"Wallets with Legs"

I have been promising to share a few tips and observations for how to cope with the persistence of Egyptian tradesman when it comes to money.

As a friend of mine recently coined the phrase “they think we are wallets on legs”. This phrase stuck with me. I mean it aptly sums up the tourist industry across the world to be honest. However, in a place such as Egypt it is very apparent because those who ask for money are so very unafraid of doing so, and are extremely persistent about asking you for more - to an extent where it simply becomes unbearably uncomfortable and quite frankly, irritating most of the time.

Up until my friend’s visit to Cairo last week I had been relatively well protected from the full force of the hassling by my boyfriend, Rami. I won’t say they left us alone completely as this isn’t true, but his status as an Egyptian man and his ability to answer back to the traders gives him a fighting chance at avoiding of the worst of it.

I, on the other hand, without Rami, simply join the flock of hapless victims in a tirade of sellers touting their goods relentlessly at every tourist point and beyond. To survive the sea of tradesman without going under takes wit and determination, but it can be done.

The rule to me seems simple. Business is business. If you don’t want their product, just say no. Forget about awkwardness or buying something just to stop them asking, it’s your cash and if you don’t want to part with it keep stubborn. I am well aware that this is incredibly hard for many foreigners to get the hang of. The reason I know is because I have only toughened up since living here! 6 months ago I would have folded under the pressure and if I had gone to the pyramids alone I would have definitely ended up on the back of a camel, sporting a ridiculous gimmick Pharaoh headdress and clutching a hugely over-price guide book, probably written in Russian! I am usually a complete pushover, but here I have hardened!

So the first method of defense is to just say no. Some words you can use for this are ‘La’ which mean No and ‘Shuckran’ which means ‘thank you’ or ‘mish aiza’ which means ‘I don’t want it’. These with a disinterested wave of the hand are a start but are clearly not going to throw them off straight away.

Another tip is to simply ignore the sellers completely. This is hard as a lot of the time these people will simply not stop following you until you talk to them. This is most evident at the places that rely almost totally on tourism such as the Giza Pyramids and Khan El Khalili Bazaar. Unfortunately as soon as you stop to talk to them they become like barbs and will not leave. So I urge you come hell or high water to simply remain aloof. Continue conversation with your friends, change your direction and walk away, or stare straight ahead and resist the will, at all costs, to turn around. They do, eventually, get bored… most of the time.

One more thing to remember is that nothing comes for free. What I mean by this is that you should be aware of tourist traps at all times! If a shop keeper offers you or your child a free gift before you have even brought anything, chances are he will then use your captive attention to guilt-trip you into buying a load more stuff that you didn’t want and will never use. If you are invited for a ride on a camel, bear in mind that the man leading the camel actually has a physical method of trapping you on top of the animal until you pay extra to be let down.

When my friend and I were at the Pharonic Village, we were lead straight into a shopping area by the tour guide and into a shop where it was suggested to us that the next part of our ‘Pharonic Village Experience’ would be to get dressed up in silly costumes and have our photo taken; all with ‘no obligation’ to buy… of course. It was clear that out of our little party of four, not a single one of us was the least bit impressed by this suggestion. Luckily two of us were residents of Cairo and so we were able to tactfully get out this part of the trip. Again, if you don’t want it, say so!

My favourite moment of all during my time with my friend was at the end of the week when I had grown more confident in my ability to handle the hassle. We were sat down to dinner in Khan El Khaili and a small boy came up to us with a bundle of scarves – they start young in this country. Well, it is naïve think that there is any etiquette telling people to leave you alone when you are eating and by this time I had endured the pyramids and the bazaar on top of whole week of touring Cairo so I was at the end of my tether. We waved the boy away once and then, of course, he returned. I saw that he was a cheeky boy so I figured I would try and give him a taste of his own medicine and picking up Rami’s scarf I held it up to him saying ‘maya guinea’  which means ‘do you want this for one hundred pounds?’. Every time he tried to barter with his scarves, I tried to sell him ours - being just as persistent and I have to say, dropping my price impressively low! To my delight, my crazy plan worked and the child began to realise he was fighting a loosing battle and left us alone. I saw him around the bazaar a couple of times after that and it is safe to say that he did not try to sell me something for the rest of the night. Neither, I may add, did he purchase the scarf! This tip is one I will not recommend officially, however if you are feeling brave enough and you pick the right people it is fun to have a go!

If all else fails then getting angry sometimes helps. On the odd occasion both with my friend and even just alone in Cairo, I have felt the need to simply be rude. I wouldn’t recommend this either, as it is not looked kindly on all the time. But sometimes it really does get too much. The Giza Pyramids really are the worst. A couple of times up there I was genuinely frustrated and sometimes bordering on scared. One such incident was on the way up to the pyramids in the taxi when a man claiming to be tour police actually opened the door to the cab and got in the car with us! He was claiming that we were going the wrong way to the pyramids and that he “would take us.”  Forgive me for sounding paranoid, but I don’t trust any man that simply climbs in the car with two females without invitation- especially when I know exactly where the pyramids are, and that we were going in the right direction! I flipped and got the taxi driver to pull over. As I didn’t have enough Arabic to handle the situation in the man’s tongue, I simply relied on the tone of my voice and said, in English “I have lived in Cairo for 6 months and I have been to the pyramids three times. I know where they are, I do not need your help and I do not want you in my taxi, Get out. NOW!” If his English wasn’t up to speed then he certainly understood my tone of voice and exited the car pretty soon after that. Another example was when we were joined at the Sphinx by a young guy who was claiming to be a trainee tour guide. He seemed OK so I thought I’d let him take us round. However, when he started to harass my friend by not letting her leave the Sphinx until she had had her photo taken, despite her obviously feeling very uneasy and showing it, I got mad again. I swore, threw 2.50 EGY at him and left. The man tailed me for a while hurling abuse at me but he soon left us alone; it isn’t nice and I don’t like doing it,  but sometimes enough is enough.

