The Indians are here!

Have a dinner at home tomorrow so had trouped off to Carrefour to buy some stuff..

To my surprise I saw lots of shelves lined with Indian pickles, curry pastes, chutneys etc.. These are Pataks and Sherwoods of London. Yum, that one thing less to cart from back home..

I am convinced that by the time we leave Cairo, there would be shops / retailers selling Indian spices, dals, ready mixes et al..

..... and the Egyptians are about to get a taste of spicy Indian food!

Buying alcohol in Egypt

After lugging two bottles of whiskey from home, I have rather belatedly realised that foreigners can buy alcohol in Egypt. Not the ones available in Drinkies all over the city, but the good stuff like Black Label, Chivas Regal etc..

While walking through City Stars in Heliopolis, I have often noticed the Egypt Air Duty Free but have never been motivated to go in. This time, since I had time to spare, I walked in to browse. Shelves after shelves lined with alcohol, chocolates, toys, crystal, bags etc..

On enquiring if I could buy, I was asked if I had a passport which I promptly furnished. Mmm, maalish, too late. It appears that I am entitled to buy 3 bottles of alcohol within 48 hours of ariving in Egypt, from overseas, and I must pay in USD / Euro (essentialy foreign exchange). The only catch to this wonderful arrangement is that I can only do this 4 times a year, and in case you wonder how you can beat that, you cant! They stamp your passport.

But the bright side is that this is not limited to foreign residents but also to visitors. So the next time, you have vistors from overseas, you can drag them to the nearest duty free and pick up 3 bottles of alcohol on their passport!

You can also buy a large pack of imported cigarettes, toys, chocolates etc.

In case City Stars is dificult to access, they also have two shops in Maadi, which are not as well stocked as City Stars but you can get some stuff. The helpful gentleman behind the counter also told me that they have shops at Cairo International Arrival Hall 3 (this I have seen), Luxor Airport's new terminal, Borg Al-Arab Arrival Hall and the Red Sea marina resort at El-Gouna.

So for all the followers of Omar Khayyam, there's help at hand...

Alcohol in Cairo

Lugged two bottles of whiskey from India only to find that you can buy alcohol at the Egypt Air Duty Free! Had gone to City Stars and saw this huge Egypt Air outlet.

On enquiring was told that foreigners can buy 3 bottles of alcohol against their passport on entery into Egypt. There is a catch though, this can be done only 4 times a year!

Of course, one has to pay in USD.

Back to school

Cairo American College (CAC) re-opened for the new school year today. My son started his scool year in a new grade.

CAC has a practice of shuffling the kids around as they move up to a new grade. I guess it great training for an expat child who has to keep moving every few years - gets them used to adjusting to new people and environments very quickly.

Luckily for my son, he's got four of his class mates with him, so he's thrilled! School was bustling with activity with children and parents swarming all over the place.. you could feel the excitement of a new year in the air!

Alex - the Pearl of the Mediterranean

Am very excited. We are on our way to Alexandria (or Alex as everyone calls it) - the famous city of the ancient lighthouse! Read up a bit on Alex...

The second largest city in Egypt, Alexandria, known as "The Pearl of the Mediterranean", has an atmosphere that is more Mediterranean than Middle Eastern ; its ambience and cultural heritage distance it from the rest of the country although it is actually only 225 km. from Cairo.

Founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BC, Alexandria became the capital of Graeco-Roman Egypt, its status as a beacon of culture symbolized by Pharos, the legendary lighthouse that was one of the Seven Wonders of the World. The city, immortalizing Alexander's name, quickly flourished into a prominent cutural, intellectual, political, and economic metropolis, the remains of which are still evident to this day.

The setting for the stormy relationship between Cleopatra and Mark Antony, Alexandria was also the center of learning in the ancient world. But ancient Alexandria declined, and when Napoleon landed, he found a sparsely populated fishing village.

From the 19th century Alexandria took a new role, as a focus for Egypt's commercial and maritime expansion. This Alexandria has been immortalized by writers such as E-M- Forster and Cavafy. Generations of immigrants from Greece, Italy and the Levant settled here and made the city synonymous with commerce, cosmopolitanism and bohemian culture.

More on the history of Alex as I catch up on it...

Its good to be back home

Flew in early this morning, completely sleep deprived and hungry. I hate travelling flights that leave in the middle of the night - while they get you to your destination early, they mess with your body clock.

Having said that, its good to be back home! Now for a hearty breakfast and a long, satisfying snooze and then I am ready to handle the world!

We'll barely get time to unpack and then its off to Alex for a long weekend just before the school re-opens...

Weather's improved

Thank goodness, the heat wave is over!

The sun's still hot but not as killing as before.. Now I can troup to the Khan to buy stuff to take back home!