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Journal of African trips

African trip [I]

Agelasto
2004-05-20 20:57:33

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Republic, a theocracy.) Egypt?s layers of history are piled one on
top of the other. Aspects of earlier periods float up to the present. All in all, it is a fascinating
place.

When I was there, few tourists were to be seen, as Americans and many Europeans had been
scared off by the murder of German tourists at Luxor last year. Not having the company of many
other tourists has its plusses and minuses. Accommodation, transportation bookings and
restaurant seats are easy to get, and prices have dropped substantially as a result of the declining
demand. In fact, Egypt eliminated entry visa fees altogether. On the down side, however, is the
fact that you, the tourist, are more in demand. Everyone wants a piece of you, and you are seen
as a walking dollar sign, an open billfold, especially in the tourist culture. I use the term ?tourist
culture? to denote the culture that tourists see. Many of the people a traveler meets are directly
involved in the tourist business. This, of course, is not a representative sample of the population.
I have found that in most places the tourist culture differs from the overall culture, so one should
be careful about making judgments based on a sample that is highly skewed. And in Egypt,
tourist culture (even when there are many tourists) is stifling. Touts are tugging on your
shirtsleeves; everyone seems to be trying to sell a package tour or get you to try their hotel. It is
virtually impossible to move around certain sections of Cairo without being harassed by the
tourist culture. All in all, Egypt (like India, and unlike China)is not an easy or especially pleasant
place to travel. People are emotive and friendly; this I find to characterize Islamic culture. But
virtually anyone who starts up a conversation with you has a bottom line. I?ll give you an
example.

One day, as I was heading to Cairo?s Museum ...