The Phone I Really Wanted

When we headed out to buy a phone for our new landline, the thought occurred to me that maybe we should really go with something more traditional.  This might be a good chance to go the edges of Khan El-Khalili and browse the antique stores for an old Western Electric model 500.

We were downtown on Sunday walking past some of the clothing shops near Talaat Harb when I suddenly saw exactly what I had in mind.  Set upon a crate in a menswear shop as a decorative accessory was a dandy phone.  If it wasn't made by W. E., I'll bet it was made under license from them.


What glorious nostalgia.  I'm not sure if it reminded me more of the phone on my desk at Pillsbury in the 1970s or of the superbly creative Visual Merchandising department at Dayton's Department Store when I worked there in the 1980s. 

Back to the Phones!

With our new landline installed and tested, it was time to look for a telephone.  We headed out to Al-Arish street where it has been reported that we will find a cheap phone.

Al-Arish, running between Pyramids and Faisal is one of our favorite shopping areas.

We approached Al Arish Street from the west and noticed quite a few merchants out in the streets near their stores hawking various clothing items.


We were headed for the etiselat store (there are two, about a block apart) that has several models of handsets on display.


We chose the genuine Victoria Al Mohandes model (made in China) for 85 EGP - a bit over ten dollars.

After returning to the apartment, we plugged it in and dialed our landline from our cellphones.  Everything worked well.  A couple of days later we heard a report that our ADSL connection had been made and soon we would be receiving our free modem/router.  Then someone tried to call us.  -  The phone didn't ring.  He called us on the mobile phone and asked if we were home. We were, indeed, home but now our landline phone doesn't ring.  We could still call out.

Egyptian Telecom naturally diagnosed the problem as being in the cheap Chinese phone while I figured it was something they did while connecting up the ADSL line.  I borrowed phones from a neighbor and a friend and we soon concluded that the phone company was wrong; those phones would not ring either.  Soon they fessed up that it was on the phone company's end.  We soon had the phone ringing again.

Now we just had to wait for a text message from TE Data on our mobile phone to say "come and pick up the router."  This was supposed to occur within "one to three weeks," although we had heard of reports of it taking up to three months.  (Egypt is loaded with reports and rumors.)

We got the text message a few days ago giving us the UserID and Password for the ADSL connection  and headed back to the Telecom Egypt Data central office with a friend.  We arrived when the office opened at 9:00 a.m. and got a number in the "F queue."





Our actual number was F-003 (the 14 was from the previous visit) and we were called in quickly.  I had to sign a couple of papers and hand over another copy of my passport - that made three copies given to the company.

After paying three pounds to ransom the car from the "street guard" we headed home to hook things up.

I only had a "Quick Start" guide with no user manual.  I quickly made a stupid error and needed the default password to get into the router.  I should have guessed (Admin/Admin) but used my 3G connection to find the user manual online.  Soon everything was properly configured.  But - we had a "Power" light on, however, no "DSL" light.  Patient and knowledgeable friend to the rescue again.

Phone call to customer service - switch to help desk - try waiting - try powering it up again - repeat.

Much loud discussion - threats that the American will abandon Egyptian Telecom and go back to Vodafone - embarrassment to whole country, etc.  (I am interpreting here as best I can!)  Transferred to the next level of support.

It's magic!  The DSL light came on, followed by the Internet light.



And as of now we have had five days of very uniform, very snappy performance.  Linda is very happy and friends who visit us can all connect to WiFi.  Life is good.

But not perfect.  Linda tried to sign on the Hennepin County Library site to download an e-book.  We can reach the site fine.  But click on "My Account" just gives this message.

And there is no problem if we try to connect via Vodafone.  So HCLB appears to be blocking connections from our landline.  It's always something.

Meanwhile, here is Linda talking on the phone while I surf the 'net.

Back to the Phones! (Techie Stuff)

Warning: Contains graphic technical details.  Probably only of interest to serious nerds!

It has been a few days since we talked about our landline.  We had achieved a connection into the flat with dial tone back on the 4th of February.  Our next project would be to purchase a telephone.

