The Bruner Family Journey: The Bruner Family Egypt Extravaganza: Cairo

When Eden and I traveled the world for a year pre-children (ah, those were the days!), my brother and his wife Eden (yes, there are two Edens) joined us for a fantastic two-week adventure in Vietnam. So, when we told them we were doing it again en famille, they immediately declared they were coming from New York City to meet us with their three children - it was just a question of when and where. With a baby in tow, we were thinking they would prefer somewhere in Italy - after all, kids of all ages like pasta and gelato, and what parent doesn't crave a nice glass of Chianti after spending all day with their children...

On the streets of Cairo

But in the end we opted for a double-family extravaganza in Egypt. There were so many things that made me apprehensive about traveling in the developing world with nine people, five of them under the age of nine and one of them under the age of one: Would the kids eat the food and, if so, would the kids get sick from eating the food? Would someone fall into the Nile and, if so, what is the cure for bilharzia? How does one cross the street safely in Cairo with five children without the use of bullhorns and leashes? What's the punishment for the parents if their children are caught fighting in a mosque? All of these concerns proved groundless (except for the crossing the street part). We had an AMAZING time - it was an unforgettable experience, with loads of fun every single day of the trip. Our guide Nader was fantastic - knowledgeable on all aspects of Egyptian history and culture; witty, charming, and great with the children; and full of memorable expressions such as "It is the Egyptian way!" to describe the lighting of street lamps only during daylight hours, or cryptic governmental ministries with names like the "The Information and Decision Support Center." And for those of you wondering which person in our crew (adult or child) won the trip award for Best Behavior, it was unquestionably our smallest and youngest member (hooray for baby Amanda!).

Typical Cairo traffic

Our first Egypt post is about our experience in Cairo (excluding the Pyramids of Giza, which will be the subject of our next post). Cairo is a fascinating and exhilarating place, but we met several groups of tourists (as well as a French hotel manager) who said they had a love-hate relationship with the city. It's the largest metropolitan area in Africa and one of the most densely populated places on Earth. The traffic is insane - most cars drive without lights at night, the concept of staying in a "lane" is a loose one, red lights (for intersections that have them) don't seem to have any meaning, and the volume of traffic is relentless, seemingly at all times of the day (except Friday morning). Public transport vehicles are ridiculously overcrowded and many seem in desperate need of repair. Even pedestrian areas can be extremely difficult to navigate, either because of the sheer crush of humanity; the holes and bumps in the street surface; the donkey carts going this way and that; the people pulling and pushing wheel-carts overloaded with merchandise; the merchants who apparently don't own a wheel-cart and are consequently carrying huge bags on their shoulders; the fact that sometimes the "road" is wide enough for only a few bodies at a time - or all of the above in a span of a few minutes.

At the Al-Azhar Mosque

The continuous onslaught of contrasting images and sensations can be overwhelming. Here a moment of grace, elegance and beauty, there a scene of profound squalor. Here a stunningly gorgeous historic monument, there a pile of rotting garbage being torn apart by a group of stray dogs. Here a calm moment enjoying a cup of Arabic coffee in a friendly cafe on a quiet side alley, there a joltingly loud sermon broadcast at full volume, with maximum distortion, over a set of loudspeakers pointing in every direction. Here a strong sense of tradition, there all the trappings of modernity. And when you finally lay your head down to rest at night, there's no need to set an alarm: The nearest call to prayer is sure to wake you up well before sunrise.

Cairo is anything but boring. You can go shopping for shoes or buy pastries at 2:00 in the morning. After visiting some of the most venerable mosques and Muslim monuments in the world in the neighborhood known as Islamic Cairo, you can have a nightcap on a luxurious boat floating on the Nile while listening to loud, trendy Euro-Arab-beat music. You can visit historic Coptic Christian churches, part of a unique faith that is distinct from both Western Christianity and Eastern Orthodoxy. You can visit the "City of the Dead," a vast ancient cemetery where people have squatted for centuries and where thousands continue to live, work and shop amongst a bustling grid of historic tombs and mausoleums.

Visiting Cairo is no doubt a challenge, but it's an experience that should not be missed. The people are warm and they are proud of their country's long and illustrious history, but they are also keenly aware of its foibles. They have a strong sense of resilience and a wicked sense of humor. The sightseeing is fabulous, and the people watching is even better, with endless opportunities for photographing all sorts of captivating characters. Just be careful - very careful - whenever you cross the street.