What do you really like & hate about living in Egypt?

mmm Egypt likes are many all related to kindness and helpness and dislikes like old traditions ,including religons in many aspects of life . thats in simple way
i think Alex is better than cairo ,i live in both ,and now i am in cairo.

Likes = Pryamids, mummies, food

Dislikes: rash driving, street fights, few people understanding English, Everything Expensive being foreigner, Sexual Harassment for girls

But over all its OK! if you can adjust with pros and cons

alimirza wrote:

Likes = Pryamids, mummies, food

Dislikes: rash driving, street fights, few people understanding English, Everything Expensive being foreigner, Sexual Harassment for girls

But over all its OK! if you can adjust with pros and cons

actually u are right

Al Salam alikom,
Hope this finds you well.
Cairo is the city that does not sleep. I do not know if you would regard this as a good thing or not.
Alex is pretty quite all year long except on vacations.
People are usually friendly towards foreigners.
Religion is present to some extent. If you are going to come here for spiritual reasons, you may reconsider. Here we have some mis beliefs. Many people believe in awleya or something like holly people. We also have Sofies and sheats.
Ramadan here is amazing. The streets light up with colorful lights, flags and the traditional fanoos (a special kind of lamp).
So what are you really looking for?

Having only recently arrived (few weeks ago), I am not an expert.  This is my take so far:

I am tall, blonde (oh yeah and gorgeous)

I have NOT experienced much harassment at all and when I do it's some little pervert's whisper as he passes me. Sometimes it's so pathetic it makes me laugh, at worst it can be rather annoying. You have to feel sorry for these little cretins.  I think about their background and I try to feel compassion instead of anger. 

I'm going to learn to say "Sorry, what did you say?  Can you say it louder?...Did you say six, or seven...six what?  I don't understand.say it much louder please." 

On the whole, people are proud of their country and want to make a good impression.  They are much more inclined to help you than harass you here!

People can't stop staring!!! I feel like I have turned into Shakira on the subway.  Their eyes pop out of their heads and they lose the ability to move their heads.  I remind myself that being beautiful has it's downsides too.  I take the opportunity to have a good old voyeuristic feast in response. If you smile, they smile back.     

To my surprise I am actually liking the sounds of the city: the beeping of the horns outside my window at night, the screeching of zombies after midnight and the dogs chasing each other around.

I have a sore throat, but I can still breath, which is a bonus!
  Pollution can be a nightmare, but I have chosen to live near trees!

The coffee shops are delightful (try the unheard of ones rather than the known as they make more effort to please customers)

As long as you keep an open mind and a tight fist you will really enjoy Cairo.  Be very aware that EVERYONE is out to rip you off, including the charlatans at the Marriot hotel, who charge 100LE / hour for internet access in the lobby. 
   
There was an armed mugging the other day, but these incidents seem to be rare and Cairo is still safer than London.

I miss pavements.

I really hate toilet ants.

I love milky, ginger, cinnamon drinks with whipped cream on top. 

I love being a B list celebrity.

I LOVE Egypt :)It's very exotic and something exotic I cnt explain you will experience it for yourself  I love everything about it Except the pollution is HORRIBLE, I miss EVERYTHING being air Conditions cars/homes/shops... Public bathrooms are a nightmare!! bring your own wet wipes n hand sanitizer everywhere. and if you miss Western standard bathrooms head on over to the Embassy AND there is Grabage EVERYWHERE..lol

Yes people will stare and hold camera phones in your face and even if you have lived here for years you still hear Welcome to Egypt everywhere you go It's sweet and in a way flattering I guess. you'll def et more attention here then back home. but in general the men keep respect and wont bother you further.

