More Things to Know

LANGUAGE: Arabic is the official language. English and French are widely spoken.

TIME: Egypt is seven hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time for most of the year, except when Daylight Savings Time comes into play. Daylight Savings Time in the USA is from the first Sunday in April until the last Sunday in October. Egypt operates Daylight Savings time from the last Friday in April until the last Thursday in September.

If it’s 12:00 Noon in New York City:

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
7 pm	7 pm	7 pm	7 pm	7 pm	7 pm

Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Now	Dec
7 pm	7 pm	7 pm	6 pm	7 pm	7 pm

VOLTAGE:
Most areas have 220 volts AC, 50Hz. While certain rural parts still use 110-380 volts AC. Jordan: 220 volts AC, 50Hz. Lamp sockets are screw-type, and there is a wide range of wall sockets.

SAFETY AND SECURITY: U.S. Citizens should avoid crowds in large cities and street demonstrations and maintain a low profile. It is unwise to walk alone at night outside the immediate grounds of city hotels. The loss or theft abroad of a U.S. passport should be reported immediately to the local authorities and the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate. The pamphlet "A Safe Trip Abroad" provides useful information on personal security while traveling abroad. It is available by mail from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 or via the Internet at http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs or via the Bureau of Consular Affairs home page at http://travel.state.gov/.

MEDICAL FACILITIES:
There are many Western-trained medical professionals in Egypt. Medical facilities are adequate for non-emergency matters, particularly in tourist areas while emergency and intensive care facilities can be limited. Facilities outside Cairo tend to fall short of U.S. standards. Most Nile cruise boats have a ship's doctor on board or on call. Hospital facilities in Luxor and Aswan are inadequate, and fairly nonexistent at most other ports of call.

INTERNET LINKS: You may find some of the following web sites helpful in your search for more information on the destination, culture, history and general travel information on the countries visited on your program.

http://www.touregypt.net
http://www.egypttoday.com http:/www.wtgonline.com/data/egy/egy.asp http://www.crystalinks.com/egypt.html http://infoplease.com/ipa/A0107484.htm http://www.1uptravel.com/international/africa/egypt/ http://www.countries.com/countries/egypt http://travel.state.gov/egypt.html http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/eg.html http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/africa/egypt

For great information on using telephones and electronics worldwide, as well as many useful links to great travel information sites, go to http://kropla.com/. Particularly helpful is the "Useful Travel Links" section.

DID YOU KNOW?
The Pyramids are 30 centuries older than
the city of Cairo itself.