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hippocampus
Joined: 27 Feb 2012
Posts: 126
Location: Bikini Bottom
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 Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 7:40 am Post subject: Walk like an (Ancient) Egyptian |
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| If I were interested in seeing Ancient Egypt, the pyramids, good museums and what not, and generally devote my free time to Egyptology where would I best be advised to work as an ESL teacher in the country? I have fairly good qualifications, and would live modestly. Thanks. |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Mon May 21, 2012 2:18 pm Post subject: |
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With the current political upheaval, your timing is all wrong. 
What are your credentials? Experience?
VS
(I did what you want to do back in the mid-1980s. I applied for a Fellowship at The American University in Cairo and got a free MA in TEFL... while taking part in the many tours provided by the university, more on my own, and being able to audit Egyptology courses. It was a great three years, but Egypt is a different place now...) |
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hippocampus
Joined: 27 Feb 2012
Posts: 126
Location: Bikini Bottom
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 1:05 am Post subject: |
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Let's just say my background is quite adequate. I'd rather not allude to it on a public forum. 
You seem to think it's dangerous at present just to wander about. So are there no tours of the pyramids? Are museums not open? I wouldn't have though that things are so bad that a brown-haired, medium-complexioned, possibly foreign man couldn't just walk wherever he pleased. Am I mistaken? |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 2:59 am Post subject: |
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Have tourists been attacked? No
Have expats been attacked? Only a few that went and got mixed up in the demonstrations... and only their camera(s) had permanent damage.
There have been some pretty brutal attacks on journalists... so don't look like one. 
But... the problem is that the expats that I know who got anywhere near the demos were long time ME hands who also spoke the language and even they had trouble knowing who was who... it is a very fluid situation. One can hopefully avoid them all. The next few years will probably have its ups and downs. I have been surprised at the number of long time expats (20-30 years) who had planned to retire in Egypt, who have pulled up stakes and left or are seriously considering leaving. I find that more telling than anything else.
Without knowing what you have to offer, I can offer you no help with the matter of jobs. You might be able to pick up jobs by knocking on doors of language schools and international schools. In 6-12 months, one can usually pick up enough private lessons on top of that to pay expenses. It would take some hustle on your part and street smarts to stay out of trouble.
But all of the tourist sites are safe and empty... good for seeing the sights in peace and quiet without lines.
VS |
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hippocampus
Joined: 27 Feb 2012
Posts: 126
Location: Bikini Bottom
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 7:33 am Post subject: |
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| Thanks. That's all good advice, and it is telling that long-termers are leaving. My secretiveness is not coyness so much as that I am not quite ready to embark. So I am not asking for help finding an actual job. Thanks again. |
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justcolleen
Joined: 07 Jan 2004
Posts: 654
Location: Egypt, baby!
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 10:32 am Post subject: |
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| hippocampus wrote: |
| You seem to think it's dangerous at present just to wander about. So are there no tours of the pyramids? Are museums not open? I wouldn't have though that things are so bad that a brown-haired, medium-complexioned, possibly foreign man couldn't just walk wherever he pleased. Am I mistaken? |
There are three types of news:
1.) The western media reports, which focus almost exclusively on Tahrir protests. It's the laziest of journalism because there are protests in Tahrir on a daily basis.
2.) Egypt news, written in English for western consumption, meaning it tries to maintain the mirage - "Come to Egypt! Everything's fine!" These are the same dolts who put anyone who came through the Cairo airport and stayed more than 24 hours in the "tourist" category, and included more than half million Libyan refugees ... because they probably stayed in hotels ... in their latest "Tourism has recovered!" report.
3.) Egypt news, written in Arabic: carjackings, kidnappings, armed robberies, perpetual gun and ammunition / drug smuggling busts, and so on. Know that the perpetrator in every single instance reported is always caught, because they only report the cases where the perpetrator is caught. Remember, it's about the mirage.
Personally, I moved flats after there were 12 gun shot deaths and one kidnapping on my street over a two week period in February.
As for me, I don't wander anywhere, and I'm never outside after dark.
Come and wander around all you'd like, but know you'll be taking a risk. There is no police protection and the police that are in uniform direct traffic and then only in groups - because they're scared. The army can only do so much and, for now, they're busy getting ready for the elections starting tomorrow. And so am I, by making sure I have plenty of sterile drinking water, just in case.
My advice is to wait and see what happens from now through the end of June before you make any plans, professional or otherwise. By then, hopefully, there will be a president, a constitution, and security, Mubarak's verdict will be in, the Port Said massacre trial will be over, and things will settle down a little bit. |
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veiledsentiments
Joined: 20 Feb 2003
Posts: 17644
Location: USA
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 2:10 pm Post subject: |
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Although I was hoping that you would pass through with advice from the ground, I as so sorry to read this justcolleen. I've been following the news as closely as I can... mostly through friends still there who connect me to the more dependable news and blogs through Facebook. I lack confidence in the near term, but hope that the resilience that has keep Egypt going for centuries (millennia?) will again come back to the fore. For the moment, the urban Egypt we have known and loved for years is gone...
Stay Safe!!
VS |
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justcolleen
Joined: 07 Jan 2004
Posts: 654
Location: Egypt, baby!
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| Posted: Tue May 22, 2012 5:42 pm Post subject: |
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| veiledsentiments wrote: |
Although I was hoping that you would pass through with advice from the ground, I as so sorry to read this justcolleen. I've been following the news as closely as I can... mostly through friends still there who connect me to the more dependable news and blogs through Facebook. I lack confidence in the near term, but hope that the resilience that has keep Egypt going for centuries (millennia?) will again come back to the fore. For the moment, the urban Egypt we have known and loved for years is gone...
Stay Safe!!
VS |
Eh, I'll be alright. My friends and family think I'm magnoona for sticking it out, but I've been here long enough to have a solid support system.
Besides, I was raised northeast of Detroit and spent a lot of time in the city, which helps.  |
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hippocampus
Joined: 27 Feb 2012
Posts: 126
Location: Bikini Bottom
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