WHY?

From what I gather...

3. To get other drivers' attentions. Maybe they're changing lane, pulling out, etc. Also, taxis do it to get pedestrians' attentions.

4. Flashing, as above?

5. Simply poor service. Underpaid chefs/waiters probably have little idea of the 'order of courses'. I think many Egyptian 'big meals' are buffet-style, so maybe they assume we want the same - to pick and choose?


Other questions:

1. Why are curbs so high? The pavement here is a waste of space; the cars nor pedestrians use it.

2. Why are there people shouting down my road every day with a little trolley?

3. Why aren't the service charge and tax included on the menu? And do we have to pay the former when the service is bad - i.e. courses coming out at same time?

Good answers.
my answers to your Qs

1 The high Curbs are for safety, but as you say no one uses the pavements, so no need for safety measures. They are also useful for sitting on as i have seen many people doing. If you hit them you need new tyres, so it is good for business.

2 Maybe they are on a mobile, that is when people shout.

3 Because normaly the service is poor so they wouldnt get any tips.

My Q6, why do people insist on using mobiles during takeoff and landing when it is dangerous to do so?

so interesting.... I am planing to move soon....I'been there in the past.... I agree with everythinng... I have the same questions too... maybe a lot more....

1. why if a foreigner goes to buy something.. he pays higher price than an Egyptian bying the same product from the same store?

2. who will teach us how to cross roads without lights?

3.why the taxi drivers.. charge anything they want?.. escpessially when they see foreigner and doesn't use taxi meter?

Good to see more people joining.

I am interested to get some serious as well as funny answers to these every day questions i keep wanting to ask.

My answers to your Qs......

1, i guess foreigners are viewed as visitors with money to spend and therfore get charged more, which is unfair when you are a foreigner living here

2, you just need to eat more carrots,,,,,apparantly this helps you to see in the dark...or just close your eyes and run like mad....Keep a torch on you for crossing the road.

3, same as 1 Establish a good contact with one taxi driver if possible, and always ask the price first.

Good idea to know better local customs !

1. Why Egyptian women join aerobics classes in full make-up ?

hahahah thank you for the answers!... escpessially for question 2.... a pray you be helfull too!

Great topic! :-D I have a few suggested answers.

I think the curbs are high to stop people parking on them and because when it rains the streets flood! So at least we have somewhere dry to walk

As for the guy shouting in the street, this could be a tea seller or a gatherer of scrap material or sonething like that I never worked out what they are saying!

Mobile phones on planes - people here especially are addicted to their mobiles, to stay in constant communication and sometimes to show off (sorry but this is part of it). Additionally the concepts of following rules and acting safely have not been embedded. In the culture (many people face death every day and see it regularly, it is the will of Allah if you die today, no offence)

Good to see other people joining. Lets keep the momentum going..

My Q7, Why when you walk into a shopping mall and go through a detector which even if the alarm sounds, the security guard stitting there to check this, says nothing?

lol i think it will help non egyptians to deal with egypt better if they remove the why question cuz no one knows the why and noone ever will its part of the experience Just think of it like alice in wonderland

TSL wrote:

I have been living in cairo now for 8 months and i am constantly amazed at some of the things i see. As there seems to be many locals on the Expat.com, i thought i would ask some questions WHY and see what answers i get so that i can try and understand some of the things i have seen!!

Q1, Why do you get handed a ticket when entering the airport by a person standing next to a working ticket machine?

Q2, Why do the helpers at the checkouts in grocery stores insist on putting only 2 items in a plastic bag, which means you end up with loads of bags to carry?

Q3, Why do drivers beep their car horns for absolutely no reason?

Q4, Why do drivers drive with no lights on, then flash their lights for no reason?

Q5, Why in restaurants do you get served starters at the same time as the main course?

This will do for now, but i have lots of other questions to ask. If anyone else wants to start adding to the list then please ask away.

TSL...this is an interesting topic for sure, but as an Egyptian I would like to give some logical answers and hope they can make sense...
A1, Some of the ticketing machines is not working thats why someone volunteer to release them till it fixed.. (you can see that other machines still working automatically)

A2, Helpers at the checkouts in grocery stores separates your stuff, putting similar stuff in one bag as respect to you..example, soap, tooth paste and shampoo in one bag, canned items in other bag, etc..

A3, Drivers tries to have the attention of people in the street for a ride ( taxi and microbus drivers ) you can say its more like an addiction, not sure about the other.

A4, They turn off the lights to not hurt your eyes when face to face driving and turn it on when he is about to pass you

A5, They don't believe in starters

TSL...this is an interesting topic for sure, but as an Egyptian I would like to give some logical answers and hope they can make sense...
A1, Some of the ticketing machines is not working thats why someone volunteer to release them till it fixed.. (you can see that other machines still working automatically)

A2, Helpers at the checkouts in grocery stores separates your stuff, putting similar stuff in one bag as respect to you..example, soap, tooth paste and shampoo in one bag, canned items in other bag, etc..

