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Published On: Jan 09, 2008 02:32 PM
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Published On: Jan 09, 2008 02:32 PM
Asatour 2008: Egypt: Cairo, Day One-ish
I'm exhausted. According to our schedule, today
was supposed to be a day of light sightseeing. If this is light, I won't
survive heavy.
After an enormous buffet breakfast, we started off our touring with a visit to the British Museum. It's enormous, and kind of overwhelming. I suppose I had known, for example, that King Tut's coffin was enclosed in three nested sarcophagi, which were in turn enclosed by 5 nested gilded wooden boxes (boxen). I'd never, though, really thought about the sheer size involved. That final box is huge! I'd seen much of Tut's stuff back around 1990 when it was on tour in Memphis (the one in Tennessee), but it's still pretty neat.
Also visited the mummy room, and got my fill of really old dead people. The museum was quite full of people, and very loud. No photos were allowed, so you won't be seeing any from there.
After lunch, we visited a papyrus shop, and then went on to the pyramids at Giza. I started out with a camel ride (I actually ended up riding two camels today; more on that later). I have some great pics from that, with the pyramids in the background. I'll get them up when I can, because as noted in my previous entry, REALLY expensive internet.
Our next stop in Giza was down near the pyramids themselves. I had paid the extra bit to actually go inside Khufu's pyramid, and was preparing for that. I fell into conversation with an Egyptian. He was very nice. Before I go any further with this story let me emphasize that all the Egyptians that I have met both here and other places have been incredibly nice and friendly. Unfortunately, nice friendly people also have to make a living, and some choose to do so in a way that may not seem all that nice or friendly.
He said "I want to take a picture of you as a gift for you," and before I could really react began winding a headwrap around my head. When he was finished, he pointed me in the direction of a camel that had materialized behind me, and said I should climb on. I told him I had no intention of paying for a photo. He said "No problem! It's a gift!" So I climbed on. He clucked to the camel; it rose, and he began leading me away from my group!
So here's how this scam normally works: they separate you from your group, and then take your photo on the camel. They then (nicely, and without overt threats) don't let you off the camel until you pay them. When you're not used to them, being on a camel's back feels like being about 15 feet off the ground. It's not a comfortable jump or slide unless the camel is kneeling, which happens when the camel's owner gives it a certain signal.
It didn't happen to me; my tour group leader had a fit, got our group guard involved, and I was taken back to my group. Others in my group didn't get off so easily. I never felt threatened, you understand. When our group leader reacted, it did occur to me that I was being kidnapped for some reason, but even then it was hard to take it seriously because it went down so fast. One of the girls in our group, though, was picked up and placed on the camel, and her reaction to the entire situation was totally different. I COULD have defended myself until the cops got there; she didn't feel the same way about it. One male tweenager ended up paying 40 dollars to get off the camel.
On the short walk to the pyramid (and back after entering it), I received or was offered several other "gifts." I was on to them now, but still ended up paying 1 dollar and 1 pound (about $1.20, total) for a white Arabic headdress. It's a simple but very effective ploy. When I describe it to you, you're going to just think I'm naive and a sucker, but if so then our tourbus is full of them.
A young Egyptian man or child walks up to you and starts a conversation... Where are you from, that kind of thing. They must all study from the same book, because they all say the same thing when you say you're from the U.S... "Really? Hi-ho Silver!" I have no idea why, but they all say it, like it's some universal American mantra. There was one exception to this, but since that guy actually said "Really? Hi-ho Serbia!" I think he was just confused. Anyway, they chat with you, and then say they want to offer you a gift -- a stack of postcards or a headdress, that kind of thing -- for luck. The guy who "gave" me the headdress wouldn't take no for an answer -- "You will break my luck if you don't accept" and he dropped it into my hands. I was not able to be rude enough to just let it hit the ground and walk away. I tried to hand it back to him and he wouldn't take it, so I thanked him and he wandered off. Understand, I wasn't stupid enough to believe this was over.
He came back, took it and put it on my head, saying it would block the sun. Then he suggested that if I wanted to give him something, he would take it, to share the luck. I was expecting this, and since I had accepted this headdress, had no problem with paying a little something for it -- it's a souvenir with a great story. I handed him a U.S. dollar; he asked if I had any Egyptian money instead. I took back the dollar, and handed him a 1 pound (by this point I'm an aware and willing participant in this game, since the Egyptian pound is worth 20 cents, I've just cut his original profit by 80%) note. He apparently saw a 20 pound note in my wallet while I was fooling pulling out the 1, and suggested I could give him that. I laughed. He said "No, it's okay! 20 pounds is only about 2 dollars, so it's not much!" Now he's out-and out lied to me, and the game's over. To keep him from accusing me of theft, I hand him the 1 US dollar and the 1 Egyptian pound, thank him for his time, and walk off. Of course I take the headdress off, since it marks me as a sucker. :)
Of course, it's all a psychological game. Probably even the "Hi-Ho Silver" thing is calculated to give you a sense of superiority over this silly foreigner who doesn't even know that no one's said Hi-Ho Silver since children stopped pretending to be the Lone Ranger decades ago.
In between all these instances of Capitalism At Its Finest, I went inside Khufu's pyramid! It was very hot and humid in there (from the breath of the previous visitors), and you had to bend over for most of the way to the burial chamber. Nonetheless it was a powerful experience. Go there and do that. Just don't buy anything if you can help it.
After this we went to see the Sphinx, with more vendors, but by now I was tired of them and just refused to make eye contact. If they can't get your attention, they can't try their spiels on you. After the Sphinx, we went back to the hotel, before returning to Giza for the Sound and Light Show earlier tonight.
