Assalamu alaikum
After a fairly uneventful set of flights, we arrived in Cairo around 3pm local time. We have definitely been spoiled with Cathay Pacific (mixed in with getting older and more grouchy) and now are quick to complain about seats that don’t go perfectly flat, but our connection was perfect in Frankfurt (only 90 minutes on the ground), and with impeccable German efficiency we stuck strictly to the schedule. The airport in Cairo seems fairly quiet for mid-afternoon which works to our advantage as we are able to quickly get our visa stamps, clear customs and pick up our luggage (yes, I caved and checked baggage).
Having traveled a fair amount, we like to think we are fairly sophisticated with airport transportation, and based on some data from our travel book and the information kiosk in the terminal, we navigate with our heads down through the horde of gypsy cab drivers, laughing inside at the inflated rates they are offering and head towards the cab stand – basic travel 101. We realize we have a problem when we can’t actually find any cabs, even though everyone we ask points us to the same place to get one. After stumbling around aimlessly for a few minutes (and marking ourselves as the tourists that we are), we find a driver with a rickety old cab who offers to take us to our hotel, which is 50km away. The price seems steep and we try to haggle him down, but there aren’t any other cabs to be found, so we all know who has the upper hand.
The striking thing for me about Cairo is how monotone everything is. I’m not really sure what I expected given that, save for the Nile running through it, it is in the desert, but there is really just brown in every direction as far as the eye can see. The big exception is the various colors of the cars that comprise the bumper-to-bumper traffic for pretty much our entire journey. Gas prices are fairly heavily subsidized here, so at least for people that can afford a car, there doesn’t seem to be any reluctance to get something full-size (versus using scooters and motorbikes) and the resulting traffic is horrendous. They try to make up for the volume of cars by cramming 6 lanes of traffic onto a three-lane road, and for them it seems to work. I could easily roll down my window and touch cars on either side of me, but surprisingly we don’t see a single fender bender in our 90-minute commute.
Our hotel for the next two nights is in Giza, directly across the street from the pyramids and we luck out with a room facing that direction. Since we arrived close to 4pm, it is still plenty light enough to see them towering in front of us directly from our balcony. Definitely one of the most impressive views we have ever had, and a great way to start our time here. At night, they light them up a bit, which makes for a fairly impressive sight.
Once checked in, we hop back in a cab to a Radio Shack in search of a converter that will let us charge our electronics here and then the train station to procure tickets on the sleeper train to Aswan. With those errands out of the way, we spend the rest of the evening wandering around a local market. We find some street food stalls and are convinced enough that what they are selling is lamb to try it. We also find a number of bakeries and, of course, have to indulge. While there are the typical cakes and such available, the majority of what we see are pastries made of some combination of phyllo, nuts, and honey. Pretty much everything we try is delicious, and between these and the street food, we beat back the hunger.
We get back to the hotel around 8:30 and spend a few minutes online trying to catch up on email and checking in. Our plan for tomorrow is to head for the Egyptian Museum, and then wing it depending how much time we spend there. There are quite a few things to see here, but for us, the traffic and noise are a bit much so we’re going to stick to the main attractions and then hit the road after two days.