The Women's Cars of the Cairo Metro — Epoche A2
Dear Leila, How are you? I am in Cairo, and this week I stopped fighting with the traffic. On my first day I took taxis everywhere. The streets were full, and a short trip took an hour. Then Mona at the hotel said: "Take the Metro. It opened in 1987, the first metro in all of Africa, and it does not sit in traffic." I had one worry, and Mona knew it already. The trains are very crowded. She told me the rule: in every train, the two cars in the middle are for women only. There are signs on the platform floor that show where those cars will stop. You stand on the sign, and the women's car opens its doors in front of you. I tried it the next morning. I rode from Sadat station to Mar Girgis for a few pounds, and around me there were only women and children. One of the two cars stays women-only all day; the other opens to everyone late in the evening. A woman can also sit in any other car - the rule adds a choice, it does not take one away. Come and try it with me! With love, Samira