Als Spion am Nil
4500 kilometers of Egyptian reality. A journey with the minibus.
October 2013, Dumont-Reiseverlag
280 pages; language: German
Price: €14.99 * €12.99 (E-Book)
ISBN-13: 978-3770182527
Available at amazon.
Summary
Great cultural assets and great beaches – that’s how Egypt is known. However, most people in this North African country have to fight for survival every day, they are deeply religious and follow old rules.
The author takes the reader to fifteen villages and cities. He travels by minibus, which takes him to almost every corner of the country, and discusses a lot with local people: about God, conspiracies and the everyday chaos. His trips sometimes end in breakdowns and often in an adventure.
The author learns why many Egyptians have never visited the pyramids and what connects a German company that produces car license plates with the corrupt Mubarak regime. He visits the place in the Nile Delta where the terror pilot of 9/11 grew up and the city where the powerful Muslim Brotherhood was founded. And time and again, he is mistaken for a spy on his travels and almost ends up in a military prison.
Reviews
The author is curious about people, he hardly ever avoids a conversation. A travel book that leaves the pyramids, temple complexes and river cruise ships to one side.
A book that deserves a special recommendation as a travel guide of a different kind because it portrays Egypt in a way you can hardly see anywhere else - in all its magnificence and misery.
The literary travelogue is considered a dying commodity. In his book 'As a Spy on the Nile', Gerald Drißner vividly describes how Egypt's society has developed beyond Nile cruises and luxury hotels on the Red Sea in recent years. He explains convincingly why the revolution has brought the Muslim Brotherhood to power and why the military eventually won't tolerate that.
