Travel

It depends on your type of travel, and of course budget.

If you want an utterly secure palatial oasis away from any contact with street life, there is a place called City Stars, which is hell and gone from anything interesting, attached to a shopping mall, and pretty much like being in a bubble.

I was on business there, and had to get the hell out after a couple of days, since I didn't go halfway across the world to be in that bubble.

Any of the large hotels around the Nile are fine.

I kind of liked the Sheraton, since it is on the quieter side of the Nile and within convenient walking distance of an colorful market area. But it is also adjacent to the bridge that is itself something of a social center. If you are the type who is used to venturing out in places where you have to exercise a reasonable degree of situational awareness, it's fine. The restaurant and casino are open to the public, so it's not hermetically sealed off from a varied crowd. Exercise reasonable cautions leaving and returning to your room and beware of some of the, um, commercial activities going on around the casino.

When you venture out, feel free to end that lively discussion with the friendly guy who was quite the conversationalist, when it comes to "let me show you my new art gallery" or whatever, and especially if it becomes a little too pointed. He pegged you when you walked out the front door. On the other hand, if you don't mind paying too much for mass produced papyri paintings as the price for kicking back with a cup of tea and a demonstration of ultimate salesmanship, that kind of thing can be amusing too.

Car horns. The car horns in Cairo are connected to the engine. If the car is running, the horn is blowing. If that's a problem, get a high floor. Then again, it's folks in high floors who find out about building codes, and their importance, if a fire starts.