Cairo and Athens by Zander

My dad looking at a map because we don't know where we are in Egypt. Below, a burnt out Police building in Cairo.

My dad and I playing a game on his new iPhone 4s.

The Greek guard outside the President's house.

It has been a really big transition between Egypt and Greece. For example Egypt is Muslim, and sometimes it can be really scary. The Muslims if they are allowed have multiple wives. The women there all wear burkas, big sheets with head scarves that have slits for eyes.   In Greece, since it is westernized and they aren’t Muslim, they usually do not wear head scarves. There are a lot more graffiti than anywhere else that I have seen. Plus is some of the sketchy part of town they all travel in packs. It is really crazy to be back to the western world, but there are some tradeoffs.

                In Athens, Greece, I have seen a lot of more graffiti than anywhere else I have been. I think that there is all the graffiti because the people in Athens are depressed. Since the Debt crisis, Ron told me that the number of paintings has doubled. In Greece, there is over 50% unemployment rate.  So that means that there are a lot of people that don’t have anything to do.  If they are people like me, then they will do something crazy. So they paint stuff on places that they shouldn’t. When I walked in the sketchy part of town, there were a lot more rundown buildings which mean that there is a lot more graffiti. This part of town is by the train station, and not very close to old Athens It is really scary walking around some parts of Athens, and seeing people destroying there neighborhood.

                In some parts of Athens, there are a lot of people that travel in packs, and there are some really crowded areas. I think it means that if you are alone, then it isn’t safe, unless you are the Terminator. But even the police travel in 3 and 4s. I even saw a group of about 50 police officers with dogs and everything. I think they were looking for drugs. All the women are in packs too. I saw a bunch of them all selling teddy bears by a street corner, in the early evening. There are mobs of guys that all are selling electronics and who knows what. They all look kind of scary. When I was walking with my family, I just wanted to get the hell out of there, but we had to get to the cemetery that we were going to see. Sometimes, I think that I am making up stuff about how bad things are, but I am not.

                In Egypt, they always tell you that if you are a girl then you need to travel in groups. It is really true. All the locals do it, so it is kind of a hint that us tourists should too. One of my dad’s crazy felucca drivers was telling us about his 2 wives. He also told us about how he smokes pot and cigarettes. My dad was kind of egging him on. Then he asked my dad if Mia was married to him.  He told him that she was his daughter and of course not!!!! After that we didn’t talk to him anymore. Egypt was really scary, but I can see how I could get used to it if I stayed there for a long time.

                In Athens there are some really nice parts of town. I am thinking that these are the parts of Athens that I would like to spend all my time. There are really big bazaars with lots of trinkets and models of the Parthenon and Greek figurines for sale. If you are traveling to Athens and you want a sheltered trip, you should stay around the major sights like the Parthenon, Zeus’s temple, and the old markets. There are some really nice spots everywhere, and I really like to be there. In some places you need to travel in packs just like in Egypt. There is a lot of colorful graffiti in Athens, but you know to get out of a place when you see a lot more graffiti then normal. But to see all of a city, you have to walk through the good and the bad parts of town.