My plane landed in Cairo at 5:45am and my hotel had arranged for a taxi to be waiting there for me. Given that I had arrived so early and headed straight to the hotel I did not get to see what Cairo was really like. I was in transit as the city was still waking up. Shortly after getting settled into my room and dropping my bags, with the help from the front desk staff, I decided that it would be better to leave the Pyramids for when I came back to Cairo, and tackle the city that day. In a taxi and off I went to see the single location that houses over 10,000 pieces of ancient Egyptian history, the massive Egyptian Museum.
Once there I waited for the doors to open and was off and running to wander the halls of the museum. At first it was a bit, well actually very overwhelming. Referring to my new found bible, Lonely Planet, and eavesdropping on other peoples guided tours I made my way through as many pieces as I could in about three hours. I started out with the Old Kingdom, working my through The Middle Kingdom, and finishing up with Tutankhamen and the New Kingdom. I find it hard to describe the enormity of what I saw that day. Everything from the many riches found in tombs down to small and very basic articles of clothing and tools. Among the highlights were massive statues, sarcophaguses, coffins, ornate furniture, but nothing could top the main exhibits. The most impressive was the death mask of Tutankhamen, made completely of gold and weighing over 11 kilos, two of his three coffins also lined completely of gold, and countless pieces of jewelry and other treasures found in his tomb. Next and probably the most interesting was the Royal Mummy Room. Here I lingered over fifteen or so preserved mummies, still in the form that they had been found in. After I could no longer soak in anymore from here I decided I would head out, find a taxi and head to Khan Al-Kahlili, an outdoor market area that has existed here in the same part of Egypt for thousands of years. Getting there was just as dizzying and walking through the maze of alleyways packed with shops, coffee houses, and restaurants complete with touts who relentlessly try to get you into their shop to buy something. I’ll start with the ride there though. As I was waiting for a taxi I realized that I had no idea how to get back to my hotel, and that I wasn’t sure that a driver may know either. Not thinking I jumped into the first cab to pass by and asked for Khan Al-Khalili. While in route I asked the driver if he knew where my hotel was which led me to the realization that he didn’t speak English and I don’t’ speak Arabic; problem number one. Problem number two shortly presented itself, I hadn’t agreed on a price for the ride. The ride to the museum was fifteen pounds, or three dollars, this guy wanted to charge me thirty pounds for not much more of a drive, and seventy if I wanted him to take me back to my hotel when I was finished at the markets. All of this was discussed, by the way, through me pointing at numbers in Arabic, from my trusty bible, and him writing on a tissue box, in Arabic, what he wanted me to pay. This led to a screaming match that I still don’t understand the point of. Here I am, sitting in this guys cab, stuck in traffic, heading to a place that I have no idea where it is, and trying to get back to a hotel that I have even less of a clue how to get to, and screaming at a guy in English that is screaming back at me in Arabic. Good times! We finally agreed to disagree, I think, as he so kindly let me out of his taxi for only twenty five pounds and yelled something in Arabic as I was leaving, which I told myself was, Thank you good sir, enjoy your stay in Egypt.” and I responded with what I’m sure he thought was, “thank you good sir for the pleasant ride, I hope to see you again.” From there it was through one of the millions of metal detectors and bag searches that you must pass through to go anywhere in Egypt, and off to what I thought would be a relaxing stroll through a few streets of shops. You would think that anything would be relaxing after the taxi disaster, but if you were to think that, you would be dead wrong. Lining the entrance to the bazaar is about six or seven restaurants each complete with two or three touts trying to literally pull you into their establishment and making you promise that you would come back if you weren’t interested at the time. After making six promises to comeback and eat I finally made it to the shops themselves.
Each shop having its specialty, spices, clothing, hookahs, gold, silver, and about everything else you could imagine. After wandering for about thirty minutes or so I ended up back in front of the restaurants and again began getting hasseled to sit down and eat. Only difference this time I had to explain why I wasn’t going to come in because I promised. After bobbing and weaving through the restaurant touts I did find a little stand selling pita bread filled with meats, beans, or falafel. Decided on two falafel sandwiches for two pounds each I found a nice spot in front of a mosque to sit and enjoy my food while watching some Egyptian kids kick around a soccer ball.
From there I headed back down the front lines of restaurant row and back through the maze of shops. Finally having had enough I made my way back to the street and to find a taxi. Having learned from my previous mistakes, this time I made sure my driver spoke English, new where I was going, and agreed on price before getting in the taxi. This driver, Mohammed, was fantastic. Talking the whole way, telling me history of Cairo, pointing out Mosques, Coptic Churches, giving me advice on what to see and where to go, and more importantly welcoming me to Egypt and wishing me a great stay, and all for only twenty pounds! Back at my Hotel I decided to go for a walk around the Islamic area and make my way to the Marriot hotel to unwind, have a beer, and plan the rest of my days in Egypt. Once back at my hotel, I enjoyed a nice hot shower and got ready to head to the airport early the next morning for my flight to Luxor.
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