Living and studying in Egypt

Bismillah, alhamdulillah.

This is a rather long post, it is an archive version of some old Egypt posts that some may still find useful. They are dated 2004/5 so some changes are to be expected. I never got a chance to write about health, visas and attitudes.

A brief word on health: most pharmacists are doctors and the first point of call for people in Egypt. Sadly polypharmacy comes easily to doctors in Egypt. Avoid the government hospitals for any major problems (operations etc.) my experience was very poor. Two hospitals that I had a good and very good experience with respectively were with the American Hospital and Cleopatra. Note you need to have place a hefty deposit up-front usually around 10-20 thousand Egyptian pounds on admission.  They do accept credit/debit cards.

An even briefer word on visas, renewal of visas is possible at the Home Ministry or known as the Mugammah, it is somewhere in the city centre, near the American University of Cairo and a stones throw from the British Airways office. There is a nice bookstore in the American University of Cairo and is worthwhile visiting at least once for dictionaries and modern Arabic literature.

A final addendum on attitude. Everyone seems to have a different experience in Egypt, but foreigners, once recognised as so, are usually targeted as fountains of money  and exploitation is the general rule of thumb. The attitude problem is unfortunately accentuated when the foreigners are black, sadly reflecting quite a racist under current amongst the general public. Personally I came away with a very positive impression of Egypt and its people but on talking to many other fellow travellers found this was not the majority experience.

The following sections had been covered and have been included in this post further down

Taxi!
Soaring temperatures in the middle of July
Expenses in Egypt (Part 1) Money
Expenses in Egypt (Part 2) Study
Expenses in Egypt (Part 3) Types of Accommodation
Expenses in Egypt (Part 4) Infrastructure
Expenses in Egypt (Part 5) Rental and Equipment Prices
Expenses in Egypt (Part 6) Bawwabs and Fix-it men
Expenses in Egypt (Part 7) Safety Culture
Expenses in Egypt (Part 8) Transport & Communication
Expenses in Egypt (Part 9) Daily Living Expenses

Taxi!

Bismillah: About ten years ago you could switch the television on early in the afternoon to be greeted by a plethora of programs forgotten in time. They had the classic look clothes with glaring colours and haircuts that told you had arrived back to the swinging 60's. The thing about Cairo that reminds me of those programs are the taxis, they seem to have frozen in time, the gleaming black paint graced by the odd dent or two. Shaped in the classic box format and round lights with roof racks on top they skip around Cairo beeping from time to time at prospective customers. An odd exception to this is the classic Renault 12 which you might find in a junk yard or two in England, its sleek sloping bonnet and short boot stand out  amongst the crowd of taxis that hoot their way around.
Flagging one of these down is probably the easiest part of the entire journey. I usually try and look as Egyptian as possible and having rehearsed the slang for the place I need to go to lean into the passenger side and bark in a short and hopefully Egyptian manner at the driver. Usually I get a quizzical look and then a short nod and I get into the back.Contrary too all the advice I had been given I do not ask how much, having already asked the 'people that know'. A true case of knowledge is power. The journeys are usually quite quick and if you can convince the driver to give you the handle for the window without letting on you are not Egyptian you can even joy the short rides with the cool breeze playing against your face as you watch Cairo slowly pass by. As the taxi slows down my throat begins to constrict and I can feel the tension in my nerves as the final and most difficult part of the journey has yet to pass.

It's probably like giving birth, the passenger wants to get out but the process of disengaging oneself from the driver on amicable terms is difficult and sometimes painful as I have found out. We had all got into the car and gone the usual 3 pounds worth distance. As instructed I made sure we were all out of the car and then carefully gave the exact amount of three Egyptian pounds to the driver, change is something that taxi drivers conveniently forget. The floppy old notes passed from my hand to the muscular and hairy arms of the thick moustached driver, a classic stereotype. He promptly handed the money back and started to complain. The first act of this brief drama had begun.

He complained that we had filled his car and that I should pay him more. I took the notes back but kept my hand in the car making sure my feet were clear of the tyres just in case the driver felt the need to leave a firm impression on them. He continued to shout and demand more while I pointed out to him that the extra passengers would not have cost him more in fuel costs. I think the logic of my argument seems to have passed him by as he smacked my hand making sure the notes dropped onto his car seat and spat one of those truly theatrical spits where there is more noise that saliva. Turning his head away he drove off, had the car been newer I might have heard the squeaking of tyres as the car was driven in anger. Thankfully the old Lada chugged, rattled and then trundled away. As the taxi wound its way into the distance down the dusty road I wondered how many taxis I would have to catch before I met him again.

