The cab driver then took us out to the area behind the pyramids called the "Panorama". Did I mention how polluted Cairo is? You could barely see all three pyramids. Menkaure is on the right. (You can also see a small part of one of its queens' pyramids.) Khafre is just over Ma's head and slightly to the left. The biggest one, Khufu, is to the left of Khafre, almost entirely hidden by smog.
The touts practically turn this area into a marketplace. It's mostly just junk and cheap souvenirs.
The last stop on the Giza plateau was at the Sphinx. It's tiny compared to the enormity of the pyramids that surround it. The adjacent structure is Khafre's Valley Temple. In ancient times, there would have been a grand causeway linking the Sphinx and this Temple with his pyramid (shown on the left in this picture).
Here's me in Khafre's Valley Temple. Man, some of these stones are massive!!
The view of the Sphinx from inside the temple is much better.
You can see his paws and even his tail. They've done a lot of restoration work on them. The stones look brand new. Despite the rumors, you can't blame Napoleon for its missing nose. That fell off many centuries before he conquered Egypt. Its beard is in the British Museum.
These photos are deceiving. You would think that we're miles from civilization. The truth is that about 200 yards in front of us is a gate, and directly outside the gate is a KFC and other restaurants. There's also a papyrus shop (which the cab driver sort of forced us into visiting) and other businesses and residences. The desert is being overrun by the sprawl of Cairo and Giza.