Other than the straight-A student Du Xuetao, when the other three young people who loved to have fun heard about Zhang Zian's itinerary, they all revealed looks of envy and jealousy. They wanted to throw away the boring academic documents in their hands and let the Biology Department of Cairo University go to hell. They wanted to go sightseeing in Alexandria and the Port of Mersa Matruh, and take a bath in Cleopatra's bathtub.
Due to the long journey, Zhang Zian thought that Wei Kang would object. However, Wei Kang only pondered for a while, then nodded and said, "Alright. In two days, our field expedition route will also pass through Alexandria and the Port of Mersa Matruh. Then, from the Siwa Oasis, we will enter the Western Desert. You can go there first. You can help us explore the way."
"Alright."
Zhang Zian was afraid that Wei Kang would change his mind, so he quickly agreed.
"Then you guys go ahead, I'll be leaving first."
After saying goodbye, he trotted back to his room and announced, "Let's go!"
Cairo was the capital of Egypt and the largest city. It had the Great Pyramid, the first of the Seven Wonders of the World. It was the tourist center of the entire Middle East and North Africa region. Alexandria Port was the last capital of ancient Egypt and the second largest city in modern times. It had the Alexandria Lighthouse, the last of the Seven Wonders of the World. It was a famous seaport and industrial city. Many multinational companies were headquartered in Alexandria Port, so these two cities could be called the Twin Walls of Egypt. They were the two most important cities in Egypt.
Therefore, the highway between Cairo and Alexandria was in good condition. It was the benchmark of Egypt's intercity highways. The road was smooth and wide.
From Cairo, Zhang Zian drove in a northwest direction along 135 degrees.
The arrival of Ramadan had reduced the number of cars on the road. He drove as fast as he could within the speed limit to save as much time as possible. The family van he had borrowed from Lazart sped along the highway.
There was rolling yellow sand on both sides of the road, but the greenery nearby was pretty good. Rows of tall date palms and low shrubs formed an endless green path, making people temporarily forget the fact that 95% of the country's territory was desert.
One of Cairo's specialties was dates. Due to the long hours of sunshine, local fruits, including dates, were ridiculously cheap and high in sugar, making them very sweet. Many people would buy a few bags of dates before leaving Egypt as local specialties.
Zhang Zian had the same plan, but it was still too early to go back to China, so there was no hurry.
The elfins watched the date palms fly past the windows at high speed for only a few minutes before they dozed off.
After more than two hours of driving, the station wagon approached Alexandria Port. On both sides of the road, in addition to date trees, they could occasionally see large banana plantations, as well as orchards planted with grapes, apples, and oranges. The aroma of fruits filled the air, and the air was filled with a sweet smell.
The closer they got to Alexandria, the more colorful the surroundings became.
In addition to the red, orange, and yellow orchards, industrial development zones began to appear on both sides of the highway. The blue glass walls reflected the sunlight, giving people the feeling of a modern city. It was completely different from the dusty old city of Cairo, and the roads were very clean.
Alexandria Port's free industrial zone was equivalent to China's Zhongguancun and the United States' Silicon Valley. In a situation where tourism depended on the weather, it carried the hope of Egypt relying on industry to revitalize — but at present, the hope was relatively slim.
Zhang Zian woke up the elfins and reminded them that they had arrived at Alexandria Port. It was better to have a simple tour here, eat lunch in advance, and then set off for the Port of Mersa Matruh.
This proposal was exactly what Fina wanted, and the other elfins had no opinion. The only one who might have an opinion was Sihwa, who was still sleeping in her phone.
But where should they eat lunch?
The station wagon drove into the city of Alexandria Port. A familiar smell — the smell of the sea — seeped into the car through the closed window.
"Follow them."
Vladimir's eyes suddenly lit up, and it patted Zhang Zian's shoulder to let him look at the side.
Several stray cats ran quickly across the roof. They came from different directions, but they seemed to be running to the same goal.
Vladimir narrowed its eyes and observed their expressions. It murmured, "They seem to be going for lunch too …"
Since they were unfamiliar with the place, Zhang Zian simply listened to it and drove the car to follow the stray cats.
The stray cats took them north, and the smell of the sea became stronger and stronger. Zhang Zian didn't stop the car until a lively market appeared in front of them.
"So many fish sellers."
"So many … stray cats."
They stared in surprise at the market, where there were more fish than cats, and more cats than people. The strong smell of fish, shrimp, and crab could be clearly smelled through the window.
This was Alexandria Port's fish market, and it was also the city's cafeteria for stray cats.
Of course, ornamental fish were not sold here.
There was more than one fish market on the Alexandria Port Seaside Avenue. The scale was generally smaller, but it was very lively, even during Ramadan. As long as they followed the stray cats, they could easily find these fish markets that were hidden very well.
As Egypt's largest port, the city's most unique delicacy was fish.
Alexandria Port was probably the most tolerant city to stray cats in all of Egypt. Its degree of tolerance was one of the highest in the world, if not first or second.
When people walked in the alleys of the fish market, there were often cats rubbing against their feet. When people and cats went to the fish market together, there were more cats than people. Everyone was used to this.
In the restaurants on the side of the road, stray cats entered the room and jumped onto the table openly. They looked at the diners a few times, and when they saw that the diners had no intention of chasing them away, they boldly lowered their heads and ate the fish on the plate.
The restaurant's waiters shuttled between the tables with plates, turning a blind eye to the existence of stray cats. As long as the diners did not raise any objections, or the stray cats did not like to break plates, the waiters would not care.
When the diners finished eating and left the table, if there was still food left on the table, the waiters would deliberately wait for a while to clean it up, until the stray cats on the table had filled their stomachs and left satisfied.
When people in other countries had to spend money to go to cat cafes to pet cats, few people knew that in any restaurant in Alexandria Port's fish market, one could eat with cats for free.
The locals were indifferent to this, but a few foreign tourists were surprised. They did not eat much of the meal themselves. They only cared about taking pictures of the stray cats eating fish on the table, and the food was all taken advantage of by the stray cats.
Unfortunately, there were very few foreigners in the fish market. Most of them were locals, because the fish market was hidden too deeply. Generally, only people who had been to Egypt several times and liked cats could know this little secret.
This was simply a stray cat's paradise.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
