On Monday evening several of us went out to Zypherion (our favorite seafood restaurant). I drove the van for the first time since returning. We left school around 4:30 and the traffic was pretty light until we got in Abu Kir. Since this was the Eid, the streets were filled with amusements for kids (such as donkey and horse rides and other various amusement park rides). This is a big celebration for the children. We managed to weave our way through the crowd to arrive safely at the restaurant. As usual, the shrimp and sea bass were outstanding! After the meal, we met the owner who told us of the famous sea battle that was held there in the early 1800’s between Napoleon and Lord Nelson.
After supper we went to Debbie and Mahmoud’s home and enjoyed an evening of cards (7 Up) and Catch Phrase (of course the men were victorious!) It was around 9:30 when we left to venture home. Traffic was bumper to bumper and side to side. It seemed like every taxi in the city was out. As you may recall, Alex has “van taxis” that stop along the street and pick people up. Possible passengers will stand along the street and wave to try to flag them down. Since the traffic was moving so slowly, several people thought we were a van taxi and in fact, once three ladies opened the sliding door to get in and were surprised to see 8 Westerners inside. We smiled and they smiled and closed the door. Who knows, this might be a good way to supplement out income while we are here!
Traffic seems much more congested this year than the past two year. We are also seeing more aggressive driving as well. Last night, walking home from Metro, cars were backed up for blocks on Schutz Street as vehicles were trying to go two way and were face to face and no one would move. Horns begin honking until eventually someone backs down and pulls over enough to let the other direction through (for a while) – then they decide it is there turn and it all begins again. We are so thankful we don’t have to rely very often on transportation to get around the city.