If you are not accustomed to Cairo and especially if you are female, touring round can leave you feeling harassed, exhausted and paranoid. It really shouldn’t be this way and I wish that Egyptians would learn that they are more likely to get customers if they leave tourists alone; but they haven’t learnt yet, and chances are it will continue to be the tourists who have to fight and adapt.

You can avoid a lot of this with orgnanised tours like the ones arranged by IH Cairo ILI. I never before particularly liked or appreciated the idea of a full package tour which includes tickets, tour guides and buses. However, the less adventurous travelers will certainly benefit from a much higher level of protection in this country than those who try and do it alone. It also allows you the chance to learn something, as tour guides on the sites are less than adequate most of the time, barely even able to speak English sometimes! Organised tours, as long as you are with a legitimate company, are the best way to avoid hassle- although you may want to weigh the cost of being conned out of money against the added costs that tours like this incur. At IH Cairo ILI we have a good relationship with a reputable company so students can get out and about without needing to worry.

Living in Cairo I am constantly being surprised by how clever the tradesman can be. Just when I think I have seen it all, I am blown away by new levels of persistence and cunning. From taxi drivers spinning a yarn to make you feel sorry for them, to market sellers spending not less than a whole hour haggling with a foreigner over the price of two pashminas, it never ends. Because of this, despite all of the above hints, sometimes even I admit that you just have to give in and accept that if you book to come to a country like Egypt, you will get the whole Egypt experience, hassle and all. It is unjust, it shouldn’t happen, but even Rami, a born and bred Egyptian male, sometimes gives in just for the sake of a few minutes peace.

I think the thing to remember, for Westerners, is that the £5 or $5 that you may have spent on one sandwich back home translates to 25 or 50LE here and, at the moment at least, it may be some of the only income that many people get in their entire working day. So it’s subjective, but sometimes, if it is well earned, I feel it is ok to part with a bit of cash. For example, when going around the Pharonic Village, the tour guides were not expecting a tip. But they did their job well and I felt they earned a few extra pounds, so I tipped each one accordingly. In the street I will buy tissues from the tissue sellers because they are providing a product that I need. At Khan, if someone entertains me and sells their product well, I don’t see a problem in buying from them. I even paid a taxi driver far too much for a taxi leaving the pyramids because I was tired, my friend was tired, and we were just happy to have someone to help us escape!

Doing the tourist route of Cairo

Due to a week’s holiday followed by a day’s sickness and then a severe case of writer’s block, I confess to missing my blog entry last week! Apologies to all if you were waiting!

I find that being ill in Cairo is one of the most arduous things that can happen.  If it wasn’t already a drag to be laid up in bed with whatever horrid ailment you have, you then take into account that you are in a foreign county and everything is different and, for me at least, everything seems much harder to cope with. It feels like all symptoms are heightened when living in such a mad environment. An illness that may not have seemed too bad back in my quiet little life in England totally floors me in Cairo. A headache feels like a migraine, a tummy ache feels like appendicitis. My conclusion is that this is probably partly psychological but partly due to the environment. The traffic, the noise and the general onslaught of activity that greets me as soon as I am out of the door is often simply overwhelming when I am also feeling under the weather. Generally living here is exhausting on a good day; there are constant battles with dust thrown in your face by traffic, roads that are deathtraps, hot, stuffy weather in the summer and to top it off, as a woman, constant unwanted male attention to fend off.

Although I am not really painting a great picture of Cairo, all the above becomes  the norm of daily routine and so, to be honest, after a length of time is just something one gets used to. However, take this routine and then add to it a sore tummy or a runny nose and it is easy to see how one can be excused for needing a sick day every now and then!

Reaching a doctor here is in some way much easier than it is back home in England and in some ways trickier. I will explain.

In England a person can go to their General Practitioner or family doctor for almost anything, from general illness to a worry of something more serious. Their GP can then refer them to a specialist or prescribe drugs as need be, so one is never at a loss as to where to go for medical advice. Here in Egypt I have not as yet found an equivalent to the English GP. From my experience a diagnosis involves the patient having to pay a specific specialist in a private clinic or hospital. I have been informed by my Egyptian colleague that there are public hospitals that you can go to but of these we will not vouch for the quality and I do not know much about the systems involved. With private hospital it's as such: if your hair is falling out then you go to a hair specialist or if you have a headache you go to a head specialist and so on and so forth.

In theory this seems fine, but I do not really know where you go if you just want some peace of mind on a general non-specific illness. This spider web of different doctor networks can be rather hard for a foreigner to navigate; I mean, most ailments may seem fairly self-explanatory, but a headache could actually be because of a tooth problem and back ache could actually be something  psychological… you see the dilemma with self diagnosis! However, when you have found the right specialist I am informed that most doctors in Egypt, unless you are unlucky, are very competent. Certainly I would argue that because paying for healthcare seems to be standard rule and not choice, doctors have a vested interest in a good success rate and hence a good reputation. 

As for appointment times and the length you have to sit and wait for a doctor I can’t comment as they seem to be different with every single practice. Again, I would say that there is actually a better system in place in most of the clinics here because most practices are open in the evening after working hours. In England you either have to make sure you are sick on a day when there are enough appointments free for you to guarantee one, or you have to book annual leave from work and then sit in the doctors waiting room for hours while old people with all the time in the world take up your valuable holiday talking to the doctor about their ingrowing toe nails. Neither are particularly efficient or effective methods!

All medical training in Egypt is done in English, so there is no worry about not being understood once you reach your chosen doctor. However, the sheer scale of Cairo can make the prospect of trying to find the right place and person a touch difficult. Here at IH Cairo ILI we try very hard to help students as much as possible, but I do feel very grateful, on the occasions where I have needed a doctor, to have had my boyfriend around to help me find my way through the labyrinth of different names and specialists.