A3, Drivers tries to have the attention of people in the street for a ride ( taxi and microbus drivers ) you can say its more like an addiction, not sure about the other.

A4, They turn off the lights to not hurt your eyes when face to face driving and turn it on when he is about to pass you

A5, They don't believe in starters

Magnum, thanks for joining in and sending some !sensible! answers.

My Q8, Why do Heavey Goods Vehicles drive SLOWLY in the fast lane of the Ringroad/Autostrad roads and cause chaos on the main roads?

Dear SAMXIII
Thanks for your response, but it is very interesting to try and understand these things as it is so different. It is the culture here and it is good to try and understand the local culture

TSL wrote:

TSL...this is an interesting topic for sure, but as an Egyptian I would like to give some logical answers and hope they can make sense...
A1, Some of the ticketing machines is not working thats why someone volunteer to release them till it fixed.. (you can see that other machines still working automatically)

A2, Helpers at the checkouts in grocery stores separates your stuff, putting similar stuff in one bag as respect to you..example, soap, tooth paste and shampoo in one bag, canned items in other bag, etc..

A3, Drivers tries to have the attention of people in the street for a ride ( taxi and microbus drivers ) you can say its more like an addiction, not sure about the other.

A4, They turn off the lights to not hurt your eyes when face to face driving and turn it on when he is about to pass you

A5, They don't believe in starters

Magnum, thanks for joining in and sending some !sensible! answers.

My Q8, Why do Heavey Goods Vehicles drive SLOWLY in the fast lane of the Ringroad/Autostrad roads and cause chaos on the main roads?

Dear SAMXIII
Thanks for your response, but it is very interesting to try and understand these things as it is so different. It is the culture here and it is good to try and understand the local culture

A8, Most of the heavy truck drivers are illiterate so don't expect that they know the difference between high speed and low speed lanes, but the new law now recommend that when someone is getting a transport driving license he should be educated... and believe me among this lack of police surveillance (even before the revolt) i think this is acceptable ...

thanks for the answer and it is good to hear that this situation will change in time. It will for sure help the roads be a safer place.

Why Egyptians have no idea what indicators are for in their cars?

EnnA wrote:

Why Egyptians have no idea what indicators are for in their cars?

Corruption in giving the driver license to who does not know how to drive properly

EnnA wrote:

Why Egyptians have no idea what indicators are for in their cars?

lool !! give an example ... cause this may happen with anyone not only egyptians

The example is that driving locally 99 % of all cars on local Egyptian roads are not using indicators and 90% of these 99% must be Egyptians. Easy, isn't it?

TSL wrote:

My Q6, why do people insist on using mobiles during takeoff and landing when it is dangerous to do so?

Just wanted to jump in here and answer this. I've lived here many years so I'll gladly answer some more. lol. The mobile in planes thing is a great question. The same question should apply when Egyptians are flying INTO London, they know how to queue and turn off their cell phones. When they are flying OUT of London, the concept of a queue disappears. Why? Because most people don't give a flying damn (sadly). The cell phone thing is certainly not limited to Egyptians, and I see many foreigners flaunt this regulation too. It's a lack of respect, and thinking that you must know better than everyone else. Probably also a little bit of "look how important I am" :p

EnnA wrote:

Why Egyptians have no idea what indicators are for in their cars?

Because they are never taught properly. Pay the right person and you can get your license. Even the tests are a joke. They take the driver into a large parking area with construction cones in a 'course' of sorts. The driver must navigate the course once. There's no written exam. There's no street signs to identify. And it's not surprising most drivers here have no idea what they are doing, because how is driving in an open parking lot anything close to really driving in Cairo. There's a general lack of respect for cars and driving. People feel indestructible in their cars. Until that changes, the conditions driving etc. won't either. I should note however, that there are traffic lights in Hurghada that not only work, but are abided by. So the drivers here know how to listen to a traffic light but not drivers in Cairo?

Anna Papadopoulou wrote:

so interesting.... I am planing to move soon....I'been there in the past.... I agree with everythinng... I have the same questions too... maybe a lot more....

1. why if a foreigner goes to buy something.. he pays higher price than an Egyptian bying the same product from the same store?

2. who will teach us how to cross roads without lights?

3.why the taxi drivers.. charge anything they want?.. escpessially when they see foreigner and doesn't use taxi meter?

The perception is that because you are a foreigner you will be making more money. In many cases this is true, especially if you continue to do the currency conversion in your head. The trick is to think of each 1 LE equaling about 1 US dollar in terms of price ranges. If you are looking at something that is 25 LE, and do the conversion in your head, you'll think 4 dollars is not bad. This is why foreigners get ripped off so often. Stop converting, and realise that a great majority of Egyptians are living on salaries of 2,000 LE or less a month. Buy from stores that have prices marked, then you avoid that problem.

