We all love getting to where we’re going in style.
Sometimes, though, normal means of transportation in Cairo just won’t cut it. Walk to your friend’s house, and you risk being run over. Hop in the metro, and you’ll be swallowed up by the mobs of rush hour. Take a taxi, and you’ll be forced to hear all about Ahmed’s opinion on the revolution.
Sometimes, Uber is really your only option. It’s clean, it’s fast, it goes where you actually wanna go, it operates around the clock, and you know exactly how much you’ll have to pay.
But it’s still Egypt, and anything can happen. Equip yourself with the necessary language.
Today, Cleo Lingo will be explaining….how to order an Uber in Egypt.
Vocabulary
Ordering your Uber
Hello (answering a phone). : “AWloh.”
الو
This is how pretty much all Egyptians answer the phone. One of the most universal words there is.
I’m from Uber. Where are you? : “Ana men OObrr. ENtuh FAne?”
انا من اوبر. انت فين؟
We’re going to start this post with an annoyance: Uber drivers calling you. Honestly, for whatever reason, this will happen a solid seven times out of ten. We have no idea why. Whereas in other countries, the Uber driver just drives to the location and waits for you, Egyptian drivers really like to get in your business. Even if they are 20 minutes away. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
Giving directions
I’m exactly at the location. : “Ana feel mehKEHN biiZUHbt.”
.انا في المكان بالضبط
Lots of Egyptians also just say “location” instead of “meeKEHN”, which technically means “place.” Also, the Egyptian pronunciation of “bihZUBT” is far off of the Standard Arabic “bellTHDUbtt.”
I’m standing in front of …. : “Ana WEHuff ooDEHM…”
………انا واقف قدام
I live on street. : “An SEHkin fe SHEHruh…”
. انا ساكن في شارع
Where are you exactly? : “Enta FANE bihZUHBT?”
انت فين بالظبط؟
If you learn this by heart, you will start to hear it everywhere. Seems like half of the phone conversations in Cairo is somebody asking their friend where they are.
5/10/15 minutes (quarter of an hour). : “KHUHmiss / AWshrr duhAY / ROHbaw’ SAW’uh.”
خمس / عشر دقايق / ربع ساعة
Beware: these might not be actual times. Check out our Cultural Post on “Egyptian time” for further explanation:
Call me when you are here. : “KuhLEHMnee LAWmuh TOOsll.”
.كلمني لما توصل
Have you arrived or not yet yet? : “Enta wawSEHLT wawlaw LISSuh?”
انت وصلت ولا لسه.؟
Are you here or not yet? : “Enta HEHnuh wawlaw LISSuh?”
انت هنا ولا لسه؟
“Wawlaw lissuh” is a great thing to learn how to say. Its direct translation is “or yet,” but it can be used in an infinite number of ways. Tack it onto the end of any question asking if somebody has done something yet if you really want to know the truth. Learn this if you want to show your frustration at the laziness of your friends.
Finding your driver
What kind of car are you driving? : “Enta SEYEyaw AREuhBEEuh AY?”
انت سايق عربية ايه؟
I’m coming right now. : “Ana GAY’ dellWAWuhtee.”
.انا جي دلوقتي
While this phrase is more abstract here, it can also be used in an immediate context. For example, if you friend asks if you want to eat koshary, you could say “Ana gAY’ dellWAW’tee.” This means that you’re coming along.
Is that you with the blinking lights (literally, “Are you the one that does this flashing?”) : “Enta EHlee AW’mll fuh-LAshr daw?”
انت اللي عامل فلاشر ده؟
Egyptian drivers, even if they insist on calling you, are pretty courteous. Look for their flashing lights.
In the beginning
Good morning/Good evening. : “suhBAWKH al KHARE / MEHsuh al KHAIR.”
صباح الخير / مساء الخير
I only speak Arabic, sorry. : “Ana EHsiff, Ana betKEHlimm AREuhbee bess.”
انا اسف, انا بتكلم عربي بس
We have a post coming soon on how to force people to speak Arabic with you. One of the best strategies is to just pretend that you don’t speak English. This might sound weird at first, but if you are serious about learning Egyptian, it’s one of the most fail-proof strategies there is.
Arabic is hard + lots of Egyptians speak at least a little bit of English + your Arabic accent probably isn’t the greatest. Guess what that means? You are going to have a lot of people switching to English on you. And that’s not what you want, is it? Pretend that Arabic is the only language you share with your Uber driver, and you’re about to get a lot of practice in.
Is your GPS working? : “elkhawREEtuh shuGHEHluh.”
الخريطة شغالة
Not that this really matters. Half the time you’re going to get lost anyway, as the GPS locations in Egypt aren’t exactly the best. But it’s an adventure, right? Just a fair warning.
On the way
I want to go to this location exactly. Do you know the way? : “Ana EYEiss awROOH feel mehKEHN daw bihZUBT….TAW’ruff eltawREE?”
انا عايز اروح في المكان ده بالضبط ..تعرف الطريق؟
It doesn’t matter to me. : “mish FAWRaw EYEuh HAHguh.”
مش فارقة اي حاجة
Use this here to imply that you don’t care what route the Uber driver takes. Use this anytime else that you want to be one cool ass mofo. Oh, you don’t have my favorite cookies at the koshk? Well guess what? It doesn’t matter to me.
Daaayumm.
Is there a lot of traffic? : “fee ZAHmuh GEHMduh?”
في زحمة جامدة؟
The quickest route/way, please. : “OHsraw’ tawREE mehn FUTHDlick.”
اسرع طريق من فضلك
Sometimes, though, speed is of the essence. Whip this out when you don’t want to deal with two-hour traffic jams.
At the end
Pull over/To the side, please. : “AWlaw GAWMB HEHnuh lo suMAWHT.”
على جمب هنا لوسمحت
Super important phrase here, especially in taxis.
https://cleolingo.com/get-a-taxi/
Just go straight/To the side. : “ooDEHM awlaw TOOL / AWluh GAmb.”
قدام على طول/ على جمب
Are you paying with cash or card? : “enta huTEHDfaw KASH WAWluh KART?”
انت هتدفع كاش ولا كارت
Cleo Lingo doesn’t need to tell you that Egypt is a cash-based society. Get in a taxi and try to pay with a credit card, and your driver is going to laugh in your face.
Uber is a different story, though. Indeed, avoiding getting ripped off is one of its biggest perks. Most places in Cairo don’t accept credit cards; thank god for Uber.
Do you have change? : “MAW’kk FEkuh?”
معاك فككة؟
The quintessential question.
Saying goodbye
Thanks. : “shokeRAWN.”
شكرا
Have nice night. : “TEHZZbaw AWluh KHARE / MAW’ suhLEHmuh.”
تصبح على خير
مع السلامة
This is for when you want to be a gentleman while leaving. The Uber driver has taken you this far; might as well not be a jerk.
Cultural Insight
We all know about Uber. It’s pretty much the same everywhere, and the way the system works with ordering, payment, and reviews is consistent country to country
However, did you know about….UBER SCOOTER??? Yes, that’s right: Cairo now offers the ability to order up a scooter ride, straight to your door. Whatever image is in your head….that’s pretty much exactly it. Nothing fancy, but a good old fashioned scooter, sitting shotgun behind a random Egyptian man. What more could you want?
Try this one out if you dare. As if the Egyptian traffic wasn’t insane enough, now you are doing it on a scooter with potentially no helmet. Then again….that’d be one hell of a video.
Good luck getting to your destination in style. 🙂
…..
Happy learning,
Cleo Lingo