Soaring temperatures in the middle of July

Bismillah: Our arrival June had been met with cool breezes that blew through the wide streets and channels formed by the monstrous tower blocks that make up Nasr City a North Eastern district of Cairo. Unlike other Cairenes we kept all our windows open enjoying the cool breeze as it gently blew through the flat. The last few days have begun to reveal the reason why the Cairenes keep their windows firmly shut, as the temeprature has crept into the lower 40s, the cool breeze has decided to take its gloves off and has turned itself into a hot blast - the sort of blast you get on a sunny day in London when you open the oven to take the cake out. I am not too sure if I have quite sweated as much as this before but for the last few days the windows have been shutting earlier and the fans are whirring conrinuously and copious amounts of salty Tang and soft drinks are winding their way down everyone's gullets.
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Yesterday I decided to check my blood pressure to see if all this sweating would reduce the amount of Sodium in my body and thus my blood pressure. To my surprise my systolic had dropped right down to 105. To all the non-medically oriented that is quite low and just five off when we would call a blood pressure 'low' in medical terms. Alhamdulillah adding salt to my glass of Tang seems to have done the trick as the weary lassitude that saps at every muscle has begun to clear.
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Despite the soaring temperatures I seem to be only one of a very rare bunch who are carrying their pocket sized umbrella and sticking it out in a tiny gesture defiance at the sun every moment I get. If you are turning up this way I would strongly advise you getting one of theose pocket umbrellas - they are a blessing.

Expenses in Egypt (Part 1) Money

Bismillah: I hope to make the next set of Jottings much more practical and will be dealing with the practical expenses of living and studying in Egypt. Its mainly geared at people who are looking to come here on a long term basis. This Jotting covers the Egyptian Currency and the transfer of money.<br><br>

The basics on money: Egyptian notes are called `Egyptian Pounds` they also go under the local name Gunay (a corruption of Junay). The symbol for the currency is LE. Values under 1 Egyptian Pound are Qirsh and 100 Qirsh makes 1 Egyptian Pound. Coins are used though not commonly. Commonly used notes for values less than 1 pound are 50 Qirsh and 25 Qirsh, and in your first few days these are commonly mistaken for 50 and 25 pounds. Other minor denominations exists such as 10 Qirsh and 5 Qirsh but are pretty useless as tender when it comes to buying anything. Pharamacists and supermarkets have a bad habit of giving you these little notes of little value. Notes values that otherwise exists are 1,5,10,20,50 and 100 pounds. The exchange rate between Sterling and the Egyptian Pound currently stands at 1 to 11.34, according to economic forecasts it is expected to increase over the next 3-4 years to £1 = LE20.<br><br>
Getting money into the country, the safest way to bring money is using Travellers Cheques, but bringing cash is also very safe if you are living in an apartment. I have heard the odd story of money going missing from safe deposit boxes in hotels but an unable to ascertain how common or uncommon this is. As for crime from private appartment blocks this is virtually unheard of.<br><br>

It is very easy to open a Sterling (UK pounds) or US Dollar account in any one of the major banks. I just walked into a Barclays Bank presented my passport and my flimsy driving licence and after about half an hour was a given a measly little card with my account number. If you want you can get a cheque book but you don't get an ATM card for foreign currency accounts and there is currently a charge of 4 Sterling Pounds per 3 months for the account. I can deposit Sterling Pounds and withdraw Sterling whenever I need. After withdrawing it I just convert it to Egyptian Pounds at whatever the going rate is. The advantage of doing this is you can get you bank back home to transfer money straight into your account which is much cheaper than using an ATM with your card from back home or using other Money Transferring Agencies such as Western Union.<br><br>

Expenses in Egypt (Part 2) Study

Bismillah: This set of expenses is potentially the largest chunk of expenses, especially if you opt for private tuition and add in the cost of children`s studies.<br><br>

