Last Days in Cairo

Back at the InterContinental Semiramis in Cairo, I have one more day in Egypt before heading back to Dubai. I decide to head to the Egyptian Museum, which houses many of King Tut’s treasures. Walking past Tahrir Square, I feel more comfortable as it is daytime and there are many people and cars bustling around. I realize the need for a tour guide in this museum as many of the exhibits don’t have descriptions. Other than the treasures found in King Tut’s tomb, the Royal Mummies were pretty fascinating. It’s amazing to see how intact the mummies were, after thousands of years; but I didn’t spend too much time in there, it was rather creepy.

I met up with my friend Andira, whom I had met last summer in Madrid during the World Cup madness. We had spent the night exploring Madrid’s nightlife after Spain had won the semi final to Germany. She is originally from Sudan, and the one thing I always remembered about Andira is what she taught us that night. In Sudan, the latest fad in dance moves was to dance out day to day actions (i.e. washing dishes). It looked much better when she showed us..rather than me trying to describe it now. We went to Old Cairo for a late lunch and shopping through the markets. She mentioned that there is still a general sense of lawlessness here. However, it was only unsafe one week during the revolution when the police disappeared from the streets and the people had to defend their neighborhoods and homes. It is unbelievable to think that now, Mubarak who had ruled Egypt for decades, is on his deathbed and in a cage in court with his sons by his side, answering to the Egyptian people. In fact they were even thinking of not airing the trial on TV anymore since it caused so much chaos in front of the courthouse and negative reactions by the people.

We go to this charming café, named after a Nobel Prize winning author (his name escapes my mind at the moment) who used to frequent the area to write. He would write about the day to day life of Egyptians, sometimes controversial, but very real. This is kind of place is right up my alley, as I like to stalk the hometowns of my favorite French authors. Andira is doing some really impressive work in Egypt, working with Google on university partnerships in the MENA region and in her spare time working with a non-profit focused on developing the Egyptian youth. She says that her parents always ask her why doesn’t move to the UK or the US in order to pursue her career. But she says she belongs in Egypt and cannot even imagine leaving this non-profit organization she works with. I admire her will to stay in Egypt and help rebuild her country.

I spend the last night in the hotel, as many other nights on this Middle Eastern adventure glued to the TV, intently watching every move of the revolutions erupting in Libya and Syria, wondering how it will all pan out.