184 CultureShock! EgyptAn expatriate who has been bitten by a stray dog can
frequently get his company to send him home for medical
treatment or even reassignment, since it is not likely the
animal had been vaccinated against rabies and it is usually
unlikely a specific animal could be identified. Therefore,
stray animals can be the expatriate’s ‘ticket’ out of an
unhappy situation.
The compulsion to cuddle and aid weak, helpless animals
inclines some people to feed or pet stray animals. Most of the
strays are around people enough that they are quite docile.
Many will even come up to you and rub against your leg. Not
all of them are docile, and one never knows which is which.
Try not to let your compassion for the strays overcome your
common sense.Unusual Behaviour
There was a female dog that wandered the street where I used to live
in Garden City. I passed her day after day and nothing happened.
Then one night, I was walking to the market and she came from
across the street and snapped at me. Fortunately for me, I saw that
her behaviour was unusual and jumped away just as she leaped for
my leg. She got a small bite of my pants leg, but none of me.Shopping
Shop ’Til You Drop!
There are more and more great shopping areas in and around
Cairo! The highest concentration of shopping malls is in Nasr
City, where seven shopping centres are open to the public,
including Tiba Mall, Genena Mall, Wonderland, City Centre,
Al-Aqqad Mall, Serag Mall and City Stars. Check out the new
City Stars Centre Mall located in Nasr City. The seven-storey
facility has most of Egypt’s local brand names (including
Dalydress, Mobaco, BTM and Concrete) along with major
international brands—some for
the first time in Egypt—including
Virgin Megastore, Mango and
Esprit. The mall also offers a
wide variety of coffee shops and
restaurants, and a vast food court‘I have never been in a mall of
this size, over seven levels and
the Ä nest designs.’
—An American visiting
the new City Stars
Centre Mall in Nasr City.