Wierd stuff you may not know about Egypt

Egyptians refer to the northern part of Egypt as “lower” Egypt, and the southern part of Egypt as “upper” Egypt. This is because the Nile flows north.

There are virtually no wood or steel structures; everything is made with brick and cement. Also interesting is watching them take down these cement structures. I was watching in horror from the bus window as several men sledge hammered away at the very foundation they were standing on about 10 or so stories up. Brutal.

You can buy knock-off's of just about every name brand anywhere: Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Burberry,etc. I'm not big into brands so I could care less, but it's still funny to walk through the mall and see entire stores dedicated to fakes.

Egyptians if not married cannot rent a hotel room together no matter how old they are. If they are married and want to rent a room, they have to provide a copy of their marriage certificate. If the couple is not married and rents two separate rooms, but get caught sneaking into each others rooms, the guy is usually taken home, and the girl can be arrested. Foreigners are allowed to stay in the same room without being married, but must prove they are foreigners by showing their passports.

"Velcome to Eg-ypt!" A phrase I have become incredibly acquainted with and have learned to despise. I am sure I will hear it until the day I leave.

Egyptians love talking to foreigners. They really just want to know you or offer a helping hand. On an expedition around Egypt, you'll probably accumulate quite the array of business cards and phone numbers. They also jump at the opportunity to practice their English. The amount of English spoken in Egypt is outrageous. I would venture to say 4 out of 5 people know at least some English; and 3 out of those 4 can carry on, at the very least, a strained conversation.

Egyptians are excited at the opportunity to speak English, but can be terribly shy about it. I don’t know how many people I’ve met that are constantly apologizing for their accents. Funny thing is, Egyptians hardly have an accent, which can be really misleading. Often I’ll start a conversation with someone, and since I don’t hear an accent, I assume they speak fluent English, launch into some topic, just to have them start frantically shaking their heads, “ana mish fahem!” (I don’t understand).

The “helping” gene, every Egyptian has one. Egyptians would give you the clothes right off their backs if you asked for them. Another good example is asking for directions. Nour explained this to me while we were driving around in circles looking for the post office. It’s typical for people, and taxi drivers, to stop random people on the street and ask where such-and-such a place is. Problem is, everyone wants to help…even if they don’t know where you’re going. So sometimes you end up on a wild goose chase, but at least it’s all under the guise of generosity.

Egyptians take antibiotics for everything! If there were ever to be a place where an unstoppable new strain of something be created it would be here. People here will simply not accept that antibiotics are something to be avoided and used as a last resort. They also seem to think that the common cold can be cured with antibiotics. Cairo is a prime location for a zombie outbreak.

You can get prescription drugs without ever visiting a doctor. Walk into any pharmacy, point to where it hurts, and the pharmacist will give you something. You can also ask for specific drugs, which has proved incredibly useful for me…I’m able to refill my prescription for Diclofenac without ever setting foot in doctors office.

Egypt lacks child labor laws. The teeny-tiny grocery store across the street is run by a family, the young sons, which I would estimate to be about 10-13 work the cash register, make change, bag up items, and deliver water. There is also a 12 year old looking boy who works at the KFC at the end of the street. He wears what looks like an adult size uniform all the way down to his shoes, which only accentuates the fact that he should not be working. He mops the floor, buses tables, and takes out trash. Strangest run-in with a young entrepreneur was when we peeked in Hugo Boss to look at the prices of suits for Paul. A kid around 12 found Paul’s size and told him the price all in English.

Sorry animal lovers, but Egypt has a different take on pets. Pets are a pretty new idea that only the upper class has taken up. Basically, the upper classes are the only folks that can afford pets, so most people think paying to feed an animal, when you have other human mouths to feed is silly. There are, however, stray cats everywhere, and many of them look pretty mangy. I can always hear cat fights from my room at night when I sleep. There are also stray dogs that run in packs, so if you give food to one, expect the whole pack to come looking for you. There are also unique animals around, like camels and donkeys, but they’re used for labor…if you believe in the whole reincarnation thing, hell would be better than coming back as an Egyptian donkey.

There are plenty more weird items, but that’s all I’ve got in me for now. I’ll be sure to add to my list as I think of them.