Egypt
Cairo at sunset, from Al-Azhar Park.
Evenings in the markets are pure chaos. The photos look clean; the streets aren't. A chip bag on the ground is part of the scenery.
People were friendly as long as we were paying. Most conversations were about money, and when we said no, they ended.
The traffic is insane. Cairo is one of the loudest cities in the world and the horns never stop. They have their own language: one honk means something different from two or three. Lanes don't really exist. To cross the street, just don't stop.
The last photo is from Old Cairo.
Giza
The pyramids of Giza are not the silent, empty place you see in photos.
It's a loud tourist site where every bit of attention turns into a sales pitch: horse rides, camel rides, endless attempts to get money out of you.
And yet, tune it out for a moment and something stronger remains. Massive structures that have stood here for thousands of years, and we still argue about how they were built.
Despite the chaos, the place feels deeply mysterious. Not everything has to be understood. Some things you just feel.
And at the end of the day, someone finally smiled at me without asking for money.