Mother of All Traffic Jams

Traffic Jam: Was going to a lecture; but the traffic on Qasr al-Aini, one of the oldest streets in Cairo, didn't go anywhere for the 45 minutes I waited before deciding to end the effort. This is unusual for this street, which has a lot of traffic but usually sees movement. The good news is that, while I was sitting in the 90° heat in a white taxi (which was supposed to have air conditioning but didn't), I had a gentlemanly taxi driver and met a resident of my neighborhood who runs an art gallery. She had asked to be taken on as a passenger and was delightful company for the time I waited. Her name is Sawsan (Lily) Salem. She worked for the Ministry of Social Affairs before resigning due to the bureaucracy. Now, she works for an ngo that assists the disabled and manages an art gallery. She had been to a training session of three weeks in Germany at one time and visited the United States. In Germany, she said she experienced a similar traffic hold up, since then Chancellor Helmut Kohl was traveling on the same highway leading to her hotel.