Its depressingly poor, stiflingly hot, and dangerously polluted.
Children chase you in the street begging for money and then say, “go away evil American” when you don’t give it to them. The pyramids are in ruins and perpetually covered with scaffolding helping to keep them erect. Men on camels with machine guns circle them. You can see a KFC from the Sphinx. It’s unsafe to drive on the chaotic roads. The buildings are crumbling everywhere. The air is a thick yellow smoke. The Nile looks like a pool of black tar with huge amounts of garbage washing up on the shores of either side.

Save in your mind the majestic images you’ve seen from the books. You don’t want the reality.