2 - crossing the road lol. I wish there were courses for that.

3 - Taxi's, same as above with stores. B/c they think you are a foreigner that doesn't know any better, and consequently will charge you more. It is your right to ask them to turn on the meter (which in Arabic is Edad). Make sure the meter is not running at twice the speed. (most of the meters have little horses on them, if the horse is 'running' like a maniac even when you are cruising at 20 km an hour - the meter is running fast). In those cases, find out what a fair rate is for the distance you have driven, and pay the taxi driver what is fair. Make SURE you pay from outside the taxi if you are not going to pay him what he's asking. It's only with foreigners not giving in and paying extortionate fares that they will stop this

EnnA wrote:

Good idea to know better local customs !

1. Why Egyptian women join aerobics classes in full make-up ?

Any replies plz for this question

leprechaun1188 wrote:

There's no written exam.

Not true, there is an exam that must be done by computer.

Do you mean Play Station ?

the question about cars :about horns: focus you will find the driver press horn when someone move fast infront of him when the driver trying to pass him, about the light they dont open it because they want long live for the lights or may be we have strong sight:D,opening the light sudeenly if you focused you will find it as we mentioned before about horns sometime they use light to warn the others without horns ,in silence

I'm currently not in Egypt, but for the years I've spent there as an expat I basically went through these cycles of understanding.

- Ask why. Answer humorously. Be amused.
- Ask why. Realize the rigidity of some nonsensical things.
- Realize it's usually incompetence/racism/stupidity.
- Don't ask why anymore.

Now, don't get me wrong. I don't mean to rain on the mood of this thread. I also don't despise Egypt or Egyptians in any way. In fact, I have many friends there and will always feel like I have to come back once in a while. But this is just realism...

As the orignator of this thread it has been interesting to read some of the comments. It is obvious that Expats want to ask WHY and the locals want to justify the WHY in a way that hides the real reasons...probably as there aren't any.

As far as the driving is concerned i know for a fact that a driving licence can be gained in 10 minutes in a car park driving round trafic cones....and that is WHY all the driving questions are justified.
What people have to realise is that to expats it is truly amazing to see how people drive here, and no matter how long you stay here every day brings unbelievable sights, infact i was driving on the ringroad yesterday and there was an accident on the opposite carriageway and cars traveling in my direction where stopping in the outside lane taking photos!!! Not just slowing down, but actualy stoping and therefore creating the possibility of another bad accident, so again i ask WHY????

i agree with you (TSL) that there are unreasonable acts happening on the roads in egypt but
you can also look at the otherside for the subject for example the accident you saw yesterday am sure that people werent taking phtots when there was some one injured inside the car
what i mean actually thats impossible that you see someone fall in trouble or accident IN EGYPT and you wont see people around him  trying to help whatever who he is, and what am 100% sure that if accident happen abroad whatever in your country or in any country that when someone fall in trouble or in accident no body cares until police or ambulance comes
what imean from all that subject that in any place you will find advantages and disadvantages

I understand your view point, but the 3-4 people with cameras in their hands were not trying to help. It only takes a handfull of people to help not 20-30! And my experience aboroad, ( and i have been in many different countries), is that only just enough people help in any situation so that no confusion is caused and the help is useful, not counterproductive. As i said the onlookers nearly caused another serious accident so i am not sure how this is helpful.

TSL wrote:

I understand your view point, but the 3-4 people with cameras in their hands were not trying to help. It only takes a handfull of people to help not 20-30! And my experience aboroad, ( and i have been in many different countries), is that only just enough people help in any situation so that no confusion is caused and the help is useful, not counterproductive. As i said the onlookers nearly caused another serious accident so i am not sure how this is helpful.

I would agree with TSL i have seen horror here many times on the roads, and yes they do take photos i have seen it many times with injured people still in the car.
Just for talking sake we British would never pass by and not stop to help an injured person on the road.
I think they need to have a proper driving test here in Egypt and maybe there would be less accidents on he roads, to be fair people here need to learn how to drive.

Hi TSL & Everyone,

I would like to thank you for the post as well as for your contributions in answering the concerns raised.

I would actually agree to all of your questions which some of them have a sensible answers and some haven't.

I would say that a lot of more other questions are not answered yet which is part of the daily routine that people used to do it in certain way without knowing why they are doing it this way ... Might be habits, might be traditions, might be the level of education ... A lot of various factors can affect on human behaviors in fact.

In Egypt now and during the past 30 years, we are missing the rules, we don't have rules, we don't implement laws, and laws were only meant to be implemented on poor people. Corruption has attacked every public and private sector in the country to the extent you don't even know how organizations and establishments are managed.