Pictures will be posted when I can post them, as will other entries. I have to go soak my camel-weary legs. Take care, y'all!
After an enormous buffet breakfast, we started off our touring with a visit to the British Museum. It's enormous, and kind of overwhelming. I suppose I had known, for example, that King Tut's coffin was enclosed in three nested sarcophagi, which were in turn enclosed by 5 nested gilded wooden boxes (boxen). I'd never, though, really thought about the sheer size involved. That final box is huge! I'd seen much of Tut's stuff back around 1990 when it was on tour in Memphis (the one in Tennessee), but it's still pretty neat.
Also visited the mummy room, and got my fill of really old dead people. The museum was quite full of people, and very loud. No photos were allowed, so you won't be seeing any from there.
After lunch, we visited a papyrus shop, and then went on to the pyramids at Giza. I started out with a camel ride (I actually ended up riding two camels today; more on that later). I have some great pics from that, with the pyramids in the background. I'll get them up when I can, because as noted in my previous entry, REALLY expensive internet.
Our next stop in Giza was down near the pyramids themselves. I had paid the extra bit to actually go inside Khufu's pyramid, and was preparing for that. I fell into conversation with an Egyptian. He was very nice. Before I go any further with this story let me emphasize that all the Egyptians that I have met both here and other places have been incredibly nice and friendly. Unfortunately, nice friendly people also have to make a living, and some choose to do so in a way that may not seem all that nice or friendly.
He said "I want to take a picture of you as a gift for you," and before I could really react began winding a headwrap around my head. When he was finished, he pointed me in the direction of a camel that had materialized behind me, and said I should climb on. I told him I had no intention of paying for a photo. He said "No problem! It's a gift!" So I climbed on. He clucked to the camel; it rose, and he began leading me away from my group!
So here's how this scam normally works: they separate you from your group, and then take your photo on the camel. They then (nicely, and without overt threats) don't let you off the camel until you pay them. When you're not used to them, being on a camel's back feels like being about 15 feet off the ground. It's not a comfortable jump or slide unless the camel is kneeling, which happens when the camel's owner gives it a certain signal.
It didn't happen to me; my tour group leader had a fit, got our group guard involved, and I was taken back to my group. Others in my group didn't get off so easily. I never felt threatened, you understand. When our group leader reacted, it did occur to me that I was being kidnapped for some reason, but even then it was hard to take it seriously because it went down so fast. One of the girls in our group, though, was picked up and placed on the camel, and her reaction to the entire situation was totally different. I COULD have defended myself until the cops got there; she didn't feel the same way about it. One male tweenager ended up paying 40 dollars to get off the camel.
On the short walk to the pyramid (and back after entering it), I received or was offered several other "gifts." I was on to them now, but still ended up paying 1 dollar and 1 pound (about $1.20, total) for a white Arabic headdress. It's a simple but very effective ploy. When I describe it to you, you're going to just think I'm naive and a sucker, but if so then our tourbus is full of them.
A young Egyptian man or child walks up to you and starts a conversation... Where are you from, that kind of thing. They must all study from the same book, because they all say the same thing when you say you're from the U.S... "Really? Hi-ho Silver!" I have no idea why, but they all say it, like it's some universal American mantra. There was one exception to this, but since that guy actually said "Really? Hi-ho Serbia!" I think he was just confused. Anyway, they chat with you, and then say they want to offer you a gift -- a stack of postcards or a headdress, that kind of thing -- for luck. The guy who "gave" me the headdress wouldn't take no for an answer -- "You will break my luck if you don't accept" and he dropped it into my hands. I was not able to be rude enough to just let it hit the ground and walk away. I tried to hand it back to him and he wouldn't take it, so I thanked him and he wandered off. Understand, I wasn't stupid enough to believe this was over.
He came back, took it and put it on my head, saying it would block the sun. Then he suggested that if I wanted to give him something, he would take it, to share the luck. I was expecting this, and since I had accepted this headdress, had no problem with paying a little something for it -- it's a souvenir with a great story. I handed him a U.S. dollar; he asked if I had any Egyptian money instead. I took back the dollar, and handed him a 1 pound (by this point I'm an aware and willing participant in this game, since the Egyptian pound is worth 20 cents, I've just cut his original profit by 80%) note. He apparently saw a 20 pound note in my wallet while I was fooling pulling out the 1, and suggested I could give him that. I laughed. He said "No, it's okay! 20 pounds is only about 2 dollars, so it's not much!" Now he's out-and out lied to me, and the game's over. To keep him from accusing me of theft, I hand him the 1 US dollar and the 1 Egyptian pound, thank him for his time, and walk off. Of course I take the headdress off, since it marks me as a sucker. :)
Of course, it's all a psychological game. Probably even the "Hi-Ho Silver" thing is calculated to give you a sense of superiority over this silly foreigner who doesn't even know that no one's said Hi-Ho Silver since children stopped pretending to be the Lone Ranger decades ago.
In between all these instances of Capitalism At Its Finest, I went inside Khufu's pyramid! It was very hot and humid in there (from the breath of the previous visitors), and you had to bend over for most of the way to the burial chamber. Nonetheless it was a powerful experience. Go there and do that. Just don't buy anything if you can help it.
After this we went to see the Sphinx, with more vendors, but by now I was tired of them and just refused to make eye contact. If they can't get your attention, they can't try their spiels on you. After the Sphinx, we went back to the hotel, before returning to Giza for the Sound and Light Show earlier tonight.
Pictures will be posted when I can post them, as will other entries. I have to go soak my camel-weary legs. Take care, y'all!
Posted: Wed - January 9, 2008 at 02:29 PM |
