Egypt With Omar Sharif

Overview

To get a real feel for the city, you really need to walk around. If walking is last on your list of priorities, take taxis, or hire a chauffeur-driven car from any upscale hotel at a fixed flat rate.

Street addresses in Egypt are generally useless when it comes to locating a museum or a hotel or a restaurant. In fact, there are whole towns -- Sharm al-Sheikh, for instance -- that don't really have street names, but nonetheless have plenty of travelers passing through. This might sound unsettling, but you should be able to manage just fine.

More often than not, landmarks are used to give directions, not street names or numbers. This might be because street names often change every three blocks, and streets are often referred to by their pre-revolutionary names, which don't appear on any maps. Local people go by place names and landmarks, which often means that you'll have to ask pedestrians where to go at various points on your way to wherever you're going.

When giving directions to a taxi driver, instead of giving a street address, name a major landmark near your destination. In Cairo, for example, you might give Maydan Tahrir (Liberation Square) or al-Azhar University. As you get closer to the destination, give more specifics; this will avoid confusion between you and your driver. For mailing addresses, postal codes have been recently instituted. However, like street names, they're not commonly used.

When asking for directions, make sure you ask more than one person along your route. Egyptians are loath to admit that they don't know where something is, partly out of pride and partly out of a misplaced desire to help. The result is that three people on the same block will give you entirely different directions to the destination you're trying to reach.

A-By bus

Most visitors to Cairo aren't likely to use the local city buses. Buses arrive at and depart from the Maydan Tahrir (Liberation Square), the Maydan Ataba and Opera Square, the Pyramids Road, Ramses Station, and the Citadel. Route numbers are sometimes missing from the buses, so it is always best to ask where a bus is going before it lurches off with you onboard.

Cairo Transport Authority operates a fleet of comfortable air-conditioned buses that are surprisingly convenient and affordable. Marked with a large CTA logo on the side, for £e2 the bus will take you from the airport, through the city's northeastern suburbs and Downtown, eventually passing through Giza to deposit you at the foot of the pyramids. It stops at Abdel Menem Riyad Station in Maydan Tahrir, but you can flag it down or ask the driver to let you off at any point along the route.

B-By car

If you are into the adrenaline rush of driving in Egypt and are flexible enough to adapt to an entirely different set of rules, then renting a car has many benefits. You can explore when and where you please. You are spared the discomfort of blasting Arabic pop music on buses and similarly unpleasant sights and sounds. However, buses, trains, and planes are a much more sensible option if you want to play it safe. Statistics prove that car accidents are the greatest danger facing foreigners in Egypt; the country has the highest rate of traffic fatalities per miles driven than any other place in the world. Drive at your own peril.

If you manage to find (and fend) your way driving through the aggressive streets of Cairo, parking will prove to be an even greater challenge. Either you will spend half your day looking for a parking place or you will be ripped off by a monadi (one of the self-employed valet parking boys). Just do yourself a favor and forget about driving.

Emergency Services

Always take extra water when traveling long distances, especially on the desert roads. If possible, take a cellular phone with you as well the telephone numbers of police stations and hotels along your route. If you have car trouble on the highway, get your car off the road as soon as possible, then wait for any passing vehicle to flag down. Many Egyptian car owners don't carry insurance, and disputes tend to be resolved on the scene with more or less fanfare depending on the seriousness of the accident. Insist on getting a policeman who speaks English, and take down the license number of the other driver. For serious accidents in which people have been injured, get emergency help first and then immediately contact or drive to your embassy. In all situations, insist on having present a senior police officer who speaks English.

Gasoline

Gas stations and rest areas are plentiful on major highways, and credit cards are widely accepted. Most gas stations in Egypt are full service, and it's customary to tip the attendant who fills up your car a pound or two. All gas is unleaded and is sold by the liter. There are different types of gas, roughly equivalent to plain unleaded and super unleaded.. Plain unleaded is called tamanin, or 80, denoting the level of purity. Higher quality gasoline is available as tisa'in, or 90, and occasionally khamsa wa tisa'in, or 95. prices rang from 1 to 2 Egyptian pounds per litre.