Arabic study rates are set US dollars, testament to the unstable exchange rate. Prices for a personal tutor range from $3.50 / hour at the upper end to whatever you can manage to negotiate with the various centres or teachers on a private basis. For a joint class of two people with their own tutor the classes cost $2.00 / hour per person or $4.00 per hour in total.<br><br>

Group classes are a much cheaper alternative, the more expensive of the centres are currently charging $85 for a total of 75 hours of study, which is equivalent to one level. On average people study three hours a day. The courses are divided into eleven sections each requiring somewhere in between 60 and 75 hours of study to complete. If you happen to complete everything much quicker than expected the hours are credited to the next level and refunds are not made.<br><br>

But I have a huge family! Can't they give me a discount? The simple answer is probably yes, as long as you bargain well, though don't be dissapointed if no is the answer. There is no harm in trying.<br><br>

There are much cheaper altenatives if you go for a private tutor in the outskirts of Cairo which as a sprawling Metropolis can be a good two hour drive away. I don't really have much experience concerning this alternative, but it does exist.<br><br>

Children`s education range from the completely traditional where children write voluminous amounts of Quranic verses and Hadith and are taught to memorise multiple lines of poetry in classical Arabic to the other end of the spectrum where you can find highly Westernised schools teaching in an English medium. The fees equivalently range from LE 3000 / year to LE 7000 / year for the traditional schools. I have not had a chance to investigate the Western schools. Nearly all schools operate a transport policy with a bus which comes to pick up the kids, this will cost from LE 720 / year / child and upwards. Some parents opt for hiring a taxi driver to take their kids and bring them back, this can cost somehwhere between 6-10 LE / day.<br><br>

Stationery accounts for around 2-5% of costs of the study. In general pens, notebooks, papers, highlighters are of an equivalent quality to those found in the UK. Staedtler, V5 Pilot pens, branded material, automatic pencils and refills are easily found. My particular favourite is an Office World (a small but well equipped shop) on Abbas Al-Aqqaad Road on the same side as Shayk Al-Balad (a famous restaurant in Madeenat Nasr, Cairo) around the corner from the HSBC bank.<br><br>

The various books for each level cost around 30 - 80 LE depending on what level you are studying. They are all photocopies of the originals bound with a plastic comb binding. The photocopying is of an adequate standard but any greyed out pictures or text are very difficult to read. Don't be surprised if the odd text is undecipherable but this is a relative rarity.<br><br>

Photocopying is very cheap, on average the cost is 10 Qirsh i.e. 0.10 LE per A4 page. Photocopiers are quite well distributed. You will be surprised at the size ofthe machines and the most unlikely places they seem to turn up in. Just ask and you will probably discover there are 3-4 machines withing 200 metres of wherever you are.

Expenses in Egypt (Part 3) Types of Accommodation

Bismillah, probably the most important question which comes to mind when coming to study abroad after the details of the study programmes is that of accomodation, especially if you are married and have a family to take with you on your inteprid travels to lower reaches of the Meditteranean sea. I found a rather nice quote on houses by Henri Poincare in which he says: 'Science is facts; just as houses are made of stones, so is science made of facts; but a pile of stones is not a house and a collection of facts is not necessarily science.' A nice play on concepts, one worth bearing in mind when it comes to housing and accomodation.<br><br>

Most of the accommodation in Madeenat Nasr (Nasr City) is made up of flats. According to one of the locals the whole of Madeenat Nasr was a sparsely populated area with a few buildings mainly houses. The main road Abbas Al-Aqqaad had few shops and even fewer people. Development over the last 15 years has been fuelled by money pouring in from the Arabian Gulf countries, houses were quickly knocked down and replaced by rapidly rising blocks of flats. The rapid pace of development continues unabated with new developments in Hayya Taasi and Hayya Aashir (Areas 9 and 10). In some areas, such as Hayya Thaamin (Area 8), the water supplies have not kept up with the pace of development and water shortages are a frequent if not daily occurrence. Hayya Thamin happens to be one of the closest to the various Arabic language centres such as Fajr, Qortoba and Makkah. Nearest of all lies the Swissri Area, here the buildings resemble a drab and shabby council estate, though the flat rents reflect the lower standards.<br><br>

