And then, to Cairo. Well, why not?

Plenty of good Canadian boys on this flight to Cairo. Looks like our peacekeepers are out in full force down here - and I'm glad I'm not one of them.
They all seem younger, less travelled, and less culturally sensitive thatn me. Which is easy to explain - how often are they alone with the locals? How often are they alone, at all?
All of the soldier-boys I saw wandering the streest of Asmara were doing so in groups. They are, in effect, expats, and expats have this tendency to try and recreate their own world wherever they go. Such as it is when you're not here by your own choosing, and can't leave when you feel like it.
It's their own personal journey, and each one of them will see a different Eritrea than the one that I have seen. Will they grow? Do soldiers grow, or just grow old?
Maybe there is something to the dangers of Eritrea - I saw a one-legged white man bounding through Asmara today on the way to the airport, on his crutches. Landmines, yes, they are in Eritrea. But I doubt you'll be stepping on them unless you're heading toward the border.
The flight is going through Aden, in Yemen. I wonder if they'll boot me off there. That would mess things up royally. I'm also beginning to understand the anemosity against Canadians who are abroad - at least anemosity from other travellers. These boys all seem to have a hat, patch, or flag somewhere on them to let people know they are Canadian, from a distance. It's bit of an eyesore after awhile. They're also the only ones who do it - and I find that a bit boorish.

But now Cairo, I guess. It's just like me anyways - I complete a journey through the horn of Africa by beginning another one - in northern Africa.
From the air, Cairo is sprawling, dusty, and ugly. But it's slightly different on the ground - it's sprawling, hot, humid, stinky, and ugly. It's like Hong Kong was fed steroids, thrown into the middle of the desert, and filled with Arabs. I call it Africa here, but really - this is not the Africa I know. Dark skinned Nubians, Abyssinians, and Congolese are nowwhere to be found. I bet you they're downtown robbing the stray backpackers and trying to eek out a living on the street.
It's been a long day, and a great journey. Aden's mountains, and foul heat, blew my mind. Yemen is now definitely on my radar. From the high mountains of Abyssinia, I have come to the sands of the pharoahs. It's odd. I'm starting to see the connections between these present day people and the ancient kingdoms their ancestors made.
It's also quite hard to shift gears when I don't want to - I have gone from Eritrea, where most people are making a point of not ripping off foreigners to show their determination to self-reliance, to Cairo - the world's oldest tourist city. Ripping foreigners off and then asking for a tip for the priveledge are standard practice - but this is changing. Taxi drivers and shoe shiners are taking an active interest in being polite, it seems - probably new laws laid down by the Egyptian government.
I was quickly jumped on by guys with badges in the Egyptair airport - they were there, paid for by the tourist commission, to help lone tourists find their way. They set up a taxi for me to the other airport, and didn't even ask for a tip.
This is a vast difference from the Cairo I was expecting - where the strongest taxi driver wins your service. Still, everyone wants a tip (except those guys), and it's not one Ethiopian Birr, it's a few Egyptian pounds at least. The scammers and ripoff artists will always get their money, but they will have to be even more sly about it in this kinder gentler Cairo.

Still, Cairo's tourist appeal has been at astronomical levels for decades, and the downside is that a white guy needs to be sheperded around, and protected, because foreigners are viewed as dullards who will gladly part with their money. I was probably ripped off for the taxi ride to the other airport. It also occured to me that perhaps these Egyptian chaperones who were on me almost instantly were a part of an elaborate scam.
Sun sets in Cairo, but the giant billboards for KFC, Chevy trucks, Bridgestone tires and Marlboro stil shine bright. Oops, I didn't get my pyramid pictures. Maybe I'll ask one of the 893 people coming back tonight on one of Lufthansa or BA's flights to make a copy for me.

When I'm old, married, and grey, I'll come back to this place. It's not like the pyramids are going anywhere soon - they should be up for at least another 5000 years or so. Cairo is a part of two Africa trips I may one day undertake: Cairo to Casablanca, going through all of Northern Africa. Also, Cairo to Khartoum, watching Africa transform from the kingdom of Horus into the plains of Nubia, along the Nile. You know, there is something to this connection between the ancient kingdoms and the present day.

It turns out that I had no problem getting back to Frankfurt, and watching an impossible number of people pile into a massive 747 to Vancouver. I had to go through Calgary. And in the span of a few hours, behind the windowshades of a few airplanes, I was back at home. Drinking Coca Cola, watching Wrestling.......

-March 2001





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