Sugarcane

One of the most notable and consistent features of the Cairo streets are the presence of fruit juice stands. These refreshment hubs stand unassumingly on nearly every street but never fail to gain the attention of locals and tourists hoping to take a small reprieve from the unwavering Egyptian heat.
A specialty of these stands is a drink known in Arabic as "aser asab" which translates to "sugarcane juice". The name is a fair description of the drink but fails to to this cultural phenomenon justice. I had never heard of, seen, or imagined this drink before coming here, but it has rapidly become one of my favorites. For under 20 American cents (1 Egyptian Pound) this drink can be, and likely is, enjoyed by anyone.
The most fascinating part of this drink is watching it being made. Thats right, unlike bottled juices and other local favorites like Pepsi and Seven Up, this drink is made right in front of the customer, or shortly before his arrival. What happens is that when the customer orders his drink, the person running the stand will take several of the sugarcane plants that are freshly delivered every few days and put them into a machine that grinds them up and squeezes the juice out of them. The juice falls out of the machine and into a bucket where it is rapidly transferred to a cup for the customer to savor.
Because it is so fresh, some locals claim that the juice is very healthy and provides many nutrients. A quick internet search revealed to me that in fact sugarcane juice, due to its high sugar content, is high in calories. However, the low level of processing that the juice goes through prevents it from losing many of the calories that other drinks lack, and certainly the drawbacks are not worse than those found in sweetened coffee based beverages and various brands of soda that have been processed countless times. In addition, this beverage has been known to heal sore throats, cold, and flu and is believed to be a cancer preventative. Due to the lack of simple sugars, aser asab is also a great source of energy and hydration, both very convenient in the hot Egyptian sun.
Although I had never seen anything like it, similar drinks exist around the world, most notably in Brazil, India, and Asian nations. There are variations in how the drink is served, for example in some places a squeeze of lemon or ginger is included.
But for a quick refreshing reprieve from the heat that dominates Cairo, there is nothing better than a freshly squeezed glass of aser asab. Although I had never seen or tasted this drink before coming here, I already see it as a wonderful innovation.

Transportation in Cairo

Here in Cairo there are many things to see, and possilby as many ways to get around. For those who prefer comfort it is possible to get where you need to go with taxis, but for more adventurous folk there are plenty of ways to get from one place to another.
But going back to taxis, even that isn't all that simple. When hailing a taxi for a ride, it is important to notice the color. The cheapest are the black taxis, these are also the lowest quality but in most instances that really doesn't matter. Then there arew wite taxis that are somewhat better but also more expensive, and the most comfortable are the yellow taxis.
However, taking taxis can be expensive and leads you to miss out on a lot of te fun that comes with transportation in the big city. My favorite way to get from point A to point B (though in some cases also to Poits C, D, E and so on) is with the "microbus" system. Basically there are different hubs around the city (I only use a few of them) and the microbuses travel between them and eventually go past wherever you're going. It isn't really convenient nor is it very comfortable, but after some initial difficulty I am impressed with the ease and efficiency and accuracy with which I can use them despite my very shallow understanding of the language. The hubs are named for different landmarks, usually neigborhoods or metro stations, and I have know idea how many there are in the city.
Like any major city, there is also a metro system, but it is not as expansive as those that I have seen in Europe and the USA. Often it is too far to walk to a mtro station, so an average trip consists of a series of microbuses, buses, then the metro.

Destination

I have spent the last few days learning basic Arabic, going to different parts of Cairo, adjusting to the Egyptian culture, and trying the variety of new foods that this country has to offer. At the school our group has more or less mastered the Arabic writing system, though we still make some mistakes. Actually speaking has proven to be more difficult. I have learned some assorted words from my host family and classes, and most grammar that I am learning is by example. Today my whole class was amused by the sound made by the letter "غ" (similar to the French "r" sound but throatier) and joked around making it, we got a good laugh out of that. I also went to the local mall called the "Star Center", it was good but I was surprised by the amout of American shops and restaurants there were, like McDonalds, Hardees, and KFC. The bookstores had at least a third of their space devoted to English langauge books, but I guess that could be expected from an international hub.
Today I went with my host family to a wedding party that was a traditional Muslim celebration, then went to a "disco" party that took place in the street. I was a bit put off by the fact that there was a dance party with only men, and after looking I concluded that there were in fact no females around. I guess that is just part of the culture, as it is common also for people of the same gender to hold hands or hug in public but rarely is there any intergender physical contact.
The wedding party included some dancing but more eating and talking, and since my Arabic is still restricted to very basic phrases I could only speak to a few people. There was also traditional food and a reading from the Qu'ran.
Tomorrow I will see the pyramids, so I will be sure to post about that with some pictures. Until then,

-R H Kramer