Cairo, Egypt

Cairo is a 1,000-year-old metropolis where minarets pierce hazy skies above 20 million Cairenes, its streets a kinetic maze of donkey carts and neon cafés pressed against the Nile’s curve. A short taxi ride from the traffic din, the Pyramids of Giza rise on the desert edge, letting visitors breakfast with pharaonic 4,500-year-old stones and still make a 9 a.m. meeting downtown.