Day 77-83, January 19th-26th

Visiting the arrest after Nowak

Cities such as Kantara, Beni Suef  or Minja are actually non-distinctive; however, what makes them unique is the fact that Kazimierz Nowak was there.

Kantara is not the kind of place one would normally visit and Kazimierz Nowak did not choose to arrive there.

He went East from Cairo only to pick up the small format camera by Contax, which was much more practical than the one he already had.

However he remembered Kantara clearly because that’s where his trip was interrupted unexpectedly. The city is located by the Suez Canal and not only was he not permitted to cross the canal; he was arrested.

The Police headquarters is one of the oldest buildings in Kantara. It was built at the beginning of the 20th century and still stands now.  The Pole was imprisoned in a cell there in the 1930’s.

“As a matter of fact, we were not arrested, but there were unpleasant moments,” laughs Piotr Tomza.  “At the police station, we were told that the city – like 80 years ago – was unfriendly to foreigners and it’s impossible to spend the night there without permission. It actually turned out to be the most expensive accommodation on the Egyptian route.

Paweł and Piotr crossed the distance from Cairo to Kantara on bicycles very quickly. The other Piotr and Magda travelled by train. After their return to the capital and contrary to Nowak’s experience, they didn’t have to wait for the photographic parcel; the lens filter had already arrived from Poland.

The next day they hung another of Nowak’s commemorative plaques on the building of the Polish Embassy, which was beautifully situated amongst the greenery of the gardens. And by the Sphinx, they repeated the frames that Nowak had chosen decades earlier.

“The pyramids make a huge impression, although it’s difficult to admire them with the noise from the road traffic at the cross-roads,” notices Piotr.

Teofil – the one who understood Arabic perfectly  - reached the end of the route. From this point on, he will be replaced by Sebastian, who from the very beginning, will be unlucky.

“The Police treated us dreadfully,” claim the cyclists. The story goes as follows:

“We were heading South and when it started to get dark, the police suggested that we turn back. Five kilometers back, there was supposed to be a hotel, behind which we would be able to pitch our tent. The five kilometers turned out to be at least fifteen, which meant we arrived back at the toll-gate of Cairo. Whilst travelling on the road we were followed by a Police car, which was being driven without due distance. The Police car ran into our bike trailer and we were forced to return to Cairo to change the equipment.

The following day, despite clear Police objection, they rode their bicycles on the small museum territory in front of Mit Rahina. Before them stood the impressive Memphis, now an alabaster Sphinx (beside which Piotr is photographed like Nowak before him), and some remaining statues, including Ramzes II.

In the evening they stop in the countryside. They camp under a palm tree and prepare a campfire. Some guys from the village visit them offering tea and bringing dried palm tree leaves for the campfire. Piotr takes the guitar and the locals make him compete with their cell hits.

The following night, in contrast to previous ones, is very pleasant. They stay in the Coptic center – Beni Suef.  There is fresh air, nice apartments and the Egyptian team is promoted to the African Nations Championship semifinals to everyone’s joy.

“From there to Minja we have driven 130 kilometers,” says Piotr Tomza. “Unfortunately, the Police accompanied us throughout the whole journey, but they were more or less reasonable.

In one passageway, the Police car was riding no more than 20 meters in front of us. That enhanced our view of the rear of the pickup, and we clearly saw a big inscription “Chevrolet” and two men in green sweaters with firearms on their knees.

They obligatorily collect the stamps, because Beni Suef  and Minja were on Nowak’s route.