FRUITS IN CAIRO

Me: "Ayza nuss kilo" ( I want half kilo)
Fruit Vendor: “ok” –he starts picking up some peaches and putting in a bag
Me: "Anaii" (I choose)
Fruit Vendor:"La" (no) -a bit rudely.

With a shake of my head and hand (here my limited arabic deserts me) , I say in English –“then I don’t want” and turn to leave…..and the vendor is not calling me back!

This story was repeated with all the three vendors that I tried to buy peaches from. I was quite surprised with this attitude-“were they not interested in selling the fruits-and if I am paying for the fruit, don’t I have a right to choose the ones that I want?" I was fuming at the cavalier attitude of the vendors and at the same time at a loss to understand their way of doing business. My Egyptian friend calmed me down and explained to me that this was the “normal” thing when buying fruits from the carts on the streets – there are some good fruits and some bad fruits and the vendor would pick up some of each for me and I must take the good and the bad. “But why should I pay for the bad?”, I argued. My friend just shrugged and said that this was the way things were done here, but also had a suggestion-I could “buy” the right to choose the fruit that I wanted by offering to pay a couple of pounds more.

So with this new-found wisdom, I am now ready to tackle the fruit vendors of Cairo!

ASHAN ASALHAK W ARDA ALEK

Ashan asalhak w arda Alek
Hagat kitir lazim tamilha

These are the beginning lines of the Arabic song that we sang for the last class of Level 3 of my Arabic class at Kalimat. Here the lover is telling his girlfriend that in order for them to reconcile and for him to be content with her, there are a number of things that she must do??. The things that she must do include that she should stand up when he speaks to her as well as “shut up” when he speaks to her. It even goes on to say that if the people from her past have forgotten to teach her and make her understand certain things, then the lover will teach her what she has missed!!

When this song by Bahaa Sultan was played for the first time in class, I immediately realized that it is the same song to which I love dancing in my belly dance workshop. But when the teacher translated the Arabic lyrics for us, I was surprised that this song was a chartbuster a year back. And the surprise was due to the nature of the lyrics.

I remember that in the belly dance class, our lady instructor hummed the lyrics-I can understand that the music is really catchy but the lyrics are just so one-sided. I asked my teacher how could the song have been a blockbuster; weren’t the lyrics considered “objectionable”? And she told me that the catchy music overrode all the objections.

Well, I for one may not be able to dance with my earlier abandon to this song!

SOUQ-AL-GOMA'A

I visited the Souq-al-Goma’a (Friday market) this Friday -the equivalent of “Chor Bazaar” in Bombay,India. “Chor”, which literally means a “robber” best characterizes the “Chor Bazaar” since it is a place where the stolen items find a ready market. The Souq-al-Goma’a has a similar reputation. In fact, when my driver informed our bawaab that he would be taking us to the souq-al-goma’a the following day, he wanted to accompany us to find his bicycle which had been stolen some days back! But of course, even if he was lucky enough to actually find his bicycle there, he would have to buy it back!

The Souq-al-Goma’a sprawls for miles under the Al-Tonssy flyover-anything and everything can be found here. It is quite intimidating to walk through this market; definitely a predominantly male domain. Our driver had accompanied hubby and me into the market and he kept warning us to keep a tight hold on our wallets and mobiles. In fact, when I wanted to take some snaps, our driver advised us to click pictures from the safety of the bridge. Though we did not linger long, it was nevertheless a fascinating experience-to see everything form a small pin to mobiles, plastic ware, clothes etc sold here. Sometimes, we even came across some broken and old items and I wondered if anyone actually buys them! Apparently, the right time to visit the market is early in the morning-the vendors actually start laying out their wares the evening before and the buyers start pouring in from early morning.

Check out some of the pics!

Park on Gamat el dwal el-arabia street

Woke up this morning to a shocking sight-to see a huge billboard put up in the park that my window overlooks. This park runs through the middle of the busy Gamat el dwal el-arabia street and I have spent some lovely moments looking at the trees changing colour to mark the changing seasons. And now I will have this huge piece of steel and concrete obstructing my view! The billboard just came up overnight-in fact, even as I am writing this, work is going on to complete the installation of the billboard.

