Egypt

How does an Egyptian rise above the insanity of the streets? Get an education, hope you can marry into a good family (weddings are still generally arranged between families, and after the match is made, the hope is that love may grow), move into the suburbs, and join a social club.

My friend, Tarek (who runs Egypt and Beyond Travel), and his wife, Heba, invited us to dinner. Afterwards, we dropped by their family’s social club. Social or sports clubs are like an American athletic club crossed with a society club. A steep membership fee shapes the clientele. Each club has its own personality and status.

The club is great for all generations. Kids just park their bikes inside the sprawling, park-like grounds (which offers more greenery than you’ll see anywhere in town). It’s perfect for birthday parties and swimming lessons. There’s competitive fencing and tennis. While you couldn’t imagine jogging out on the exhaust-filled, potholed streets, in your club there’s a fine track. The adults-only areas provide a man-cave escape for a quiet game of backgammon, or a place for women to have a coffee klatch or sit in a circle and knit.

Because they’re considered high-class and family-friendly, clubs don’t allow alcohol or shisha smoking. Friends — often neighbors who’ve been coming here together since childhood — gather to watch the big game on a nice TV. Membership stays in the family and can be passed down. Tarek’s club is run by former military people — something members are thankful for, as this stratum of society understands how discipline is the necessary flipside of freedom.

With this gathering of well-bred, upper-middle-class and wealthy families, many “romances” are arranged, and begin with a practical foundation of logical compatibility. Tarek, who’s as modern as can be, explains why he’s thankful his marriage was arranged. His explanation actually had me thinking that perhaps my strong belief in love leading to marriage, rather than vice versa, could be ethnocentric. Injecting a women’s perspective, Heba added, “You could fall in love with a man who doesn’t deserve to be loved.” As I marveled how someday their darling five-year-old daughter will be a great catch for some guy, Tarek said, “We’re friends with a wonderful family. Laila’s marriage is already arranged.”

Photo by Trish Feaster (for her Egypt blog, see http://thetravelphile.com/).

Touring Egypt’s museums, great mosques, and towering monuments of the pharaohs is a delight. And simply roaming the streets of Cairo day and night is a thrill and a joy for any traveler who likes his culture off the stage and in his face. But the typical American traveler to Cairo will need a refuge. While I like to think I’m a rugged traveler, to be honest, I’m able to thoroughly enjoy Cairo only because I have the refuge of a towering international-class hotel. Waiting a moment while the trained dogs sniff the tires of my taxi as it passes through the hotel gate is my pleasure.

There are plenty of high-rise hotels lining the Nile desperate for business (and offering $150 doubles). These provide the perfect way to toggle from the intensity of the streets to a peaceful poolside drink — chilling with shady diplomats, rich-world tourists, and wily local business tycoons and their favored brood. And there are plenty of excellent, eager-to-work local guides who understand a tourist’s needs and can provide for them.

The extreme contrast is invigorating — like jumping from hot to cold in a sauna. From the streets, we head back through the welcoming security check of our hotel with a soft-spoken, well-dressed “Welcome back, sir.” In the comfortable world of my hotel, the Egyptian money feels sweaty and grimy in my pocket. Immediately upon arrival back at hotel, I peel off the soot of a day on the streets of Cairo with a hotel shower.

I am loving Cairo. But I’ve never loved a hotel as a refuge so much. With my local guide (who loaned me a mobile phone upon arrival), a minivan with a trusty driver a phone call away, and a towering first-world hotel as a home base, touring this city is one of the great travel thrills. While I never drink Coke elsewhere, here I find a can of Coca-Cola provides comfort. On the street, the “tourist-friendly” restaurant and toilet is a rarity. But that’s why I’m here rather than in Copenhagen.

By the way, many of my readers have commented, “No way… Egypt is too dangerous for me!” These people have read about isolated incidents where a woman is raped, a balloon falls out of the sky, a soccer riot ends in 70 deaths, and some Christians are killed. Yes, these are all tragic events. But in the USA, we have tragic events too, such as the recent bombing in Boston–and over a thousand people are killed on our streets every month by gun violence.

Egypt is a poor and struggling country with a baby democracy in a complex and troubled corner of our world. It has about a quarter our population. Particularly for the careful and well-funded American tourist, I suspect it’s no more dangerous than the USA. Besides, even if it is a bit on the dicey side, I’m having the time of my life this month, collecting lessons and experiences I’ll enjoy for the rest of my life.

Here’s a quick tour of what’s probably the most expensive breakfast in all of Cairo, served at what’s likely the fanciest hotel in North Africa. While I’m not one to capitalize on a country’s economic misfortune, luxury hotels have rooms on the push list these days in Egypt.

If you can’t see the video below, watch it on YouTube.

Historically, tourism has been a leading sector in Egypt’s economy. At the moment, most of its tourist industry is beach resorts…basically gated resort communities catering to masses of Russians eager for a sun break. Beyond that, the cultural tourist circuit of its great ancient sites (Giza pyramids, monuments and temples of Luxor, Abu Simbel, and so on) is a must on anyone’s lifetime bucket list. But all of those travelers are staying away. The great sites of Egypt are wide open with police guards standing by…and almost no tourists. In my first week in Egypt, touring nearly all its top ancient sites, I saw tourists, but I never saw an American. Apparently my compatriots from “the land of the free and the home of the brave” are pretty susceptible to scary TV coverage.

I made a new friend in front of the pyramids. He’d like to say hello.

If you can’t see the video below, watch it on YouTube.