I have made two trips to Egypt, which doesn't qualify me as an expert but gives me this piece of knowledge: a depressing part of traveling in Egypt is that EVERYONE is going to want some amount of money from you for the most trivial of services or assistance--whether you think those services were actually performed or not. I am quite uncomfortable with this whole scenario and therefore try to anticipate and fend off any "help" that I don't need. This can be as meaningless as the toilet paper situation that Fair Dinkum Flyer mentions, or a guy "guarding" your shoes in the huge rack of unattended footwear when you're visiting a mosque, or the guy who asks you if you need a taxi and then escorts you to the taxi rank where he points out the cabs, etc.

On the other hand, one thing I was happily surprised by was the lack of attention I received from the male population of Egyt. I had been scared silly by friends who'd traveled there before me regarding the hassles I would receive as a Western woman traveling alone. Nonetheless, I spent whole days wandering Cairo--mostly the non-touristy sections--without anyone saying boo to me. I wear long-sleeved floppy shirts and long skirts on such jaunts, but it's not like my hair/skin aren't a dead giveaway as to my origins. But no one cared at all. Very refreshing.