I absolutely LOVE Alex over Cairo it's much much cleaner less trash in the streets reminds me of Italy actually pollution is way less plus who doesn't want to be on the Med sea!?! 

there are so many things to do here regardless of where you are, and what kind of lifestyle your looking for Enjoy

oh and try to have a local with you as much as possible in public especially till you get aclimated cause if you try to buy anything they see Big $$$ signs int here eyes and suddenly they are charging you western prices instead of Egyptian..lol

olivia78 wrote:

Egyptian men have no respect for foreign women, no one speaks english, crazy drivers, horrible food, cheating foreigners, etc

Only thing i like about Egypt is home delivery on almost everything, i dont go shopping often, just call the grocery store! if am in no mood for cooking pizza or whatever is at the door in 30mins!

1. In normal circumstance, Egyptian men are at their worst, some of the most irritating articles the world has ever seen.  However, I would say that when you deal with them personally, they are very polite, kind and some are very trustworthy.  They are really no different from any men on the planet, but in Egypt, people like to stare.  They just perceive it as normal and acceptable behaviour.  Not just the men, the women too.  Part of living in a foreign country is getting used to the bizarre differences we all have.  If you go to Japan, you will have to pay a man £20/hour to chat you up.  It's just different. 

2. Why would you say that no one speaks English???? If you opened the door and walked outside for a while and maybe, I don't know tried TALKING  nicely to a few people, they might respond.  Try a few words of Arabic!

3. Yes the driving is horrible and our life expectancies have probably been reduced by a few years, but what can you do?  Oh yeah, hang on, you've got the answer to that one, haven't you-stay at home, don't open the door, don't go outside, don't speak to anyone and order all your "horrible" food in, get ripped off by the CSA...

The biggest problem I have noticed in Egypt is they are horribly frustrated for no good reason. I live in Maadi which is considered to be one of the good places to live in Cairo, but still I see when ever any Egyptian man regardless of age see a women walking alone they will try to throw some words as if they will get some cash of doing it. And this happens in public with no fear and people simply ignore!

Secondly the same thing happened with me while I was out with my egyptian wife.. two guys started staring at us for some time.. I tried to ignore but finally I decided to make some point with these guys as I know when it comes to foreigner Egyptian police protects foreigner rights more then local citizen rights, at this point my wife stopped me as she did not wanted me to put my self in trouble with some street guys

Anyways I personally think that government should take some necessary actions to get this frustration out of mans as its the same for foreigner or local as long as its about GIRL with absolute no discrimination.


and Yea a small piece of advise for other expat womens. when ever you think that you cant bear a man anymore simply call for the shurta ...these mans will run away far as they never came. They are pretty scared of Police when it comes to Foreigner.

Tis useful to know the word, 'shurta'.  I will test it next time I am harassed and let you know how it went. 

I wonder if any of these people have lived in other countries before.  Turkey is a damned sight worse for harassment, if your man here went to Korea, he would probably have beaten up many times over for marrying a local and if he tried to call the cops, he would be in even bigger trouble.  In China and India you can easily find yourself sitting on a bench, unable to see the sky because a group of locals have gathered and brought all their friends to see the big, strangely coloured alien.

How lucky for us that foreigners are protected.  It seems to be a gesture of hospitality that they care for us.  People are fun and friendly in Egypt. 

The staring and harassment thing is well over dramatised on this forum.  It really isn't that big a deal.  Like I said, I am tall, blonde and gorgeous.  It's not just the locals that look at me; the foreigners in Maadi do too, so give it a rest, please!

Hi, I'm arrived one month ago with my two daughters following my husband's job.

Honestly, I think that the harassment thing is the last problem here. We have to pretend respect,and we have to known how to move, of course, here as in Europe, is the same. I'm sure, also that HERE is less dangerous than in others countries. 
of this country I don't like :
How they drive. Crazy, I will never complain about traffic in Rome or Naples!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dirty. streets are so dirty. Why they don't keep cleaner ?????  there are so nice places .... but

I like the food. Yes, I had less problem here to find the food I like than in the others countries I lived.
Now I have only the problem to find a good hairdresser, cosmetics, an haberdashery and foreigner's magazines. I think it's only a question of time ......

