Travels with Mickey: Egypt

CAIRO

I believe my trip to Cairo to deliver presentaion skills training was a three city trip. First Cairo, then Beirut and then Kuwait City. I've separated my accounts of each of these experiences and tried to recollect some of the memorable moments of each.

One of the most interesting moments in Cairo was my arrival. It was late at night but there was a person there to greet me and accompany me to my hotel. As we rode along in the taxi there seemed to be a buzzing/humming noise, like the city was a huge hive of humanity. Totally alive and vibrant, even in the middle of the night.

The class went well with the Egyptian students anxious to absorb and practice as much as they could in the two days we had together.

There were some sort of protests at the American and British embassies while I was there but nothing that I got involved in. Egypt has a long history of upheaval at times but I found the people I worked with to be earnest and welcoming. It was an enjoyable experience, even though I no particular encounters stand out.

That said, I did have a day to myself after the training and managed to hire a guide and make my long awaited visit to the Giza plateau to see the pyramids and the Sphinx. Lots of tourist and I was one of them. The camels gave me that,"You're not riding me" look, even though I had no desire to do so. Standing on one the huge stones at the base of the Pyramid of Khufu, sometimes called by its Greek name Cheops, was all the satisfaction I needed. 

Of course I did manage to score a few cartouches and the obligatory piece of papyrus and a chess set made of camel bones. No wonder they looked at me with disdain.

I had dinner in my hotel overlooking the Nile, which is very much less impressive flowing through the city.