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Getting around Cairo was always an adventure.
Taxi rides can be down right scary, but looking out at all the other vehicles,
carts, women with covered heads and veiled faces, children dodging cars
to cross busy streets, traffic cops in the middle of the chaos, trying
to give some needed direction, the smell of car exhaust--all these served
to distract us enough to not focus on the risk we were taking just going
across town (seat belts were nearly non-existant). I was surprised when
Karam, our very friendly and safe taxi driver, was boxed in by another
car that parked too close, and just pushed it back with his cab so he
could get out. And at night, drivers only turn on their lights occassionally
(we never quite figured out what criteria they use to decide when). It
was a little unnerving, to say the least. We were glad to have Karam,
our careful and courteous driver.
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The Cairo metro was the first built in the Arab
world and is a very effecient, surprisingly clean system.
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It's common in Cairo to see carts pulled by
donkeys as part of the crazy traffic that also includes kids in
backs of pick-up trucks, van doors wide open, whole families on
scooters, buses with people hanging out the doors, all amid constant
honking and near total disregard for traffic rules and lane lines.
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We had a fun diversion from walking (and walking, and walking)
when we took a Calesh ride between Karnak & Luxor. One of the
carriages had pictures of the driver's family decorating the inside.
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There is no minimum age for driving a donkey cart. (Karnak)
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 We
took a ride on a camel. It's a one-of-a-kind experience, but we
were glad that we didn't have to travel very far.
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The most terrifying and miserable experience
we had during the whole seven week tour were our 10-hour bus rides from
Cairo to Luxor and back. Jon had tried for days to get us train tickets,
but with school out, everything was booked. We were stuck with the overnight
"luxury bus." More like "uncomfortable confinement", with absolutely no
leg room and every chair filled (and a few standing at times), chain smokers
all around us, chilly fans blowing, frequent stops to let off and pick up
passengers, and constant noise from 8pm to 4am (LOUD, hyper Arabic music,
honking, Muezzin singing, Egyptian movies with belly dancing, shisha smoking
and women being slapping). Earplugs didn't even do much good. Sleep alluded
the adults, while the kids caught some Z's. Add on top of this a driver
that thought he was in a sports car instead of a high-rise bus, and you
have the "bus ride from hell". We sped through the night ,with no headlights
most of the time, passing everything in sight, driving on the wrong side
of the road at times, cutting everything close, stopping short, you name
it. We were writing the obituaries in our heads as we journeyed toward our
demise somewhere in Egypt. We were all amazed and relieved (especially our
backsides) when we were able to escape the torture chamber and find a hotel
or apartment to collapse into for a few hours. |
Egypt
is much more than just the pyramids and mummies. Sure we went to learn
about ancient civilizations, and there are amazing monuments to powerful
leaders all over Egypt. But some of the best monuments to a culture are
the everyday people. We found that life in Cairo is quite interesting,
too, and spent a lot of time just wandering around, observing how Cairenes
live.
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