Cairo – More than One Wonder

Houses floating on the Nile (Awammas) – Photo courtesy Hanya El-Geresy (Insta @hanyaelgeresy)

For all Cairo’s wonders, there are none that exceed the magnificence of the pyramids. Those are truly official wonders. But that’s not the Cairo that people see on a day to day basis. There are many more wonders to be found on the streets of the city that never really sleeps.

Cairo, the capital city of Egypt, is an interesting place. It’s a place full of noise, pollution and most of all life. People bustling around dust covered streets dressed in all manner of garb – from the traditional galabiya to the most modern of outfits, it really is a land where old mixes with new. Strolling down the bank of the river Nile at night, you could be forgiven for thinking the water was perfect, sparkling with the reflections of the perpetually-on street lamps and neon lights that blare from shops, restaurants and hotels surrounding the banks. However in reality, it probably wouldn’t be that good an idea to swim in it, let alone drink it.

A swarthy old man in white robes lazes in a broken plastic chair. His eyes flash white with recognition, brilliant against the canvas of a weatherbeaten face. He calls out to us, offering us a ride in his felucca, but we turn him down. He returns to his ordinary position, the same languid expression on his face.

Cairo by day is a different world. The humidity varies from day to day, but you will almost certainly feel in need of a shower if you plan on staying more than a few hours out of the house. The dusty roads are the bane of designer footwear, whose soles and lower parts will have inevitably turned a dusty brown by the time you get back to the hopeful solace of an air-conditioned room. If one is not available, you can always pop into one of the various glass-fronted stores that line the streets; the height of modernity and with air-con to match. Those that look a little more run down will still offer at least a couple of rusty old fans in the corners of the rooms, billowing hot air down onto your head as you gaze longingly into a fridge full of cans of soft drink with familiar names.

Despite its dusty exterior, beneath this Cairo is a city of history. For a second, if you whisk away the dusty film that covers it, treasures will be revealed to you. An ancient archway signalling the spot where an Anglican cathedral once stood. Little black doors where holy men stand, adorning shoes they have taken off to pray, minarets poking their heads over the mishmash of wildly contrasting apartment blocks.

It is of course not only the buildings that make the city. No artwork is really the same without the name behind it. Most modern art could pass for high school work, were it to be viewed in a classroom. But stick a big name on it and you get a proportionally big price. Without the people factor, art is lifeless, and not worth seeing. This statement was never confirmed more strongly than by Cairo’s sprawling landscape of beauty – a post-Imperial, post-apocalyptic biodome where newer buildings have sprouted like trees in between the older, grander structures, that have turned the same colour. Among the windows and terraces, the Egyptians roam. Theirs is a lively people. Egyptians are uniquely resourceful, relaxed and jovial. Get in a taxi cab and ask for a light and the driver will whip out his lighter – that is, if he hasn’t already for his own purposes – gladly offering a few words of chitchat in addition to the flame. Smoking is not just a common occurrence – it is almost expected. No mechanic’s toolbox is complete without the mandatory pack of Marlboro. The people of Cairo will laugh with you however, and be you in need – be in no doubt that help in some form will be along very shortly. That is, if it isn’t there already. Just watch out for the token “it’s nothing” at the end, which is certainly anything but that. Rather, it’s a polite request for you to reward the man who has come selflessly to your aid with a plump 10 Egyptian pounds for his effort.

Egypt is a pot where political turmoil bubbles, however it does so deep under the streets. On the surface, life goes on in its chaotically ordinary way, cars darting in and around each other in a seeming race to get to the end of the road first, their weapon of choice against their competitors being the horn. The horn can take on various different sounds, but like a snowflake, none are the same. There are small squeaks, standard toots and even the deafening blare that would be more suited to a steam train. Then of course, there is the special case of the trucks that have replaced their horns with a small jingle, like the ones that precede tannoy announcements at the airport, but somehow yet more intrusive. Sometimes, a horn isn’t even necessary – the rag and bone man, robabikya, whose voice will be heard throughout the streets at an ungodly hour, is one especially annoying specimen.

Of course, the horn is not always used in a menacing fashion. Like a sword, as well as being used to slay your sworn enemies, it can be used to knight your most loyal friends. Occasionally, you will hear the unmistakable 5-note chant that signals the coming of a wedding procession. Like a reverse thunderstorm, a few moments later, a full symphony orchestra playing the same 5 notes will glide into view, causing great joy to those in the entourage and annoyance of a similar magnitude to those who must grudgingly trace the path behind, possibly on their way home.

No day is complete without fool – a simple bean based stew that is suprisingly filling and delicious. Taste it and you’ll understand why Egyptians eat it on almost a daily basis. It is the national dish of Egypt, alongside another called koshari, which is even more delicious. That one is a dish with a strange history, being based on foods from a variety of cultures – Indian, Italian and British, but it is now completely and unmistakably Egyptian (and don’t even attempt to tell anyone otherwise).