Cairo Chronicle, Issue #8, February 15, 2000
Happy Valentine's Day to all of you! We wish lots of love and kisses because you are our "Habibena!" (Our beloved ones)
We are in the middle of Cairo winter. You might imagine that it is warm and balmy all year round, but it is not so. Temperatures have fallen as low as freezing and the daytime highs range between 50-65 F. Not too bad, huh? Well, couple that with the fact that every building is built to be cool in summer... Inside our apartment it seems to be at least 10 degrees cooler. Nothing is insulated, there is no central heating, and all our floors are tile. Brrr! Believe it or not, while most of the East Coast of the US was covered with snow, Cairo experienced one of its few annual downpours. Walking outside in it was somewhere between a good North Texas rainshower (not thunderstorm!) and a misty mountain rain. While one might laugh at such an occurence in the United States, sauntering out to the car and occasionally batting the wipers back and forth, Cairenes were much more anxious about this strange substance falling from the skies. Outside AIS, where we work and where the highway traffic is usually light, a massive backup showed us that getting home that day was going to be more adventurous than anticipated. Since it so rarely rains, oil and sand build up on the roads for almost a year. Everyone begins driving like Texans do on ice. We were fortunate that the rain fell on an in-service day, for if it hadn't getting students out the doors and onto the buses would have been difficult at best. Of course, like snow in the US, the rain was an exciting boon for Todd's students, who said they were relishing the rare sight. The rain lasted off and on from early Thursday morning until late that night. The chilly temperatures, coupled with the precipitation, did not show us any mercy. Indeed, we felt empathy with those of you who detest cold winters and even colder winds battering against your thin window panes.
You may remember our description of riding in taxis here in Cairo. Hold on tight and close your eyes when the other drivers get too close! Well, unfortunately, our luck ran out the other day with our first traffic accident. Thanks for asking, but Barbara is OK. So is Todd. So are the two drivers. One car, though, isn't. On 29 Jan., returning from church in Maadi, the taxi that Todd and Barbara were riding in was crossing the main street near their apartment when a blue compact car slammed into the taxi's left-rear fender at a delightfully swift speed. Barbara was jostled against the taxi's window, and then lobbed into Todd. The taxi was large enough that it absorbed the brunt of the impact, and was driving carefully enough that the taxi was not severely damaged. The other car -- the one traveling at a swift speed -- had its front end crushed. The shock of being slammed into was enough to rattle us both. Whenever there is even a minor fender bender, the two drivers always leap out of their cars and shout at each other. Other passersby get involved, and sometimes you see a full scale brawl. The ensuing war of words and wild gesticulations of the two drivers was something out of a movie -- or worse. Todd and Barbara, unsure whether to wait or leave, decided to stay and wait for the taxi driver to return to pay him. He eventually did, and payment was made. Todd sent Barbara on home (we weren't that far away from home, anyway) and stayed to wait in the chilly night breezes for the police (who never came) and to offer moral support to our more-than-careful taxi driver (who was also shaken up by the incident, as who wouldn't be?). Our friends, the Boggs, dashed over to see if we were all right after hearing the news from Barbara, who had phoned them. After a short chat and reassurances that all was fine, they left for home -- in a taxi. The banging against the window that had given Barbara a mild headache was solved with a massive dose of ibuprofen and a dash off to bed.
We are officially three weeks past the middle of the 1999-2000 school year. We are officially over the hump, and all is downhill toward summer, when we'll see many of you! We still have quite a bit going on between now and then, but it's comforting to know that time is passing.
We have been sharing our view of life in Egypt, centered around the Cairo suburb of Heliopolis. We'll have a NEW vantage point next school year. We have decided to move to the suburb of Maadi, joining many of the other teachers who will be staying next year. At first, we thought we were pretty happy in our flat here, but considering the poor heating, comparatively large electric bills, inconvenient location, and frequent stints without water, electricity and telephone, we think a change might be for the best. Our church is in Maadi, and the taxi fares are adding up this year. Finally, our LONG bus ride will actually be more pleasant since there is less traffic. Maadi is located along the south-eastern bank of the Nile, and our apartment will be about 2-3 miles from the river. Heliopolis is about 10 miles out and northeast. One reason why so many people want to live there, is that Maadi has a much larger ex-pat population, the streets are greener and cleaner (not everywhere, but where we will be living) and it is closer to downtown and the metro. So we will continue to extol the virtues and vices of Heliopolis for a while, but next August we'll have new delights of which to tell you.
Love,
Todd and Babara
Pictures (not too many this time - we'll make up for it next month!)