But first, I should pause and answer the popular question posed in e-mails and in the comments, "Why on earth do you want a landline?"  It is not so much to get the telephone line as it is to gain access to a reliable Internet data connection via an ADSL connection.  That requires a landline.  (Back in the states, we just call it DSL - probably because our phone companies think that their customers are averse to complicated words like "asynchronous."  For a discussion of ADSL, follow this link which includes a reference to my all-time favorite telecom acronym, the DSLAM, pronounced as "dee-slam.")

According to this recent article in Cairo Scene, " there are more mobile connections than there are people in Egypt, as they register 94 million mobile connections" for their 92.5 million people - and that population count includes all the little children!  Many people carry multiple phones to take advantage of the many special calling plans.

But it does seem like everyone with a mobile phone hits the Internet in the afternoon and evening with the result that Cairo Scene presents this chart of Internet connection speed with Egypt ranking dead last in the world, just below Nigeria:

More irksome than the absolute speed, however, is the "throttling" of the 3G mobile connection.  One of the definitive articles on throttling was written way back in 2009 when speeds were much lower but it is still a great read.  Throttling is a mechanism by which an Internet provider gradually slows down "bandwidth hogs" in order to maintain adequate average service to everyone else.  I will describe it in very non-technical terms:

I began watching Super Bowl 50 over my 3G Vodafone connection at around 3:00 a.m. local time.  It was truly a marvelous picture with high-def quality.  Things went along smoothly for about five minutes and then the quality began to deteriorate.  The image quality degenerated - but props to the Firefox browser and the CBS site for dealing gracefully with the obviously slower speed.  After a half-hour, it became almost unwatchable as the picture degenerated into a blurry, jerky video like some of the first YouTube videos you might have seen.

I also have problems with uploads.  It hasn't been too bad this year, but in previous years anytime I would try to upload more than two or three pictures, I could count on the connection timing out.  It sometimes took a half-dozen attempts to upload the pictures I post on Flickr. 

Friends with ADSL connections report few of these problems.  I attribute that to "family throttling."  "Get off the Internet. I am trying to do some work," says Dad.  "You can watch that video later."

I will report on how successful the ADSL project was at a later date.

Abou Shakra, Pyramids. Come for the Sunset, Stay for the Om Ali!

About a month ago I posted some pictures taken in the quiet of early morning at the Sphinx exit from the pyramids area.  I also took a picture of the shops across the street from the exit.  There is a book and photo seller on the left and a KFC/Pizza Hut store (can you believe it?  Colonel Sanders by the Sphinx!) on the right.


There used to be an outstanding souvenir shop in the middle, but with the dearth of tourists (especially free-spending Americans and other Westerners) the space has now been taken over by the Egyptian restaurant chain, Abou Shakra.  This company operates several facilities in Cairo and Alexandria, gets good reviews on Trip Advisor and could probably even pass  a department of health inspection in most U.S. cities.

They serve the usual Egyptian fare of chicken, kabobs, kofta and "mixed grill," along with salads and rice, but also have more elaborate fare such as lamb shank on their extensive menu.  You can expect to find local businessmen here practicing "The Art of the Deal".  This location also has a strong tourist appeal and we found several groups seated on the second level anticipating the approaching sunset.  We have been hosting a visiting friend from Turkey and decided to try this spot after hearing very good recommendations from local sources.

The restaurant is "tourist friendly," keeping the windows clean, the drapes open and the inside lights off until after sunset to eliminate reflections.


As sunset approached, there were lot of cameras put to use.


Pictures were taken and results checked.


I think the best results were from the left side of the window.


We were probably one or two days past having the sun settle squarely into the notch between pyramids, but it is still a nice photo opportunity.


Dinner arrived after the sun was below the horizon and the interior lights had been turned on.  The lentil soup was outstanding and the grilled chicken was attractively presented with al dente  vegetables and a pyramid of rice.


For dessert, Om Ali is just one option and my favorite.  This traditional Egyptian sweet was served hot and was absolutely perfect.

