Egypt & South Africa

Thursday, September 09, 2004

So, I'm in the library in Alexandria, Egypt, accessing the internet. Sadly, they have all e-mail sites blocked--maybe I can get in a web cafe later to see what's happening.

Had a good trip out of Osaka to Cairo. Got in about 2:30 AM, and it was almost 3:30 AM before I cleared customs, got the visa, and retrieved my baggage. Gratefully, my friend Viola's husband, Farid, was waiting for me, smiling and waving.

We went first to their apartment, passing the Citadel in Cairo first, and also Sadat's tomb. After some ice cream and packing, we hit the road about 5:00 AM for Alexandria, in order to miss the rush hour traffic (more about traffic here later...). We went by the pyramids at Giza on the way out, but they were nearly obscured by the morning haze; moreover, the gate didn't open for another hour. Still, the massive outlines of the last remaining ancient wonders of the world were visible through the haze, sentinels that have withstood the eons.

Alexandria is great: a seaside (Mediterranean) city, wonderful breezes, happy people on the beach. My friends have rented an apartment for us overlooking the ocean. Four Seasons is building a hotel/resort nearby. The first day was pretty leisurely, following a long night. Since then, we've visited the Greco-Roman museum (watch the pictures for the mummified alligator!), the Citadel of Alexandria (built on the site of the lighthouse of Alexandria, another ancient wonder now long gone), the aquarium (one sign in english said "some kind of fish from the Red Sea") and Air France, where I re-confirmed my flights . The library itself is an architectural tour-de-force, rivaling any building on any continent. It seeks to begin to replace for the Egyptian people the ancient library here that held many priceless texts.

Traffic here proves, at least in my mind, the validity of the "chaos theory" (where chaos becomes self organizing). Death awaits at every intersection; traffic lights may work but are ignored; my friends say the lines on the streets are there for decoration; pedestrians cross the street at any point and do not have the right-of-way; the horn is more important than the turn signal; and most cars lack any fender that has been unscathed. My friends Fiat lacks windshied wipers and the side mirrors dangle uselessly from the doors: it seems the perfect vehicle to negotiate traffic in Cairo and Alexandria. Yet amidst all this turmoil, I've yet to see an accident.

Last night, we went for a ride in a horse drawn carriage along the main drive along the beach. Three or four lanes of traffic each way, often broadened to five or six with the creative driving done here. We're all piled into the carriage, and the driver has egyptian rock music blaring from a speaker (my friends call it "micro-bus music"). After an aborted landing in a 747 (see Tokyo) and riding out an earthquake in bed in a swaying hotel room on the 20th floor of the Hilton (see Osaka), my most frightening experience to date was when the driver of the carriage pointed his horse the other direction and did a u-turn across six lanes of nightime Alexandrian traffic.

I'll leave tonight on a bus back to the Cairo airport, have about 10 hours in Paris to explore (thinking about Notre Dame and the Louvre), then down to Johannesburg. I hope to have time at the Paris airport to post some pictures from Egypt.

Egypt is a wonderful place, still exotic, and like no other. At times the cities here seem under both construction and serious decomposition, yet one cannot ignore the society and the structures it built that have remained for over 5,000 years. The Egyptian people are kind and helpful; my hosts have been wonderful; my stay, too short.


Friday, September 10, 2004

I'm writing from Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. I was going to go into the city today with my long layover, but found there was no place to store my carry-on at the airport, and was also pretty pooped after a night of travel and not much sleep. So, I'm hanging out in the Air France lounge, eating free snacks, and finally got access to a computer with a US keyboard--the others here have most of the letters in the same places we do, but not all...

My friends Viola and Farid showed me a wonderful time in Alexandria. I left with as many Egyptian pounds as I started with--they were very generous in many ways.
A site we visited that I failed to mention was the grounds of the palace that are at the water's edge in Alexandria. Built in the early 20th century, it features a grand entrance, lovely gardens, and a well maintained palace, which we weren't able to enter.

