The Great Khawaga

As I was waiting for a taxi at 1:30 AM last night, I met an old expat also trying to find a taxi home. You would have thought this guy just got off the boat -- a century ago. He looked like what I'd imagine to be a prototypical 19th century British imperialist. He wore those infamous knickers (British khaki shorts that come up past the knees) with high socks and sported a short-sleeve button-down. My friend told me who this guy is: the Egyptology professor of American University in Cairo...

It's Eid, so almost everyone in Cairo is on vacation. We all decided to just walk home because there weren't any taxis in sight. Just as we get to talking about how annoying Eid is, two motorcycles zoom by us with earth shatteringly loud exhaust.

The British anachronism explained, "That's youth. They're speaking to me. You know what they're saying? Shit... [interjection by my friend: how did you say shit when you were young?] When I was a kid, you know how I said shit? My clothing. My father said, 'hell, you're not going out like that.' I said 'shit.'" 

This guy might have had a little too much to drink, and he started talking about how if Nasr was still around we would be able to find a taxi. 

I told him we were heading to Agouza, and he asked me if I knew the last great khawaga (his pronunciation was terrible) from Agouza. I said no. He made some comments about my youth and ignorance and explained how it was the great Napoleon Bonaparte in 1798 during the Battle of the Pyramids. He went on to explain how evidence suggests that the famous "Battle of the Pyramids" is a misnomer: Napoleon's victory over the Mamluks actually took place in Agouza. 

Battle of the Pyramids

So, who's the great Khawaga in Zamalek? I have no idea, but this guy was the true expat yearning for a return to the past and living in a whole other world.

Where are you going?

to the old woman insha'allah.

There ain't no Little Italy or China Town, but you can certainly go culture hopping in Cairo. To start, I'll recount  an etymology lesson on several different Cairean districts from a nice old man originally from Aswan who sells miscellaneous items like laundry baskets and plastic chairs on the next street over from my apartment.

Agouza (translation: Old Woman) got its name back in the 30s or 40s. An old woman used to sit on the corniche -- the road next to the Nile -- and sell tea and coffee to people driving past. The place didn't really have a name, so if you wanted to meet someone anywhere nearby you'd say "I'll see you at El Agouza." Everybody got on board and the name just stuck.

Dokki (translation: imperative form of "to knock") got its name sometime before the 1950s also. It used to be a military camp made up of thousands of tents. In order to put up the tents, people had to hammer nails into the ground... The name derives from the hammering process.

Mohandessin (translation: Engineers) got its name a little after the first two. The name says it all: this is where engineers lived.

Zamalek (translation -- Turkish to English: living) got its name in the middle of the 19th century. It's a manufactured island in the middle of the Nile -- the west side used to be connected to what is now considered Agouza. Turkish was hot stuff back in the golden days of the Pashas, which explains the Turkishness. The island is divided into two parts: Zamalek -- where everybody lives and offices -- and Gezira -- home to the oldest sports club and government buildings.

Wust El Balad (translation: Down Town) got its name because it's downtown!

Garden City (translation not necessary) probably got its name during the British occupation. There are a lot of trees, so relative to the rest of Cairo it's like a giant garden.

My Egyptian colleagues didn't believe any of these stories... nor the idea that the foreigner knows something more than them about their own city. They checked and google verified the old man's etymology lesson!