It saddens me to see that commercial exigencies always triumph-important things like having open and green spaces in an otherwise crowded and polluted city take a backseat! Whether it be Mumbai or Cairo, it is the same story-the lungs of the city systematically destroyed! And the voices, if any, raised in protest are muted or ignored. I just hope that this billboard is just a one-off thing and not a precursor to many of them mushrooming all along the length of the park. If that happens, it will be another step in the “concretization” of Mohandisseen.

Why, oh why could they not have planted another tree rather than this monstrous piece of concrete?

VACCINATIONS FOR AFRICA

“Africa”-the word evokes the following thoughts-“undiscovered, unexplored, hauntingly beautiful, wild, pristine beauty, ……” and I could go on. Staying in Cairo, Egypt, is the right time to explore the African continent-accessibility and proximity being the prime reasons. Since hubby had to go to South Africa for a conference, we decided to combine a trip to South Africa with a desert adventure trip to the neighboring Namibia. But alas! as they say “Best Laid Plans of Men and Mice often go Astray”-the factor contributing to the “astray” factor was my South Africa visa-it could not be processed in time though the Namibian visa was already in place.

Also, planning a trip from Cairo, Egypt has its own unique set of “issues” as I discovered-surprisingly those relating to vaccinations and getting the correct anti-malarial tablets!

When traveling to the African continent, health issues are the foremost priority-every possible vaccination is recommended! Though the suggested vaccines are only “guidelines”, some countries will not allow entry without proof of vaccination. Of course, coming from India, our immune systems are supposedly better developed, but if you are the “ultra-cautious” kind like me, then you will probably want to immunize yourself with every available vaccine! Also, a sore arm is a small price to pay for peace of mind….or so I thought before I started researching.

For Namibia and South Africa, the vaccines that are “recommended” are Hepatitis A, yellow fever, polio and tetanus booster shots, typhoid and rabies as well. Plus malaria prophylactics have to be taken. Malaria is transmitted by mosquitoes and to add to the woes, the mosquitoes in certain well-traveled areas such as Namibia have become immune to the milder versions of the anti-malarial tablets such as the chloroquine and proguanil combination -the alternative is to take larium that contains mefloquine, but the side effects include nausea, dizziness, difficulty sleeping, anxiety, vivid dreams….and “gulp” there is more-seizures, depression and psychosis too! By now, my throat was becoming parched….

You can reserach on the recommended vaccinations and the requisite malarial prolophalytics on http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/contentVaccinations.aspx.

The right thing to do is to consult the “family doctor” or a travel clinic. Since we are expats in Cairo, we obviously don’t have our family doctor here and travel clinics as a concept don’t exist here. So I spoke to my Indian friend, who is a doctor. She confirmed that Larium would be the right choice-my anxiety had rubbed off on her and she too was hooked to the net, trying to determine the best anti-malarial medication….by now I was having sleepless nights thinking of the personality change (another possible side-effect of Larium) that I would undergo…..

Armed with the list of vacciantions and the medications, my friend and I set out to buy the malarial prophylactics. We had finally decided that Lariam (mefloquine) would be the correct choice-my friend encouraged me by stressing side effects were a hazard even in taking something as “regular” as panadol. The difficult decision was made-but the troubles were just to begin and the trouble was “BUYING THE ANTI-MALARIAL DRUGS IN CAIRO”. At every pharmacy that we visited, the conversation went something like this-

Friend: “I want Mefloquine”
Pharmacisit: “What?”
Friend: “anti-malarial tablets?”
Pharmacist: (with a look of relief on his face) goes behind the counter and hands us a strip. They are anti-malarial tablets all right, but chloroquine tablets.
Friend: “Do you have proquanil or Lariam….it has mefloquine?”
Pharmacist-(with a slightly puzzled look on his face) “No”

We faced this at the 4-5 pharmacies that we visited in Mohandisseen. We were dazed-here I had worried myself sick deciding on the malarial prophylactics and they were not even available!