We wrapped up our visit with a traditional Egyptian meal in a fine restaurant overlooking the Mediterranean. I had kabob, which included both chicken and a ground, spicy beef, vegetables, and a delicious ride pilaf.

At 1:45 this morning, I departed Alexandria on the bus for the Cairo airport. Comfortable, modern and air conditioned, the driver began with a tape of an Egyptian singer doing a sort of chant that was kind of a nice send off, though a bit loud. After we got on the road, he put in a movie that was some sort of Egyptian comedy--big detective type gets in embarrassing situations, such as on stage with dancing girls. The driver had the sound cranked up even louder, but fortunately each seat had a button to turn off the sound. We were all of one accord, and had a nice, quiet trip to Cairo. Sleep was in fits and starts, though, and not restful.

I got to the Cairo airport around 5:30 AM, and was able to check in around 7:00. They had a small lounge for business class travelers, which eased things a bit. I slept off and on on the plane, and got to Paris around 2:00 PM. I fly out at 11:00 PM. As much as I was looking forward to exploring Paris, I didn't have it in me. As we were coming in over the villages and rolling hills, I realized that France would be a fine choice for my travels next year--we'll see!

The computers here won't access my card reader, so I'll break down and pay for some wireless time in an hour or two. So, be watching for Egypt pictures as well as more Japan pictures later today.

On to Johannesburg!

Sunday, September 12, 2004

I'm staying in Sandton, South Africa, a suburb of "Joburg" that seems to be the Scottsdale of the area--fancy schmancy.

I saw the other side today on a tour of Soweto. Hugely mixed emotions about going there as a tourist, feeling a bit of a voyeur, and yet deeply moved by the successful struggle of people like Nelson Mandela, Bishop Tutu, and Steven Biko (today is the anniversary of his death at the hands of the police).

Soweto was formed when black families were forcibly moved from their homes in Johannesburg. Houses were bulldozed, and personal belongs dumped in this area
out of town, named Soweto for south western township.

We learned about the Soweto uprising, when 600 children and youth were killed by police, and visited the Hector Pieterson museum, honoring the 13 year old boy who was the first person killed by police in the uprising. The uprising was prompted by the
government's insistence that all education be in the language of Afrikaaners, a version of dutch imposed from without.

We saw where Bishop Desmond Tutu lives today, and saw Mandela's house, rebuilt after a fire bombing in 1985. We also saw Mandela's current home in a different part of the city.

We walked through a squatter's village, very similar to the colonia we've worked in in Agua Prieta, Mexico, but much larger--6-7,000 people, still without water or electricity after over 9 years there. We visited two homes, leaving bags of food we had bought
en-route. Perhaps they'll use it, perhaps they'll sell it, but poor is poor.

Soweto didn't have water or electricity to the homes before Mandela's release and presidency, either, but they lived next to and worked at the power plant that provided service to white Johannesburg.

It is easy to tsk, tsk and say what an ugly government that was, but the story is legion, from my country's removal of native americans, the enforcement of segregation, to the poor treatment of indigeneous peoples in other places like Australia.

The hope comes from the story of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, put together by Mandela and Tutu, which sought truth in return for forgiveness and reconciliation, rather than revenge. It worked, and while much work remains to be done here to bring about racial equality, the work of this commission shows another path to peace that is much more stable than the misuse of one's power.

A fine book to read about all of this is Nelson Mandela's biography, "Long Walk to Freedom". It is well worth your time.

Tomorrow--Pilanesburg National Park!


Monday, September 13

Huge disappointment this morning when the concierge called 30 minutes prior to my trip to Pilanesburg National Park to inform me that the trip had been canceled due to low registration (just me). A check of other options indicated none I was interested in, and local museums are closed on Mondays. I briefly considered renting a car and driving myself up there, but being a solo traveler in a truly wild area coupled with driving on the other side of the road from what I’m used to was too far beyond my comfort zone. It looks like I’ll at least get to the Apartheid Museum tomorrow before I fly out.

