254 CultureShock! Egypt
of what to do next. Finally, a sympathetic toll taker noticed
the Americans standing there and waved them forward to
sell them their ticket.
So, be assertive. Get into the spirit of how to get that burger
or Metro ticket. Otherwise, you may wait a considerable time
before someone takes sympathy on your plight.Photography
You should always ask permission before taking a picture
of someone you don’t know. You can do this verbally, or as
I often do, by getting their attention, pointing to the camera
and shrugging the shoulders as if asking, ‘Is this OK?’ Asking
before snapping the shutter applies specifi cally when you
focus in on an individual or small group of people. Of course,
when taking street scene pictures, it is impossible to ask
permission of all the people. In this case, use your posture
to make sure no particular person feels threatened by the
camera. After all, most people are quite used to seeing
hundreds of tourists running around the country snapping
pictures everywhere.