I truly believe that WE as Egyptians and Egypt as a country should be in a better place than where we are right now and hope that all the political changes which are happening at the moment are for the best of the country, so that someday soon we can have rules that to be implemented and respected by everyone and on top of that to have people who really care about the image of their country and can improve that image to erase some of the “WHYs” shown on your post and replace it with a memorable moments that you can share with everyone.

Sorry for writing all that, but when I read your post and all the answers I felt that I have to contribute with the little I have.

Wish you all have a lovely and safe time in Egypt and will be looking forward to read your posts in the near future about things getting better in Egypt … It might take long time, it might take short time but you know; Hope Die Last ... As long as I'm alive will look and hope for a Better Egypt

Best Regards

VidoDido wrote:

Hi TSL & Everyone,

I would like to thank you for the post as well as for your contributions in answering the concerns raised.

I would actually agree to all of your questions which some of them have a sensible answers and some haven't.

I would say that a lot of more other questions are not answered yet which is part of the daily routine that people used to do it in certain way without knowing why they are doing it this way ... Might be habits, might be traditions, might be the level of education ... A lot of various factors can affect on human behaviors in fact.

In Egypt now and during the past 30 years, we are missing the rules, we don't have rules, we don't implement laws, and laws were only meant to be implemented on poor people. Corruption has attacked every public and private sector in the country to the extent you don't even know how organizations and establishments are managed.

I truly believe that WE as Egyptians and Egypt as a country should be in a better place than where we are right now and hope that all the political changes which are happening at the moment are for the best of the country, so that someday soon we can have rules that to be implemented and respected by everyone and on top of that to have people who really care about the image of their country and can improve that image to erase some of the “WHYs” shown on your post and replace it with a memorable moments that you can share with everyone.

Sorry for writing all that, but when I read your post and all the answers I felt that I have to contribute with the little I have.

Wish you all have a lovely and safe time in Egypt and will be looking forward to read your posts in the near future about things getting better in Egypt … It might take long time, it might take short time but you know; Hope Die Last ... As long as I'm alive will look and hope for a Better Egypt

Best Regards

Well said

Well, I wish I can answer all the questions asked in this topic but that will take an essay and I want my reply to be read so I will keep it short.

Actually I am not going to answer any of the questions above.

I am amazed at my fellow Egyptians, every Egyptian who responded to this topic knows and understand every point all the expats pointed here, yet some people said this is just Egypt and that's why everyone loves, some started with the same old  excuses


Guys if we ever have a chance to change this things mentioned above and lots of other stuff that wasn't mentioned but widely realized by all of us it is to change it our selves.

You can't expect someone doing something wrong would realize his fault by himself, people needs guidance to show them the right way.

We the educated and privileged citizens of Egypt (Egyptians) who can see the problems and knows it well should act accordingly and do everything possible to change the perception of all the Egyptians who act and live uncaring of the sake of the Country.

If someone keeps using horn for no reason just letting him know that it is noisy and might harm someone else is enough as start if you see someone bribing or being bribed just tell him shame on you (3eb 3alek ya ragel) believe me it hurts, What ever it is guys if you realized something wrong try to do your best to make it right either by saying or doing it the right way your self or anything.


And I am not looking forward for replies from anyone saying the he do or did or used to do this and that. Just do it for your own peace of mind, for your self to know that you did what you can do to help this country and only by then we can all say (Proud to be Egyptian) not that we are not, I know and sure that every single Egyptian is proud that he is so as my self but we have to work to earn it in every aspect.

lets not just hope for a better Egypt, Lets work for it.

Spread the word and more importantly spread the ethics and act upon them.


Thank you guys..

Very well put Ahmed...

it is good to hear someone taking the responsibility to try and change things. that is the main problem in Egypt that no one takes the opportunity to change things for the better. some of the issues are SO SIMPLE to improve, if more people took your views and it would could relatively quickly.

i started this to try and understand WHY things are as they are and it seems that all expats have the same issues and that all the locals want to justify WHY things are like this. as expats we have to be sympathetic to local customs, but when so many things are actually dangerous something needs to change.

another simple issue, i am sad to see people throwing out rubbish from car windows whilst driving on the roads, surely they must realize there is already too much rubbish in public places and this just adds to it, so WHY does this happen?

Why loving Egyptian mothers are driving with four girls in the boot (I couldn't believe when I saw it yesterday) and why protective Egyptian fathers are driving with little babies on their laps when driving???? I am scared what the right answer should be.

EnnA wrote:

Why loving Egyptian mothers are driving with four girls in the boot (I couldn't believe when I saw it yesterday)

I've seen it hundred times in Rehab. No question; it just makes me cry.

Father, Mother, 4 year old, 3 year old and a new born baby in the arms of its other - who by the way is sitting sidesaddle - on a motorbike!!

OMG