As I mentioned in a previous blog, for a lot of minor medical problems I have found very competent, professional and highly trained pharmacists in abundance in the city. A pharmacy can be recognised by the universally recognisable sign of a sign of a snake wrapped around a wine glass. I have dragged myself to these mystical apothecaries on many occasions with bad colds, chesty coughs, inflated eyelids, inflamed mosquito bites and more, and I can safely say that every pharmacy I have been to has prescribed exactly what I am looking for and at a reasonable price.

I continue to tell myself at least I was not ill the week before, when my friend was here staying. I have enough material from her visit to cover at least two blogs as we did some hardcore tourism whilst she was here, filling the short 6 days of her stay to the full trying to cover as much of Cairo as possible. So I will write about a few of the experiences we had in this blog and then save some for later.

Our first pleasant surprise on our little tour of Cairo was The Pharonic Village in Giza (Kourea Pharony in Arabic). In good traffic (we went on a Friday so there was nothing on the road) it is just 15 minutes away from IH Cairo ILI and only cost us 11LE to get there. Obviously this will change depending on the time and day you go. The actual entry fee is pretty expensive. You can buy different packages depending on how long you want to stay there but on average it is nearly triple that of the pyramids at around 170LE! When I questioned this them Ticketer explained it was because they were privately funded so took no money from the government to run. I guess I can believe this, in fairness. They employ a lot of actors who are probably being paid a very low wage.

The whole resort is set in the middle of an Island in the Nile, shielded from the public by masses of Papyrus. It is, in essence, a Disneyfied Ancient Egypt.

The first thing you do is a platform boat trip around the island, learning about all different elements of Ancient Egyptian life from little sideshows with live actors. It is fun and informative and something I think that children will enjoy tremendously. After this you are greeted by tour guide number one who takes you around a mock Temple, a Rich man’s house, a poor man’s house and various other exhibits, all brought to life by actors. He then takes you to a recreation of Tuttenkamun’s tomb and then onto a photo booth and a shop to try and squeeze a bit more money out of you!  Next, if you have paid for the museum package you are then handed over to two more tour guides who walk you round a couple of museums where you learn how mummies are made and what the main pyramids are. They are fairly interesting and I actually quite enjoyed having the tour guide with me. I never really digest any information in museums unless it is brought to life- my mind always drifts to what I am about to eat for lunch… so to be told it does somewhat let it stick in my head a bit more.

After this there is a short wait and then you have an hour long boat ride on the Nile. It was pleasant enough, although I prefer the sail boat that I go on with Rami, it is a lot more environmentally friendly and a lot more relaxing! You do pass an awful lot of run down and impoverished residences on the boat trip –it is a somewhat awkward insight into ‘how the other half live’ , but the inhabitants we saw seemed fairly used to it, and some even waved at us, fortunately.

In conclusion, I took my friend there for a bit of fun and to give her a brief overview of Egypt’s history before we went to all the real ancient sites as well as satisfy my own curiosity about the place. Keeping in mind that a large proportion of Egypt’s main tourist attractions are appallingly badly equipped in terms of tangible information to help visitors learn (by way of guide books or on site learning aids), this place provides bitesize  and fun facts, mainly for young people with an enquiring mind. It is overpriced in many ways, but (in my opinion at least) it is not the complete disappointment that some people may try  to sell you on Tripadvisor. http://www.pharaonicvillage.com/tour.html

Reviews on trip advisor ranged from 5 stars and loving it to 1 star and saying it is all just an elaborate way of taking your money. Well, probably, but it is all subjective and I have developed my own rules about how I tip and how I also manage the incessant pestering for cash. I plan to cover this next week.

The same day we also decided to pop up Cairo Tower in Zamalek. This is a nice little diversion for an hour or so. Unfortunately for those who wish to, there are no stairs for visitors to use except in emergencies so you can’t climb up or down (we wanted to walk down). The whole experience is an elevator up and then as long as you wish to spend up at the top. My advice is don’t go up on in bad weather! It is freezing cold and the view is not good when there is fog across the city. On a clear sunny day you can see the whole of Cairo up to and beyond all the pyramids in Giza and Saqquara. Whilst up there this time we saw and heard one of the regular Friday protest marches from Tharir Square, which was quite exciting to witness.

There are various restaurants in the tower that you can take a break in and draw out your time in Cairo a bit longer. The best one is a fantastic rotating restaurant, giving you a 360 degree view of the city whilst you sit and eat. The minimum charge per head is 150LE so not too bad for a lot of tourists considering the setting.

All in all day one with my friend was pretty successful and set us up for a great few days of sightseeing after that, which I will write a bit more about in my next installment.







The cup and snake Pharmacy sign





The entrance to the mock tomb at the Pharonic Village



What's hiding under the Bridge...?

I am pleased to say that, last weekend, I finally managed to get to one of the places that has been on my to-do list since my first month here - El Sawy Culture Wheel in Zamalek.  This famous venue is just a very short walk, and an even briefer taxi ride, away from my home,  making it a great place to go for an evening of entertainment.

I initially heard about this place through a former IH Cairo ILI co-student, who had had a hugely entertaining afternoon at the centre, watching a lecture about the future of renewable kinesthetic energy generated by wind turbines in Egypt! I am pretty sure that she didn’t understand a single word, but the pictures were probably nice! I still do not know exactly why the prospect of watching an Egyptian conference on sustainable energy tempted me to investigate El Sawy further but needless to say when I realised my proximity to the place after my move I was extremely keen to check it out further as soon as possible.