At the end, traveling, I never forget that we are here for business and we are guest in this country. So we have to accept many things or we have to remain in our country.

I consider this a great experience, especially for my daughters. 

Enjoy!!!!!!!!

I'm Egyptian, your comments are really interesting, I'm sorry we have some bad things in Egypt like staring, cleanliness, I wish people here get over those things with more development in education and culture.
thanks to Burnside for sharing, you are totally right in your posts.
Me as Egyptian dream to see Egypt getting rid of bad habits step by step.
finally If any person really needs any help in Cairo just contact me, and even if u needed someone to talk and tell you about the country.
It's our culture to welcome our visitors

Well I love Cairo and Egypt.

I've lived in the Middle East (UAE) 6 years and am soon relocating to Cairo.  I've been working on a project in Cairo and have been to Egypt 15 times over the past 2 years. 

Thinks I love:

1. The people always joking and happy
2. The metered taxi's with air conditioning
3. Mahshee especially from the Mansura area, cooked in chicken stock instead of water Yum Yum
4. Uppper Egypt
5. The wind of the Nile at night
6. The art of life--the art of survival
7. The way the zahma--traffic jams find a way to move unlike UAE where they are paralyzed
8. The tour of the pyramids day and night
9. King Tut in the Egyptian Museum
10.  Koshary from a clean shop
11.  Never felt unsafe

Things I don't like:
1. Con artists and liars-- but they are the exception
2. Black and white taxi's without ac or seatbelts
3. Pollution
4. Strongly clorinated water--but better than contaminated I suppose.
5. Rude aggressive people who break in line or don't slow down at all when trying to cross the road
6. People who ask for bakshish before I offer it.
7. The dangerous Cairo tower with no emergency exits, the worst organized system of touring it and 3 hours up 1 hour down--will never do it again! It's a disaster waiting to happen.

All in all it's my choice to move to Cairo, I could work anywhere I choose, and I am choosing Cairo.

@ Burnside:

I love being able to tell you're in your honeymoon period living in Cairo The excitement of Cairo and the non-stop lifestyle. Enjoy it while it lasts!

A few things I loved about living in Cairo (I'm living on the Red Sea now, and far prefer it over Cairo):
1. You see something new everyday. Literally, everyday.
2. The fresh fruit and veggies are really flavourful, and delicious to cook with!
3. Egyptian food is awesome.
4. Sitting at a coffee shop with a sheisha and watching the world go by.
5. Trying out your few words of Arabic on a taxi driver and in return have them try their English (This would frustrate me to no ends at first, but they are using you to practice their language just as you are using them..tit for tat :p)
6. Sunrise horse riding by the pyramids.
7. Many Egyptians are extremely hospitable, and will open their arms willingly to give you a good impression of their city and country.
8. When you make friends with an Egyptian, you are friends for life.

