The Big City

Some other  challenges on the roads in Cairo include herds
of sheep and goats!  (This picture was taken by a friend.)

Romany and I had a busy day the other day. He was invited to a meeting in one part of the city. I decided to tag along and visit a friend who lived in the same area. Just afterwards, we needed to head over to another part of the city to visit some friends who were only in town for a few hours.

I love visiting people! I love spending time talking and encouraging those who've come into my life. We had some great visits that day, but by the end I was exhausted! At this point it must be understood that it wasn't the visits that were exhausting.

Let me give you a picture of the day in a little more detail:

-I taught earlier that day. I left at 8:40 and jumped into a taxi to go to my class. Two and a half hours later, at the end of the lesson, I got back into another taxi and headed home. Unfortunately, this taxi didn't quite know where I live and I didn't quite know how to direct him to the house. Instead of taking me to my house, we got all turned around and ended up at the Metro (city train) station one station away from my house. The driver didn't have much patience so I decided to get out and take the Metro to our station. This was the first time I rode the Metro alone! I jumped into the women's car and went one station. I got out and then walked the one minute to our apartment. The whole trip home took me 20 minutes when it should have taken ten.

A man and his horse cart approaching a Metro station
in Cairo. (This picture was taken by a friend.)

-After a few hours rest, Romany and I headed to the Metro and traveled four stations which takes about 20 minutes. We then connected to a bus that took us up the mountain to the area our friends live in. That part of the trip took about 30 minutes.

-At 7:30pm Romany's meeting and my visit, we headed to our next visit. We took a 30 minute bus ride to a bus station to another bus that took us another 10 minutes to the Metro station. We traveled by Metro another 20 minutes into the city. Finally, we walked 20 minutes to our friend's house for our visit. By this time, it was already around 8:30pm.

-At 10:00pm we decided that we needed to get home before it got too late and the Metro shut. There is still a curfew and everyone needs to be home by 12:00am. We walked the 20 minutes back to the Metro and then took another 30 minute Metro ride back to the apartment.

Now you know why we were so tired! By the end of the day, my back ached so much from all of the walking and standing! Though there are signs on the Metro and it is a law, I've found that very few men actually vacate their seats for a (now) obviously pregnant woman.

There are cities in the world larger than Cairo, but not many. There are estimates that there are up to 25 million people living within Cairo and it's surrounding areas, and many more move here every day. Before Cairo, the largest city I've ever lived in was only 2 million people. I thought that was big at the time! I visited Cairo only once before and I remember walking away thinking that it was a place I'd never want to live...It may have taken a few years and a change in circumstance, but I'm not so against living here anymore.

The back of a bus.  (This picture was taken by a friend.)

One of the first things to notice about a city this big, though, is the traffic and getting around. If caught in a traffic jam or in a busy area, it can take up to 3 hours to go what should take an hour. Personal cars, motorbikes, people on bikes, city buses, tuk-tuks (small three-wheeled open taxis), taxis, donkey/horse drawn carts, and parked cars all share the often very small roads. One lane is often turned into three and two is often turned into five. Accidents are all-too-common and Romany has told me several times that if he ever bought a car, he'd never invest in an expensive one because it wouldn't be worth anything after a few days. Instead, he'd buy a big tough vehicle or a well-used one that's been able to handle all of the wear and tear of Egypt's roads.

A man and his donkey cart.  This one is empty but sometimes
they're piled high with items to transport or sell.
(This picture was taken by  friend.)

The Metro is by far the easiest way to get around, but it doesn't go everywhere. It can also be packed full at peak travel times. Because of issues of harassment of women by men, the city government created cars specifically for women and their children. They are a nice way of traveling if I'm alone but with Romany we use the other cars for everyone.

Suffice it to say, getting around a city of 25 million people is an adventure every time we step out the door. Patience and determination are necessary to keep us sane at the end of the day. Unfortunately, Egyptians are often determined to get where they need to, but they are often not very patient!

Men and boys on bikes are also common
on the streets of Cairo.
(This picture was taken by a friend.)