Villas, or traditional houses with gardens are not found in Madeenat Nasr. There are some developments which have the traditional style of villa with a garden, once that is relatively near (by car) to the language centres is called El-Rehab, references and pictures can be found on the net. Though living there would require the purchase of a car as it lies a good twenty minutes away by car. Though from what I have heard this is a very clean and well maintained development, with manicured lawns and palm tree lined boulevards.<br><br>

[I have split this rather long Jotting up - the next one Insha Allah is: Expenses in Egypt (Part 4) Infrastructure]<br><br>

* The picture is a shot of what was a tower block on Abbas Al-Aqqaad Road next to the McDonalds that suddenly collapsed following a fire in the lower floors killing 10 people. The BBC report at the time reads: 'The governor of Cairo said the building did not have planning permission for its 11 storeys - it had approval for just four floors .... A demolition order was issued for the block 12 years ago, although it was not clear why it was not carried out. Building collapses in Egypt are not uncommon, with buildings regulations sometimes ignored and unauthorised floors added, making existing structures unsafe.' (Ten dead pulled from Cairo rubble - Tuesday, 27 January, 2004). I guess the take home message is don't live in too high a tower block.

Expenses in Egypt (Part 4) Infrastructure

Bismillah. The population density on the streets of Madeenat Nasr while higher than London or other major metropolitan areas in the West is much lower than any Indian metropolis. You don't get the feeling there are a huge number of people on the streets. The roads similarly are not very densely populated apart from the traditional rush hour times. The primary reason for this is probably the relatively low owner ship of cars, which is stemmed by the artificially inflated prices of cars.<br><br>

Play areas for children are few and far in between.  The proximity of flats to each other leaves little open space in the local areas. City planners have made some green play areas for children. One called Hadeeqat Dawliyyah (Government Garden), this lies on Abbas Al-Aqaad Road and the other lies Area 8. The only problem with these areas is that they would normally require a short taxi ride to get to. They both have a minimal entrance charge. <br><br>

From a shopping point of view, flats near the Genina Mall (a large modern shopping centre) are well supplied with shopping centres, supermarkets. The disadvantage is that this area lies a taxi ride (3 LE one way) to the centres or 30-40 minutes walking distance if you want to savour the Cairo sun. In general the shops are adequately stocked with all the modern amenities of life from washing powder, children's nappies to daily breakfast cereals. I wil be Insha Allah covering the daily living expenses in a more detailed fashion later.<br><br>

Expenses in Egypt (Part 5) Rental and Equipment Prices

Body: Bismillah. Flats and houses (villas) are available for rent. The rental market becomes saturated in the summer months as many families from Egypt and manyother countries come to Egypt to pass their summer holidays. Egyptian summers are much cooler than those on the Arabian Peninsula. The best time to go hunting for a flat is once the summer holidays have finished which lies somehwhere in the middle of September. <br><br>

In general the size of the flats are much bigger than those available in the UK. An average size flat has an area of around 100-120 square metres, anything under 70-80 square meteres is considered something very small. The room sizes are also quite large and even the smallest flats that I have visited the bedroom is capable of taking a double bed, large size wardrobe and still has enough space for 3-4 chairs. <br><br>

Infestation with cockroaches and ants are the two main problems with unwanted guests from the insect world. Flies tend to gather if there is no fan but the numbers are few and they are probably transported into the flat on the back of shopping rather than breeding in the local area. As for the cockroaches, according to some dedicated internet sites to the cockroach I first say alhamdulillah (Thank God) that American cockroaches don't live in Egypt because like some of their human counterparts they seemed to be armed to the teeth and have the bad habit of being able to fly. According to this most informative site cockroaches tend to appear in the middle of the night and this can be a bit disconcerting to the midnight snackers and others who tend to roam around the house in the middle of the night. Whether you can do anything about it even if you are scrupulously and meticulously clean is doubtful as cockroaches have a bad habit of living at  every single level of any flat and may be feasting in the flat below or above. If you feel rather adventurous you can take a leaf out of our bawwabs method of keeping them at bay and mix up some of the local brand of agricultural pesticides and pour it down every single drain and liberally paint it onto the floor and walls until you are sure everything is dead. I stared haplessly at our bawwab when he arrived with a bucket of ready mixed agricultural pestcide ready to spalsh it everywhere without any gloves. You can imagine how I stood rather perplexed, wondering how on earth I could explain the concept of carcinogens in Egyptian colloquail Arabic! Needless to say with a house full of kids we decided that the ants were probably better company.<br><br>

