Waiting Is Not Allowed

We all wait for papers to get completed, to get treated at a hospital, to get through traffic on a bus, to reach a certain destination — all in anticipation of a particular outcome. However, in every city this waiting has a distinct feel to it. In Cairo, particularly, people seem to wait for endless hours to get things done. For something to happen. For life to move along. Egyptian timing, or the lack thereof, has always been turned into a comical anecdote. Time’s power is valued in a different way. The city leaves behind traces of its inefficiency, from standard education and health care to the transportation system. Fulfilling the most basic needs in everyday life requires patience, taking longer than it should. It is ironic to pass by several signs a day saying, “Waiting is not allowed.” Yet that is precisely what is expected of you. To wait. To become immune to it. And sometimes, waiting is not necessarily a source of discomfort. It creates a rhythm and life in the city, making it different than any other. In the culture, there is a sense of silent waiting, like the hours spent sitting on street chairs scattered around the pavements. It is a city constantly swinging on a pendulum — waiting for everything, or for absolutely nothing in the time spent in between.