getting around

Here’s the math. Greater Cairo has 17 million inhabitants. Its Metro carries 700 million passengers a year. There are 4.5 million cars in Egypt; I believe most of them are in front of us when we drive to school in the morning. Here's a little congestion for you:

No amount of hyperbole can do justice to Cairo traffic and Cairo drivers. At its best, the traffic achieves five lanes in the space marked for three, all traveling at 110 kmh or more. At its worst, it takes two hours to make the 30 km trip across the city.

Cairo drivers love their vehicles.

Pimp my pickup

Beautifully restored Fiat

Visitor from Qatar-- zoom on the poster!

Caterpillar decor

Egyptian cats love cars.

I love my car too.

Muhamed keeps my car clean.

Egyptians love them even if they are old
and small, and tired.

A Jeep, apparently

Motorcylcists love their bikes.

More take-out: Shawarma and Koshari

Mick-D does delivery

Truckers are truck proud.

 

A Jumbo

...or a Jumpo

  

Trucks carry everything.

bananas

cattle

onions

children

...behind

workers on top, or...

No load is too large.

Buses carry most students to school.

Students arriving at Malayeya

 Micro-buses are everywhere. Even by Egyptian standards their drivers are maniacs.

Not all Egyptians travel by car…

 

…or move their goods by truck.

 

 

 Not everyone arrives...

We are slowly mastering the automobile arts;  the vocabulary of the horn toot...

the lane jump, the merge bluff, the half-hearted yield— used only when the merge bluff fails  ...and the last minute deceleration for the many ,many, many traffic bumps (Egyptians call them “sleeping policemen”).

 

Here's a little of everything:

Cairo roads are always an adventure.