Things I disliked about Cairo:
1. The pollution. Although it may seem you don't notice it after a while, your eyes will burn, your throat and chest will be tight, and it's not until you get out of the city that you realise how much it affects you.
2. The ignorance. Ignorance runs rampant throughout Egypt due to the lack of eduction that many do not receive. Therefore, it can take forever to get a simple task taken care of...and disputes can arise over the dumbest things.
3. The judging by women on the streets. Which in my mind, was often WAY worse than the stares men would give you. Yes, i'm in a t-shirt, YES you may think i'm naked, deal with it. I don't need sympathetic stares as though they are embarrassed for me, and actually feel sorry for me.
4. The harassment. Which I feel has gotten worse over the past few years. I've been in Egypt for 4.5 years now, and four of those were in Cairo. At first, I noticed remarks and comments, but I feel now that men in Cairo in particular are getting bolder with what they will do. Now being back in Cairo, I am groped much more than I was before. To avoid this, when in public places bring a male with you. It makes all the difference in the world.
5. People trying to rip me off left right and center purely because i'm white. Regardless of the fact that I was earning an Egyptian salary. Best advice I've heard? Consider 1 LE as the equivalent to 1 Dollar. DO NOT keep converting in your head. you're setting yourself up for disaster by doing so. In addition, people that make you feel you are obligated to pay for something, when in fact you are not. (Example: Doormen in the buildings. Every month, they expect anywhere between 50 - 100 LE. It's made out to seem that this is obligatory. If they are doing their jobs, that is keeping the building clean, moving trash, helping you with problems in your apt etc. I had no problem paying - my boab now is fantastic and I tip him every month - but if they do no more than sit on their asses watching tv, why am I forced to pay for that?!)
--> side note on this one...if you do have problems inside your apartment, and need to get someone in to look at it, as a female NEVER allow an unknown egyptian man into your house without having someone there with you. what we consider gestures of politeness, such as handshakes and eye contact, can be completely misconstrued here.

I could go on, but I guess that's enough for now! haha.

MLB4861 wrote:

Well I love Cairo and Egypt.

I've lived in the Middle East (UAE) 6 years and am soon relocating to Cairo.  I've been working on a project in Cairo and have been to Egypt 15 times over the past 2 years. 

Thinks I love:

1. The people always joking and happy
2. The metered taxi's with air conditioning
3. Mahshee especially from the Mansura area, cooked in chicken stock instead of water Yum Yum
4. Uppper Egypt
5. The wind of the Nile at night
6. The art of life--the art of survival
7. The way the zahma--traffic jams find a way to move unlike UAE where they are paralyzed
8. The tour of the pyramids day and night
9. King Tut in the Egyptian Museum
10.  Koshary from a clean shop
11.  Never felt unsafe

Things I don't like:
1. Con artists and liars-- but they are the exception
2. Black and white taxi's without ac or seatbelts
3. Pollution
4. Strongly clorinated water--but better than contaminated I suppose.
5. Rude aggressive people who break in line or don't slow down at all when trying to cross the road
6. People who ask for bakshish before I offer it.
7. The dangerous Cairo tower with no emergency exits, the worst organized system of touring it and 3 hours up 1 hour down--will never do it again! It's a disaster waiting to happen.

All in all it's my choice to move to Cairo, I could work anywhere I choose, and I am choosing Cairo.

i also like cairo so much, althourh a lot of dislikes
i will go to sudan this august and hope i can go back to cairo again
enjoy ur time in cairo man
regards
sun

Fc Bavarian wrote:

I'm Egyptian, your comments are really interesting, I'm sorry we have some bad things in Egypt like staring, cleanliness, I wish people here get over those things with more development in education and culture.
thanks to Burnside for sharing, you are totally right in your posts.
Me as Egyptian dream to see Egypt getting rid of bad habits step by step.
finally If any person really needs any help in Cairo just contact me, and even if u needed someone to talk and tell you about the country.
It's our culture to welcome our visitors

Well, nice to read your comment man. I wish there's a lot more EGYPTIAN with the same thought of u man. Now, the revolution is over, I hope to see Egypt much better than before, regardless your age and where are you from. I had a long chat with my housemate this morning, discussing, complaining about Egypt and Egyptian. So many points for sure. I was hoping there's an Egyptian(who can understand and speak English) next to us last morning, so he can spread our matters, problems, opinion about Egyptian to all the local people.

I about to cry when I saw a page in Facebook -"Let's Clean Egypt", oh, hope this program doing well in Egypt. And it's good to see Amr Khaled doing much effort to brainwash all of you Egyptian, Shabab Thaurah, after the revolution, in a TV programe-A7la Bukra. And Khawater 5 TV program also should made you think better for sure.

