Getting to Egypt

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Being in the Accounting / auditing profession has a lot of privilages. Firstly, you get automatic membership into the most exclusive club of being the second most sexually frustating professions. Secondly, you think you can do your own taxes. What I like best, is the third -- Travel. Frankly, this reason is what is keeping me going in this mind numbing profession.

And so, after nearly 2 years in the dumb desert that you call Saudi, I finally got a chance to come to Egypt. Being in Saudi at this crucial juncture in my career seemed to be the more rational choice. I am trying to move up from being an assistant flunky to a full-fledged flunky. However, I realised that that life is not rational - and whatever rationality is left of me has been depleted during my stay in Saudi. And to hell with being a flunky - I want to be in Egypt.

Egypt is a very nice country. However, it requires a visa before you get on its soil. Somehow, the Egpytians wondered if I had Aids or Hepatitis before granting me the visa.

I had no intentions of sex in Egypt and hence having Aids would not be too much of a concern to the authorities. However, they were better informed about the incredibly pretty ladies of Egypt and well, anyways, that was the rule.

The consulate in India has designated a dump, where, in my opinion, I would be more likely to contract aids than to get tested for it. My opinion is anyways worthless, and I did get tested - for the first time in my life. It is a huge relief to know, I tested negative - to clarify - I do not have Aids or Hepatitis and I was free to go. The authorities at the consulate are the most polite I have ever met - much unlike the usually rude ones in the Saudi consulate.

Having flown nearly a 100 flights, I have come to realise that once you get onto a flight, your life hangs on a string of candy. Thats until you land and the plane safely taxies to the parking spot. Well - the trip to Cairo involved a total of 8 hours of being strung on a string of candy and boy - i didnt enjoy that. What made it slightly bearable were the very pretty Emirates Airlines airhostesses.

I landed safely (May God be praised) and checked into the Sheraton Heliopolis which by the way is now Hotel Helipolis because Sheraton has sold it to the Fairmont group. But tell a taxi driver Hotel Helipolis and you get a long stare and some strange arabic monologue interrupted with agitant scolding - I am sorry my friend, but please dont get angry because I dont speak your language. Of course, the driver was not being agitant or angry - it was just how the poor soul spoke!

And so, I was on my way in Cairo.

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