads in the month of March, which I was delighted about. A great experience coming here, this is the history.