Jared and Care Bear
Today we dealt with the ravages of shil-shul, and rearranging travel plans. It won’t be possible for us to go down to Luxor, it will make catching my return flight just too risky. So, more time in Cairo and Jerusalem, and we’ll see the Valley of the Kings next time, insh’allah.
Sunset window
In the evening Kali and I wandered through Islamic Cairo to Khan el Khalilli. Jared slept, as he’s the worst of the three of us. Through narrow streets, to places where we were the only tourists, by mosques that seem unchanged for a thousand years, this was the Cairo I came to see. We stopped in spice and cotton shops where the owners didn’t speak any english but were happy to show us around anyways. To a coffee shop where old men smoked shisha and played cards while the call to prayer reverberated across the rooftops.
Hookah dude
Kali and I got lost in the wonder of it all, and in reality. Eventually we came to the touristy bazaar, where we bought some kitsch and she got earrings. But for a few minutes, before we strayed too close to the glitz and the touts, we were really there. Back through the bustling, throbbing modernity of the shopping district, to bed to tend to our poor sick Jared.