Egyptian Exodus (Day 1)

While the chosen people of biblical times fled Egypt, I did the reverse in a very last-minute trip to Cairo, Egypt for the Microsoft Imagine Cup 2009. My students were finalists for the Design for Development Award.

My EgyptAir flight was rather eventful as it was delayed by about 1 hour 15 minutes and only left KLIA at about 1.00am early Sunday morning (5 July 2009). The flight touched-down at 8.30am local time and I only managed to clear all the formalities at 10.00am after a very long wait for my checked-in luggage. I arrived at the competition venue, Intercontinental Cairo Citystars, at 10.20am.


[Pyramids: Some pyramids were visible as we approached for landing]

As the programme for 5 July 2009 did not involve my students, I took the opportunity in the afternoon to visit the Egyptian Museum with another member of the Malaysian delegation. Entrance fee is LE60 (1 Egyptian Pound (LE) = RM0.65, or RM1 = LE1.55). Lots of ancient Egyptian artifacts on display. Particularly interesting were the artifacts found in King Tutankhamon's Tomb. There is also a Royal Mummy Room (with a separate entrance fee of LE100) with 12 mummies on display.


[Egyptian Museum]

After the museum, we wondered around a bit trying to find a place to have a drink. We settled for what appeared to be a coffee-shop. It was a noisy place with many of it's patrons talking loudly. Many of them were also seen smoking water-pipes (or "sheesha"). I ordered hot fenugreek tea (LE1.25) and an iced hibiscus drink (LE1.75) which tasted something like ribena except that it appeared more reddish.


[At the coffee-shop: The guy in the foreground was not happy that I used the camera flash]

My first day in Cairo ended with dinner at the Citystars shopping complex. We headed for Fattoush, a Lebanese fastfood outlet, and I ordered a mix-grill. In Citystars, there's also a supermarket called Spinneys... very convenient.


[Fattoush Lebanese Mixed-grill]

One thing I learned is that it is better to carry US dollars and exchange it on arrival. Rates in Malaysia were bad... RM1 = only LE1.17.

Also, communication with taxi drivers is not always easy as few of them speak English. In Cairo, the yellow taxis appear to be more reliable as they had meters, and were generally newer and in better condition than the more common black and white taxis.


[Black-and-white taxi]