Shifting sands

[Photo by Yu Yao/China Daily]

Growing numbers of Chinese tourists are visiting Egypt, keen to see the country's ancient wonders despite the recent political unrest. Deng Zhangyu discovers a land with a rich history battling an uncertain future.

I was about to board my flight from Beijing to Egypt when I happened to read the news that two bombs had been found in Cairo international airport and a homemade bomb exploded in central Cairo the day before.

The news set my nerves on edge. One moment I was excited to be traveling to the mysterious world of pharaohs, pyramids and Cleopatra, the next I was considering canceling the trip. I remained jittery throughout the 12-hour flight. It wasn't until I was standing by the parking lot outside Cairo airport, with smiling Egyptians dressed in robes greeting me with cries of ni hao (hello in Mandarin), that my nerves were finally calmed.

Our guide was a young, handsome Egyptian. His Chinese name was Meng Xiu. Meng spent only six months learning Mandarin in China but his grasp of the language impressed us. Meng told us that many of his schoolmates who want a career as a guide can speak Mandarin because of the rising number of Chinese tourists flowing into Egypt, a country that has a lot in common with China - both nations boast a wealth of ancient history.

But the nation with the most tourists in Egypt is not China. That title goes to Russia, and even the violence that blights Egypt doesn't stop the flow of Russian tourists.

On the way to our hotel in Giza area, where the three pyramids of the pharaohs Khufu, his son Khafra and Menkaura, are located, we saw rows of unfinished buildings, each four or five stories tall. Despite the building's being unfinished it was obvious that each had people living in it. Meng explained that this is common in Egypt. People live in half-finished houses to avoid tax because the government levies tax on people who can afford houses with decorations - such as walls.

The entire city of Cairo seemed to be covered by a hue of yellow. Its gold dunes and pyramids in the distance matched the rows of unfinished houses, with their naked yellow bricks.

Our hotel was a 15-minute walk to the Giza Pyramids. Before we went to see one of the world's Seven Wonders, we had to report our schedule to the tourist police because demonstrations and political unrest had been simmering in the city, even four years after the Arab Spring revolution.