The centre is located right by the Nile in Zamalek and it is certainly one of the quirkiest structures I have ever seen, with clever utilisation of the little space offered to it. The bulk of the centre is actually situated underneath the 25th July Bridge- with the underbelly of the bridge itself having been transformed into one of the multiple staging areas. Lighting scaffold hangs from the huge concrete edifice and the crowds gather in front of a stage that is set back into the depths of the concave arch of the flyway. It really does make an inspiring setting for cultural activity!

At first glance it is hard to believe that residents of a non-stop city such as Cairo would have time to take in any sort of cultural offering. But this is certainly not the case where the Culture Wheel is concerned. On a regular basis hoards of people flock to the arts venue to take in comedy, music, seminars, classes, workshops and more and the creativity of Cairo citizens is finally given the breathing space it needs in what can be a pretty claustraphobic city.

I have walked past the venue on many occasions to see it buzzing with patrons making full use of the space, from chilling out in the café, or taking part in a martial arts class, to queuing up ready for a live performance. Most of the time the majority of visitors seem to be Egyptians, but foreigners are more than welcome and publicity material is printed in English and Arabic.  These leaflets can be found in cafes across the city, as well as in art galleries and bookshops.

So, back to my own visit to El Sawy!  I went to a gig by popular band Cairokee as my first venture.  Producing an eclectic mix of Arabic folk and modern Indi Rock , Cairokee attracts Egyptian youth en-masse wherever they go. Just like my Australian classmate and her wind turbine lecture, I confess I barely understood a single word but the music was great and by the appearance of the fans the lyrics were certainly very rousing as they were singing along with fervor. My housemate and I managed to bag ourselves a great space, perched on a raised wall looking over the crowd below, so we saw it all perfectly and remained comfortable in the process! Luckily the evening was not too chilly, and the heat from the crowd (and probably the traffic above us!) also kept us warm; definitely a concern of mine when attending an outside concert anywhere in the world, even Cairo at the moment!

The highlight of the night was probably the Egyptian rapper who made a guest appearance. I believe he is a famous singer judging by the reaction of the crowds, but for the life of me I could not tell you who it was! I find rap a strange music form anyway, and one that is particularly difficult to follow even when sung in English; Arabic rap therefore was most certainly a rhythmical treat for my ears! However, how many people can say they have sat under a bridge next to the Nile and watched a live Egyptian rap artist sample an Arabic Indie song? Not many I guess.

An annual membership to this great venue can be brought for around 70LE, meaning that you have unlimited access and can spend summer evenings relaxing right by the Nile in the café, and the membership also allows you to participate in the classes that are being run (yoga, martial arts etc) for a lot cheaper. I will certainly be keeping an eye on forthcoming events. Maybe I will see some theatre next time as it has been far, far too long since I have stimulated my creative side!

For an English website check http://www.culturewheel.com/eng 

Cairokee at El Sawy



A brief excursion with the family

I have just returned from an absolutely fantastic break away from work with my spirits refreshed and my outlook on Cairo revitalised.  Ithink it was a wise person who said that laughter is the best medicine and it is safe to say that I have done a lot of that during the past 7 days.

I have come to the conclusion in my time here so far that the easiest way for me, at least, to deal with the sometimes incomparable differences between Egyptian and British life, and the inevitable culture shock that I have suffered and continue to suffer from, is to look at all the events which unfold with a good sense of humour. Nothing has allowed me to do this more than the timely arrival of my sister and her boyfriend, who both tend to see the funny side of everything and so encourage me to do the same; and hence we indulge in relentless witty banter whenever we get together.

Reunited with my sibling after a four month separation, we took to the road in a night bus almost immediately after their arrival in order to get to Sharm El Sheikh where she – a hardcore fish fan–was going to put her new diving certification to use in her first ever open water dive.

A little note here about the safety of the coach journey, as I know that there have been a number of recent and historic incidents in the local news about bus crashes and tourist deaths in the desert. In fact, even on my return from holiday today I have been informed by a colleague that local news had reported a fatal crash whilst I was away and at the same time as I was travelling; which was a little unnerving to say the least.All I can say is yes, there is a risk when travelling by bus and this can’t be escaped. I have talked about the apparent lack of road rule adherence and enforcement in Cairo in a previous blog and to be honest the same carelessness definitely seems to apply even in the tourist areas and, by comparison to the UK at least I have good reason to suspect that there is a very high accident rate on the roads. However, in the defence of the coach companies the news reports of the road accidents that have happened in recent months should be looked at in context. Dozens of coaches make their way from Cairo to Sharm(and all around the area) both night and day, on a daily basis, reinforcing the fact that you can definitely get to Cairo from Sharm in one piece!If you are a little perturbed by the thought of travelling long distance by local bus then the best way to go would be via domestic flight. These range from between 300 to 800 LE and are frequently departing from Cairo International airport.

With the coach journey survived, we took a cab to the basic yet perfectly adequate and quite pretty self-catering holiday resort called Delta Sharm. Sharm El Sheikh is quite simply a long strip of touristic resorts and beaches, broken up by expanses of desert. The area itself, the Red Sea, is most famous for its coral reef, which is quite probably being over-exploited by the tourist industry and which has almost certainly benefited from the acute lack of tourism that the area has seen in the last 12 months, due to the effects of the revolution.

Nevertheless, the Sharm coral is one of the only winners of this particular era (and Red Sea conservation is another whole topic). The unfortunate side-effect of the Egyptian Revolution is that the tourist industry in the country has plummeted and many, many people have lost their jobs and businesses in the aftermath.

When I first started my Egyptian adventure 12 months ago to the day, it was simply with a holiday with a friend to a fantastic little hotel called the Royal Albatross. At this time Egypt and its rioting was in international news almost daily and as a direct result the Red Sea area was like the Mary Celeste; totally abandoned, despite being 7 hours away from the violence and completely unaffected.

