"You can't escape modern technology - Aswan, Egypt", wrote Carol under the photo from the man on the left and sent it to me.
And why should we? Mobile technology makes life so much more easy and Egyptian sim cards make calling so much cheaper!
The vodaphone sim card I had bought with the CD cover (shown in the middel) was for 20 EGP, plus charge (sold for 10, 25, 50 or 100 EGP). You can also buy them from MobiNil, Etisalat or whatever other companies will sell them in the future. And when you buy charge, you simply ask the shop keeper to recharge your mobile phone for you and offer him a tip (mostly its refused with a big shukran - thank you).
I always bring two mobile phones - one for my german sim card and one for the Egyptian one. If someone calls me on my German mobile phone from Europe, I dont take the call to save roaming costs, but call back from my Egyptian number or send sms to call me on my Egyptian number if there is anything urgent. And to make calls inside Egypt is very cheap...
We also always ask our guests to leave us their mobile phone numbers. To be able to call him if there is any decision (like a choice for Nile Cruise Boats), to call if we dont see him at the meeting point, to ask if he is fine, when to meet him if he could not tell you an exact time before, etc. And of course its cheaper for us and our guests, if these are no international calls.
And (maybe you think me to be foolish) but it feels great to have an Egyptian number: to give to your family or friends at home, to give to friends you make in Egypt. You will almost feel as if you were an Egyptian yourself!
