10 CultureShock! Egypt
EGYPT IS AN INCONGRUOUS MIXTURE OF OLD AND NEW. Considering that
Egypt has one of the oldest civilisations known to the world
and that it is home to the last standing Seven Wonders of the
Ancient World, it is not surprising that just the word ‘Egypt’
fascinates and intrigues people. Looking around Egypt, one
minute you think you have walked through a time warp
straight into Biblical times; ten minutes later, you may find
yourself negotiating a high stakes deal in an ultra-modern
meeting room, teeming with skilled entrepreneurs dressed
in the latest European fashion. Intertwined with remnants
of time-worn lifestyles, Egypt is a nation seeking its place
in a modern world of computers, telecommunications and
banking. Lifestyles are so intermixed that it is difficult to
define where one lifestyle ends and another begins. A
booming tourist industry that introduces Egyptians to the
world adds another dimension to the amalgam of lifestyles.
While many Egyptians remain insulated from direct contact
with outside forces, few are far from its influence. Most
tourists remain somewhat isolated from real Egyptian life.
They stay principally in modern facilities away from the
poverty and exhausted infrastructure. Rarely do tourists
experience the everyday struggles to move into the ‘modern’
age that affects the lives of Egypt’s recently estimated (2010)
80 million people.
The modern Arab Republic of Egypt identifies itself as
an Arab nation, though its people are ‘Arabised’ rather than