In desperation, we went to Vacsera at 51 Wizaret El-Zeraa-Agouza-Giza-Egypt. We were directed to the resident doctor; when we asked for anti-malarial tablets, she prescribed only chloroquine tablets and told us that proguanil tablets were not available in Cairo-I hit the panic button-how could I travel to a malarial-risk zone without adequate medication?. My friend pointed to a board behind the doctor which listed the recommended malarial prophylactics for the different countries-the listing for travel to both India and Namibia showed chloroquine and proguanil combination! Ok…maybe I really did have the “natural” immunity and did not really need to take the malarial prophylactics. But it might be a good idea to arrange for proguanil or mefloquine tablets to be carried by any person visiting from “home”. Any vaccinations that you require for your travel can be taken here-Hapatitis, Meningitis, Yellow Fever, Cholera and Tetanus are all available here. Check out their website on http://www.vacsera.com/. However, for the typhoid vaccination, you will have to visit the clinic at Giza.

As they say “prevention is better than cure”; protect yourself from mosquito bites by using mosquito repellants-look for active ingredient “DEET”. Cover your arms and legs during the sunset and at dawn when the risk of mosquito bites is the greatest. I had got a friend to carry “odomos” tubes for me from India.

Though my plans did not reach fruition, I had already gone through the entire rigmarole of preparing for the trip – And yes, I did actually start on the chloroquine tablets; I almost took the yellow fever and the typhoid vaccines-anyone who knows me will vouch for the fact that I am mortally scared of any kind of needle! Went around Cairo on “mission backpack” and many more such preparations. And in the midst of all these preparations, the words of the pharmacist at Vacsera kept coming back to me-“Namibia? Why on earth would you want to go to Namibia? Stay in Egypt! No need for vaccinations, anti-malarial tablets…” And then to answer this question, I would go back to the first sentence of this post!-)

Changing Locks in Cairo

A couple of days ago, I had a nerve-racking experience. When I returned home in the evening, I inserted the key in the lock-after a single turn, the key refused to move! I tried a number of times; pushed and pulled at the door, tried to coax it open, even kicked and….finally gave up. I had to accept that I had been “locked-out” of my house!

Called the bawaab, he in turn called a “carpenter”. The quotation marks have been used to show that the so-called carpenter was totally useless… completely useless, just managed to damage my door. By now three men had gathered outside my door-the bawaab, the “carpenter” and my driver. They were talking more than being useful. Finally, I told my driver (who understands English) to get a locksmith. Within half an hour, he was back with a locksmith who opened the door in 5 minutes.

Till now, I had been quite cool. Now came the question of installing a new lock and the locksmith offered us three choices-a “made in Italy” lock for LE 250, another lock for LE 185 and yet another “locally made” for LE 85. When I tried telling the man that the locks were very expensive, he insisted that these were the correct prices and also demanded LE 30 for having opened the door. That was an outrageous amount-my driver and he got into a heated argument regarding the sum-my driver told him not to “over-charge” just because we were foreigners. Finally, after much shouting and almost coming to blows, the locksmith took the LE 10 and left. But we had not heard the last of him-when we went down to the car, we noticed that it had been badly scratched on one end-the gate-keeper seemed to think that the angry locksmith had done it-it really upset me to see such an act of vindictiveness.

Finally got hold of another locksmith who installed a lock for LE 90 and took another LE 30 for his services. Often, in times of emergency such as this, we land up paying outrageous amounts for some work-partly because of lack of knowledge as to the correct rates and also to avoid any hassle. But it helps to have a well-meaning “local” with you (in this case my driver) to help you through the situation.

Shoppping at Boulaq, Attaba and Roxy

For expats living in Cairo, most of the shopping is usually done “back home”- a major portion of the time holidaying in the home country is spent shopping, leaving little time for anything else. High prices and limited range are the reasons cited for not venturing out for shopping in Cairo. The favourite shopping haunts of the expats-the mega malls like Dandy Mall, Hyper One, Maadi City Centre and of course, the City Stars-are synonymous with “big” brands; nothing "local" abouth the stuff here.

