Egypt- Pharaonic Egypt To Islam

Karim
The hotel room in Cairo
Old Cairo
Traditional Egyptian food- My favorite dish- and only 1$!
Giza
Luxor
Dancer in Motion
Giza
Luxor Temple
The train ride from Aswan back to Cairo- she was adorable

Muhamed Ali Mosque in Cairo
Mom infront of the Sphinx

My mother and I were in Egypt for only 10 days.

I have always wanted to go to Egypt. Partly because i wanted to see Pharaonoiac Egypt and partly because I knew it was the center of New Islamic culture. It is the Islamic country where most of the music and movies come from that go to the rest of the Arab world. I had stayed in Morocco in January of 2007 with a host family for 4 weeks. This was my first introduction and intimate encounter with Islam. This was also my introduction to understand the role of Egypt. Egypt has had a very complex history from The legacy of Pharaonic Egypt and also their strategic role in Middle East relations and past of Socialism.

Going to Egypt it was mind blowing to see the complexity to Paranoiac civilization. Growing up learning a very Euro centric history like most people, I realized not all histories are acknowledged or given their rightful amount of noteworthiness.

It was also interesting seeing the influence of different cultures and periods in one place - Coptic Egypt, Islam, as well as Pharaonic sites all in the same place.

I have always had a respect for Islam. I think it is a very misinterpreted religion and it is full of compassion and peace. Being in Islamic state reminds me of that.

I met up with my Mom on March 1st in Cairo. We stayed there for two days, exploring , eating food, went to the Pyramids of Giza and then we went to Luxor and Aswan. Our train to Luxor took 9 hrs and then to Aswan and then to Luxor I think it was another 6 hrs. The further you go South on the Nile it truly is breathtaking. The more south you go the more Nubian influence you see as well.

Being with my mom I realized how different our expectations were. After traveling for awhile I had been accustomed to never expect everything to go smoothly. I learned how to try to pack light and be realistic about what you will get from a place. Being able to afford a budget hotel which was two stars she expected to get hot water. She was very angry that we did not have hot water when she wanted to shower. In the second hotel , the experience was the same. She got very angry and proceeded to call the front desk angry that she was not able to take a hot shower. I explained to her that it wasn't any one's fault. It is the dynamic. Maybe most of the people don't have the luxury of having hot water themselves I told her. How can you demand it for yourself just because you are a foreigner. Being around her made me realize I was becoming much more cultured and patient than her with her American standards.

In Egypt when you walk the streets, you are pretty much spotted for being a foreigner. You will be hassled to by souvenirs and trinkets. The vendors are VERRRRY aggressive and it turns allot of people off to their experience in the country. We also have to remember, we are going into a country where tourism is both an evil and a blessing. Tourists think of it as a necessary evil that promotes development. At the same time it makes economies dependent and how can you complain about the informal sector that is trying to capitalize on your wealth as a tourist. It is their livelihoods. Its very draining at times to constantly fend off vendors or argue with people because you know they are overcharging you for something. But hey, they have that right. For us, what is another 50 cents or a dollar. I would get mad at times because of the principal, but then again, they assume I have money and yes I did make it all the way there, so I would bargain or walk away when i was unhappy with a cost quote but many times I saw people lower their prices or almost seem to have more respect for you if you do bargain then if you just give up at the first quote. It's definitely a learning experience.

In Luxor I came across this site where the city was knocking down many buildings to widen a Paranoiac site in which many people visit. Paranoiac sites bring all kinds of people to Egypt, but many people don't want to realize and understand the costs on Modern Egypt that their stay has.

I was lucky to meet up with Karim whom I met on the travelbuddy website. My conversation with Karim helped me to learn allot about how everyday life is for Egyptians. I wanted to ask Karim about his perceptions of Americans. He said that many of his friends find it hard to separate Americans from American Foreign Policy which they see as imperialistic. I did not blame him. He talked to be about the struggle to make it through college. Karim wants to get his masters in the US in computer science. He is doing very well in Egypt but he also wants to travel. He explained to me the importance of Egyptian Cinema for the youth in Egypt. Karim, if you are reading this , I wish you the best of luck and hope to see you in NYC one day where I owe you a milkshake. Inshallah! ha!

To all the people that want to go to Egypt and see the pyramids, please stay their awhile to get to know Islam, to understand what it means and please acknowledge your own role as tourist. You should not go for luxury. Go their with an open mind and be willing to shrug of a bad experience. You can't stay bitter over one interaction.