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[Page 37]
Sunday 6th December
On Friday night we arrived in due course at Cairo. On leaving the train we were given a drink (very small) of cocoa and a roll of bread and a slice of cheese. This last was very good; as a matter of fact the other two were so also. We were then marched to barracks where the great majority of us slept on the stone floors of the corridor. Next morning we were up at six and were marched to the same place as the night before for another snack of cocoa bread & cheese. We were marched in single file, one man gave us a mug, another the cocoa & a third the roll & cheese. Shortly after we got on the trains and were conveyed out to camp. The camp is situated about due west of the Great Pyramid, and about ΒΌ of a mile from the train terminus. When we got off the train the natives passed among us trying to do business. They were selling cigarettes and chocolates. Almost every native had some alleged antiquarian coins taken from the pyramid. These of course were faked. They offered them for sale according to what they
thought they could get. Some of the natives had little statues of Ramases also alleged to have been taken from the Great Pyramid. These priceless curios were selling at 1/- each. There was one individual (an Arab) who engaged to tell you a good fortune a very nice fortune for 1/. He could tell you what had passed and what had became. I saw him sell one fortune. The proceeding was somewhat as follows. The person desirous of knowing his fate held out his hand and was told to clench it. He did so tighten said the fortune teller. The hand was closed tighter still. The Arab (for such he was) studied it imperturbably for almost 5 seconds and then told the man to open it again. He then, I think, made a few crosses after which, using the index finger he touched the palm on the corners of I think an imaginary quadrangle. He went round the supposed figure about