Sam & Faraq - A Sri Lankan meets an Egyptian

Let me introduce Sam.  That's me.  When someone wants to know my name, and I am sure that the relationship is temporary, I spare them the agony of learning my name - Prathapar.  In 2004, I was in Cairo attending a workshop.  I wanted to hit the town on the first day after the workshop.  As I walked outside the hotel, a man approached me and asked if I needed a Taxi.  I said yes and asked for his name.  He said he is Faraq.  So, now you know who we are and what our relationship was.  It was a five-day relationship, and that was brief.

I negotiated a price with Faraq to take me into town and return, and at the end of the trip, he took his money and asked if I needed to see the Pyramids.  I said yes, of course, and he agreed on a price and time for us to meet the next day, which was a holiday.  He arrived on time, drove to the point where the Nile diverged, and then off to the tourist area.  He introduced a man who had offered to take me on a camel into the tourist park.  I made a mistake; I did not agree on a price.

The Camel owner walked along with me on the camel, did the right things like photos of sphinx and pyramids, tombs, and so on, and when the trip finished after about three hours, he asked for money, more than what a regular tourist company would ask.  Faraq was watching.  I knew the demand was too high, but I was not in a position to argue.  Too late.  I paid him, and Faraq went with him.  I came back when I realized that Faraq had a cut in it, too.

I am upset, but again, I could not confront Faraq.  Instead, I told him that I felt the Camel owner had cheated on me and that Faraq should not take tourists to the Camel owner.  Faraq was quiet and listening.  In my mind, I have decided not to hire Faraq anymore.  When we reached the hotel, I paid his dues, agreed, and was about to go into the hotel.  Faraq called me, "Sam," and I stopped.  "How about this afternoon?" he asked faintly, and I said, 'Don't worry.'  Then, he insisted that he liked to take me around and agreed to a reasonable fare.  I had the afternoon free and needed a taxi, but the fare was reasonable.

Faraq showed up promptly, and we toured all over Cairo, waited where he had to, told me to pretend to be a Muslim when walking into old mosques so I need not pay an entrance fee, took me to the joints where taxi drivers hang out for a snack - good food-cheap price - and it was fun.  Then I told him that I would like to go to a nightclub.

In Egypt, nightclubs open at midnight until the early hours.  He took me to one and negotiated a price for him and me with the owner, and it was reasonable.  The price included an entrance fee, a couple of beers, and dinner for both.  The club had several music troupes performing an hour each, and each one was different.  One of them was a male-only, drum-only band.  Beer, music, food, and Faraq were happy.  So was I, although the smoke started to bother me.  Around 3 AM, I told Faraq that it was time to go.  He dropped me off at the hotel, and we agreed he would pick me up again the following afternoon.

There he was, and he said he wanted me to visit his family.  I said fine, and after an hour's drive, we were at his village.  He took me to his 'one room all in all house,' and the wife was cooking.  She had no warning of this Sri Lankan visitor.  There was no electricity, and firewood was smoking like it used to be in our family kitchen some fifty years ago.  The food was simple and ready.  We walked into his banana patch (a few trees well watered), a few more joined in, a carpet was rolled out, and we all sat and ate.  It was an unexplainable feeling.  I was in a peasant's backyard, eating his hard-earned food.  But I liked the whole thing.  It was about to get dark, and then he said, why don't you come to a wedding in the neighborhood?  Sam, the ever curious, and I could not resist the offer.

I have no idea where the couple were, and the party was on a back street.  Chairs were arranged in circles, men sat with their friends, and a local band sang.  I sat with Faraq's friends.  A man brought room-temperature beer, someone bought a six-pack, and I, too, bought another, and we started to drink.  Then I heard the band singing Sam Something Something.  At Faraq's instruction, the band was welcoming me!  I was called to the stage; I obliged, waved at all, and returned to the seat.  Suddenly, I saw one of the men ripping tobacco out of cigarettes, raising my curiosity.  He then took a small plastic packet of Marijuana, mixed it with the tobacco, and started to roll the mix into cigars.  Well, I thought I better get out of there.  I told Faraq that I was feeling tired.  Faraq and I said bye to everyone, and he dropped me off at the hotel.

The next day was the final day.  Faraq was there to take me to the airport, and I needed a small handbag for various souvenirs I bought.  Faraq took me to a travel bag maker; he bought me a sturdy, well-made bag for a very good price.

It was almost lunchtime, and Faraq insisted that he buy me lunch because I had been paying for his meals for the past few days.  I said OK, we went to a cafe frequented by Taxi drivers.  It was not a street cafe; Faraq wanted to treat me well and ordered a meal - a mixture of noodles and fried rice.  We had our lunch and were ready to head towards the airport.

Faraq asked if I needed to buy anything more.  I said, "No, my money is finished".  What I meant was that I am running out of Egyptian shillings.  Faraq thought I had no money and offered money from his car's dashboard.  I told him that I meant Egyptian schillings, and since I am now leaving Cairo, I do not need it either.  He understood.  Faraq dropped me at the airport; I gave him whatever Shillings I had, a bit more than the taxi fare, and he reluctantly accepted it.  We bid bye to each other.  A poor taxi driver had shown me good times in Cairo.

I still wonder why he was nice to me.  Was it because I expressed my unhappiness with the Camel man and indirectly accused Faraq of dishonesty, and he wanted to show that he was a decent man?  Or was I a friendly customer, and Faraq was enjoying my company?  I am sure Faraq is not doing this to all his customers.

I will never know why, but I will never forget Faraq either.