"Wife is going to Egypt" Topic

My wife has an opportunity to go to Egypt this week with a chamber of commerce group, and will be going to Cairo and then taking a boat down the Nile. Any tips or suggestions?
Thanks,

It was a long time ago since I was there. But if they go to Luxor the sound and lightshow was great. Plus the valkey of Kingsand Valley of Queens.
I can't recall some of the names of places to mention.
But as I was there six months I had the opportunity to experience a lot and it was a highlite of my life.

Ihope she has a fantastic trip.

That is an amazing opportunity Mark!

Time for some gaming???

I agree with Frankss about locations. Cairo museum would also be a great place to go.

Eric

A helmet and Kevlar all in ones.. and don't trust anyone!

Number 1 priority, take gel hand cleanser, and use it each time you handle cash (it's all paper money),that's where the germs get transferred.
The Nile cruise is wonderful, although most of the boats (several hundred)are 'laid off' at the moment because of lack of tourist trade, free soup and food kitchens opened by wealthier citizens in Luxor.
Luxor west bank is spectacular, particularly Deir el Bahri and Ramases III mortuary temple at Medinet Habu. Don't forget Hot air ballooning over the west bank, early morning beauty.
Luxor and Karnak temples are not to be missed, Luxor Museum small but excellent.
Money is Egyptian pounds, about 10 to the GBP when I was there. I kept three money locations
1) small notes 1, 5, 10 EP in top pocket for 'baksheesh' (everyone gives baksheesh for small services, otherwise the poor couldn't survive, it's not begging!)
2) 20, 50, 100 EP in wallet in bum-bag for small holiday purchases
3) Larger notes in a different wallet and secure location, only for large purchases and NOT to be opened in public.
Beggars are scarce and usually beg silently, head covered, with an offering bowl.
Learn some useful Arabic to keep the pesterers away. Three phrases in succession usually suffice..
La shukran (no thank you), followed by
La shukran ( no thank you), followed by (more forcefully)
Hallas! (Enough!, stop it!, finished!)

If you're buying, always bargain, it's expected. Never accept the first or second price, even if you have to walk away a bit, they won't let you get away, if you're sensible. They still make a profit, you get a bargain, everyone's happy.

If possible go inside the Great Pyramid (cheap, but limited numbers per day), don't miss the Solar Boat. Son et Lumiere at the Pyramids is the best one to see, a good laser show projected onto surviving walls near the Sphynx.

Difficult to stop going on about, a wonderful country and people, if you enter into the spirit of the culture. S much to see, and if you get a good, knowledgeable, guide it will make your trip.

I'm so jealous, I would do the Nile cruise again tomorrow if it were possible. Abu Simbel, should you make it there, is stunning. Cairo Museum is not to be missed.

Hope she has a wonderful trip
Paul

I did a few days work in Cairo about six or seven years ago. There are many things to see and do. The Pyramids and Cairo Museum are the two that should be done. Cairo is not a calm place to be, the traffic is manic, I have no idea how it actually functions.
I have done a Nile cruise (twice) and I would recommend it to anyone over 30 who has amount of any curiosity. There are lots of historical things to see. The boat will have an itinerary of trips available. I have done them all and was not disappointed with any of them. Balloon flights over the Nile might be available. I found it amazing but three weeks later there was an accident and people died.
There are issues:
There is the hassle and you cannot walk in the bazaar without being "approached" entry their shop to buy something. This is how they earn their living.
There are no fixed prices so haggling is they way to go.
There are the conmen, the line varies but it usually involves you going with them to a specific shop. One line used is, it is the last day an exhibition and there are bargains to be had – no there aren't. Again this is about making money.
An open line often heard is "Don't you recognise me? I am one of the waiters on your boat. It is my day off and I would like to show you around the town". Waiters do not have days off!
If someone approaches you to sell something it may be genuine, it may not. One sign is if they have an armful it is probably genuine, if they have one or two – watch your purse. (I learnt this is Luxor, they laid a big scarf over my bag. Their haul was the receipts from the museum visits, a plastic card that let me back on the boat and spare pair of underpants I carry.)
If a trader asks "Have you been to Egypt before?" they are gauging what price to set. If you say "No" they will open with a higher price that if you said "Yes".
Most Egyptians just want to feed their families and tourists are viewed as a source of easy money.
Women alone may attract unwanted attention. This attention could be protective/concerned, flirting/hopeful or unpleasant. So it is better to travel in a group.
One more thing, there is an "expectation" of tips for any service provided. The most extreme case I encountered was someone turning the taps on at a wash basin in a restaurant. I advise being selective as to who you tip. A supply of one Egyptian pound coins is useful for visits to public toilets.
If you wife does go I hope she enjoys it.
John

Thanks for the tips Paul.

If she and colleagues get any unplanned time in Cairo at all, then:

- A half day just wandering around Old Cairo away from the main tourist drag. Prepare to be taken under the wing of a friendly local, but go with it. They'll see a genuine side to the city, and he'll get a free coffee, some commission his favourite spice shop and a donation for his local mosque. Win win.
- Coptic Cairo – an oasis of calm amongst the mayhem. Only a few stops along on their tube/subway from Tahrir Square.
- There's a nice park – Al Azhar – overlooking Old Cairo which is great at sundown, and has some nice restaurants. Paid entry and a haunt for the middle classes as far as I could tell, so refreshingly normal.
- There's a great Lebanese restaurant on one of the Nile boats along the promenade on Zamalek (I forget its proper name)
- Soft drinks from stalls run by old ladies who don't speak English are far better value for money than drinks from stalls run by young men who do. You even get change. It's the one time I wouldn't haggle.

Cairo's great, I'd love to go back.

Edit to add: Really really obvious, but she should take a headscarf and wear long sleeves/trousers. Amazing how many don't and she'll get far less hassle if she does. May still have to have female mosque attendants re-arrange it for her, but as that's their income, just go with it. Same kind of goes for the blokes in her group – only boys wear shorts. You get less hassle if you dress/act like an ex-pat.

Not Egypt but: back in '79 I was in Tangier. I kept getting hustled by locals who wanted to carry my bags/do anything that they could charge for. I hired one kid to show me around the Medina (the old Arab part of town). He took me into a store that sold robes (jelabias). I decided to buy one. The asking price was 155 dirham. Back then it was 2 dirham to the dollar, no idea what it is these days. I bargained it down to 55 dirham and went out in the street in my robe. The locals decided I was local and left me pretty much alone after that. When I got back to the hotel the staff howled to see me dressed like a local. They asked how much I paid. I told them 55, they said I should have paid 45. Close enough, I figure.

They have a legend that says "If you drink water from the Nile, you will return to Egypt one day". Dont fall for it.

Old Diplomatic Corps trick, take the maximum duty free liquor appowance in spirits, if you don't get sealed water in your hotel, use the spirits to clean your teeth. Bottled water that is supplied with the seal broken is just out of the nearest tap with all the local nasties in it. Cleaning your teeth with vodka is better than amoebic dysentery.