Pyramids – My Inner Peace

Dahshur Pyramids or where the Desert speaks from inner out

The thought of finally seeing the pyramids was increasing my blood pressure with each kilometer we were approaching. I was so keen to enter one of these structures, and in the same time, I was analyzing the traffic in and outside Cairo to understand why everyone is advising you not to drive in Egypt. To be honest it is not crazier than the traffic in India, and I was thinking I could get used to it. Afterall, when rules are not respected, you are entitled to do anything because no one could ever blame you, right? 😊 Maybe they could blame your tourist status or the fact that you are a woman, but not the fact that you don’t respect the rules. Long story short, I could drive in Egypt but I didn’t. I had a ”scared” friend with me that preferred not to rent a car without a driver, so here I am, unsatisfied with the fact that I didn’t drove in Egypt. Yet, for long journeys, it was better not to drive as I had the chance to rest and even take a nap. 😊

The sun was up, each minute was making the day hotter and finally, we arrived in Dahshur necropolis. After an hour and a half since leaving the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, Esra stopped the car in the parking lot of the Red Pyramid, the third largest Pyramid in Egypt, built between 2575–2551 BC by the Pharaoh Sneferu. I suddenly jumped out of the car just to let my entire being to be mesmerized by this structure. We took some pictures outside, and then we headed towards the entrance. It was the first pyramid we went inside of, and it was impressive. We had to go down backwards for 61 meters on a small passage (0.91 m in height and 1.2 m wide) being careful at each stair we were leaving behind. Otherwise, we could have slip and go down faster. 😊 We’ve been lucky to be the only visitors at that time, otherwise we would have had to make room for other people coming up and down.

The passage was ending up into a large chamber (12 meters high and raising in 11 steps), where the ceiling was full of bats. From that chamber a new short horizontal passage starts ending up on another chamber similar to the first one, where you have to go up on a wooden staircase to reach the third chamber (15 meters high) the burial chamber, as the guard reaching us after a while told us.

We went back climbing on the same passage towards the entrance, we had a new photo session outside and we went back to the car. The first experience was amazing, so I was ready to live the second one.

Outside and On the Red Pyramid, Dahshur, Egypt

One kilometer further there is the Bent Pyramid built by the same Pharaoh around 2600 BC. It is called the Bent Pyramid because it has two different angles of inclination, raising at 54-degree, and after 47 meters changing its angle to 43-degree inclination. Right after we reached the place, a bus full of tourists came and they headed towards the entrance. So, we’ve decided to skip entering this one to avoid being caught on small passages and loose time waiting for the people to pass. Hence, we started to take some pictures outside when a guardian of the site told us we should go around the pyramid where there is another smaller pyramid built for the wife of the Pharaoh. Wikipedia says this ”Satellite Pyramid” was built for the ”Ka” (the souls of the Pharaoh), so I guess people are telling a lot of stories just to make you do some things and to receive a tip for it afterwards.

So, I started to run around the Bent Pyramid enjoying the desert under my feet and feeling free as never before since this SARS-Covid 19 pandemic started. There, I felt as my spirit was coming back to each cell of my body. I was so happy and I wanted just to sit there and enjoy the moment for a while. And I did. Soon after my friend joined me, we took some pictures and we headed back towards the car without visiting the Satellite Pyramid behind the Bent Pyramid. Meanwhile the guard went there and he probably was waiting for us to make some money, but we just saw the small pyramid from outside, and we went back to the car. Yep, I was jumping around happy and full of these magic energies.

Bent Pyramid and Satellite Pyramid, Dahshur, Egypt

The third pyramid you can see in Dahshur is the Black Pyramid, 1.5 kilometers away from the Bent Pyramid. It was built by King Amenemhat III between 2055–1650 BC, but it is not open for tourists. Actually, due to the fact that this pyramid out of stone as the others, but built with mud bricks, its structure it’s not that solid. Moreover, being built near the Nile and in a lower part of the valley, led to sinking problems under the ground, suffering multiple cracks. The consequence of its instability led to the current status of being closed to avoid putting people’s lives at risk. Nevertheless, I took a picture of it from the Bent Pyramid and we greet it from far.

To be continued…

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