A Pharoah's Eternity

Standing on the desert sand in front of the Egyptian pyramids was a rush. They are magnificent in their decay, and in their prime they were covered with polished granite (we think our guide said). If that is the case, wow! Jim's favorite was the Sphinx, a regal sentinel in front of the huge monuments. Apparently, Napoleon Bonaparte shot the nose and beard off. It would have been nice if he'd had enough class to leave the art alone!

The structures completely overwhelm the crass commercialism on the ground. Our driver/guide Hanafy warned us to not engage with any of the vendors we saw. He said they were very bad, very sneaky and very stupid people. We can testify they are good at what they do, though. We were trying to follow Hanafy's advice, by saying "laa" (no) and walking on. They would come at us, outstretch their hand and say welcome. What were we going to do? Ignore them? But, if you even pause, they've got you. When they learned we are Americans -- see already, hooks into us ...they complimented the USA soccer team's amazing streak, and Jim discussed soccer with them, or they praised Obama. Since we are SO happy and relieved that Obama is president, we responded. A vendor put packets in each of our hands, we protested, he said it was free, souvenirs for Obama. Then he ripped the package open and put a handkerchief and woven cord around Jim's head and posed with him for a picture, and since he looked ridiculous, I obliged. Then he wanted money. OK, we thought, we'll comply...Jim pulled out a bunch of bills he wanted to get rid of, the guy (who said his name was Mustafa) sneered at the amount --asking "do you know how much that is in American money?" (He knew we knew it was about 50 cents). So, he shook us down for about 20 Egyptian Pounds, which is $3.56. Before that, we'd been taken and didn't even realize it -- a uniformed guard stepped on the security rope (meant to keep tourists OFF the ruins) in front of the pyramid and told us we climb on the rock and have a picture -- he snapped one of us together. Jim gave him a couple of bucks, about 11 Egyptian Pounds. We agreed we wouldn't tell Hanafy about these transgressions, but we weren't willing to shake anymore hands, or trade soccer/Obama high-fives. Hanafy told us of another of his American customers who took a very long time to return to the car at the nine pyramid panorama photo spot. When he finally returned, he wanted to leave the area and not see anything more, and wouldn't say why. An hour later, Hanafy got the story out of him, how a guy approached him to show him some relics he had uncovered in a nearby tomb, swore him to secrecy and fleeced him for $100 with the highly effective combination of pleading poverty and ridiculing him for being rich. Hanafy was dismayed his customer hadn't told him right away, because he could have retrieved the money and reported the scammer to the police. In our case, it was an opportunity to enumerate other vacation scams in rank order -- the first being Jim's loss of his Rolex watch to the guy who jumped him in Buenos Aires -- that was actually violent crime, then my $250 pair of $12 sandals in Sevilla when the gypsies lifted my wallet out of my open bag while I was in the swoon of trying on a treasure trove of shoes, then the $100 lunch on Madison Avenue in NY one summer, in one of those restaurants that has no prices on the menu -- but how expensive could a plate of pasta with tomatoes, basil and mozzarella and an ice tea each be? You got it. So, for 30 EP, we got a trip down the memory lanes of previous trips, in the shadow of the pyramids of Giza. And I have a photo I can blackmail Jim with! And, Hanafy still doesn't know. All of that human conniving still doesn't mar the majesty of the pharaoh's egomaniacal edifices.

Later we went to visit the Cairo offices of Soliya. It was fun to meet folks I knew from online. A frequent subject is about stereotypes on both sides of the US-West/Muslim Middle East divide. They asked me what I would tell those at home was my most shattered stereotype, what was I most surprised about? Since I have had no time for reflection since I began traveling, I may be able to answer the question later, but actually, I've been surprised that it feels so normal here. Cairo is utterly exotic -- teeming with layers of past and present, east and west, rich and poor, urban and rural all in the same block. But it all coexists, and it seems most things fly. Since my thesis paintings were about conflating time and culture -- any snapshot of Cairo would fit that conceptual constraint. It could be a challenging city to live in because it is so chaotic and huge. The Middle East is Oriental, but not unfamiliar to me in the way other parts of Asia are. Their food ingredients are Mediterranean, our cultures share the same roots. We are them, they are us.

By the way, Hanafy's advice to us regarding of the shopkeepers at Khan al Khalili was to be sure to negotiate. They are not bad people, just clever at business, he said.

Jim and I are staying in tonight, we need to veg.