Many people have been asking me about my experience in Cairo. I was in Cairo for the very beginning of the riots and protests that occurred there. Fair warning, this is the longest single blog post that I have ever written. That said, it is also probably the most significant and most interested blog post I have ever written. So here it goes…my account of the ‘Cairo Chaos’.
In Dahab (8 hour bus ride from Cairo) - Our tour group was informed by our tour leader that there were planned protests against the government that were to occur in Cairo Friday morning, after 10:00AM – after morning prayer and ‘church’ for Muslims.
Friday, 28th of January we drove overnight 8 hours by bus to arrive in Cairo at 8:30AM. We were restricted to our hotel all day. Everyone was unsure of where or what the protests would lead to, the extent of the violence or peacefulness, etc. So to play it safe we had to stay in our hotel. The only time we left was for lunch – we walked around block to a little local restaurant, and even then we caught remnants of tear gas, so we had to move inside and cover our mouths and eyes. Quickly we were ushered back to the hotel. All day we watched from the hotel roof balcony as the protests escalated. I witnessed watching the flames raise from the government building across the Nile as they burned down, I heard and saw protesters gather in the streets, marching towards ‘downtown Cairo’. We saw tear gas bombs being let off into the air and watched on the news as Cairo’s people went to the street, surrounded by army men and tanks.
Lack of information was the biggest obstacle. The internet had been shut down in Egypt and no one really knew if the protests would get better or worse. My flight was leaving the next day, Saturday, January 29th at 5PM – so along with another girl, Sam, who was on the tour and the same flight and me, we decided to go to the airport early Saturday morning. So we left at 7AM to arrive at the airport at 8AM and waited 7 hours until we could check in for our flight.
Long story really short is that our flight was canceled! We found out at 3PM and no one from BMI airline was there – so we were basically stranded in the Cairo airport without a flight out.
In Egypt there is no concept of waiting your turn or standing in line, everyone speaks Arabic, and no one was giving us any information about who to talk to or where to go – let the chaos begin…
Again, long story really short is that we had no option other than to wait to see if anyone from BMI airline was going to show up, so that meant spending the night in the Cairo airport. I spent the night on the Cairo airport floor with hundreds of other people who were also stranded at the airport…
How do I describe the Cairo airport? Picture this...masses of people in the airport…those whose flights were canceled + those whose flights were later in the week and were at the airport trying to leave sooner + those whose flights were actually planned to leave + Egyptians who were trying to leave the country or fly elsewhere within Egypt + plus all of those people who were arriving to Egypt and being told they weren’t allowed to go into Cairo and were being sent home back on a plane the next day = 5 times the amount of people that were supposed to be there! Plus + everyone was in ‘emergency’ mode, so all of the convenience stores and restaurants were being wiped clean of food and water!
I knew that the airport was one of the safest places to be, and I never felt threatened at the airport, but I was concerned about running out of food and water and I was concerned about what the next few days of these conditions would lead to. We didn’t know when BMI airlines would show up to change our tickets, we didn’t know when planes were leaving, and we had extreme lack of information.
As I sat on the airport floor I watched as people gathered together, people helping others, everyone recognizing the desperation of the situation. I was able to meet some really nice people in the airport and we talked and exchanged our ideas of how we would get out of Cairo. It was interesting to see people across cultures come together in unity under such uncertainty.
There was no ‘real’ food at the airport, just chips and chocolate, Twinkies and snack food – so after a night’s sleep on the Cairo airport floor and full of sugar, Saturday morning we decided we had to get out of the airport, meaning we would have to buy a completely new plane ticket!
So much happened in the time between 7AM and 2PM on Saturday – I cannot go into details or I would be typing all day. All the confusion, the mental exhaustion, my apparent annoyance of all the indoor smoking (there are no indoor smoking laws, so it’s perfectly normal to smoke inside, and I was determined my lungs were the color of coal) it was a completely chaotic and ridiculous situation. The crowds were getting worse, and I knew I needed to get out of Cairo as soon as possible.
By an act of God, literally a miracle, you could convince me of nothing less, a man came out of nowhere and instructed us that in order to get out of Egypt we had to get a confirmation number. So literally, within 30 minutes, this man had his company’s travel agent on the phone, he allowed me to borrow his phone, we contacted my mom, we bought a new plane ticket, and I was moving along the masses of people to get through security!
I was moved by this man’s generosity and selflessness. As we chatted he said to me “it’s all about people helping other people” – that simple comment completely struck me! How true – if we don’t help each other, encourage each other, invest in others, and share our lives with those around us, what is life really about? This man is a perfect example of how such a little thing done for others, how an everyday act of kindness, a smile, a selfless task, will change and impact a person’s life in ways we may never realize or imagine.
I wish all of you could have seen me in action for the one hour time frame which occurred next, as I fought through crowds of people and security to board the plane. I was in a complete rush because my plane was leaving just one hour’s time of receiving my confirmation number! I had to shove and push my way through masses of people who were mostly Egyptian (remember there is no concept of line!) while at the same time I had to get my luggage through a conveyor belt to the other side of the security. Security was HORRIBLE – I’m convinced nothing was actually checked for safety (which is kind of scary when you think about it). The man who helped me get a confirmation number, also helped me get my bag through security. I pushed myself through the crowds to the other side of security where I waited for my bags to come out of the conveyor belt. Again let me remind you of the complete mess of chaos – no one was on the other side of the conveyor belt to retrieve their bags, so I took the lead and was literally throwing other peoples luggage off of the belt so the belt would continue to move. I was shoving massive pieces of luggage onto the floor and piling bags on top of each other.
Then…here comes the best part. I finally retrieved my bag – a full 20 kilo bag, approximately a 40 pound suitcase – and I heaved it over my head! Mental picture…imagine me, a crazy American girl with a massive suitcase over her head, bumping into people and threatening to knock you over! My adrenaline must have been really intense. It was not glamorous – I was sweating and I was shaking from being so nervous I wasn’t going to make it on time!
I got to the AirFrance desk, continued to shake, watched as a man passed out beside me, continued on to the other security checkpoint where passports and boarding passes were being checked, and within 15 minutes of clearing security I was in another line to board the airplane!!!
We sat on the airplane for what seemed like forever and finally lifted off. I arrived in Paris 5 hour later at 10PM! My flight connection was from Paris to Aberdeen, and my flight from Aberdeen didn’t leave until the next morning at 10AM. I didn’t mind this overnight layover at all, I was just so happy to be out of the Cairo craziness! I could have cared less that I had to stay a second night on an airport floor!
Everything happened so fast, everything was such a blur, I was so anxious to get back to Aberdeen, plus the uncomfortable addition of homeless people that opted to stay the night in the Paris airport…all of this led to nearly no sleep. I just sat there in the Paris airport trying to process what had just happened!
The next day the plane left Paris – destination Aberdeen. I can honestly say I have never been so happy to be back in Aberdeen or to see the rainy, gray Scottish weather. I have a whole new appreciation for Aberdeen! I was so thankful for the safety of Aberdeen and the freedoms that I am blessed with in life. The whole experience truly impacted me and in many ways that I am aware of and in many ways I have not realized yet. The whole experience of Egypt has changed me.
It would be unfair to say that my whole Egypt experience was chaotic and intense. Fact is that prior to the last 2 days in Egypt, I truly did have a very enjoyable and relaxing vacation, so I will fairly dedicate a few additional blog posts to those adventures as well…
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