Day 1 - Cairo

I arrived at the Cairo airport at 200am after landing in 4 other countries. The tour company met me at the airport and was an excellent host. He even gave me a SIM card for my phone so that I could call him at any time if I needed something. At the hotel I was a little shocked at how the room appeared. But I was too tired to care and I finally went to sleep.

I woke that morning at 1030am. I decided to go for a walk around the area to get my bearings and to see what was available. My first impression of Cairo was that it was a dirty, but very upscale Khartoum. It is where Khartoum could be in about 20 years…..maybe. The first thing I noticed was that drivers honking at everyone and everything! Always!

My Hotel is in the Zamalek region of Cairo which is essentially an Island. It is surrounded completely by the Nile River. The Island is considered one of the upscale rich areas of Cairo. The Island is also host to over 20 embassies. The most interesting embassy set up of who is whose neighbor was the threesome of the Swiss embassy then their neighbors the Iraq embassy and their neighbors the Vatican embassy.

I stopped at the Marriot hotel for a bit to eat for lunch. It was beautiful inside, that is once I got past the armed guards, the bomb sniffing dog and the metal detector. They have 9 restaurants and bars. I should have realized that the price was going to be quite high. I think my bill was $25USD for a small chicken wrap and a bottle of beer. When I got back to my room I was shocked at the heat. It was a very hot day in Cairo and the AC in the room was not working at all. I asked for a new room and I got one immediately. The staff here are very accommodating.

I was alone for dinner that night so I ventured out and went to a restaurant that was recommended by the front desk. It was about a 20 min walk. When I arrive it was extremely busy and you required reservations. I sweet talked the hostess and sure enough she got me a table. The place is a very large white tent on the bank of the split in the Nile. It was filled with a very classy crowd. All the tables, chairs and cooks were in white. The food was great, the price was good and the music was perfect. Almost every table had someone smoking sheesha. I had a great dinner.


Enjoyed the people watching and headed home to bed.