What I love about Egypt?
1. To meet a very2 good, sincere people in Egypt. I would  very very very thankful to God. Already met curious people, after prayer in the mosque asking bout money, currency, even wanna go visit my house, after just a short chat less than 10minutes. And stalk me on my way back to my house, after I refused to invite him to my house.


What I dislike about Cairo?

- all the points that have been mentioned before, and I could go on to write more, but it will not write it down coz it make me sick. Better to forget it, unless they are ready to read it and to CHANGE!


Rbena y5'lekum yehdiikum ya masriyyini! Good lucky guys for a better Egypt!

Burnside wrote:

olivia78 wrote:

Egyptian men have no respect for foreign women, no one speaks english, crazy drivers, horrible food, cheating foreigners, etc

Only thing i like about Egypt is home delivery on almost everything, i dont go shopping often, just call the grocery store! if am in no mood for cooking pizza or whatever is at the door in 30mins!

1. In normal circumstance, Egyptian men are at their worst, some of the most irritating articles the world has ever seen.  However, I would say that when you deal with them personally, they are very polite, kind and some are very trustworthy.  They are really no different from any men on the planet, but in Egypt, people like to stare.  They just perceive it as normal and acceptable behaviour.  Not just the men, the women too.  Part of living in a foreign country is getting used to the bizarre differences we all have.  If you go to Japan, you will have to pay a man £20/hour to chat you up.  It's just different. 

2. Why would you say that no one speaks English???? If you opened the door and walked outside for a while and maybe, I don't know tried TALKING  nicely to a few people, they might respond.  Try a few words of Arabic!

3. Yes the driving is horrible and our life expectancies have probably been reduced by a few years, but what can you do?  Oh yeah, hang on, you've got the answer to that one, haven't you-stay at home, don't open the door, don't go outside, don't speak to anyone and order all your "horrible" food in, get ripped off by the CSA...

Funny to read this now after a year of constant jibes, 3 minor sexual assaults and numerous cases of being ripped off big time!  I still love Cairo, I think you have to know how to deal with the SH** that comes with being female.  I want to be able to thank all of the kind Egyptian people who have stepped in when things have gotten scary, but they don't speak English and certainly don't read this forum. Without the solidarity of community, who fight against the minority of perves and theives Egypt would be nothing.

thanks burnside for ur last comment.

I can say I have witnessed men being quite forward with western women. I would not always class it as harassment, Egyptians have a persistence when it comes to all foreigners male or female. I am a male and I get the same thing with taxis. It is more to do with the expectation that you have more money as a foreigner than sex.

That said, there is also a general assumption, that Western or Westernised women are more open-minded to casual relationships and are therefore pursued more vigorously. By dressing provocatively (and I mean by the local standards) you should expect to attract attention.

There are many posts and comments about the harassment of Western women on many sites and forums but what is often not explained is that many stories of holiday romances have helped to fuel the notion that sex can be gained through a relationship with a western woman much easier than a local woman. Amongst the young unmarried males here in Cairo that is an attractive prospect, (Among the older married ones too) as society here is generally a lot more conservative than western countries about sex outside marriage, at least in open.

My experiences offer this advice generally.

* Dress in an appropriate manner. Unless in a private hotel, club or bar, try to cover up to the knees and do not show cleavage. Scarves are worn by many Egyptian women but equally many do not.

* Say no sternly. If you understood the culture here you would realise that Egyptians flirt, both men and women but not as openly as westerners are used to. A lot of the flirting is done in conversation and gesture. Egyptian women like to play coy and shy and this is regarded as a respectable way of not quite saying no but not seeming to interested. Because of this Egyptian men have become accustomed to persisting a little. Most Egyptian men will quickly run away if you quite sternly say No. Please leave me alone. Especially in public where someone else may hear.

* Use your intuition. A lot of Egyptians show a friendless that westerners may find unusual or exaggerated. Sometimes this can be mistaken for flirting. Use your intuition to decide if a man is trying his luck - if you feel uncomfortable then you are probably right. Also, most muslim men (I am one so I can say from experience) would not be so forward as to touch a woman stranger or embrace her, so if a man holds your hand, or puts his arm around you or strokes your hair, chances are he is up to no good.