When my parents visited us last month, my mom was adamant that she wanted to take back some “local” stuff. This pushed me to scour the local markets and I was pleasantly surprised for what one can find here and at great prices too…So here goes….

BOULAQ MARKET

Welcome to the world of fabrics!-this line best describes the Boulaq market. The sun is getting stronger and I needed heavy curtains for my windows. When I mentioned this to an Egyptian friend of mine, she volunteered to “escort” me to the “Wikalet-al-Balah” which translated means “market of dates”. But it is not dates that I want to buy-my friend then explained to me that the market was originally used as a souk for trading in dates and though over the years, the market has gained a reputation for selling materials and clothes at affordable prices, the original name still holds.

The array of fabric available here is quite impressive-you can buy material for your curtains, upholstery for your sofas, tablecloths, towels as well as lovely cotton fabrics for skirts and dresses. One of the shops there is like a one-stop kind of store where you can find everything from scarves to materials for your wedding dress. Bargaining is essential-to give you an idea, I bought scarves for LE 23, which had been quoted at LE 35. For curtains, we were able to bring down the price from LE 25 to LE 17. I also bought an expensive curtain material for LE 30, down from LE 35.

The boulaq market as it is more popularly known among the expatriate crowd is just a few minutes’ walk from the World Trade Centre and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Shops line both sides of the street whereas the space in the middle is taken up by vendors displaying their merchandise on carts and tables. Ladies’ undergarments in all colours and sizes, fluttering in the air on these carts, is an enduring memory that I have carried with me from my visit to the Boulaq!

ATTABA MARKET

For cotton bed sheets, head to Attaba market- Double bed-sheets in cotton can be found for LE 50. They come with four big pillow covers- you will have to get them re-sized according to your requirements. If you want to “dress” up the armrests and back rests of your sofas, you can find just the right covers here too-and at great prices!

ROXY

For ready-made clothes, the line of shops in front of the Roxy Cinema, Masr Gidid (Heliopolis) offer a “shoppers’ delight”. For those who are inveterate shoppers at the Linking Road in Mumbai, this is the place for you. Long skirts, tops, scarves, short skirts-in denim, cotton, linen for casual wear, day wear, party wear-you can find all here and at great bargains. If you are brand conscious, there are some “big” shops here too. Shoes and bags are available aplenty and in some great designs. Of course, some stuff is “made in China”, but there is also lot sold here that is locally made.

Downtown is another area where the shopping is never-ending…..will be soon giving you an update on shopping around the Talaat Harb Square. Till then, remember-“When in Rome, do as the Romans do, when in Egypt shop where the Egyptians shop”.

TWO DAY ITINERARY FOR LUXOR

Hey....forgot to add snaps; so am doing that now. Enjoy!]

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After much research and consultuing with Egyptologist friends who have visited Luxor independently and not on guided tours, this is the itinerary that I decided for our two-day trip to Luxor and it worked wonderfully. A hectic schedule, no doubt, especially if you are the kind to linger on details; nevertheless a schedule that gives you the satisfaction of having made the most of two days!

It is best to make an early start-most of the sites open at 6.00 AM; afternoons can be spent in the hotels or having a leisurely lunch. Late afternoon/evenings are best spent visiting the temples on the East Bank.

DAY 1

Start your visit to Luxor by visiting the royal tombs at Valley of the Kings. A single ticket (LE 70) entitles you to visit three tombs. There is a toy train to transport you to the entrance (LE 4)-if you have the time and inclination, you can easily walk up to the entrance. At the entrance, you will have to hand over your video cameras. A map here shows the lay-out of the tombs and you can choose the three that you want to visit. We visited the Tombs of Ramses III, Tuthmosis III and Ramses IX.

Ramses IX-This tomb is notable for its well-preserved paintings, the colours still so vivid as if the paintings are fairly recent! It is believed that the tomb was unfinished when Ramses IX died; after his death, the tomb was hastily completed

Ramses III- This tomb had a “false start” when its builders mistakenly cut through into the adjacent tomb. Ramses III changed the course of the corridor to the right and the result was a very large tomb with beautifully painted sunken reliefs.