Moving onto the key question: how much does it cost? Rental prices vary from 600 LE to 2000 LE or higher per month, depending on the quality and location of the flat you want. In Area 8 (the place that has the water problems but is a walkable distance to the Arabic centres) rents vary between 1000 - 1600 LE / month. They are about 10-15% lower in the Swissri area which also lies a walkable distance from the centres. As you get towards the heart of Madeenat Nasr, Abbas Al-Aqqad, the rental prices start to go up. A good rule of thumb is that you should be able to get something quite decent for a large family for £ 150 / month.<br><br>

Flats can come either in a bare bone format or furnished. Bare literally means bare, the kitchen will not have a sink, there will be no boiler, cooker, chairs, desks, beds or anything else except the walls, the doors and if you are fortunate you might get some light bulbs. If you are offered one of these places the best advice is to try and negotiate the purchase of the various items of living in lieu of the rent, in general landlords ae expected to provide the basic amenities but don't be surprised if you have to pay up.<br><br>

So where do you go to buy all the stuff? There is a market called the Attaba market. You will be able to hire a man (300 - 400 LE) and a van (50-100 LE) to take you to the market place which lies a good distance away from Madeenat Nasr. Expect to spend half a day bartering and completing your puchases. Here is an example list of things somebody has recently bought: Water Filter (250 LE), Office Table and 2 drawer chest of drawers (650 LE), Large Kitchen Wall Cabinet (double BQs largest size) (600 LE), Small Desk and 3 drawer set (190 LE), Egyptian manufactured Fridge (1400 LE), Zanussi Washing Machine (2300 LE) : a slightly cheaper Egyptian manufactured version also exists, Electric Water Boiler (350 LE), Double Bed with wooden slats for the base (280 LE), Single Bed (250 LE), Single Spring Mattress (400) - cheaper foam varieties exist, Double wardrobe (600 LE) - a poor quality B&Q version, Standard Office Chair with Wheels (180 LE), Normal wooden chair (25 LE), Foldable Table 2 by 3 foot (90 LE). An Air Conditioner will cost around 2000 LE, this can be paid over a year.<br><br>

Insha Allah the next Jotting will be on Bawwabs and Fix-It men.

*The picture is a shot of one of the very well manufactured fans. Unlike the ones you buy in the UK these ones keep on working and come will all sorts of extras. One that I particularly like is called Natural: this setting mimicks the natural flow of air. It also comes with a nice remote control!

Expenses in Egypt (Part 6) Bawwabs and Fix-it men

Bismillah: The bawwab (Lit. door man), this is the chap and his family who is employed by the owner of the flat to look after it. They are very helpful in general and will have good insider knowledge of the area. There is a good bawwab to bawwab network and if you are looking for help to buy things, get things then they can be your first port of information. There is one bg stumbling block though, they generally only speak Aammiyyah (or Colloquial Arabic) which while it can resemble Classical Arabic can sometimes deviate so much that you might as well try English or any other language at your disposal, sign language being your last resort. Bawwabs are your first port of call when things start to fail, breakdown or require repair inside your flat. Using their extensive network they can quickly get hold of carpenters, plumbers, gas men or electricians usually by the afternoon if you ask in the morning. <br><br>

Some of the things to watchout for with bawwabs, they usually expect a monthly tip which ranges from 35-50 LE. This is over and above any regular tips you may or may not give. You can get them to run various shopping errands and they are very reliable with the money and don't necesserily demand a tip but wouldn't object strongly if you offered one. One bad habit they have sometimes which extends right across the board is that don't like saying 'I don't know', so if you ask them where the local Post Office is you will get an answer - it just might not be correct.<br><br>

Fix-it men come at the drop of a hat. They will fix washing machines, replace valves, fix broken bulbs and replace ill fitting doors and the list is endless. I have seen some terrible examples of holes being smashed into the side of towering flats to make a new window, they idea of lintels and supportng the other 5 stories above seems to have escaped that particular fix-it man. Always get the man using your bawwab, you'll at least have someone to back you up if there is confusion about the cost of the work. The service costs are not fixed and you can negotiate the labour rate before the work starts. So far we have only needed the local electrician to replace bulbs that have a habit of blowing up with the various electrical surges, and to work out why the entire cooker and washing machine were electrically live! He charged 20 LE. Try and get the owner to make good any changes within your first week.  The competenece of the people who get called by the bawwab is not uniform. Sometimes you may find a previously working machine stops working after the first person came to fix it, after his second visit he will usually mumble some words of apology and try and dissapear into a thin puff of smoke. Make sure you test anything that has been repaired in front of the repair man before they leave.<br><br>

