Sensuous Cairo. I guess we can only appreciate a place through our senses and Cairo is, in most sensual aspects … exotic. My senses continue to be stimulated by strange sights, smells etc. Very different sensations from those that confront me in Brisbane.
So “sight”. With so many people in this large city, and so many cars … largely old cars with worn rings…. it is little wonder that the pollution levels are high. Add to that dust drifting from the deserts and a lack of consistent strong winds to blow it away, and you have a haze over Cairo that ranges from mild to severe. This is really noticeable when you drive back into the city. Clearer (but never pristine) blue skies of the nearby rural areas make way for a brownish-grey fog (smog). But, like all things, you get used to it by and large.
The buildings are unique as well. A lot are apartments. These tend to be quite large and, I am told, generally very well appointed inside, at least in Dokki and Zamalek, but the effort has not been placed on the facades or the entrances. Some have elevators but these are very old, double metal-gated affairs that take me back to my childhood in some of the department stores in Brisbane, elevators manned by lift drivers. (We still have lift drivers in Cairo). I previously mentioned the building style of leaving reinforcing steel exposed from the columns for future building. This is probably a reflection that builders and architects have not shown much interest in outside appearance in general in more recent years.
However, there are lots of delightful old buildings and the embassies are often quite beautiful buildings. There are also lots of wooded squares and boulevards around Dokki. Proud old trees but sadly with “dusty” leaves. I can’t help urging them on to de-tox the air for me. When walking it is a bit hard to appreciate the trees because you really need to keep an eye to the traffic at all times.
One major downside is the litter that “is” Cairo. There are street sweepers but rubbish is just put out on the streets and people think nothing of littering. It wasn’t unusual to see someone littering in Brisbane in the 50s and 60s but these days, in Australia today, if you see someone littering it seems dreadful. We have a different culture here.
“Touch” – well I don’t much touch Cairo, but it touches me. The smog tends to gather in my nostrils and sinuses, and my eyes are constantly red – a combination of the dust and smog and the dryness of the air-conditioning in my hotel room.
“Sounds” are a major attraction of the place. Car horns play a never-ending symphony. It is a thrill for me to walk among people speaking foreign languages and Arabic has a particular appeal. It is a harsh language, often spoken loudly and it can sound aggressive when people are not being aggressive (sometimes they are). The call to prayer (five times a day) is part and parcel of the Middle East and that is no different in predominantly Muslim Cairo despite a strong Coptic Christian influence. I like to hear the call, although in other places the early morning call has awakened me. I never hear it here and generally the mosques are quieter in Cairo than in other places I have been. Egyptians are very keen on music and most taxis and cars will be playing cassette tapes of Arabic music. It always seems to me to have a strong “belly dancing” feel to it but I am sure the locals would have a better appreciation than me of that.
“Tastes” are mostly confined to meal time. I have been opting for fairly bland food by and large – a personal preference – but some Egyptian food can be very spicy. Others are not so spicy and are really very good to eat, leaving you feeling well satiated. Probably the best meal I’ve had here so far was a combination of entrée-like dishes (mezza) at an Egyptian restaurant in Zamalek.
I really like Egyptian bread – very puffy pita bread – with a great taste and smell when served fresh and warm.
Which beings me to “smells”. These unique smells range from shisha pipes – ubiquitous in restaurants and sidewalk coffee shops – to smells of the street. Shisha is a very popular social conduit here. Smokers abound anyway, but shisha smoke tends not to be very acrid and if you have to passively smoke anything, the smoke of shishas – often fragrant with apple tobaccos etc. - is probably the way to go.
While there is no shortage of carbon monoxide on the streets, there are also other gems. Like the sweet potato roaster with his barrow and oven. I pass one every night on my way home and the smell is just great. I am not so keen to eat the products but I do enjoy the smells.
My social life has improved dramatically of late. I went to the pictures to see “Rabbit Proof Fence” at a building in the Opera House complex. This was part of an Australian Embassy film festival. I hadn’t seen it but I enjoyed it immensely. I also had a home cooked meal on Thursday night, generously cooked by a young Dutch chap for his 8 or so friends and couple of old codgers who tagged along. We all went to a 10:00pm session of Casino Royale afterwards. I had not previously seen a Bond movie with so few romantic scenes, but our movie had been trimmed a little for Egypt. An old style, large cinema, the locals seem to converse loudly all the way through. Perhaps that is because they do not need sound, being able to read the sub-titles.
I went on a work social club outing to old Cairo on Saturday. This visited two old Coptic Churches, a Greek Orthodox Cathedral, a Synagogue (one of the two? In Cairo), a Mosque and the Coptic Museum – all fascinating, the museum was probably the highlight. Really excellently set up and some wonderful exhibits. And I met some really nice people.
Perhaps the hardest thing that has confronted me since being here was facing the fact that the Ashes Test in Brisbane was going on without me. I saw an interview with Ricky Ponting after day one, on the Gabba pitch, and I felt quite homesick and thought “I should have been there”. At least I was able to follow the good performances on the TV and net. This seemed like a very one-sided match.
Oh! I should include in “sensuous Cairo” something of the “sixth sense”. By that I mean the knowledge that you are someplace significant. Such history, such contributions to civilisation, such a cradle of humanity. Yet, for instance, the Nile still drifts by as much to my delight as it was, no doubt, to Tut Ankh Amon. I am embarrassed to say that the other night when I went to the Opera House complex I had to walk across the bridge from the west bank to Zamalek – across the Nile. I managed to get half way over before I realised that I was crossing the Nile. I couldn’t help chastising myself that I did not have more awareness, more respect, more reverence for this unique opportunity. Sorry Tut!!!