In June last year, on my second Sharm holiday, we still saw very little by way of tourism and workers seemed grateful for our custom. However, one year on and it is safe to say that small glimmers of life are beginning to reappear which is very good news for locals whose livelihoods are this industry. This time around I saw many Egyptians holidaying with us and taking advantage of the off peak season, but I also saw a  fair amount of foreigners taking their chances despite any bad press that Sinai and its surrounds has had.

I must admit even I had been having my reservations about the mini-break after hearing the news of the multiple kidnappings. However I did my research and went to a tour company owned by a friend who I trusted for adviceand to book all of the trips so we remained safe and felt very well looked after during our stay. We even ventured into the desert and into a Bedouin tent on a fantastic quad bike safari! I personally erred on the side of caution still, and opted not to bookany of the long desert trips that are on offeron the recommendation of the tour company. These trips take you to remote areas that are not as well policed,which is not really a good idea at present. In fact, even the British Embassy site itself recommends only essential travel to these parts of the country at the moment.I am sure that will change in due course.

Diving and snorkeling, beach fun and the nightlife are all still happening and we took advantage of them all! I cannot wait to take another trip in the height of the holiday season, when more people are filling the resorts and the bars and bringing the buzz back to the area.

Back in Cairo we also saw signs of tourism still happening as people from all nationalities, including Egyptians,enjoyed the famous landmarks and tourist attraction alongside us. It was a positive sign but there is still a long way to go until the industry is restored back to full health. The presidential elections are this year and so the topic of tourism will hopefully be a priority for the newly instated government. One can only hope so, as without tourism a very large chunk of Egypt’s workforce will continue to remain unemployed and spiraling into poverty. IH Cairo ILI is still working hard to send students off to experience the sights and sounds of the city and hopefully our work and the work of other companies like ours will help to slowly bring this brilliant holiday destination back to its former heyday.

The museum of Egypt

Winter is here and the moquitoes have fled!

We are now in mid-January and winter in ا لقاهر ة  (Cairo) has set in hard and fast. On Friday there came grey sky and rain,  and in El Maadi,(one of the only places I have found with greenery in vast quantities), the leaves were actually falling off of the trees!The weather at the moment resembles English Autumn (or ‘Fall’) and,  as I said in my first blog, it really does get cold in Egypt. One of the girls at work said she heard that in Alexandria, up in the North of the country by the Mediterranean Sea, there had actually been snow! Do consider this when packing to come for a winter break.  Although it is nowhere near as frosty and freezing and places like England the chill can still get to you and you will need long sleeves and layers.  As someone coming from a country that is prepared for cold weather, what gets to me most is how cold it is inside the buildings. I am currently sitting at my desk in a jacket and scarf, rubbing my hands to stop them from getting stiff with the cold! All the buildings in Egypt are geared up to be cool in the heat of the summer; unfortunately this does however mean that in winter the lack of central heating, fitted carpets and double glazing (to name but a few of the ways we keep our houses warm in the UK) allows heat to escape very quickly!

For all the ladies out there who love the comfort of cuddling up to a hot water bottle in slippers and a dressing gown, bring it all from home! Most pharmacies sell the rubber hot water bottle (information about pharmacies below) but no one seems to understand the concept of a cover, which I find very odd. Rami brought me a hot water bottle, but to stop it burning my skin and make it nicer to cuddle I had to fashion a make-shift cover out of a cuddly toy duck! Don’t ask me how but it works perfectly! 4 bar heaters and fan heaters are available as well, to give the room some heat, but the effectiveness of these in comparison to the amount of power that they use up, in my opinion, is debatable.

In these few short months there seems to be far fewer people out and about, especially in the cafes and restaurants in which the seating is primarily outdoors. I wish I could say that  a hardened ‘Brit’ like me, used to the cold, would be different, however I have never truly made my country proud when it comes to bearing the winter weather, and I am as much of a wimp as the next person! However, don’t give up on going out and socializing just because it is cold, as there are still lots of options. Many reputable cafes (at the moment we are favouring ‘Armada’ on the Nile in El Maadi) will have a good stash of outdoor heaters, which allow you to sit outside in relative comfort. There are also all the usual indoor options such as cinemas, bowling, sports facilities and coffee shops. In fact a foreigner can have a fab time in Cairo relatively cheaply whatever the weather as long as they know where to go (and exchange rates dependent!). Most places are easy to find through Google or just Word of Mouth from other students at IH Cairo ILI and other more seasoned expats for example.

Mosquitoes

The one bonus about the cold weather is that it seems to kill off most of the mosquitos; well I at least haven’t come across many recently, and they do seem to seek me out somewhat.

I have heard more than one person complain about the huge welts that form when they are bitten by these little delights. I have no idea whether it is something in the venom, or maybe it is because the last thing they were munching on was a stray dog. Whatever it is, these things are evil! The good thing is, they do not carry malaria- that would just about top off the horror of being bitten by one! The little critters are unlike any other mosquito I have ever come across. They are totally silent when they fly- unlike the English version that produce an annoying buzz  to irritate you and put you on your nerve. However, unlike the English version, which I have always found pretty nippy and a pain to find and kill, the Egyptian mosquitos are ‘thick as two short planks’ and sort of waft around the room in full squashing range most of the time. I think I racked up a total of about half a dozen mid-air kills in the first 6 weeks of my time here.

In essence, mosquito bites are best avoided. I do seriously urge anyone visiting to wear a good insect repellent when out at night. I brought Jungle Formula from home and it seems to work well. I also hear (but have not yet had the courage to try) that Avon’s Skin So Soft is also an unsung hero in the repellent market. I have brought some of this from home and when I try it I will document the results!

In Cairo there are lots of sprays and various products available to help get rid of these little blighters and to help soothe and heal the after effect of a bite. The effectiveness compared to the expensive British stuff is questionable but it’s worth experimenting with a variety of different methods. For example, the Raid aerosol spray seems to work pretty well to get rid of mosquitoes in your house- you have to shut the doors and give it time to work. You can mix this with plug in vapourisers or even the blue insect lights that attract and zap insects.

