First impressions

Here are a few of the general first impressions we have of Cairo. I would also like to put together some photos that try to capture the essence of our reactions to Cairo.

Aeroplane trip

One of the most odd sensations about flying to Cairo occurred during the second leg of our flight, from Kuala Lumpur to Cairo. The flight left KL at 12.45 am local time and arrived in Cairo at 5.15am local time.

Toward the end of the flight, the moon was about to set behind the horizon and, as it was a full moon, there was this short space of time when we could look out the window and see the moon below the wing.

Why was this odd? It was the first time that I had ever looked down and seen the moon. Quite a disconcerting experience.

First impressions

Everyone who had been to Cairo described their first impressions as crazy traffic, dirty, polluted, lots of noise, including the call to prayer.

We were lucky to have been met by Mark Bennett, once of the workers in Cairo, who drove us from the airport to his place in Maadi. It was very early in the morning and so the traffic wasn't odd or strange, except for the lack of lanes on the road and ignoring of traffic lights.

The dirt and pollution so often mentioned was surprisingly less that what we were expecting. In fact Cairo doesn't come across as dirtier than Bangkok, if you've had the opportunity to visit.

The noise again wasn't an issue. Sure Maadi is a particularly rich part of Cairo, relative to the rest, but it wasn't overly noisy. Again, in comparison to Bangkok, the major difference is that there is a surprising lack of motorbikes which dramatically lowers noise levels. However, there are two things we need to wait on before giving a final verdict on this issue. Firstly, the call to prayer, in particular the early morning one and secondly we are yet to have arrived at the flat where we will eventually be staying.

Meeting the Bennetts

Mark and Annette Bennett have been in Cairo for around nine years. They now have four children, Alleytia (10), Lewis (9), Martin (5) and Dylan (3). When we first arrived, Alleytia and Lewis were at different friends' houses as they had stayed the night. Martin and Dylan soon woke up and soon we were playing all sorts of games with them.

Mark and Annette are incredibly generous and hospitable. It struck me on one of our flights that Mark, who was meeting us at the airport at 5.45am on a Saturday morning, would have no idea who we were, what we looked like or what we are like. Yet they willingly and graciously welcomed us, let us play with their kids, talked to us and had organised so many things already in light of our arrival.

One of the great stories that the kids told me was the last time they went to Australia, they arrived in Brisbane and it was raining. They tried on a raincoat and ran around outside as it was an incredibly rare event for them.

And yes, the next morning I awoke early due to the call to prayer. (Though Joanna slept right through it)

Our flat, with Kristian

We had agreed before leaving Sydney that we were happy to share a flat with one of the existing volunteers. Kristian is from Denmark and was just as obliging in letting us share his three bedroom flat that he had to himself for the past year. In our rush to get up to the flat to meet him, we couldn't work the lift and so carried all our luggage up six flights of stairs!

First impression of the flat was the heat. It was stinking hot, particularly as we are not yet acclimatised to the heat. Thankfully there is an airconditioner in our bedroom which can produce cold air. However, the next day we were told that the temperature had been 40 degrees! Being on the top floor of a building doesn't help as there is no benefit of insulation from another flat above.

During the night we woke up as it was incredibly hot in our room. We're going to have to employ a trial and error process to find the best way to cool our bedroom during the night.

The next day we woke up surprisingly early due to our jet lag and mopped the floors and some of the furniture in our bedroom. Putting up some cards and photographs that we had received has helped us make our room more a home.

Guess what? We can't hear the call to prayer from our flat as there are no large mosques in direct line of sight from the flat. Better yet, we woke up to the sounds of sparrows out the windows sitting on TV aerials. This was certainly an unexpected surprise and an incredible improvement to the car park music we previously had in Hurstville. We're both convinced that outside noises are quieter than those we had in our previous place in Sydney.

Email me - joshua at kuswadi dot com