Egypt is commonly known as "The Motherland of the World," and "The Land of Civilizations." It's also regarded as "The Greatest Power in Human History," and the "Land of the Pharaohs."
While many of those were Egypt in its historical glory, and that modern Egypt is only living in the shadow of its former self, the country linking northeast Africa with the Middle East, is still reputed for its worldwide distinct of its age-old civilization and immense wealth and knowledge.
As a result of this, many people around the world wish to visit Egypt to see and experience this.
In return, the Egyptian tourism industry is one of the most important sectors in the economy, in terms of high employment and incoming foreign currency.
Locals certainly wish modesty and decency from visitors coming to their doorsteps.
But a couple failed to show that, and they failed badly.
The world has seen many forms of unique tourists, many of whom have made round with their controversies and sometimes, can include offensive acts, in popular tourist destination.
But this time, someone went a little bit too far, when he filmed himself climbing on top of an Egyptian pyramid, to then pretended to have sex.
It all started when Andreas Hvid, who claims to be an "urban explorer," and a photographer from Denmark, decided to climb the Great Pyramid of Giza, which is around 140 meters tall.
Andreas climbed the rocks of the ancient structure with a female model, who has not been identified.
And when they reached the top, they stripped themselves off from their clothes, went naked, and engage in an apparent coitus.
The photo shows Andreas in missionary position, with the model at the bottom, allegedly having sex on top of the Great Pyramid of Giza, against the backdrop of the city of Cairo, shimmering with light.
Andreas then made a post about it, which he uploaded to his social media accounts, and then on YouTube, and also on his website.
His post quickly became his post with the highest number of engagements, because for sure, this kind of strange but brave act would quickly catch the attention of online viewers and netizens..
But of course, this also caught the attention of the Egyptian government.
Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities was the first that broke the silence, saying that the stunt violated "public morality" and that Antiquities Minister Khaled el-Anany has called politicians in the Egyptian parliament to also conduct full investigation on the case.
"The prosecution authorities will tell Egyptians how the two tourists were able to scale the Great Pyramid of Khufu, whether the video is real or fake, and negligent officials will be brought to justice," el-Anany said.
Quickly, Andreas deleted the original video and images, soon after they spread rapidly across social media, and created backlash he hadn't thought of before.
He did this, partly because the original video and images had the face of the female model, whom he allegedly had sex with.
In an interview, Andreas clarified that he had not actually had sex.
"We did not have sex and we never had it. It's only the second time I've been naked on one of my pictures," he said.
Andreas also said that he was "sad" that people were angry about the stunt.
"But I have also received a positive response from a lot of Egyptians — something I think is worth remembering," he said.
Andreas said that he attempted the stunt years previously, but had been stopped by the guards around the site.
But this time, he came prepared.
Andreas who gained knowledge of the site, and also the protocols, managed to map a route for himself and the model. Shortly before 10 p.m., the pair crawled under the fence around the pyramids and then made their way to the structure and climbed up.
"A euphoric feeling struck us both when we reached the top. It was the culmination of a lot of work and many chances taken," he said.
But due to the controversy, Andreas said that he won't be returning to Egypt anytime soon.
"I will stay out of Egypt in the future, as I probably risk being sentenced if I go back."
While some claimed that the sex is real, former Egyptian Minister of Antiquities and former director general of Giza Plateau, Zahi Hawass, said that the photos are likely to be fake.
"One hundred percent it is photoshopped,” he said.
"There is no way anyone can enter the Pyramids area at night."
But later, when the video about it was uploaded by Andreas, which removed the face of the woman, it turned out that Andreas did actually climbed the pyramid, despite whether the sex is real or not, remains a question.
In the video, after the two successfully climbed the pyramid, the two took a break, and lit up a cigarette.
After that, the woman took off her top.
The Great Pyramid, the Pyramid of Khafre, and the Pyramid of Menkaure, along with their associated pyramid complexes and the Great Sphinx, are all included in what's called the Giza pyramid complex (also called the Giza necropolis).
The Great Pyramid of Giza is one of the places that attract the most tourists coming to Egypt, because it's the largest Egyptian pyramid to date.
It served as the tomb of Pharaoh Khufu, who ruled under the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom. Built in the early 26th century BC, over a period of about 27 years, the pyramid is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only wonder that has remained largely intact.
The Great Pyramid was the world's tallest man-made structure for more than 3,800 years.
The Great Pyramid, the one Andreas and the model climbed, was built by quarrying an estimated 2.3 million large blocks, weighing 6 million tonnes in total.
As an ancient structure with ancient heritage, the Egyptian government has put limitation to the complex's access, and that officials are also closely monitoring and controlling it in order to preserve it.
It's worth noting that even though Andreas tried to obscure the identity of the woman, like by removing the original photos and video, and then reuploading new ones with the woman's face blurred, the original video which has the woman's social media account is still circulating on the web.
Josephine Sara, as what people have then realized, the woman is said to be Andreas girlfriend at the time.
As for how they managed to climbed up the structure, it's reported that they received help from a camel operator that goes with the name Moussa Omar Moussa, and a girl named Hend Ali Ibrahim.
Hend, a Faculty of Science graduate, said she knew Andreas through social media before helping him, and that they had met in a local café in downtown Cairo earlier in the day, where he shared his dream of climbing the pyramids.
She said that she met Andreas and Josephine at the Sphinx area of the complex. This was when they showed her a photo of Moussa, saying that they were looking for him.
Hend helped the pair look for Moussa, and when they finally met him, the camel operator who knew his way around the complex like the palm of his hand, helped them climb the pyramids.
In return, he received 4,000 Egyptian Pound.
It's reported that Andreas and Josephine landed in Cairo on November 28 and left November 30, and the incident happened on the night of November 28.