For your skin, if you don’t bring any spray-on products from home then cans of stuff like Off are readily available. Word of warning, make sure you cover every inch of exposed skin or else it may not be as effective.

For the bites you can get many different pills and potions. When my eye swelled up (I put this down to a bite) I got anti-inflammatory eye cream and anti-histamine tablets to take the lump away. Pharmacies in Cairo are everywhere - in fact there is one right by IH Cairo ILI - and most will speak some English. I am assured that pharmacists are all well trained and qualified and certainly, on the rather too many times I have visited them (mainly for bites!), I have found them to be efficient and the treatments they give me effective.

I have also tried and tested a very simple method of cooling the red hot itchiness of bites. A simple method of running the affected area under ice cold should takes the swelling down almost immediately and means you don’t have to rely on chemical solutions all the time.

One piece of advice that stands to reasons is do not keep your windows open unless you have something absolutely sound and impenetrable across it to keep insects out. Most flats I have been in have wire mesh across the window and then a net curtain in front of this. Also, try to keep doors to bedrooms or bathrooms shut to stop them from getting inside.

Most of these tips are probably ones that everyone knows, but I saw a lot of forums  asking questions about mosquitoes when I was doing my research before I came to Egypt, so I thought I would try and compile all of the advice I have both read, and trialed since arriving.

I am sure that all of my advice above about cold weather and mosquitoes will change in just a few short months when the weather gets hotter; I have been informed that the heat is an experience like no other! Well, bring on the challenge I say! Anything to stop me shivering so much all day long!

كل سنه و أنتوا طيبيين

... or ... Kulo Senna Wento Talibeen

... or ... Happy New Year Everyone!

It is hard to believe we have reached 2012 already! I hope that everyone has had a wonderful time celebrating the dawn of a New Year and is looking forward to the new opportunities that this year will bring! Obviously back in my home country, England, we have a few treats in store; Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee (60 years on the throne) and the 2012 Olympic Games to name but a couple. Here in Egypt the much anticipated presidential elections will be taking place, and so the chance for a new start and God willing a brighter future for the country.

My New Year celebrations were fantastically spontaneous and, as usually happens when plans are thrown together, I had a brilliant time. It has prompted me to write a few words about festive celebrations in Egypt at this time of year. The alternative was to write about one of my favourite complaints – the mosquitos!  I considered this option after spending the whole of last week looking like I had been punched in the eye as the whole area was inflamed due, most likely, to one of the little critters biting me. I decided that this is not a very festive topic so I will leave it alone for today; but I will broach the subject when the celebrations in Egypt have come to a close, because I can’t be the only one who was worried about the mosquitoes before travelling and searching the web for advice.

So back to lighter topics! Other blogs and forums may suggest that Egyptians do not celebrate Christmas. In terms of the Western festival I accept that this is true. Obviously with Muslims celebrating their feast ‘Eid’ earlier in the year and Christians celebrating their feast (loosely termed Christmas but not exclusively so) on January 7^th Christmas as I know it back in England, on December 25^th is practically non-existent (aside from in a very small circle of expats and venues geared towards tourism.) However, New Year’s Eve here is often called ‘Christmas’ so yes, I can confirm, contrary to popular belief and to my former understanding, Christmas is widely celebrated in Cairo!  Admittedly the troubles that the city has had over the last 12 months may have taken the edge off of proceedings this year, but general feedback from my friends and colleagues suggests that most people had a lovely evening out (or in) to change the mood and celebrate a new year and a new hope.

Generally out on the streets things carry on as normal although traffic is heavier, as with all major events. I also noticed that just like most Fridays (when half of the population of Cairo are using running water at once before going to the mosque or the church), my shower pressure plummeted and I couldn’t get hot water (I am slowly getting used to opportunistic shower taking!) Aside from these telltale signs, there was not much to report outside. The celebrations all happen in the bars, clubs and restaurants around town. Here the venues are decorated with Christmas trees, stockings, tinsel and life-size, gyrating Santa Claus figurines; enough to scar any child for life!

When deciding on our evening’s entertainment I checked a number of web pages, all which seemed fairly current and displayed a good choice of venues:

www.cairo360.com 

www.tazkarty.net 
 www.yallabina.com

Unfortunately I couldn’t find an exhaustive listing of all of the major events around the city and it is possibly better to rely on word of mouth or friends in the city for the best recommendations. For tourists I would honestly advise you to do something totally out of the ordinary for example an evening on a static or a moving Nile boat in El Maadi, or a visit to the desert (like my Christmas trip).

Four short stay tourists, prices for most parties around town are affordable with the exchange rate. Most celebrations seem to be within the region of 300 LE – 600 LE (£30 - £60). Living and working here we had a tighter budget so had to shop around. After finding out that our ‘Plan A’ was cancelled (whilst in the taxi en route to the venue!) Rami made a few calls and took me instead to a fantastic event at the Swiss Inn Hotel in Gamet El Dewal, El Mohandeseen – only about 10 minutes from IH Cairo ILI.

The entrance fee was 250LE and included a free glass  of pink champagne on arrival, a wonderful meze  style dinner, DJ, entertainment (a belly dancer) and goody bag (the contents of which I emptied onto myself immediately- see below).  The venue was simple yet smart and the music varied between Western and Egyptian modern and classics. It was a fun and modest way to bring in 2012. I sure with more money we could have celebrated like kings, however, for our budget the place was perfect and the service impeccable (a trait I have found common in a large amount of places across Egypt; they really know how to treat their guests). One reasonably strange addition to the proceedings that I was not so keen on was the rather strange choice of television channel on the large screen TV: In my opinion nothing says ‘Season’s Greetings’ better than apocalyptic thriller movie ‘2012’!