Tuthmosis III-This tomb requires some “serious” walking and climbing a steep staircase. It is located between two limestone hills and is the most inaccessible of the tombs at the Valley of the Kings. The choice of its location demonstrates the extent to which the pharaohs went to protect their burial places from tomb raiders. There is a second steep staircase that leads to the burial chamber.

After visiting the three tombs on your itinerary, you might want to just walk around the valley-away from the long queues near the most popular tombs; it is quite peaceful with some good views over a barren landscape.

Be prepared that some of the tombs that you have set your heart onto maybe closed for renovation-we could not visit the Tomb of Mernepath for the same reason. There is a visitors’ centre just before the ticket booth, where a couple of documentaries are run, giving information on the discovery of the tombs and their restoration. Also http://www.thebanmappingproject.com/ is a good site for detailed information on the “Valley of the Kings”.


Deir al Bahri-The Temple of Hatshepsut is partly rock-cut and partly free-standing and has a wide causeway that leads to three huge terraced courts. Hatshepsut was the daughter of Tuthmosis I and became regent for Tuthmosis III, the minor son of her husband. She is then believed to have assumed the role of a pharoah and ruled for 15 years. Spend an hour here studying the reliefs recording the birth of Hatshepsut and the pharoah in the presence of various Pharonic gods. At some places the reliefs show gaps where Hatshepsut’s face has been disfigured by her successors

Colossi of Memnon-En route to your hotel for a brief siesta, stop at the two statues known as the Colossi of Memnon. These faceless statues are the remains of a large funerary complex that was built by Amenhotep III, but has been eroded away over the centuries due to the floods. .

After lunch and a siesta, head out to the Luxor Temple on the East Bank.

Luxor Temple-This temple is best visited during late afternoon/evening so that you get the opportunity to see the temple by daylight as well as when the sun has set and the temple is lit up. The temple was mostly built by Amenhotep III. The architecture of the temple is truly awe-inspiring. I loved the court of Amenhotelp III, which is surrounded by double rows of columns on three sides and is built in such a way so as to be open to the sun. Alexander the Great has rebuilt the barque shrine in this temple, which has reliefs depicting Alexander in the traditional regalia of the Pharoahs.

Day 2

Make an early start at around 7.00 p.m from the hotel to first visit the Medinat Habu. The tickets for visiting Medinat Habu are not available at the site but have to be bought at the Antiquities Inspectorate Office, close to the ferry landing. Apparently Medinat Habu was inhabited as recently as the late 9th century. It comprises of funerary temples built by Ramses III, Hatshepsut and Tuthmosis III. What I found most striking were the reliefs depicting Ramses III as the victor of several wars. Medinat Habu is a huge complex and has some of the best preserved reliefs-the colours are still vivid and beautiful.

Then you can return to the hotel for a siesta or visit another set of tombs-either the Valley of the Queens or Tomb of the Nobles.

The grand finale of any visit to Luxor is the Karnak Temple which according to one account is large enough to hold 10 cathedrals-therefore allow for sufficient time and energy to enjoy this temple. But I can guarantee that one visit will not be enough and you will want to come back again to visit this architectural marvel. The temple is open from 6.00 a.m to 5.30 p.m from October to April and till 6.00 p.m from May to September. Tickets can be bought at the entrance for LE 50. The highlight of this temple for me is the great Hypostyle Hall which consists of 134 papyrus- shaped stone pillars and lies after the second pylon. Originally, this hall was roofed; it was also brightly painted but today, the paint can be seen only in a few places. The temple has a total of ten pylons-its size and grandeur can only be imagined.

If you have time left before taking the flight/ train home, take in the sound and light show at the Karnak Temple, which is of one and a half hour duration.

Remember to read up a little on the sites that you will be visiting; this will help you to better appreciate the architectural marvels at Luxor. Do the sight seeing at a pace that suits you-prioritize according to your interests!

