Egypt is a poor place, seemingly without direction.

Egypt is a poor place, seemingly without direction. Tourism dried up like the rocky desert that makes up most of the country in the turmoil following the Arab Spring. Several months ago, the military government floated the currency, which had previously been fixed to the British pound, and it plummeted from 8:1 against the dollar to 18:1. People now need to work more than twice as hard to achieve the same standard of living, and wth tourism gone, that's a difficult thing to do. With a culture of tipping for every small service, whether already paid for or not, we've often felt like we're expected to be ATMs in order to help everyone get through another day. Sometimes though the efforts of locals to open our wallets are worth a smile. These kids paddle in the middle of the Nile near Aswan on old surf boards, using sheets of stiff plastic to propel them along in place of oars. When they see tourists on one of the many motorboats, they intercept at an impressive speed, grab on, and sing in exchange for tips.

Written by my niece in Egypt.