So “sight”. With so many people in this large city, and so many cars … largely old cars with worn rings…. it is little wonder that the pollution levels are high. Add to that dust drifting from the deserts and a lack of consistent strong winds to blow it away, and you have a haze over Cairo that ranges from mild to severe. This is really noticeable when you drive back into the city. Clearer (but never pristine) blue skies of the nearby rural areas make way for a brownish-grey fog (smog). But, like all things, you get used to it by and large.
The buildings are unique as well. A lot are apartments. These tend to be quite large and, I am told, generally very well appointed inside, at least in Dokki and Zamalek, but the effort has not been placed on the facades or the entrances. Some have elevators but these are very old, double metal-gated affairs that take me back to my childhood in some of the department stores in Brisbane, elevators manned by lift drivers. (We still have lift drivers in Cairo). I previously mentioned the building style of leaving reinforcing steel exposed from the columns for future building. This is probably a reflection that builders and architects have not shown much interest in outside appearance in general in more recent years.
However, there are lots of delightful old buildings and the embassies are often quite beautiful buildings. There are also lots of wooded squares and boulevards around Dokki. Proud old trees but sadly with “dusty” leaves. I can’t help urging them on to de-tox the air for me. When walking it is a bit hard to appreciate the trees because you really need to keep an eye to the traffic at all times.
One major downside is the litter that “is” Cairo. There are street sweepers but rubbish is just put out on the streets and people think nothing of littering. It wasn’t unusual to see someone littering in Brisbane in the 50s and 60s but these days, in Australia today, if you see someone littering it seems dreadful. We have a different culture here.
“Touch” – well I don’t much touch Cairo, but it touches me. The smog tends to gather in my nostrils and sinuses, and my eyes are constantly red – a combination of the dust and smog and the dryness of the air-conditioning in my hotel room.
“Sounds” are a major attraction of the place. Car horns play a never-ending symphony. It is a thrill for me to walk among people speaking foreign languages and Arabic has a particular appeal. It is a harsh language, often spoken loudly and it can sound aggressive when people are not being aggressive (sometimes they are). The call to prayer (five times a day) is part and parcel of the Middle East and that is no different in predominantly Muslim Cairo despite a strong Coptic Christian influence. I like to hear the call, although in other places the early morning call has awakened me. I never hear it here and generally the mosques are quieter in Cairo than in other places I have been. Egyptians are very keen on music and most taxis and cars will be playing cassette tapes of Arabic music. It always seems to me to have a strong “belly dancing” feel to it but I am sure the locals would have a better appreciation than me of that.
“Tastes” are mostly confined to meal time. I have been opting for fairly bland food by and large – a personal preference – but some Egyptian food can be very spicy. Others are not so spicy and are really very good to eat, leaving you feeling well satiated. Probably the best meal I’ve had here so far was a combination of entrée-like dishes (mezza) at an Egyptian restaurant in Zamalek.
I really like Egyptian bread – very puffy pita bread – with a great taste and smell when served fresh and warm.
Which beings me to “smells”. These unique smells range from shisha pipes – ubiquitous in restaurants and sidewalk coffee shops – to smells of the street. Shisha is a very popular social conduit here. Smokers abound anyway, but shisha smoke tends not to be very acrid and if you have to passively smoke anything, the smoke of shishas – often fragrant with apple tobaccos etc. - is probably the way to go.
While there is no shortage of carbon monoxide on the streets, there are also other gems. Like the sweet potato roaster with his barrow and oven. I pass one every night on my way home and the smell is just great. I am not so keen to eat the products but I do enjoy the smells.
My social life has improved dramatically of late. I went to the pictures to see “Rabbit Proof Fence” at a building in the Opera House complex. This was part of an Australian Embassy film festival. I hadn’t seen it but I enjoyed it immensely. I also had a home cooked meal on Thursday night, generously cooked by a young Dutch chap for his 8 or so friends and couple of old codgers who tagged along. We all went to a 10:00pm session of Casino Royale afterwards. I had not previously seen a Bond movie with so few romantic scenes, but our movie had been trimmed a little for Egypt. An old style, large cinema, the locals seem to converse loudly all the way through. Perhaps that is because they do not need sound, being able to read the sub-titles.
I went on a work social club outing to old Cairo on Saturday. This visited two old Coptic Churches, a Greek Orthodox Cathedral, a Synagogue (one of the two? In Cairo), a Mosque and the Coptic Museum – all fascinating, the museum was probably the highlight. Really excellently set up and some wonderful exhibits. And I met some really nice people.
Perhaps the hardest thing that has confronted me since being here was facing the fact that the Ashes Test in Brisbane was going on without me. I saw an interview with Ricky Ponting after day one, on the Gabba pitch, and I felt quite homesick and thought “I should have been there”. At least I was able to follow the good performances on the TV and net. This seemed like a very one-sided match.
Oh! I should include in “sensuous Cairo” something of the “sixth sense”. By that I mean the knowledge that you are someplace significant. Such history, such contributions to civilisation, such a cradle of humanity. Yet, for instance, the Nile still drifts by as much to my delight as it was, no doubt, to Tut Ankh Amon. I am embarrassed to say that the other night when I went to the Opera House complex I had to walk across the bridge from the west bank to Zamalek – across the Nile. I managed to get half way over before I realised that I was crossing the Nile. I couldn’t help chastising myself that I did not have more awareness, more respect, more reverence for this unique opportunity. Sorry Tut!!!
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