So all in all it was a very enjoyable way to see in the New Year and confirms that Egyptians certainly do know how to party! For those who are questioning the speculations I will confirm two things

1)      It is not illegal to drink alcohol in Egypt, as long as it is done in the correct places and not on the street.

2)      Dress is generally modest in and around Cairo and you shouldn’t wear short skirts or sleeveless tops but the rules are a bit more relaxed inside places such as hotels and clubs… So cover up whilst outside and strut your stuff when you get inside!

Next week I have the last of my Christmas celebrations as Rami’s family celebrate the Coptic Feast. I am looking forward to it tremendously but I am sure my Christmas dinner, which is currently getting fat on the roof above my head, is not so eager for its arrival!(I am sure a lot of vegetarians and animal rights activists will be appalled at this but I can assure you the birds have led a far nicer life up there in their little enclosure with space to stretch their legs, than half of the poor creatures that end up on the shelves of the supermarkets!)  I will bring you a full report of the event in my next blog but for now it’s time to start on my New Year’s Resolutions: find a gym, make some more expat friends and reach a point in my Arabic studies where I can hold an comprehensible conversation with Rami’s parents!

Perhaps the last is a little ambitious but I am hopeful. 2012 brings a new calendar of Arabic lessons at IH Cairo ILI and so with it the chance to continue my studies in earnest now that the festive celebrations are almost over and I am finally becoming used to this new life in a new country. Private tuition I have been taking at the college over the past month has allowed me to enter 2012 knowing the whole Arabic alphabet, so I can now unlock the secrets of the Arabic script which will help my study a great deal. Alphabet classes are actually offered free for ECA 1 students but in all the excitement of my move abroad and the start of my internship I simply neglected to take the course. My private classes continue to bring me ‘up to speed’ so when I rejoin normal lessons later in the year, and with some work and a lot of encouragement from the fantastic teachers, I should excel in no time at all.

I wish you all good luck in keeping your own resolutions and hope that we may see some of you here at International House Cairo ILI in 2012!

Happy New Year!

And now for a Christmas completely different...

I have just returned from my alternative Christmas vacation in Ras Shittan -راس شتان . All I can say is that everyone should try a festive celebration with a difference once in a while!

Ras Shittan is a secluded area located on the Red Sea coast, just outside of Nuweiba. When I say secluded, I of course mean desolate, as are most places in the Red Sea at the moment, due to the  crippling lack of tourism across the country.

Our trip began late on Thursday 22^nd December at a sleepy coach depot in Cairo. For those of you who have studied your Arabic numbers and can read signs,  the Turgamon bus station is a place where you can see the variation in costs  that I talked about in my previous blog –  with coach tickets for foreigners being  10LE more expensive than those for Egyptians. Although it irks me a little, for most visitors to the country the prices are still very manageable. For a one way, 7 hour coach trip to the Red Sea it costs in the region of 80LE or approximately£8 (prices may vary according to the company, or the station you pick the coach up from).

So we descended the stairs to await our coach, not before I almost suffered again for my foreignness. On deciding that I wanted to try avoiding the coaches facilities at all costs (whether planes, trains, automobiles I am not a fan in general of toilets in moving vehicles) I thought I would check out the depot’s lavatories. Big mistake. Ladies, if you have any care for your health try to avoid such places as service station toilets here! Follow your mother’s advice and go before you leave! I crept into what felt like the mouth of hell, to stare in horror and disgust at the broken, dirty mess of plumbing before me, only to retreat almost straight away; needless to say, without having relieved myself! On exiting the scene of the crime against hygiene I was immediately collared by the toilet guard- a terrifying woman sat at a desk outside the toilet to shrewdly monitor everyone who passes her threshold. She demanded 1LE for the privilege of looking at her facilities, to which I was thrilled to be able to piece together an answer in Arabic- telling her that ‘I was not making a toilet because they were not good’. Ok, so it’s not Shakespeare, but one month ago I certainly would not have been able to argue my case in Arabic at a public toilet! Massive thanks go to IH Cairo ILI for giving me the language to survive the most unexpected of situations! In my opinion, apart from the obvious emergency and everyday survival situations which may arise, irritating circumstances like this really emphasise the need for basic language skills when living abroad. My guess is that the lady was so shocked that I even knew how to make myself understood in Arabic that she probably would have let me leave without paying even if I told her I liked her handbag!

Once on the coach there was just a long haul overnight journey between us and pure repose. I snuggled down for a kip but the journey is not one that favours sleeping. Along the route there are check points, including a highly inconvenient stop where you have to offload the whole coach and let an army sniffer dog check your luggage. I can but guess that this is because although the Red Sea is still technically in Egypt, it is an area which has had its fair share of troubles (not least due to its geographical links to Israel/Palestine) and therefore this proximity brings with it high levels of security. For this reason I hereby give you two words of warning when making this trip, which should not at any cost be ignored…

One absolute necessity when crossing the Cairo threshold, and vice versa, is to take your passport. Although it is the same country, Cairo needs VISA evidence to enter (whereas Sharm El Sheik doesn’t). I would advise buying one beforehand (for example at the airport) although you can buy them on the coach if necessary. Prices for the same visa vary drastically from £15 English to 15LE depending on where and when you buy it. The best thing to do is just accept the inconsistency and roll with it. VISA or not, there could be big trouble if you don’t take your passport at all- I have not yet been witness to what happens to those who forget their passport but I would say don’t test the system!

The other warning goes without saying- For your own safety do not try and smuggle any form of illegal substance onto the coach. For that matter, do not indulge in any form of illegal substance consumption at all whilst in Egypt.  (I would like to openly state that I have never touched any drugs and never will!) Drug abuse, as in the UK and most other countries, is not legally permitted in Egypt. I have not borne witness to someone being found in possession of narcotics however I cannot imagine it would be too pleasant for them. My advice would be just don’t even think about taking the risk, unless you want to end up in prison for the rest of your trip.

