I had no idea what to expect when I came to Cairo, Egypt. All I have ever heard is about ancient Egypt and the pyramids. The concept of a modern / big city atmosphere wasn’t really what I was ready for, especially after spending so much time in little cities or rural areas the last few months. Well Cairo is huge! It is a massive, modern city. There are still some people who wear the traditional clothing, but many are now wearing more modern clothes. The women still wear head coverings (being that the majority of people are Muslim), and they are totally covered but most of them wear more modern clothes – ie a long sleeve embroidered tunic with jeans or long skirt.
Although the city is big it still has a lot of the laid back rural feel to it. Things still take a lot longer than you would normally expect back home. Everyone wants to help and will stop on the street corner if they think you are lost (beware though, many are shop keepers who will point you in a direction only to bring you closer to their store so that they can make you go inside and buy something). Overall the Egyptians that we have met so far have been very warm and hospitable.
Cathy and I have not done the touristy things, to the surprise of all of the people we meet, as we are wanting to enjoy them with our other WR family. So for now most of our time has been spent catching up on work and getting prepared for our Europe trip. We will just have to wait until August to see the many exotic sights of Egypt. It has been a nice, relaxing time here in Egypt and I can’t wait to come back and share it with my WR family.
