12. I made it to Cairo international airport and fill the form they gave us. Upon landing, they gave us another form for swine flu and a unit of masked medical professionals take our pictures and take the swine flu forms from us. I proceed to immigration officer who sees my passport and looks at me asking me if I have a residence in Egypt or a visa at least—he already saw my green card. I say no, but someone had put my name on the list. He says OK, and asks me to take seat in the corner. I wait for few minutes, remember I have been there before in 2005, a non uniform wearing young gun comes to me and ask me to follow him, he takes me to rather fat officer with a distinctively large butt. The officer asks me what I do for living, and what the purpose of my visit is. Then he asks me to go back to my seat.13. During that time a non uniformed man comes up to me and tells me he has my luggage, both of them and tells me he will bring them, but I have to take care of him—give him a bribe. I was like whatever, I am not thinking with you guy. The officer calls me back and asks me the name of the person who supposedly put my name on the list, I gave him the names and he makes a phone call, also asking me to wait outside again.
14. I see my passport being moved around the officers like a soccer ball, and all of sudden an officer comes to me with three other civilians telling me that I will have to go back to Madrid because they could not find my name on any lists. A representative of Iberia airline comes along and tell me that we need to hurry up so that I can make it to the same plan I came on, we arrived at 10:20 PM Cairo time and the airplane takes off at 11:00 PM forty minutes later of my arrival.
15. I was frustrated with the outcome, but I tried to keep my cool and go with the flow, now the guy who earlier asked me for a kickback to give my luggage shows up with one of them and goes to grab the other, when he comes back he askes me to be generous—I was not on fire, I told him, I am not going to give him anything since I did not make it to Egypt and I am being deported, he was disappointed by understood, walked away.
1 comments:
I am so sorry of all the trouble you had. I swear never to go to Egypt again afther what happened to me in 1997 when I went to Egypt to visit a friend on my way to Greece and they would not let me out of the Airport, I had a visa my friend and her husband was waiting for me at the Airport, my friend's husband was the General Manager of Bank of Egypt in Cario, they would not even let them or me talk by phone because I had a none citzen refugee passport from Sudan, they use to give any refugee that kind of passport at that time and my flight to Greece was leaveing next morning and I arrivied in Egypt at 6pm so, I had to spend the night at the airport on the floor near my luaggage, even they would not let me go to a hotel, I had a very hard time to sleep on the floor with no pillow or blanket also I was afraid they will steal my stuff. I know how frustrated and mad you where. I am sincerely sorry for all the trouble you had.
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