Cairo Grand Hyatt Hotel bans sale of alcohol

Received a mail from a friend that reads as follows:-

“The Grand Hyatt Hotel in Cairo has banned the sale of alcohol from the beginning of May, earlier this week. Though discussions are continuing between the Hotel chain and the owner, no drinks are served at any of the hotel’s restaurants or bars.”

I found it very strange because Cairo is the most liberal of all Muslim cities and alcohol is served in most hotel establishments in the city. The owner of Grand Hyatt is a sheikh from Saudi Arabia and he has banned the sale of alcohol on the hotel premises on the grounds that consumption of alcohol is forbidden under Islam.

Read on http://www.metimes.com/Politics/2008/05/02/saudi_sheikh_bans_alcohol_at_cairo_grand_hyatt_hotel/afp/

I have stayed in Khobar, Saudi Arabia for three years and all the five star hotel chains there have to adhere to the diktat of “no sale” of alcohol. In fact, sale or consumption of alcohol in Saudi Arabia is a punishable offence. However, to find a similar ban in a luxury restaurant in a city like Cairo is surprising and definitely puts Grand Hyatt at a disadvantage vis-à-vis the other luxury hotels.

It remains to be seen whether the ban will continue in the face of reduced business to the Grand Hyatt or whether the luxury chain is able to prevail over the owner to lift the ban.

STAY IN LUXOR, EATS AND TREATS TOO!

Staying At Luxor

Luxor is the place which can truly transport one to the Pharonic era; if you are visiting Luxor, you should be spending very little time in your hotel room. While choosing a hotel, the emphasis and concern should be getting clean beds and bathrooms. Most of the hotels are on the East Bank. This is much quieter than the West Bank and you will be close to the Luxor and the Karnak temples!

For checking out the hotel options in Luxor, log onto http://www.allhotels.com/. But be warned – the room rates mentioned on the site are not necessarily the correct ones-as I learnt the hard way! I chose Pyramisa Hotel from this website-a double room with a Nile view When I tried booking the room through the website, the operation failed every time. Then I called them and told them about the dates and the room that I wanted-and got the shock of my life-when the rates that were quoted were almost double and I was told that the website did not carry the correct rates! I suggest you use the website to get an idea of the hotels and the kind of facilities available therein and then do the bookings on the telephone. You will have to remit the money by wire transfer to confirm your bookings.

We finally stayed at Tutotel; a three star. Our rooms were clean and had good bathrooms. For the price of USD 44/- per night (double occupancy), it served our purpose. It has a small terrace pool and a terrace restaurant. The location is also very convenient.

Moving Around Luxor

We hired a car for the two days that we stayed in Luxor to take us around-for LE 300/day. We used the services of “Egypt on Line Tours” who provided us with an air-conditioned mini-van with a chauffeur who knew “basic” English and was conversant with all the sites. Though we did not hire any guide, it is possible to hire english-speaking guides for LE 150/- per day.

Eating Out

I would recommend the Africa restaurant on the West Bank- it has a friendly staff and serves freshly made Egyptian fare. A great place for vegetarians too! We had hummus and baba ghanough, greens salads together with rice, mixed vegetables, potato gravy and French fries for the main course. And of course, to help with the digestion; freshly squeezed lemon juice. We paid LE 48 per person, all inclusive. This place is extremely popular with tourist groups and if you get a table, you may be subject to subtle prodding by the staff to finish your meal and be off!

Treats

Treat yourself to a cold karkade and sheeshah at the Metropolitan Café on the Corniche while watching the sun set over the river Nile. The perfect place to rest your tired limbs and reflect on the historical sites that you have just visited is definitely by the river Nile – which too is as old as history!

A ferry ride between the West and the East Bank in Luxor is highly recommended-not only as the fastest and the easiest mode of travel between the two banks, but also for the sheer joy of cruising the Nile and feeling the spray of water on your face! Expect to pay around LE 1-2 per person for the crossing.

Take Me Home!

There are lovely clay pots (tagens) that can be bought beside the police station in Luxor. With some bargaining, you can buy the small pots for LE 5 and slightly bigger ones for LE 7-10. They can be used for cooking over the stove and can be used for serving too-to add a “different” touch to your dinner party!