Marketplace

It's just exhaust--ing

Cairo is such a bittersweet city. When the call to prayer echoes through the city five times a day, it's like a siren's song. You have to stop what you're doing and listen. Strolling the banks of the Nile at night or taking a felucca out on the water is a sublime experience. Watching the sun set over the mosques is truly breathtaking.

Which brings me to the traffic. The gasoline fumes will take your breath away for sure. You might as well walk around inhaling a portable exhaust pipe. And riding in a car (FORGET driving) is like being on a rollercoaster you can't wait to get off. "Please keep your hands inside the car at all times. You might lose one."

Cars whip by you with inches to spare. People are constantly knocking each other's side mirrors. There are no lanes. There are no rules. U-turn in the middle of a pedestrian cross-walk? No problem. Squeeze into a space the size of a matchbox car? Better get there quick or someone else will.

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Here's your money. Can I have some?

Somewhere I read a saying about Egyptians: If you drop your wallet on the street, an Egyptian will run after you to give it back. Then he will try to get you to voluntarily part with the contents.

After my short time here, nothing could be truer. Egyptians are extraordinarily friendly people. They shout "Welcome!" to strangers on the street. They seem genuinely warm and hospitable. They want to help you.

But they also want a tip for every single thing they do. Point you in the right direction? Five pounds, please. Carry your bag down a flight of stairs? Something for me, please. Five pounds? Is that all you have?

It is a serious conundrum for visitors. The boat driver who gave us an hour tour of the Nile was a lovely Egyptian man who'd worked on the river for 50 years. He sang us songs and laughed and took pictures with us. He praised Americans. Oh, they are wonderful tippers, he said. He said that a lot.

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Still dead after all these years...

After visiting the Egyptian museum, I have decided to stipulate in my will that under no circumstances, should I be mummified when I die.

I actually debated whether to even enter the Royal Mummy rooms. My colleague, Miguel, stayed put. He said these people were buried in a specific place and did not intend to have their remains gawked at under a glass case 3,000 years later. Pretty good point, but I am here to experience Egypt in all its... gory. So, morbid curiosity got the best of me, and I paid the 20 US dollars to visit the two rooms.

First of all, it was fascinating. The Ancient Egyptians went to extraordinary lengths to preserve the bodies of the dead. One woman's face was packed with soda and fat to make her appear more "life-like". Unfortunately, they used too much soda and fat, and the result is that she appears disfigured beyond belief and very definitely dead-like.

But other mummies looked like they could rise up out of their case right then and there. I got a good look at one of Egypt's greatest kings, Ramses II. He lived a long life for a man at that time - well into his 80's. 3,000 years later, he kind of resembles a man in his 80's. Or 200's, tops. For some reason, I imagined him sitting in a rocking chair reaching out for my hand, as if i were his grandchild. It was then that I realized I shouldn't stay in the mummy room very long.

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King Tut's Bling

I'm guessing no one in the history of the world wore as much bling as King Tutankhamun.

Not by choice, mind you. King Tut's body was buried with 143 pieces of jewelry -- bracelets, anklets, amulets -- attached to it. And I mean attached. When Tut's body was found in the 1920's, Howard Carter's team cut up the mummy into several pieces because the jewelry was glued to Tut from all the embalming resin. The only reason I bring this up is that I saw a lot of this bling at the Egyptian Museum.

The most magnificent piece was King Tut's death mask. Pure gold. Weighing 220 pounds. It truly is a sight to behold. It got me thinking -- how many people must have worked on the King's death? And for how long? There had to be an entire industry around this one event. Tut was buried in THREE coffins, each one placed inside another. They weighed 3,000 pounds total. The inner-most one was also pure gold.

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Let's Make a Deal...

In Cairo, negotiating is an age-old art form. And it's actually a lot of fun once you catch the spirit of it.

I spent a few hours at the Khan al-Khalili market. It's a narrow cobblestone street full of shops where tourists can buy souvenirs, spices, even gold. It's been around for about 600 years. As you walk along, the merchants will try to physically steer you into their shops or least barrage you with sales pitches. You want some jewelry? A mini-Sphinx? Nefertiti? Or my favorite, "How can I take your money??? I'll give you good Egyptian price."

Trust me, you don't want to pay the Egyptian price. If they say 100 pounds (20 dollars), it's probably a 100 percent mark up. If you don't say anything and just walk away, the price immediately drops 20 pounds. But if it's something you want, start the bidding. So you might say, 30 pounds. 70? No, 40. 60? No, 50. Okay, deal.

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A Music Lesson

We walked around Old Cairo until we found a place where they were giving music lessons. The students were learning to play an instrument called an oud. It was the predecessor of the western lute. They've been playing the oud in this part of the world since about the 8th century!

An oud looks like a pear-shaped guitar with the neck bent backwards. There are 11 strings and no frets. This is so players can be expressive with slides and vibratos. Just think of the Middle Eastern music you've heard and all the microtones in the music. The "pick" is a piece of metal about the size of your index finger.

Since I play guitar, I thought it'd be fun to try it, but I did not make beautiful music with the oud:

(Listen to how bad he sounds. He sings even worse.)

It was much different than a guitar, although with a few lessons, I might get the hang of it.

I listened to the teacher play for a while. He was extraordinary. I could've listened for hours. He was only 16 years old!

(Now, this guy rocks.)

Hear some more from a recording taken from the same music academy:

A real pro.

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Eating and Drinking in Egypt

I wasn't sure what to expect in Egypt for meals or adult beverages. I'll start with the food. I haven't had a bad meal here yet. I was warned to be leery of uncooked vegetables and definitely the water. I've stuck to bottled water but I have eaten cucumber and tomato salads almost every day without problems. The lettuce, I hear, can be a little dicey. They use a lot of pesticides.

One of my favorite dishes is koshery. It's pasta and rice mixed with lentils and tomato sauce. It's a very hearty - and cheap - meal. Expensive koshery is less than $3 US. It's supposedly a dish of the lower classes. I could eat it almost every day, although I might have a carbo-ttack.

Meat-eaters will love the shish-kebab, and something called Fatah. It's minced meat rolled into a patty. I also had a "hamburger" at a Cairo restaurant. There was no bun. It was four small meat patties spiced with Cumin. Very tasty!

Vegetarians will love the fuul. It's a fava bean dish cooked with butter, tomatoes and onions. Delicious. Doesn't sound like a breakfast, but a lot of Egyptians eat it first thing in the morning as a hearty way to start their day.

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From Cairo, with a smile...

The thing I'll remember most about my trip to Egypt is definitely the people. Egyptians are perhaps the warmest, friendliest folks I've ever met.

When you pass them in the street, they'll say, "Welcome. Have a good day." They say "have a good day" even at night or when it doesn't make sense to say it. You can't help but smile. And that's the one thing Egyptians do a lot - smile. And the kids? They are precious. They swarmed around me everywhere I went and wanted to speak English and shake my hand. What is your name? How are you? Welcome to Egypt!

There was a security guy on my hotel floor who looked like a secret service agent. The first time I passed him, I kind of gave a little nod and said hello. I wasn't sure the protocol for greeting a security officer. He responded with a big smile and a warm greeting. It's very charming. My housekeeper made a point of talking to me every day.

The hotel staff, the waiters, the shopkeepers - everyone goes out of their way to provide good service. They earn their tips for sure. It's quite a departure from much of the customer service in the US. And these people don't make much money. I kept asking myself, how can they be so pleasant when their lives are so hard?

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