* The picture of a exposed main cabling in a local street lamp exemplifies the laissez faire attitude of Egyptians to safety. I found that carrying an electric tester is quite a useful gadget as you can quickly identify if the cooker or washing machine have been correctly wired! Let alone replacing frequently blowing fuses in flats.

Expenses in Egypt (Part 7) Safety Culture

Bismillah: In your first few days in Egypt you will soon come to realise that the concept of safety and risk is quite different to that in Euro-America. The high value accorded to a Euro-American is reflected in the increased safety culture and presence of various official bodies over seeing the process. The height of windows, safety barricades on motorways, roads tarmacced with anti-skid and anti-spray surfaces are common occurrences. To Caierenes the very concept of safety through design is an alien one. <br><br>

The first thing you will notice, as you go to see your prospective flat on the 10th floor, are the low walled balconies, with windows that open with out any safety bar or barrier. As you lean out of the window you get this queasy feeling as you reliase your centre of gravity is much higher than the sill and tumbling over would not require much of an effort. I wondered what the old lady who lived in a shoe would have to say about this has her kids ran dizzying cirlces around her. If you happen to draw your landlord`s attention to this point you will get a quizzical smile and an air of bemusement, then as if there was a moment of inspiration they reply: `Just keep the the children away from the windows.` <br><br>

Very few flats have earthing in their electrical sockets and if you stick most plugs the wrong way round into a two pin socket you end up electrifying the entire casing of the machine if it is made of metal. After repeatedly being shocked when emptying the washing machine we took out our electrical tester and horror of horrors found the whole casing was live. After a series of electiricans we eventually found a guy who explained the earthing wires have been linked to the neutral on the plugs, so if you are unlucky and stick the plug in the wrong way you will get a shocking reminder! It is common for water boilers not to have thermostats, so be careful when you open the tap and suddenly found super heated steam belching out. Usually before this happens the boiler complains with very large noises as the needle on the side goes beyond red. <br><br>

So be prepared to a bit resourceful, perhaps a role of duck tape and a bit of experience with dealing with electrical sockets. The picture is a grainy closeup of the traditional style bare bones socket commonly used in Cairo, here I am changing the fuse on the air-conditioner, mind you I had managed to locate the mains fuse and switched the electricity off.

Expenses in Egypt (Part 8) Transport & Communication

Bismillah: I have already covered the basic taxi etiquette in Cairo. The one thing that has become clearer as time has gone on is that the reaction you get from a taxi driver depends on your degree of foreigness and sadly what colour of skin you possess. I will, Allah Willing, cover that aspect of society in a later Jotting. Few people live on the outskirts of Madeenat Nasr, and most taxi rides are 3 LE from Abbas Al-Aqqaad Road to the Arabic centres. A ride from Abbas Al-Aqqad Road, to the Siraj Mall shopping mall, next to which live the Computer Mall, costs 2 LE. A ride just down the road (when flagging a taxi down just say "as-shaari" Lit. the street) costs 1 LE per person. <br><br>

There are a large number of 14 seater vans and mini buses that tout for trade. You will hear them shouting as a man leans out of the open door seeking passengers to squeeze in. These are quite a cheap option, costing 25 Qirsh (0.25 LE) for a trip down the road, or 50 Qirsh for a trip leading down two roads and the maximum seems to be 1 LE. They can be quite crowded at times with litle regard for separate areas for ladies and gents. A better option is to catch one of the 24 seaters, the seats are quite comfortable and space is not a premium and they offer quite a pleasant ride, especially if your not pressed for time and its not rush hour. Don't worry about paying the `conductor`, he will either turn up or you can pass your crunched, but mind you not torn, 25 Qirsh note to the passenger in front and it will slowly wind its way to the front. Stopping, well that can be anywhere from bus stops to the middle of the road, just holler and it will stop.<br><br>