So with my strong words of warning over I will introduce you to Bedouin life. It is beautiful! In fact the Bedouins are interesting people and I may write more about them one day.

We arrived just after dawn at our camp ‘Beduoin Home’. The coach dropped us off right at the end of the lane and we were greeted by the owner of the camp, one of my boyfriend’s friends. I have decided that it is about time now to introduce my boyfriend by name – I am sure he won’t mind. After all, he is quite an integral part of most of these blogs, being my ‘partner in crime’ and my fellow traveller for most of the trips I take.  So Rami and I wearily alighted the coach, and waved goodbye to it before he realised that we were also waving goodbye to an unopened, oversized bag of marshmallows that he had brought for us to snack on! As the coach became a dot over the horizon and the marshmallows made their way to Sharm El Sheikh it taught us a valuable lesson to make sure we check the luggage rack before we leave! Thankfully all our valuables were safely about our persons, however I do wonder which lucky child ended up having a rather excessive treat that night when Dad got home from work!

One thing I realised as soon as the sun rose higher was that this place was hot! Although the winter nights were chilly, in the days we basked in glorious sunshine, made stronger by the fact that we were not on open ocean: Saudia Arabia and Jordan are just a few kilometres away across the water from Nuweiba, maybe 20 minutes maximum by speed boat, which meant that the sun was caught and contained in what was effectively a mountainous bowl from the moment it rose to the moment it set. Eating a wonderful fresh breakfast that first morning on the beach in the sunshine, staring at a clear view of the shores of foreign lands was an experience I will never forget!

Whilst we were there, it was Rami and my decision to expend as little energy as possible. So we enjoyed snorkelling, walking along the beach and some moderate mountain trekking, but we did not bother to book onto any trips or excursions – choosing instead to save the adventures for when I have family or friends visiting. However, we were presented with many different options and there is definitely enough to keep the average adventurer busy even in the most secluded of spots. From scuba to desert safari, our campsite manager had all the contacts necessary to arrange these trips, as I think most reputable campsites should. If you are only in this part of the world for a short time, unlike myself, I would definitely recommend that you explore your options.

When approaching the camp and taking in the environment I was overcome with the same mixed views of beauty versus desolation that I have about a vast amount of Cairo. I was left breathless at the stunning landscape that we had landed in. In front of us lay ocean that sparkled like crystal and behind us the austere mountains guarded the tranquillity of the beach.  The camp was made up of around 10 adorable bamboo beach huts called ‘kosh’, positioned just metres from the ocean; minimal in design, with just a bed and a table and some cushions, but perfect for our camping needs. The rest of the campsite was made up of Beduoin style communal areas like bamboo canopies sheltering floors covered in rugs and cushions and with low tables dotted around. At night we were covered in a blanket of stars while the calming sound of the waves lapping the shore lulled us to sleep.

Nonetheless, all around the camp and right on our doorstep it looked like the end of the world. The beach was strewn with litter and as far as the eye could see there were the eerie remains of abandoned building projects and half-finished or deserted holiday resorts, left open to the elements after tourism failed and brought a whole country, relying on this industry, to its knees. There was barely another soul in a radius of about 10K except resident Bedouins living in the empty buildings, the owner of the place and a handful of his friends... and a camel.

I would sincerely like to return to this area when the tourism in Cairo is improved. Although I was able to look past the desolation I could not help but be heartbroken at how badly the whole country has been affected by the lack of tourists, frightened from coming because of political turbulence occuring many, many kilometres away. This will be a recurring feeling I believe, until the situation improves. The small area of shops that we visited on the second day looked like a town out of an apocalyptic thriller. Us and three Italians, who made a speedy departure as soon as they arrived, were the only foreign visitors that week. Unfortunately for a group of people who have learned to rely on foreign money as their only income, the situation is fast becoming desperate. After having spoken to someone here at the college who made the same trip as me, but to a different camp, I am reassured, if not more saddened, to know it was not exclusively our area that was badly in need of maintenance and an injection of cash and people.

One other criticism that I have of the place we were staying is the lack of evening entertainment of any kind. The darkness drew in early, around 6pm, and the evenings were long and oppressive. Without mental stimulation we were both incredibly sleepy very early. Actually, we revelled in the chance to sleep however if we had been hoping for something to keep us occupied into the night, this would definitely not have been the best place to stay! Maybe this again will change when the camp comes alive with people. I will have to report back if ever I find out.

For now, I will just say that we were able to block out the slightly unnerving surrounds and the lack of evening amusement and focus instead on the incredible natural backdrop and the chance for fresh air and exposure to some nature. We revelled in the chance to eat fresh food in copious amounts on the beach and I spent Christmas day paddling and swimming in the ocean, watching a comical crab scuttling along the beach and tasting freshly caught oyster that I had actually witnessed being fished through my snorkel mask. If you are able to open your mind look past the after effects of a country in political turmoil and economic trouble you can instead start to appreciate the holiday for what it can give you: sun, sea, sand and the chance to escape the hum drum of everyday life for a short while.

Trips such as these desert stays can be booked through the IH Cairo ILI student services. Our stay at Beduoin Home was found privately as it was an invitation from a friend – This venue is owned by a young company, and the place was taken over from another owner, so the facilities need to be spruced up a little bit before I feel it is ready for wider publicity and personal recommendation. If you are not at the college studying then I am sure that you can find many such resorts on google or tripadvisor, although I will not be held responsible for any bad experiences as a result of this advice! However you book, during your time in Egypt I would thoroughly recommend a trip to the middle of nowhere for a few days rest and repose and a camping experience like none other.

The Camp over-looking the sea 

The camp over-looked by the mountains

 Sunrise on Christmas morning