My Isolated Cairo Life

Someone asked me to write about living in Cairo. I thought about it briefly and thought that my life's not so interesting, even with living in another country.

Here's a short list about what's different for me living in Cairo as opposed to living in the U.S. (where I was born and raised).

--I don't have a car and I commute to work on a (private) bus.

--I don't have a washing machine, so I send my laundry out.

--I can get nearly anything delivered to my house (and I take advantage of that).

--Most people speak a language other than English; that can make some tasks a bit daunting.

--It's difficult to mail a package (and as difficult to get one; and one that's fully in tact).

The view from my apartment building in Cairo.

That about covers it. I guess people would be more impressed to learn about the many things that ARE available in Cairo. You can get most things that you want and need; or some variation of it.

Some days I think ... Cairo gets a bad rap. It's often called the city of contrasts; and that's a fitting title. But most days for me, I can sit in my comfortable apartment in what's been called a 'ritzy' neighborhood (Zamalek), take the private bus to my nice teaching job at a prestigious university and life is just fine; I could be in any city. And that's my life.