Day 4: Depart Cairo

Day 4: Depart Cairo

It was the same chaotic scene again at Cairo airport when we arrived to catch our flight going back to Dubai. There were a group of Indonesian women who shamelessly cut the line in front of the British guy who was in front of us, the guy mercilessly bashed them off but to no avail the group of Indonesian ladies didn’t budge. The British guy was so furious that he went ahead at the very start of the line and sneaked himself in. There were some Taiwanese (not really sure if Taiwanese or Koreans) behind us who were crossing the metal barrier. A guy was supposed to cut the line in front of us but I stood my grounds and told him to go the end of the line. The British couple behind me told him the same thing. It’s irritating yet entertaining; I could not fathom the idea that there are people like them in the world. Very…. uncivilized? Disorganized? Undisciplined? I’m not saying that the Egyptians are all those things since the people doing these are all the people at the airport regardless of their nationality, age and gender. The problem is – Egyptian authorities are letting this happen.

Anyhow, here’s my list of do’s and dont’s when travelling to Cairo

1. Bring mosquito repellant lotion. The mosquitoes literally eat people alive there and they leave black marks on your skin, I still have them on mine even after 3 days.

2. Be very cautious of what you eat. I know a lot of people who got sick after their Egypt trip, fortunately for us we didn’t get any of those.

3. Egypt is best for people who love to see historical sites, don’t expect too much grandeur out of this place because for sure you will be disappointed.

4. It’s good to have someone who knows their way around Egypt, lucky for us since our tour guide became our personal bodyguard too for the whole duration of this trip.

5. Get a package tour and make sure that you also get a good and informative tour guide to make it more interesting. Egypt is all about history and since I am a sucker for stories being told, these are all very important to me.

6. Whatever you do, never drink tap water.

7. Whenever you can, pretend you can’t speak English to avoid any inconveniences with the locals who will try to loot you in every way possible (we didn’t get much of these anyway, not how I expected it to be)

8. People are generally nice, give them a chance. If you’re not in a tourist spot, never assume that the person offering you help is looting you. More often than not, it will be out of genuine kindness. We met a lot of genuine people at the resort that we stayed in and they made our stay better.

9. Be very vigilant and aware of your surroundings, specially when crossing the streets.

10. As much as possible, don’t hire a car and drive yourself around Cairo. Unless you’re as good and as cool headed as the Egyptian drivers. :p

All in all, I had a great time. Egypt is not at all grand like any other countries that I’ve visited but I am not really after the grandeur of any place that I travel to. A travel out of the country is a travel out of the country. Anything new for my eyes to see, for my ears to hear, for my skin to feel and for my tongue to taste is perfect enough for me. Plus I can slash off the Pyramids of Giza from my to-see list before I die. 🙂