* Don\'t travel alone. Sounds sinister, but it\'s not. Cairo is generally quite safe. A woman on her own here is seen in two ways generally. Either you are \'open-minded\' or a \'damsel in distress\'. The first will mean you can handle yourself and therefore don\'t mind a little flirting or \'harassment\'. The second means you \'need\' a man to assist you. Either way you\'re better off with a friend.

I hope this helps a little. Despite all the negative comments I read online about Cairo. It really is a great place to discover and enjoy. I mean about the pollution, racism, cheating and traffic too, but a bit of cultural understanding and effort to avoid the bad things will really help you.
Moe

ugh, i have to log out...way too distracted..at work and entering payroll so need to concentrate but am enjoying everyone's posts...

my two cents:

cairo is no worse than toronto, new york, london or any other city. it has its own dynamics just as any other large, densely populated urban centre does.

i feel strongly about not viewing a society through the same lens as you would say back home...i've witnessed objective behaviour, environmental and social offenses but i was resolved not to judge. i took in all the richness of cairo and felt alive every day i was there. sure my nose absorbed a lot of black stuff and i also developed a sore throat...

the issue with the harassment, well i hope i don't offend anyone here but if you trace it back to the societal and economic constraints, i think you can see where it mostly stems from: religious restrictions on intermingling between the sexes, requirement for the groom to provide a dowry and furnished apt upon marriage; the (and sorry to be crass) behaviour of SOME western and european women who are sexually liberated vs. the restriction on muslims having premarital sex, lack of sexual education and the patriarchal society...you can see where i'm going...it sets the stage for sexually frustrated men. NOT AN EXCUSE so don't shoot me. i just think the behaviour is easier to understand. so why are SOME men in north america horn dogs? they haven't the same restrictions yet we have all the same ils.

i'm also a huge fan of the egyptian concept of familial identity. in egypt you are somebody. your surname precedes you. your role in the collective family is secure and defended. sad,but again in north america, there isn't the same sense of "belonging".

do hope i haven't offended anyone with my thoughts

k

Hello everybody!

Peace...

Harmonie.

harmonie wrote:

Hello everybody!

Peace...

Harmonie.

hehehe peace Harmonie

Hello to every one, I moved here from Spain about a month ago because my father is egyptian and I wanted to learn where I come from and spend time with my family.

Good things:
- people are always willing and happy to help
- No stress, they are neeeeever stressed "mafish mushkela"
- food, real nice and ktirrrrr
- Cairo never sleeps
- I never get bored in the traffic, always things happening
- adrenaline goes up every time I cross any road
- the language
- its treasures
- the sounds comming from the Mosqué

Bad things:
- veeeery dirty
- pollution ( and the poor animals on the road inhealing it)
- looks for, I guess, not wering scarf and long sleeves
- to do any paper takes ages and a lot of asking (even though my family is always with me and does all the speaking)
- children working

At the end and doing the balance, I am staying.

Salaam

Wooow aligirl I've been here for mmm some time (ALOT)

But you managed to remind me of  some of the things I'd forgotten I like here which is lost  in the day to day endless cycle

So thanks

aligirl wrote:

Hello to every one, I moved here from Spain about a month ago because my father is egyptian and I wanted to learn where I come from and spend time with my family.

Good things:
- people are always willing and happy to help
- No stress, they are neeeeever stressed "mafish mushkela"
- food, real nice and ktirrrrr
- Cairo never sleeps
- I never get bored in the traffic, always things happening
- adrenaline goes up every time I cross any road
- the language
- its treasures
- the sounds comming from the Mosqué

Bad things:
- veeeery dirty
- pollution ( and the poor animals on the road inhealing it)
- looks for, I guess, not wering scarf and long sleeves
- to do any paper takes ages and a lot of asking (even though my family is always with me and does all the speaking)
- children working

At the end and doing the balance, I am staying.

