The Women's Car

In Cairo they have a great metro system which we use to get around. To go to church we ride towards downtown for about 20 minutes. If Paul and I are traveling together, we can ride on just about any car. However, there are a few cars reserved just for women and their children. When I ride in the women's car on the metro, I feel I am part of a special community.

You can laugh, I know its a funny notion. When we are moving along, I see women relaxing together in a way that I don't often see in public. Mothers sit and talk with each other about their children while their little ones sit on their laps, women who are seated will hold the filled to the brim shopping bags of the women who are left standing, and one time a woman next to me fell sound asleep. She rested her head on my shoulder until the train stopped. As we braked, she rocked onto the shoulder of the woman on the other side, then we started to go again and she rocked back to me. Recently, a woman who was fully covered- not just the normal hijab but with a headscarf, gloves, a veil over her face, everything- removed her veil as we started to go. Every time we stopped, she'd put it back in place should any man look into the car. But as a woman, I was allowed to see her face.

Maybe this unique feeling of community I get on the women's car will pass as it becomes more routine, but I hope not. For now, I look forward to my daily commute, my daily dose of Cairo's female community, relaxed and at ease.

Stephanie