Iskandria-namah: Cats of Egypt

If you are a dog person, please just indulge me on this one... If you are a cat person, welcome to my world :-)

Egypt is full of cats. We went for a run the other day and met a group of 14 cats lounging around together in the sunshine. Two of them were practically fighting each other to get our attention.

This post is a panegyric to the many and varied cats we have met over the last two months. I have photos of some, but others you will just have to take for granted that they were totally awesome and unimaginably cute.

1. Sneeze Cat
     Age: <1 year
     Location: Dahab (Penguin Restaurant)
     Distinguishing Features: Green plugs of snot crusting up each nostril.

Sneeze Cat was a pathetic creature. He was slumped around the restaurant panting pathetically. His fur was a little torn in places, and his nose was blocked up with crusty green snot. Naturally, animals like that love me, and he turned out to be rather disgustingly affectionate.

At some point Patrick idly pondered where cats in Dahab get their drinking water from. (The town is between the Sinai desert and the Red Sea, and even the water that comes from the taps is salty.) So I took the saucer from my tea cup and filled it with bottled water. Sneeze Cat lapped it up. I refilled the saucer. Cat drank. Saucer refilled...etc. All in all, that cat drank probably half its body weight in water. Soon its breathing had slowed to normal and it had perked up considerably. Then...

*Aaaaaaaa-chooo!*

The earth's axis shifted. The Red Sea may even have briefly parted. An enormous plug of green snot shot out of Sneeze Cat's nose and attached itself to my leg. Sneeze Cat looked surprised, breathed a little, miaowed his thanks and trotted off.

No photo, I'm afraid. I was too busy wiping up snot.

2. Big Tabby
     Age: >5 years (Probably into his 70s in cat years. An old-timer.)
     Location: Dahab (Al Shams Restaurant)
     Distinguishing Features: Wily cunning

There were lots of kittens in the restaurant begging for food. Each table was provided with a water spray to ward them off if it got a bit too much. Big Tabby paid no attention to the diners or the kittens. He just slept soundly on a cushion next to me. Then suddenly he shot across the room and grabbed a whole pita bread from under someone's nose, and disappeared under a table at the other end of the room. No nonsense. No begging. Just showing those young uns how it's done!

No photo, he was too fast.

3. Ginger Daddy
     Age: 4 years (Middle-aged, experienced, definitely still got 'it')
     Location: Siwa Oasis (Palm Trees Hotel)
     Distinguishing Features: Narcolepsy; a 'trophy kitten' following him everywhere

This is a cat that knows a good lap when he sees one. Near-impossible to displace once in situ. 'Trophy Kitten' trots around after him mewing pitifully. He mostly ignores her in his quest for a good sleeping place.

4. The cross-eyed cat
     Age: 1 year
     Location: Siwa Oasis (Café)
     Distinguishing Features: crossed eyes

Doesn't do a lot apart from sit around looking pathetic. Not very co-ordinated!

5. Lame Cat
   Age: <1 year
     Location: Alexandria (Café near Swiss Canal Hotel)
     Distinguishing Features: pronounced limp

Lame Cat... how can I describe Lame Cat, other than awesomely cute. The dumb look on my face says it all really. Lame Cat had me entranced. We went to this café every day for a fortnight just to see Lame Cat. Unfortunately one of the waiters didn't really like me being there so we stopped going. I still miss Lame Cat :-(

6. Rafters Cat

     Age: 2 years
     Location: Alexandria (Swiss Canal Hotel)
     Distinuishing Features: Enormous wriggling belly

I have never seen such a pregnant cat. I could feel her belly wriggling with kittens. We called her Rafters Cat because Patrick had a dream that she was sitting on the rafters of our hotel room. Then he woke up and was very confused to find that there were no rafters. We were quite disappointed to leave the hotel before the advent of Rafters Kittens.

No photo, bizarrely!

7. On the seafront in Alexandria.

I'm a Tiger, look, it says so right here:

Awwww!

8. Fisherman's Friend

There are lots of fishermen along the Corniche (which is the name for the seafront). Most of them have a faithful feline companion waiting patiently alongside. Preferably sheltered from the spray, and letting someone else do all the hard work!

9. It's all in the eyes

There is a fluffy white cat in our building. Last week she spotted Patrick and immediately ran towards him, miaowing and purring, and then followed him home.

He noticed that, like him, she has one blue eye and one brown eye, and assumed this is why she liked him so much. Last night we saw her sitting outside with the doorman, and he said "look, she has the same eyes as me" and sure enough, he has one blue and one brown eye too!

10. Sporting Cats

The following are some of the reasons why we are now training for a sub-6 hour instead of sub-4 hour marathon. It is impossible to keep running for more than about 10 minutes!