If you want to purchase a car and a ready to sample the dodgem-like driving on the roads then there is a thriving second hand market. You will need an international driving licence, your own national licence and some proof of address in Egypt. If you can't quite muster that out of thin air, then you can get your embassy to provide you with a letter saying something to the effect. Once you purchase a car you need to register it at the traffic department in Midan Al-Attaba. Cars are unsually highly priced, reflecting the exhoribitant customs that are charged. You can buy an ancient Peugeot 504, 25 years old, for 50000 LE (fifty thousand Egyptian pounds). There is a dirth of Korean cars, it is difficult to walk a few steps without seeing a shining and gleaming example of a Daewoo or a Hyundai. The prices of a new Daewoo and Hyundai compare favourably with those in Britain and are about one thousand sterling higher for an equivalent model. Skoda, on the other hand is cheaper, not too sure why, by about £500. In the last two weeks due to the clever machinations of 'the haves' and their Trojan horse, GATT (Grand Agreement on Trade and Tarriffs), the `have-not` Egyptians have been forced to reduce their customs on cars from 200% to 40% in some cases. In the first two weeks this has resulted in some prices decreasing by 30%, but the full effects are still awaited. As the fat man said to the little boy in the cinema who could not see beyond him, just laugh when I do.<br><br>

There is a car `supermarket` where most cars are sold by traders, and the salutary lesson of those who have bought cars here is: beware. `Cut and shut`, corroded chassis painted over, rust bucket and the list goes on are all alive and well. If you want to sell your car in a hurry, then turn up at the car supermarket (sooq as-sayyarah) and if your cars looks nice one of the traders might offer you cash straight away. Private dealers advertise in Al-Ahram on a Friday and there are various websites where you can access private adds (www.caronnile.com.eg). If you decide to buy a second hand car, you can negotiate for the car to be taken to a garage and have the once over before buying, this has become quite common.<br><br>

National insurance and road tax are paid up front for a period of one, two or three years and is around 600 LE per year. Private insurance is not compulsory and there are no other taxes or tolls. Parking, apart fom the city centre is free and a free-for-all. Double parking is the norm and as local etiquette demands everyone keeps the handbrakes off so others can push their cars out of the way and get out. Fuel seems to be artificially low at around 1 LE per litre. Traffic in general is actually not too bad. Yes there are the long queues but given the size of Cairo and a population of 14 million the traffic jams are actually quite pleasant, as they continue to move and the lack of traffic lights is definitely a boon. Further, the resourceful Cairenes will turn a two lane road into a three and a half lane road as push the capcity of the road to heights that the engineers would not have dreamt off. I have yet to come across a story of a collapsing fly over, though I wouldn't be too surprised if it did happen. The other oddity of Cairenes is that they do not like using side roads, so if you have a rat route mentality then you will find driving in Cairo quite pleasant.<br><br>

If you want visions about bringing your car from overseas, then this is quite possible, and you can ship it in (UK - Alexandria, saloon £575 freight) or even drive (3000 miles: UK, France, Switzerland, Italy, via ferry to Tunisia, drive through to Libya and then onto Egypt; a ferry may go from Greece to Alexandria direct) and avoid paying any custom or duties. They will assign you a yellow plate which is stuck or screwed on to your plates and you drive around in these. There are some nominal charges for this service but the caveat is that you are only allowed to bring the car in for 6 months in one given year and then the car has to be taken out of the country. Selling it in the country is prohibited though having seen the number of confiscated cars, dumping it at the local police station is always an option, though one that may cause a few heads to turn in the current world climate. You can bring right hand drive cars but you may need to acquire permission to do this from the traffic department at Rabia Al-Adawiyyah. Diesel cars seemed to be particularly disliked, stick to petrol and you'll be fine. To get your own Egyptian driving licence go to the Traffic Department that is opposite Cairo Land.<br><br>

Public telephones are available. They operate using a card system, which can be readily bought from shops. Local calls to land lines are cheap though international calls are quite expensive. Mobile phones are quite easy to obtain and if you have one that is dual band and unlocked you can just purchase a SIM card. There are two big players on the market and they both offer Pay-as-you go services. Calls are realtively cheap at 30 Qirsh per minute to a land line, and 1.50 LE to another mobile. All the rates are published on the net (i.e. www.vodafone.com.eg). The cheapest way of phoning the UK is via the internet. I have found CallServe (www.calllserve.com) to be quite good and the service in general is quite good and calls cost 3 UK pence per minute.<br><br>

