A Feluccaing We Went

This week marks the third 3-day weekend in a row as Coptic Christmas is celebrated. As a kick-off to the long weekend, and a celebration of a friend's birthday, a group of us met up at the docks along the Nile in downtown Cairo for a relaxing felucca ride.

A felucca is a traditional wooden sailing boat that was once used as the main mode of transportation along the Nile and other bodies of water in the region. Today they are popular among tourists and are still used for transportation between cities in Upper Egypt.

We filed down the dock and across a gang plank onto a boat. Walking along the narrow side and around the stern we hopped across onto a second boat that would be our ride for the evening. As we stepped down into the boat and each took a seat on the U-shaped bench I was reminded of squeezing into a limousine on prom night when you would cram as many people in as possible.

As we shoved off the dock the sail was raised and the food was spread out on the table. We snacked on hummus and pita, tabbouleh and falafel, shawarma and birthday cake. Wine was uncorked and we sat back in the breeze to unwind. The evening was cool and most were wearing a light jacket. After some discussion we agreed that "felucca" could be used as both a noun and a verb as in "to felucca" after all, you can sail, canoe and kayak right?

My first impression was the noticeable quiet of the river. The sun had long since dipped below the horizon and the city was pulsing with light and traffic. Tail lights lit up the bridge spanning the Nile like an airport runway and yet...the predominant sounds were waves lapping the hull of our boat and conversations among friends. When I stopped to listen I could make out the distant sounds of traffic and city noise but, in a city of 18 million people, the fact that I had to try to hear it was remarkable.

We had asked for a 2 hour ride and we began to realize that we were tracing one large circle on this portion of the river as we could not pass under the bridge, possibly due to the height of the mast or some other restriction I didn't find out for sure. Regardless of the repeated views the evening was relaxing and lovely and the conversation was fantastic. But, as mom always said, be sure to go to the bathroom before you leave the house (dock).

On another note, our taxi was involved in a small accident on the ride home as one too many cars thought they could squeeze into the traffic circle at the same time. One buckled door later we all slid out onto the sidewalk and paid our cabbie as he argued with the other driver. Fortunately we were a short walk from home.