Salaam

really your point of view is appreciated

aligirl wrote:

Hello to every one, I moved here from Spain about a month ago because my father is egyptian and I wanted to learn where I come from and spend time with my family.

Good things:
- people are always willing and happy to help
- No stress, they are neeeeever stressed "mafish mushkela"
- food, real nice and ktirrrrr
- Cairo never sleeps
- I never get bored in the traffic, always things happening
- adrenaline goes up every time I cross any road
- the language
- its treasures
- the sounds comming from the Mosqué

Bad things:
- veeeery dirty
- pollution ( and the poor animals on the road inhealing it)
- looks for, I guess, not wering scarf and long sleeves
- to do any paper takes ages and a lot of asking (even though my family is always with me and does all the speaking)
- children working

At the end and doing the balance, I am staying.

Salaam

hi aligirl
i like your attitude.
i personally find it amazing how much impact my state of mind has on how i perceive the world and others.
being open minded doesn't mean we lose who we are. it just means we have the potential to expand.
thanks for your post. it's been a rough couple of days on my end and i really appreciated your energy
cheers,
k

Katyusha wrote:

ugh, i have to log out...way too distracted..at work and entering payroll so need to concentrate but am enjoying everyone's posts...

my two cents:

cairo is no worse than toronto, new york, london or any other city. it has its own dynamics just as any other large, densely populated urban centre does.

i feel strongly about not viewing a society through the same lens as you would say back home...i've witnessed objective behaviour, environmental and social offenses but i was resolved not to judge. i took in all the richness of cairo and felt alive every day i was there. sure my nose absorbed a lot of black stuff and i also developed a sore throat...

the issue with the harassment, well i hope i don't offend anyone here but if you trace it back to the societal and economic constraints, i think you can see where it mostly stems from: religious restrictions on intermingling between the sexes, requirement for the groom to provide a dowry and furnished apt upon marriage; the (and sorry to be crass) behaviour of SOME western and european women who are sexually liberated vs. the restriction on muslims having premarital sex, lack of sexual education and the patriarchal society...you can see where i'm going...it sets the stage for sexually frustrated men. NOT AN EXCUSE so don't shoot me. i just think the behaviour is easier to understand. so why are SOME men in north america horn dogs? they haven't the same restrictions yet we have all the same ils.

i'm also a huge fan of the egyptian concept of familial identity. in egypt you are somebody. your surname precedes you. your role in the collective family is secure and defended. sad,but again in north america, there isn't the same sense of "belonging".

do hope i haven't offended anyone with my thoughts

k

Katyusha, really I like your analytical point of view, u r 100% right, thank u and I have really enjoyed everyone's posts...

semsema135 wrote:

Katyusha wrote:

ugh, i have to log out...way too distracted..at work and entering payroll so need to concentrate but am enjoying everyone's posts...

k

Katyusha, really I like your analytical point of view, u r 100% right, thank u and I have really enjoyed everyone's posts...

shukran yasmine,
i try to see others as a whole, and not just see their behaviour.
i really enjoyed reading your profile too. i agree 100% - we have to be cognizant of our choices, the power we give others and how we respond to life.
there was a poem i read when i was a teenager that stayed with me. the opening lines are: "go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. as far as possible without surrender be on good terms with all persons.." i try to live by this creed. to me it means knowing who you are, being centered while the world may spin around and being an ambassador of sorts.
i'd be curious to hear more of your thoughts on cultural trends in cairo
hope you are enjoying a lovely iftar meal with your family and friends.
k

I love this creed alot, the most part that I like and it is 100% right is go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence, you are very smart, I love and hope to be able to do it one day coz sometimes u feel that Life is difficult
Anyway am so happy coz u like my profile, and thanks for giving me the opportunity to talk with u, WILL PRAY TO MY GOD to grant you all the happiness and to achieve what u want:) and thank u so much