Internet cafes, ADSL and dial-up are widely spead. Accessing the internet is quite easy and you can`t fail to spot the large adverts for the dial-up ISP numbers, though you are left wondering what all those numbers are when you first arrive, they all start with 07. Unlike the UK the ISPs do not have user names and passwords (just leave the boxes blank) you just dial in and connect. They obviously make their money by getting their revenue from the telephone lines. One of the disadntages of this system is that many specific content providers can easily filter you out on your ISP and many sites that were easy to access from the UK I have found impossible to access fully while in Egypt, especially when it comes to paying via credit cards.  Even in this so called utopian world of the internet there are some who are more equal than others.<br><br>

* The picture is of a 9 or 10 year old boy working as a conductor in one of the mini-buses as he casually stands half way out of the bus as it pulls ahead at around 30 mph, his voice had become hoarse with the continuous shout of "aakhir shaari!".

Expenses in Egypt (Part 9) Daily Living Expenses

Body: Bismillah: The bright orange LED display stares back at me from its little hideout on the dash board. In big letters made of little dots it informs me the temperature outside was 9.5 Celsius. A small shiver passes down my spine as I thank Allah for the warmth of the tiny car. My thoughts turn towards the desert lands of Egypt separated by two seas and the grey concrete tower blocks that make up Cairo and the completeion of my Egypt series beckons, so here goes:
BABY MATERIALS
Pampers (32), 33

CLOTHING<br>
Ironing (approx 3 shirts, 1 trouser), 7
Pillows (2), 35
Slippers (simple), 5

COMPUTERS
Extension Socket (6 connections), 18.75
Printer Inkjet Epson Stylus C43UX, 340
Scanner, 340

EDUCATION
Nursery (per child per month), 230

ELECTRICAL
Electric Kettle, 85
Fan (standing), 299
Toaster (2 slice), 45

FOOD
Bread (7 rolls), 1
Cheese Slices (48), 31.95
Chicken (Live – slaughtered per Kg), 8.5
Coke, 1.75
Corn, 0.75
Cornflakes 500g Kellogs, 39
Cornflakes 1Kg (local), 16
Crisps (family packet), 2.65
Date Biscuits 1kg, 8
Eggs (30), 8.5
Flora Light (small), 26.75
Honey (800g), 19.5
Laban Yoghurt Drink (1L), 4.15
Macaroni Packet, 1.45
Margarine Flora (500g), 24
Milk (1L), 3.8
Nestle Gold Crisp Cereal, 36.75
Popcorn, 5
Rice (Basmati) 5Kg, 54.75
Rice 10Kg, 54
Sliced Bread (small loaf), 4
Tang (750g), 15
Tomatoes (1Kg), 4
Water 1.5L, 1.5
Watermelon, 3.5
Weetabix, 43.95
Yoghurt Drink (1L), 4.45

FOOD TAKEAWAY
Tazaj Chicken Meal, 15
Sandwich (local chicken donner), 6

KITCHEN APPLIANCES
Washing Machine (Zanussi), 2400
Fridge, 1300
Microwave (small), 800

MEDICINES<br>
Acyclovir (5g tube), 4
Augmentin (1 course) childrens syrup, 12.32
Ciprofloxacin (10 * 500mg), 50
Neurofen, 7.88
Penicillin Tablets (12), 5

MISCELLANEOUS
Hammer, 9
OFFICIAL
Multiple Return Visa (per person), 16.5
Extension 1 year (per person), 36.5
Registered Post Receiving, 2
Photocopy (A4), 0.1
TOYS
Doll (simple), 49.95
Toy - Hammer set, 13.5

TRANSPORT
Taxi (short journey), 3
Taxi (city centre), 10

UTENSILS
Glasses (set of 6), 19.5
Pressure Cooker (large), 500
Thermos Flask (2 cups), 22
Bath Mat, 9
Bath Mat (Fancy), 55

UTILITIES<br>
Electricity / month, 170
Gas cylinder (per month), 6
SMS (per text), 0.30
Mobile to Mobile call (per min), 0.35