Taha (1963 - 2016)

We received the sad news late this afternoon that desert guide, Taha, had passed away a few hours earlier.

With his warm personality and sly sense of humor, Taha brought great fun to any gathering.  Truly a man of the people as well as a man of the desert, no matter where he stopped to visit, people magically appeared to greet him and begin a conversation.


His grilled chicken dinners in the desert are on the "highlights of Egypt" list for many a visitor.


He is dearly missed by friends and family, as well as those of us who only had the opportunity to share a few days with him.

Not Always

"Isn't it hot in Egypt?" That's the question I'm often asked. My response is either, "Yes and no." or "Not always." Then I go on to explain that while Cairo is indeed near the desert (not actually IN the desert), deserts cool off after sunset since there is nothing there to hold the heat. This year the temperatures are cooler than typical. We've had a low temp of 45 F and our daily highs have ranged from 60-65F.  I consider those temperatures perfect for walking outside without overheating but it is chilly when just sitting. Buildings are made of clay bricks and concrete so they stay cool and typically do not have heat. Here I am participating in my night time hobby, reading. I don't mind having to wrap up like this when I consider what I'm missing by not wintering in Minnesota. Nope. I don't miss that cold and snow one bit.

A Visit to the Cave Church

We spent several hours today visiting the Monastery of St. Simon the Tanner, informally known as The Cave Church, located in the Mokattam hills of Cairo above the Citadel.  The church is "off the beaten path" for most tourists, lying up a series of narrow roads in an area know as "garbage city" where the largely Christian collectors of the trash reside.

You could easily miss the turn onto the final road, marked only by a modest sign.


Once at the church, you realize this is a significant monument, although of fairly recent origin.  What at first appears to be a routine church front lies above a tunnel that descends into the very large church sanctuary.


The cave was originally a much smaller size but has now been excavated out to a seating capacity of some 20,000.  We arrived on a Saturday during school vacation and there were quite a few youngsters on tour.  I don't know if the pink sweaters on one group are a regular uniform, but it is quite possible.  Many schools have uniforms here.





The artwork surrounding the large sanctuary is extensive.  The younger visitors seemed to have no reservations about getting very close and sometimes climbing onto it for the requisite "selfies."




Looking up (Thanks Aliza!) and climbing to the top of the sanctuary present some nice views too.


Click on any photo to go to the album with more pictures.  A good place to start is on one of these descriptions of the church in English, French or Arabic.

Laundry Protocol

One of my prized possessions in Cairo is my automatic washing machine. I may even like it more than my 2015 purchased range whose oven keeps a constant temperature while baking. (Love that new technology!) Before purchasing the washing machine we took our dirty clothes to a nearby laundry. They did a wonderful job but it was inconvenient in many ways and expensive too. .


Having my own washer means that we don't have to be so careful of dirtying things because I can wash on MY schedule. There are very few automatic clothes dryers in Egypt and in fact in much of the world outside North America. I don't have one but I do have 30 feet of clothes line off the back balcony. That sounds like a lot but it's used up quickly with just one small load of clothes. Sheets and towels? Well, that takes another day or two so they are usually done on different days. On warn sunny days I can usually get two loads of laundry done but it means scheduling a day at home.

When I hang the underwear I always follow a certain pattern. I hang Tom's undershirts on the outermost line followed by his undershorts, then socks, then my underwear. I did this by instinct so that no one would be able to see a woman's undergarments. 


For several years I'd seen clothes hanging out to dry but I'd noticed that I never saw any women's underwear. I was a bit confused because I've seen women's underwear sold on the street from the back end of  wagons and the lingerie displayed in shop windows on mannequins is so risque as to make a Hollywood actress blush.



 





I finally asked an Egyptian friend about my observations. He me told that "women's things" are hung inside the house to dry. When I mentioned that I hang mine on the inner most lines he said that is acceptable also.

He went on to recount with laughter that in his youth he and his friends would walk under the clothes lines on the way home from school so that they could look up and see women's under garments. When I asked about women's underwear being sold on the street he said, "That's different because it doesn't belong to any specific woman.