An American Ex-Pat in Egypt
By Steven Sewell
President of Professional Golf Resources LLC, with over 20 years consulting experience leading U.S. and International golf facilities and related businesses toward successful futures with services in all phases of golf course development and operations, including: golf course site selection and preparation, permitting, fairway layout and design, facilities design, development planning, construction, interior design, design specification and purchasing, operations analysis, marketing, management, staffing and job description manuals. Steve has authored three books, one used by the PGA of America for use in its marketing and management program.
What a transition! For a big part of my consulting life, I've traveled or lived overseas. Generally the sites were located within Western oriented cultures and if an occasional connection with the East came about, all the better for experience sake. Now, all that has changed for me; I am an American Consultant becoming an Egyptian. No, I'm not foregoing my citizenship or forsaking my allegiance to the US. Rather, out of necessity, I’m partially easing the system, as it pertains to my work, toward a more productive working environment.
I am an associate of WTS International, located in Rockville, MD. Our fellow Cayuga Member, Gary Henkin, is the president of WTS. We are the operations arm of this new, exclusive club/resort. It's nice to know our input is well received and respected as we attempt to integrate our mode of operations into the Egyptian style. Despite the fears harbored by many Americans regarding the Middle East, in Egypt they seem unfounded; I've only experienced acceptance and a willingness to learn the new ways.
For most who have worked out of the country, the move to align with another country's culture and blend are a given. For my many years overseeing projects abroad, that's been the program. However, that effort was within a culture only somewhat foreign. This… is different. Learning the language and customs of any country is basic, if one is to succeed long term, which of course is the time table of most projects.
Many of you know, Egypt offers a litany of differences which complicate a smooth transition and assimilation into its inner ranks. Since it is basically Muslim, uses a different alphabet which also writes/reads right to left, features a different style of dress, cultural variations as to calendar of holidays, weekends which are Friday and Saturday as opposed to Saturday and Sunday, (creating a lack of work time overlap with the US), treatment of the sexes, laws as pertain to civil liberties, rights and confidentiality, banking operations, driving habits, road conditions, bathroom surprises and plumbing nightmares, power probability, temperature extremes, work schedules, gap between rich and poverty stricken, minimal credit use and reliance on a cash system, (therefore a lack of recession), booming, booming, booming construction, again without credit issues combined with support of government and more.
This people of Egypt are gentle, giving, hospitable and the most friendly I've ever met. I had no idea they were so accommodating. In general life has been acceptable, varying between frustrating and exhilarating. The variations are due to my initial housing which was located on a large island in the middle of the famous Nile River. I was ensconced in an old, large and beautiful apartment in Zamalek. It reminded me of my home town, Boston and the Beacon Hill area. However, Zamalek has suffered over the years from overcrowding and the ills that grow from such. All buildings, many are current or former embassies, require a good deal of renovation but the area remains vibrant and exciting, offering anything you desire within a short walk, just as any metropolitan area in the West. But, be advised if you walk in the evening, most vehicles do not use headlights! After deciding my driver was totally incapable of honoring a schedule, he was released and I became one of the 16 million drivers in Cairo. I used headlights, and the horn, which they use as a sort of communication device beyond our normal sphere of horn talents. Lack of headlights, ultra horn usage, an absolute disdain for the streets' painted line designations, double and triple parking, no respect for traffic lights and joking with the police as they take a little cash, "pashish", has become the norm. I write this as an outsider who has accepted and joined the ranks of this game, and now has been accepted to the "team", as my associates, Egyptian friends, colleagues and others, learn of my self driving status and greet me with respect.
We seek credibility and wish our clients to have confidence in our abilities. I'm here working under the Minister of Petroleum's investment company. The project is a new resort just outside Cairo, aptly titled New Cairo. This area, also called 5th Settlement, is an attempt by the Egyptian Government to grow Settlements, numbering now 1-14, around Cairo so to alleviate traffic constraints, offer an enhanced quality of life and move governmental offices away from the congested Cairo zone.
In a country so obviously populated with the poor, there is a large contingent of the wealthy. Many Egyptians are well educated, but not all have jobs, never mind within their area of expertise. As we drive to work, following the various pickup trucks, it's not uncommon to see the passengers clapping and singing as they cling to the sides of the truck. Happiness and acceptance of their meager means, seems to be their mindset. Deduction of a day's pay is common: show up ten minutes late for work and lose half a day's wages, arrive late again, lose a full day, the third time, you lose four! However, they're cavalier to the end, and continue their work, happy to have a job, despite the additional hardship just imposed. As you can imagine, unemployment is at a high.
For a few years, this facility's work effort has mirrored the proverbial serpent winding its way left and right, building and rebuilding. Now the American firm is here. We're contracted to help bring this investment to fruition and fiscal success. Despite my knowledge of the business, it has been a daunting task. Merely arriving at the work site is an effort. Since I live on the frontier, we drive on whatever side or part of the road we choose. It's not uncommon to drive down the road on the right, turn the corner, go around a rotary in a contrary direction then proceed down the next street embracing the left, or choosing the center line so to allow autos to pass in opposite directions on both sides! All this takes place at high speed and with studied casualness. Accidents are never little; they are furious, and typically fatal.
Doing business. It's a new world, since credit is not an instrument of business. Many requests for product, design and service require countless channels of documentation so to ensure credibility, a balance of power and layers of verification. These strata of bureaucracy are not seen solely in the government sector, but are common on the everyday work scene. Such a system, laden with levels of overseers, slows the process. The attitude of those working the system is its saving grace: all are content and working within the same constraints, so the world works its merry way.
Banking operations are a new experience. Wired money must sit quite a while before it can be released. There are no check numbers! If you lose track of a check or wish to place a hold on one, it cannot be recaptured by you for one year. Therefore most ex pats don't use checks, and on line banking is not readily available. So they've become Egyptians as I have, living by cash or debit card! Welcome to Egypt and all the good it offers. The differences are many, but the adventures are worth the trip.
