(Fifteenth of a Series)
Even though Cairo is directly south of Saint Petersburg, we set our watches two hours BACK as we arrived into Cairo. Just from looking at a map, I wouldn't have expected Cairo to be in the same time zone as Paris. But so it was. What that told me was that the sun would set early in Egypt.
By the time we landed in Cairo, the sun was already down; it was 1:30 in the morning. We had managed to get through to the hotel, so we knew they were expecting us to be late. Our pre-arranged cab ride met us inside the security area immediately as we got off the plane. In less than ten minutes time, the driver had us escorted through baggage claim, through passport control, and through customs. I'm not positive that he acted legally.
We arrived during the season of Ramadan. Though it was just short of 2:00 am, the streets were heavily populated. Mosques were decorated with lights much the way Americans decorate their private homes during Christmas season. It occurred to me that we might have trouble eating if the entire Egyptian population would be fasting. But they never imposed their observances on foreigners. This marked the second holiday we happened across - we were in England during "Bank Holiday." Banks of England routinely observe a Bank Holiday four days a year.
As we descended into Egypt, we were advised that the current temperature was 36-degrees, likely in Celsius. So that makes it (carry the nine, drop the five, do something with a 32, I wish I had paid attention in Physics) HOT. And it was middle of the night. Tricia had packed a few tank tops for the trip. It wasn't quite hot enough to wear them in England or Russia. The weather was much more summery in Egypt. But that very day, the story of Sudanese journalist Lubna al-Hussein, the lady charged with public indecency for wearing dungarees, was breaking. Tricia had no interest in testing the resolve of the Muslim community in Egypt.
On the way to the hotel, we drive over the Nile River. Cars are lined up parked on both sides. About a thousand people are resting against the bridge wall. I ask if that was to celebrate Ramadan. He answered that they were simply getting free air. Egyptian homes don't all have air conditioning, and the air is cooler above the Nile.
I made no attempt to speak in Arabic. For one, the Arabic alphabet includes only the long vowels; the short vowels are implied. Eight Arabic letters are duplicates of English letters, differing in that they are pronounced with various nuances of the throat. But the most compelling reason not to attempt Arabic is that English is widely spoken in Egypt.
Out of about 30 channels on television, eight are (usually) in English. English speaking channels are subtitled in Arabic. Egyptian television shows are not shown in their entirety. They are usually interrupted about two-thirds of the way through. CNN-Europe broadcast live coverage of Obama's health-care speech to Congress. Mid-subject, they switched to a rerun of Scrubs.
Due to the time we arrived, the only thing planned for the next day was a Nile River dinner cruise. So the next morning will be leisurely. We observe that the top of a Pyramid is visible against the skyline as we look out from our (mercifully) air conditioned hotel room. Later during our stay, we will tour the Pyramid area. There are other attractions in Cairo, but not as many must-sees. We will eventually see the Saqqara Carpeting School, a Papyrus Factory, tour a Mosque, visit the claimed site of refuge of the Holy Family and other sights.