Back to the grindstone...

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After returning from Alexandria, we went back to Cairo to give Erin more time to recover. Although the wound seems to be healed on the outside, there is still healing to be done on the inside, and he must be careful not to get a hernia. The temperature in Cairo has cooled somewhat (30-35 instead of 35 upwards), but it is still very warm and necessitates the use of fans and air-con. We arrived back in Cairo on the first day of the Eid il Futr (festival of breaking the fast), meaning Ramadan is over.

So what did we do for the next two weeks? Erin was unable to walk or sit for long periods of time, so that pretty much ruled out going very far. We took a trip to Old Cairo to visit the Deaf Unit. The kids weren't back yet from their summer break, the Egyptian Government deciding on a last minute postponement of the students' return to school until they had worked out measures designed to prevent an outbreak of Swine Flu. This is on top of the Government's decision to cull Egypt's 250,000 pigs, which has resulted in a massive build up of rubbish throughout the city as the self-employed garbage collectors (who were also the city's pig farmers) now have no incentive to collect the organic waste. Government employed rubbish collectors cannot cope with the excess. To date, only a few people have died or been infected with swine flu, far less people than in NZ, but Egypt was hit hard by bird flu and people are wary. On the Metro, lots of people hold tissues over there nose or wear face masks, and on Arab TV (not necessarily Egyptian channels), there are adverts showing people flu prevention measures. Some schools have been closed altogether, and students take lessons via the TV. We went back to Islamic Cairo as there is a must-see mosque that we missed last time. It was closed and we asked how much baqsheesh it would cost us - 20 pounds for me and 10 pounds for Erin - I guess that is a white skin tax and as such we refused to pay it, after all entry is usually free. The mosque was still closed, in fact they were putting scaffolding up around it and it looks like a major restoration project is under way. The tourist Khan is in this area and while strolling through we were amazed at how scantily clad some foreign women are. While in Cairo, I joined a women's culture exchange group that had started up recently. There's about 40 members, but at the two events I attended, only 2 other people turned up. They were local Egyptian ladies, but there are other foreigners in the group too.

Nothing much has changed in the bustling metropolis of Sadat, although it was really annoying to find someone had come in and unplugged our fridge, making it go mouldy and the contents go off. Although power is included in our rent, the value of the food would have been more than what was saved in power. We also found out that the amount we have been paying for our gas usage is way beyond what we are actually using - it seems we are paying off a debt for the owner.

On our first weekend back, we went down to our local cafe, where they were playing very loud Umm Kolthum. If you would like to hear a sample of Umm Kolthum, look it up on You Tube. Anyway, not long afterwards, the radio got turned down as the call to prayer began, prompting Erin to say, "Thank God for the call to prayer - never thought I'd say that.."

There is a bit more activity at the hospital site, as a gang is sealing and insulating the roof. Apparently Sadat gets a bit of rain over winter and they don't want water to ruin the newly installed ceilings. We have also been asked to make up covers for the ventilation shafts for the same reason. It has cooled here, the mornings are misty, but we are getting humidity and warm winds. I'm told that when it does rain, it is a sudden downpour that may last an hour at most. We have finished making all the fence sections and have started on the main gate. We would like to continue erecting the fence around the perimeter, but with Erin unable to lift anything we need more manpower. The guys who were living on site have been moved on to other jobs in Cairo and it is up to their boss to take them off that work and bring them back to us. Needless to say, the guys aren't in any rush to come back to Sadat City.

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Photos

Islamic Cairo
Souvenir shops down Al Muizz St

Sadat
View out our window on a misty autumn morning

Sadat
Fence is complete, gates almost complete!

Sadat
Tarring the roof.

Adel
Hasn't been back up here with us for a week yet and already he wants to go back to Cairo!

Comments

[James Mahon]

Hello
Hello mel and erin I have just been offered a job in Sadat, with a company called Sonut. The chairman was on the phone today begging me to fly out there this weekend and come and live there before the end of the month, it all seems so strange. I only applied on the internet yesterday to see what it was all about. Have you heard of them. Reading your blog has been great. I am 28 years old and my wife is younger then me and we have a 6 month old baby. The chap from the company said we would have our own drivers and cars and they would pay for a house for us. But he said we would probably not want to live in Sadat and suggested Cairo and explained everyone lives in Apartments there. It all seems to be going so fast. He has offered to fly us out there this Thursday and sign up on Sunday, this is extremely fast movement for recruitment, and all seems so strange. Would you say there would be stuff for my wife and child to do in Cairo is there an english speaking community. Do you feel it would be safe for them when I'm at work. And is it normal to be given a driver for 24 hours a day is this for security? It all seems so strange but exciting at the same time. Wha do you think of living there in short. The mentions of smell and sewers all seem a bit of putting. James

[kiwibyrd]

Someone coming to Sadat
We get a few emails and comments like this, and then they don't even bother replying to us.