Egypt and the Sands of Time
Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Cairo, Egypt
The Grand Egyptian Museum, is the world largest museum,is filled the only museum dedicated to one civilization. Its mission is to preserve and present Egypt’s ancient heritage in a contemporary, accessible way. It cost an estimated $2 billion.
The GEM shows over 100,000 artifacts from Ancient Egypt, including the complete Tutankhamun collection. Opened in November 2025, it blends cutting-edge architecture with immersive experiences, making it a new attraction for visitors to learn about the riches of Egyptian history. It attracts 19,000 people daily. An architectural wonder, it is positioned with incredible views of some of the many pyramids.
A stunning architectural achievement, created by architects RóisÃn Heneghan and Shi-Fu Peng.
In another example of the good fortune that the unsettled political issues in the Middle East resulted in much thinner crowd than 19,000 daily allowing us to get up close views of the massive displays of the precious objects found in King Tut’s tomb. Our intrepid Tauck guide made sure we were up and at em early to beat the crowds that have materialized in Egypt — mostly seeming to be Europeans, Japanese, Arab and a few hardy American visitors.
We were Blown Away!
We tackled The Sphinx and the Great Pyramids of Giza today in a few hours, again visiting super early so we beat the crowds. We logged thousands of steps each day touring and I must admit the dust, dirt, sand and bone dry air took its toll on me, so I’ve had a lousy case of laryngitis/ cold. The Arab Spring means breathing problems for me! However, our guide adeptly arranged for us to stop at a pharmacy so I could load up on cold remedies, cough drops, anti-biotics, — a total of six items with English ingredients and instructions was about $10. At home it would have been ten times that!
