American woman in Cairo
Written: Jun 07 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: friendly people, amazing cultural sites
Cons: chaos, in shah allah, smoke, frightening driving habits
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| pbyaeger's Full Review: Cairo |
As much as its history and architecture have always
fascinated me, I never wanted to go to Cairo. Call me
bland, call me white bread--and call me concerned
when, shortly before my trip, a number of Western tourists
were killed at the Temple of Luxor. But, call me
an executive, too, so when Cairo rang, I went.
My trip to Cairo began in late April, and I returned
to New York in mid-May. My company arranged tickets
on EgyptAir, and I was blessed with a lovely new 777
for both flights. What a gorgeous plane--and what
sumptuous first and business class seats. First resemble
enormous recliners--leather. Business are smaller versions,
with all sorts of adjustable back supports, private tv,
and good legroom in a 2-3-2 configuration. The flight
attendants aren't extremely pleasant to Americans--
the service was cursory at best and in fact I was asked
8 times to move back to Economy, despite the fact I was
holding a fully paid Business Class ticket and wearing
a nice suit. The food is beyond dreadful and alcohol is
not served (passengers may grab a small bottle of wine
before boarding, but that's it). Bring plenty of
bottled water and some light snacks--it's an endless
flight (11 hours, if I remember correctly) so normal
people will get hungry.
Another negative--smoking and nonsmoking are mixed
on EgyptAir. This means the entire plane is smoking.
And they do--with glee.
EgyptAir arrives at Cairo City Airport, not Cairo
International. I was met by an American Express greeter
who rushed me through customs and the formalities--but
there was plenty of time to gawk and stare. It's
still a culture shock memory--the clothing, the odors,
the smoke, the swirling soup of cultures, the power
of the guards, the deference of women, the enormous
amounts of gold jewelry, the poverty. There were
goats in the airport!
Riding to my hotel (Semiramis Intercontinental, on the
Nile) in the back of a beat-up late 70s vintage van
was an exercise in terror and culture. Let's just
say that everything you've heard about the driving
in Cairo is true--red light? Go! Green light? Go!
Man in street with donkey? Go! And yes, the donkeys
are there, right next to all the taxis and military
vehicles and private cars. It's a honking, bleating,
wild experience that fully immerses you in the fact that
you've left the Western world.
Arriving at the hotel, I found a bevy of security
equipment, with no one to monitor it. This was
a bit odd, especially as VP Al Gore was at the
hotel (in fact, we saw AF 2 at the airport).
Checkin was easy--the staff's English was impeccable.
The room was roomy and comfortable, with a king bed,
large bath (with bidet) and a balcony overlooking the
city, and if I leaned over one edge, the Nile. My
housekeeper quickly introduced himself (all the
housekeeping staff there are male) and I offered
him a tip to bring extra pillows and towels, which
he accepted with a flourish. That set him off right,
and he took excellent care of me for the rest of my
stay--even addressing me as "Good morning Mr. Sir."
Tipping--known as baksheesh, is an art form in Egypt.
If in doubt, do it. When we were there, the Egyptian
pound was worth about 33 cents--so offering a pound
to someone opening the door or giving directions
is really not going to break you financially. I tipped
often (and well) and had excellent service everywhere.
The nature of Egyptians is to be hospitable, but
baksheesh helps. I did make the mistake of tipping
too much at restaurants my first few days, but then
an American woman from Texas explained to me that
the 15% rule doesn't apply there and that 5 pounds is
plenty for a waiter.
Doing business in Cairo as an American woman is not
easy. As much as people are kind and friendly, there
is difficulty. Women are not taken seriously, and at
times that was frustrating. My assistant (at the time)
is a man, and workers often ignored me and went to
him for instructions. Long conversations with my
Egyptian female colleagues revealed it was the same
for them, and they too were frustrated.
An additional frustration in Cairo is the promise
everything, deliver nothing, or very little, very
late mentality. Being a "go go go" New Yorker, I
went out of my mind waiting days for simple things.
Being an Islamic country, prayer is extremely important
and respected in Cairo, and business virtually stops
5 times a day. Even after two weeks, I still found
myself startled when painters and maintenance workers
would unfurl their prayer rugs outside my outdoor
office door. Women, sadly, seemed to prefer praying
in the restrooms.
Walking the streets of Cairo is entirely safe, if
you can manage dodging the traffic. There are armed
guards and police officers everywhere. This is
disconcerting at first, as they're all carrying
automatic weapons, but you soon grow used to it.
Cairo also has tourist police throughout the city.
When traveling, we often had a police escort--and in
fact our bus hit their car on a bridge and we were
quickly surrounded by soldiers pointing guns at us.
I had one free day to explore the city, so I took
my boss's assistant to see all the wonders--what
a wonderful whirlwind. We did the City of the Dead,
the Pyramids (heed all advice to set a price before
the man hauls you away on the camel)and Khan Al Khalili
bazaar (what a labyrinth of delightful little shops--
it is straight out the storybooks). We also went
to s small church, hidden among ancient streets,
built on the site where Christ was hidden thousands
of years ago. This was marvelous and inspiring in its
simplicity.
Our hotel hired a car and driver for us--80 pounds for
8 hours, and well worth it. Though his English was
limited and his car (a Peugot) was old, he was
gallant and took great care of us. He even chewed us
out after we went off with the camel man. We tipped him
50 pounds--again, nothing for us, but he seemed completely
shocked by the amount. He was well worth it.
Food is Cairo is mixed--let's just say that I'm still not
interested in any sort of meat on a stick. I drank only
bottled water and ate no fresh veggies, and had no
tummy troubles. My colleagues were not so lucky. When
the word got out that I had 8 jumbo boxes of Immodium,
I was in demand. I passed those little pills out like
candy. One delicious favorite that I haven't found since--
mango ice cream. Yum!
Overall, my memory of Cairo is chaos, smoke, and wonder--
I would like to go back--for pleasure, not business.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
pbyaeger
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 - Top 500 |
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Member: Pamela Yaeger
Location: Long Island, NY
Reviews written: 157
Trusted by: 158 members
About Me:
I whine, therefore I am.
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