This is the entrance to my building. Everyday when I walk out this door I take a taxi. I am sure I have a photo of a taxi somewhere in my photo collection, I just need to locate it. You can flag a taxi even before you step out of the entrance. As I am a Kwagga (foreigner) they are always ready to stop as they think they will get an increased fare. As soon as I speak to them in Arabic, they are all quite disappointed. They see their increased fare going out the window. I keep telling everyone my days will end in a taxi here in Cairo. No need for a terrorist attack. General transport is all that is necessary. Most of our taxis are over 20 years old and still have the manual steering. Along with the manual steering, most of the gears are located on the steering column. They are held together by some string, glue and lots of welding. The springs stick through the seats and they pick and tear your clothes. The vehicle is cooled by open windows, which during the summer allows nothing but hot, dusty, polluted air into your already congested lungs. During the trip, one can enjoy the smell of exhaust and gas fumes which are circulated through the return fan on the engine, not to mention sweat dripping down the back of your legs. My husband uses a taxi perhaps twice a year. He spends the rest of the year complaining about them and wonders how I can stand using them two or three times a day. It is strange what one person can adjust himself too, honestly. I find them to be quite handy. You walk out the door, tada..a taxi...you get picked up and dropped right in front of the building you wish to visit. No circling the block for a parking space for 40 minutes, no arguing when someone hits, scratches, dents, wrecks your car. I have been in several taxi accidents and I have witnessed some terrible things on these streets. I am sure to see my end in one of these vehicles, but until then....I will keep sweating it out, cursing under my breath, and arguing with them about fare. I will just keep praying that nothing will happen as we careen around the city, with loose bearings, no breaks, over heated engines, and a jerry rigged transmission.
until next time,
A Woman of Egypt