I had prepared myself before I left to expect disappointment and things not going as planned at some point. Kind of the “expect the worse, and you won’t be disappointed” attitude. It happened today, and it’s a sad thing. I will include a note to the manager with my evaluation, as you pay a premium to use the concierge to arrange these things—they can’t control cancellations, but they could protect their guests by doing confirmations, etc.

One of my challenges has been being here only a few days. A longer stay would have given more options for rearrangements. My advice to those coming is to stay at least a week, and sign on for a several night trip prior to departure to a park like Kruger, where you can stay in a lodge, do several drives around the park to see wildlife, and have a more assured experience. A longer trip should also take in Cape Town.

So, today I punted. Walked over to the shopping center, had breakfast and dropped off some laundry. Looked into mailing some books home, but too darn expensive—I’ll try it from Europe. Went on over to the big mall, and took in a movie I’d been wanting to see: Around the World in 80 Days. I realized it’s probably already on video at home, but what the heck. It had its entertaining moments, and Jackie Chan action scenes are always fun. There were some cameos, as with the original—was that Kathy Bates playing the Queen of England at the end? This one was fun, but paled against the original. I’ll go do some web site work for the rest of the day, and maybe chill out in the sauna this evening.

All of this serves only to reinforce my aversion to organized tours for travel. Yes, at times they’re a necessary evil, and were necessary here to reach my goals safely. But I’m more convinced than ever that there is much to be said for independent travel. Even more is to be said for cultivating friendships overseas, enjoying these hosts, and then being prepared to generously return the favor when guests come knocking on your door.

Tomorrow, hopefully the Apartheid Museum, then on to Estonia!

Tuesday, September 14, 2004

Hired a taxi today to go see the Apartheid Museum, and Museum Africa. Should anyone be thinking about coming, start your visit with Museum Africa, as it gives a good overall view of South Africa and it's history. Take in the Apartheid Museum next, as it gives a more focused and forceful look at the events of the 20th century that brought South Africa to where it is today. The museum is a must-see, a bit remiscent of the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. but more hopeful. I would advise seeing the museum prior to visiting Soweto, as the background here is helpful to understanding better the history of Soweto and what its all about.

Imagine native lands where gold is discovered, lots of it, but of a quality that it is expensive to extract. Imagine then laws that provide an inexpensive labor force to mine this gold, via enforced segregation, poverty and poor education. Imagine foreigners flooding the land during the gold rush, and slowly but methodically taking the reigns of power. Imagine 1.5 million people removed from their homes to make way for suburbs for white people. Imagine the courage to stand up, to spend 27 years in prison, to operate a political party in exile, imagine the courage of children and youth to march in the face of bullets and tanks, and yes, death. Then imagine reconciliation, forgiveness, and leadership from a political party once banned, and imagine everyone pretty well getting along. Not perfect, not yet, but this is South Africa.

Gold, platinum and diamonds have underwritten the economy, as has virtual slave labor. Most of Joburg is much more developed than I would have anticipated; infrastructure is here and is pretty good, save for public transit.

When you visit--and you really should--plan a couple of weeks. Take in the museums and Soweto as I suggest. If several of you come together, rent a car to get around, and take advantage of some of the tours. Visit the national parks and stay at lodges to get some quality bush and wildlife time in. Go on down to Cape Town, as well. Be aware of crime, but don't let it stop you from coming--this place is no more dangerous than, say, Washington, D.C.

My shuttle ride in from the airport, booked at the transportation counter was 240 Rand, at about 6.5 Rand per dollar. The hotel quoted a price of R 360 to go back to the airport today--thanks, no. Called a shuttle service, they priced it at R 175. My driver from earlier in the day (Bobby, nee Boris, of Bulgaria and married to a good Russian wife) was down to R 140 by the end of my time with him. I kept my earlier reservation, and had a fine ride with a white gentleman from Zimbabwe. So, if you come, don't be shy about negotiating for services.

South Africa seems to be off the radar for many U.S. citizens considering travel. It should not be.