Hi Habibi’s

Hi Habibi’s (Hi My Beloved – Arabic)

This past September, Sal and I traveled to Egypt.  It was a wonderful trip.  We landed in Cairo at 11:30 pm.  The lights of the city went for miles.  After we landed, we asked the gentleman who picked us up at the airport and brought us to our hotel what the population was.  We had no idea that Cairo was home to 23 million people.  It is open 24 hours a day and always busy.  When we drove to our hotel from the airport, traffic was fairly heavy, and it was after midnight. Our hotel was on the Nile River and there was a nightclub on the other side of the river.  The music blasted and the lights flashed most of the night. It reminded me of New York City, another city that never sleeps.  

Our guide for most of our tours was Mohammad.  He was a wealth of information, charismatic, and shared so much information about history, current times, politics and family life.  I would give him a five out of five stars.  He told our group that he would call us Habibi (my beloved) during our tour since we would be his “family” for the next 14 days as we toured Egypt.   Everyday Mohammed greeted us as “hi Habibi” and it has stuck in my mind.  “Mind your steps Habibi”.    He was a great guide.

Once thing we learned is that traffic is chaotic in Egypt.  Drivers don’t stay in their lanes, but weave in and out of traffic.  I can’t imagine driving there myself.  An Egyptian friend told us that when there is an accident, many times it involves numerous cars, i.e. 30 or more, and is horrible.  To be honest, I was afraid to cross the street, pedestrians navigate the cars when crossing the street walking between cars as they speed by and walking and stopping as needed.  One of our guides told us about one time when he had a group of people with him visiting the sites of Cairo.  He told them,  “follow me when we cross the street, and stay right next to me and you’ll be fine”.  He told us that when he got to the other side of the street and looked back, every person was still standing on the other side of the street.  If I was following our guide, I might have been one of those folks also.   I will tell you that I never crossed a busy street in Cairo while we were there.  I avoided it.  When we cruised down the Nile and our boat was docked at some of the smaller cities, crossing the street was an easier task.  There was far less traffic, and it was easy to cross most streets.

We cruised on the Nile River from Luxor to Aswan and back to Luxor.  Although our boat, the River Tosca, could hold up to 82 guests, there were about 40 guests onboard.  Some cancelled or did not book the cruise since they were concerned about potential war in the Middle East because of the current Gaza situation.  We never felt uneasy or frightened. There was both military and police presence everywhere we went.   When we visited any sites on foot, our security guard always followed. They were always wearing a dark colored suit, dark glasses, and carrying an automatic weapon.  Sal and I always took a few minutes to chat with them.  Most were retired military or police making extra money when off duty.  They were all friendly and informative even though their dark colored suits, dark glasses, and stern demeanor made them look otherwise when following the group.

Egypt is a fascinating place.  The country is such a mix of ancient history, religious history, modern and old mixed together.  While touring the outskirts of Cairo, we passed a couple of farmers pulling wagons full of vegetables and greenery with a donkey.   Within minutes, we passed through a modern neighborhood with modern homes, offices, and stores.  While cruising down the Nile, there are many farms on both sides of the river, there were farmers tending to their crops, but it was somewhat rare to see many tractors or modern trucks. 

 I didn’t realize how close the Pyramids were to Cairo.  While standing near the pyramids, I thought of thousands of years ago when ancient Egyptians were alive and were walking where I was standing. When we visited the NMEC (National Museum of Egyptian Civilization) where there are a number of mummies on display, it was earie at times.  Some of the mummies looked like they might sit up at any moment.  

I enjoyed Egypt, the scenery, and the people.  I would love to return someday and visit again.