I love Egypt  and its people  they are warm honest and helpfull yes streets might be dirty and some people try to make quick money out of you if they can but atleast they would not Rob or even kill you like in some countries including in my dear Chicago:( i would love to live in Egypt) not just vist Egypt u stole my heat

Afraid you met wrong people and live in wrong place too.  Am sorry to tell u that u r mistaken. Just open your doors and communicate with others around u.  Am ready and willing to help u.  I visited your country and liked it very much.

Regards

olivia78 wrote:

Egyptian men have no respect for foreign women, no one speaks english, crazy drivers, horrible food, cheating foreigners, etc

Only thing i like about Egypt is home delivery on almost everything, i dont go shopping often, just call the grocery store! if am in no mood for cooking pizza or whatever is at the door in 30mins!

alslam alaykoum
at first i was dislike many things in egypt , and was trying to leave it and marry to american or british lady


but now i still want to marry american or british lady and stay in egypt cuz i like everything here but dislike somethings like as some of taxi and mini bus drivers , crowded traffics , fake goods , and when i park my car anywhere i found someone come and take money from me ,, they bought all streets lol ...


but i really like this country , born here and will die here

mr.fitness wrote:

and when i park my car anywhere i found someone come and take money from me ,, they bought all streets lol

In other countries you have to put money in a meter (most times expensive!) and if you are 5 minutes late, you get a ticket and have to pay even more!

it is just very hot in July and August

Hello Geely!
You Talk About Garages , And We Have Same In Down Town
but what i mean , there is many places are not Garages but just people standing in the public streets and charge money for parking cars , Like As Here In Maadi Or Mohandseen , Nasr City ....etc
everywhere now they are just take money from us cuz we park and they say its garage but its public street

Yes I know, I have a car myself.
But what I mean is: go to a European city, and you have parking meters in the street in the whole downtown and also near shopping areas. (a few years back these meters were also in downtown Cairo for a while).

If you don't put money in it, you get a fine very quickly and if you are a little too late you will get a fine too. Depending on the street, like in a city as Amsterdam, parking fees are between Euro 1.40 and Euro 5 per hour!

So then I pay rather a few pounds to a guy in a street in Cairo!

Also do you know the price of 1 liter of petrol in for instance Holland? It is something like 1.80 Euros!

i c Geely and understand what u say
anyway this is parking , but here in egypt this people standing everywhere , parking or not

when im going to gym or to visit my friends and park my car , i find someone coming to me and say its garage lol but its public street

and belongs to petrol in egypt is very cheap but its not good for sure , now all people have cars and everywhere is very crowded ..

government shouldnt help in petrol , so it will be for a higher price so not all people drive cars ... but but but but but government should have very good buses for all people and to everywhere , good metro and good public transports for all.


so ways will be not very crowded , who can buy petrol he will drive and who cant he will take bus or metro but should be good transports ..


Ahmed Wasfy

this answer for someone didn't visit Egypt before

Egypt have many  things great but you didn't try

you will not find people like Egyptian people but maybe you are meet just bad people

I enjoyed reading all the post .. however ...have you all forgotten the ....

Great sense of humour that Egyptians have !

Sharing of anything they have ..

Hospitality when you get invited to there home .

There smiling faces .

They will help anyone ..you only have to ask !

Always remember your in a Muslin country so respect this ..
Dress Modestly .   

If you walk around with the attitude .."Look at me" I am so beautiful ... your inviting problems with the men .. No sex before marriage and hormones raging !

Its what's on the inside of us that matters not what on the outside.

What I don't like about Egypt .

Street children being abused by police and bad men ... I pray one day all this will stop ..

There are no rubbish bins around to dispose of your rubbish on the streets ...so take it home with you.