Egyptian hospitality ...
Lest you all get the impression, from scammy apartment dude, that all Egyptians are bad people, I just thought I'd tell you about some of the cool ones that I've met. There are a LOT of people who just automatically do nice things, especially for confused foreigners such as myself.
To begin with, although I get many looks and stupid comments walking down the streets, I also get a lot of people who, with no apparent agenda, just tell me, "Welcome to Egypt" with a big smile. There's still a lot of national pride around here. The people who I briefly speak to, behind the counter when I'm buying ice cream or something, inevitably ask me how I like it here, tell me a few wonderful places they think I should go, and just generally try to convince me that Egypt is the best place in the world for me and I should stay forever.
Even better is cab drivers. Most of them don't speak English, but sometimes I hit the jackpot. Just yesterday on the way to work, I had a driver who was actually giving me street names so that I could tell future cab drivers the best way to go, and just generally being friendly - I learned about his family and his desire to find a better job, and when I got out of the cab and paid the 5 LE I always pay, he not only didn't complain, but told me to have a nice day, enjoy my stay in Egypt, and it'd been his pleasure to talk with me. Seriously, never get that kind of service in the US! In fact, the last cab ride I took in Boston ended with the driver lecturing me about increasing gas prices, and how if I didn't give him a better tip (and trust me, it was already a damn good tip), he wouldn't take people to Cambridge anymore. Ass.
Right, moving on ...
Another random kindness: yesterday afternoon, I took a minibus home (or microbus - still haven't figured that one out). Now, this route goes past where I live, but is actually heading to October City, about 30 km outside of Cairo - it just so happens that the bus conveniently goes through Mohandisseen. But this time the driver took a slightly different route than normal, and so didn't go straight through Lebanon Square, which is where I get out. So I asked to get out when I saw we were going around the Square, and instead of just letting me, which wouldn't have been difficult and would have made total sense, there was a big conversation which ended with a guy behind me explaining that, if I was trying to get to the Square, I couldn't because the way was blocked for pedestrians, too (construction), but the driver would loop back around and drop me off there (even though everyone else is going straight through to October City, and so there was no legitimate reason to go through the square).
See, these are the kinds of people that comprise the majority of the Egyptian population. There are occassional jerks, just like everywhere else, but for the most part, people here are genuinely nice and friendly and willing to help. Especially my co-workers, actually ... there's now a daily routine where Reham or Ghada walk with me to the minibuses, and make sure I get on the right one, just because they can't bear the thought of me paying for a cab when I don't need to. And yesterday, one of the higher-ups (as identified by his suit) walked with Ghada and me as well. We passed by a corner shop, and he insisted on buying us sodas. (I actually said I didn't drink soda, but he insisted until I caved and got a Miranda.) When I was telling Ghada that we have Ho-Hos in America (the counter was covered with individually wrapped Twinkies, Ho-Hos, etc), but not the little rolls next to them, Hassam insisted on buying me one of THOSE as well. And when I asked where I could find a restaurant that serves fatta, a traditional Egyptian dish that I really want to try, Hassam invited me over to eat with his family (wife and three children), and his wife will make fatta and anything else I ask for. And I'd actually just met this man an hour before - he works at one of the other offices. Clearly, there's nothing shady going on - he's having me over with his wife and kids, and Ghada is coming as well. He was just being NICE.
So, for anyone who was worried I'm spending the summer surrounded by horrible people only looking out for themselves, I want you to know that I'm not. In fact, more people go out of their ways to help me out or make me feel comfortable than ever happens in the States. Which is nice - it means, despite the scam artists and salesmen, Egyptian hospitality is alive and well.
To begin with, although I get many looks and stupid comments walking down the streets, I also get a lot of people who, with no apparent agenda, just tell me, "Welcome to Egypt" with a big smile. There's still a lot of national pride around here. The people who I briefly speak to, behind the counter when I'm buying ice cream or something, inevitably ask me how I like it here, tell me a few wonderful places they think I should go, and just generally try to convince me that Egypt is the best place in the world for me and I should stay forever.
Even better is cab drivers. Most of them don't speak English, but sometimes I hit the jackpot. Just yesterday on the way to work, I had a driver who was actually giving me street names so that I could tell future cab drivers the best way to go, and just generally being friendly - I learned about his family and his desire to find a better job, and when I got out of the cab and paid the 5 LE I always pay, he not only didn't complain, but told me to have a nice day, enjoy my stay in Egypt, and it'd been his pleasure to talk with me. Seriously, never get that kind of service in the US! In fact, the last cab ride I took in Boston ended with the driver lecturing me about increasing gas prices, and how if I didn't give him a better tip (and trust me, it was already a damn good tip), he wouldn't take people to Cambridge anymore. Ass.
Right, moving on ...
Another random kindness: yesterday afternoon, I took a minibus home (or microbus - still haven't figured that one out). Now, this route goes past where I live, but is actually heading to October City, about 30 km outside of Cairo - it just so happens that the bus conveniently goes through Mohandisseen. But this time the driver took a slightly different route than normal, and so didn't go straight through Lebanon Square, which is where I get out. So I asked to get out when I saw we were going around the Square, and instead of just letting me, which wouldn't have been difficult and would have made total sense, there was a big conversation which ended with a guy behind me explaining that, if I was trying to get to the Square, I couldn't because the way was blocked for pedestrians, too (construction), but the driver would loop back around and drop me off there (even though everyone else is going straight through to October City, and so there was no legitimate reason to go through the square).
See, these are the kinds of people that comprise the majority of the Egyptian population. There are occassional jerks, just like everywhere else, but for the most part, people here are genuinely nice and friendly and willing to help. Especially my co-workers, actually ... there's now a daily routine where Reham or Ghada walk with me to the minibuses, and make sure I get on the right one, just because they can't bear the thought of me paying for a cab when I don't need to. And yesterday, one of the higher-ups (as identified by his suit) walked with Ghada and me as well. We passed by a corner shop, and he insisted on buying us sodas. (I actually said I didn't drink soda, but he insisted until I caved and got a Miranda.) When I was telling Ghada that we have Ho-Hos in America (the counter was covered with individually wrapped Twinkies, Ho-Hos, etc), but not the little rolls next to them, Hassam insisted on buying me one of THOSE as well. And when I asked where I could find a restaurant that serves fatta, a traditional Egyptian dish that I really want to try, Hassam invited me over to eat with his family (wife and three children), and his wife will make fatta and anything else I ask for. And I'd actually just met this man an hour before - he works at one of the other offices. Clearly, there's nothing shady going on - he's having me over with his wife and kids, and Ghada is coming as well. He was just being NICE.
So, for anyone who was worried I'm spending the summer surrounded by horrible people only looking out for themselves, I want you to know that I'm not. In fact, more people go out of their ways to help me out or make me feel comfortable than ever happens in the States. Which is nice - it means, despite the scam artists and salesmen, Egyptian hospitality is alive and well.
posted by Teale at 10:36 AM
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