Walk Like An Egyptian

Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Cairo, Victoria, Egypt
I know why Egyptians do that funny walk. It's to avoid getting killed! Where we are in Cairo, there is massive traffic congestion. The footpaths are pretty rugged - uneven, chunky and grotty. Pretty much everyone walks on the road. Some roads are quite narrow and cars are parked on both sides. Sometimes traffic barely squeezes through. Throw in people walking on the road and it's a challenge. I've done a fair bit of walking around today and I think I've mastered it pretty well. As you walk, you kinda duck in between parked cars to let the traffic through - I walked like an Egyptian!
Met our CEO Mayer . Lovely guy, passionate and excited about the changes that Egypt is going through at the moment. He makes many references to the first and second revolutions and it makes you aware of how recent the political upheaval has been.
As a Westerner, one of the things that you notice is the rubbish. People just throw it into the street. A lot ends up in the waterways, so the little tributaries have little rubbish dams that choke the waterways. It is a huge problem and will take a lot of education to address it.
As in many places the blokes seem to congregate on the streets and drink coffee. Many people drag their old furniture out onto the street and spend a lot of their day there. Generally the people are really lovely and friendly.
There are those who are out to make a buck, but that's business. With tourism being hit so hard there is competition for the tourist dollar and sometimes this means people are ripped off. We've been advised not to accept offers for tours on the streets. They try to lure you in "very cheap" and it is until they get you in a shop or to some place and you have to pay big bucks to get away from them.
There are no pensions so you see people selling things like tissues or other little bits and pieces in the streets. Sometimes people will put their hand out for money. Mike and I went for a walk early one morning and it was really quiet with very few people around but a man approached us and he looked like he had leprosy or some terrible skin disease. These people have no supports or services really and no real chance to make an income, so it doesn't hurt to give a few Egyptian pounds.
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Comments

Marianne de Vet
2015-03-26

Dear Anne and Michael,

I've only just started reading and I must say Anne, you are writing an interesting blog! We haven't been to Egypt, but I think we must go one day soon! Thanks for sharing your experiences with us all.....enjoy your trip and take care! xx

Love Frans and Marianne

2025-02-06

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