Requirements

In Egypt an International Driver's Permit and your driver's license are required. Permits are available from the American and Canadian automobile associations, and, in the United Kingdom, from the Automobile Association or Royal Automobile Club. These international permits are universally recognized, and having one in your wallet may save you a problem with the local authorities. Most rental firms will not lease cars to drivers under the age of 26, and remember that you cannot take any car rented in Egypt out of the country.

Road Conditions

Major expressways linking urban centers are generally in good shape, as many of them are fairly recent constructions. The speed limit on highways throughout Egypt is 100 km/hr (approximately 60 mph). Highway signs are usually clearly visible throughout the country and are written in both Arabic and English.

Drivers tend to go as fast as they can, but road crowding in urban areas usually puts a reasonable lid on speed. Watch out for city buses, which always have the right of way by virtue of their size and the steely nerved insouciance of their drivers. Extra attention should also be given to pedestrians, who tend to cross the street whenever and wherever they sense an opening. Egyptians make constant use of their horns -- to warn other drivers and cars of their presence, to tell them to get out of the way, to signal their desire to pass, or to signal a turn. Use your horn to signal your presence; if you don't, the other vehicle may not know you're there.

Traffic lanes are ignored, as are stoplights, unless there's a traffic policeman standing guard. Traffic can be a nightmare, and it always seems to be rush hour. From 2 to 5 PM is the worst, however.

Rules of the Road

Road rules and their enforcement are much less rigorous in Egypt than in North America. One major exception is the enforcement of the seatbelt law. Front-seat passengers without seatbelts are subject to a fine of £e50-£e100. Make no mistake: If you don't obey, you will be pulled over and ticketed. The same law also requires motorcyclists to wear helmets and prohibits the use of a cellular phone while driving (headsets are permissible). Driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol entails a fine of £e500 and the confiscation of your driver's license, but as breathalyzers are not used, it's up to the individual traffic officer to decide how drunk you are.

In contrast to driving offenses, you should pay careful attention to where you park and obey all parking rules. In Cairo, your car can be booted or even towed. Although the fine is relatively modest (approximately £e100), finding out who towed your car and where it is can be a real problem, and you could easily spend a day or two trying to track it down.

C-By Subway

By far the most efficient mode of public transportation, the metro is clean, reliable, and cheap. Tickets cost from 60p to £e1, with no multiday passes available to foreigners. Trains run from South Cairo (Helwan) to North Cairo (Heliopolis), with sub-lines to Shubra, Ataba, and Abdin. The long-awaited second, cross-Nile line is finally open; it runs from Giza to Shubra. The metro runs from 5:30 AM to midnight in winter (to 1 AM in summer), with trains arriving every 5 to 10 minutes. The first car in every train is reserved for females. Women are advised to use them, especially during rush-hour travel, to avoid being hassled or groped.

D-By Taxi

The fact that meters are rarely used by Cairo taxi drivers makes life a bit more difficult for visitors, who are considered to be the best prey for the exorbitant fares that some drivers try to charge. The first rule is that you should not take any taxi parked in front of a hotel unless you bargain the price down before getting in. It is always better (cheaper) to hail a taxi off the street after walking a few meters away from the hotel.Taxi colour is black and white in Cairo and yellow in Alexandria.

Fares vary according to the time you are in the taxi and the distance you cover. Early in the morning and very late at night, fares are about 40% to 50% higher than during daylight. During normal daylight hours and in the evening, a 20-minute cab ride from Maydan Tahrir to the pyramids should cost about £e35 one way; a 5- to 10-minute ride should cost no more than £e15. If you are going a long distance, such as all the way to Saqqara, the ride should be about £e50 one way, and you should have the driver wait -- it is extremely difficult to get a cab back to the city from there.

Some drivers are extremely stubborn, so you must set a price before embarking on your ride to avoid unpleasant scenes once you arrive at your destination. When giving directions, name a major landmark near your destination (rather than a street address), such as Maydan Tahrir, or al-Azhar University. As you get closer to the destination, give more specifics; this will avoid confusion.