Having sailed into Alexandria , we'd take the train south.
Couldn't be simpler, and Cairo Central Station is very convenient.
We'd have to stay downtown to be in the middle of everything, and besides, the traffic's not so bad and Cairo is, after all, known as one of the tidiest cities in the world - some people say it puts New York or London to shame...
And staying downtown means staying at Shepherd’s Hotel.
Oh, it may not be quite as first-rate as it was in the 20s,
but where else can you be really sure of knowing just what's going on ?
Because the terrace, you see, is the city's great place to see and be seen. Ambassadors, actresses, the occasional refugee princess or suspicious plotter - all loiter for hours in the comfortable wicker armchairs overlooking the busy street and the passing parade of ladies shopping, Packards swinging down toward Suleiman Pasha Square, or groups of children, tidy in their school uniforms, on their way to play in the nearby Ezbekia Gardens.
Tiring of the bustling city, we could retire to the secluded garden behind the hotel...
...or rest in the cavernous neo-pharaonic lobby.
And then, to finish off a long day of travel, perhaps a quick turn on the garden dance floor before some well-deserved sleep. Tomorrow, we have so much to do, and that nice attaché on the train said he might be able to get us a places for the concert gala at the Opera House; they say the Queen of Iran might be there, and...
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