how do you find working and living in Egypt?

I can't tell you about working, but from my brief experiences (periods of 2-3 months for the past two years) living there, I would say it can be a bit of a shock (both pleasant and unpleasant) depending on your country origin. The vast array of services and considerably lower cost of living is incredible, and easy to get used to. I've found most native Egyptians (my father is Egyptian but I have never lived there before) to be friendly, neighborly, and generally willing to give you a hand if you're stuck on something. I was locked out of our apartment and our neighbor downstairs saw me and invited me in for tea and a little meal until the locksmith came! Late hours offer a more casual and slow paced style of life; there's no worry about having a restaurant close the kitchens early or not being able to go to a kiosk after midnight (I'm from Switzerland).
You have a whole host of activities and a wide array of places to do them in, with countless restaurants, cinemas, clubs, coffee-houses, shisha-bars and so on.
I've found some things take getting used to, such as:
It is far from Saudi-Arabia, but nonetheless certain things can take some getting used to, especially for women - like being affectionate with male friends in public or dressing in tank tops or tight jeans in certain areas.
It is necessary to either hire a driver or purchase your own car as getting around is quite difficult, especially if you don't speak Arabic and don't want to get ripped off by taxi drivers (has happened to me before).
Are you planning a move or committing to a job there?

lol buffy i couldn't describe it any better..XD

about the working part..how about telling us your past experience with work..or what is your preference..what school/faculty you went to..etc..so we can answer in details if there are any

sorry - but the cost of living is not that cheap - if you look at all the indices being published - it is the same as livng in the UK / US

And the slower pace of living can be very frustrating especially when you are the one who requires the service and they never arrive when they say they should or it takes weeks to repair

Biffy - AGREED. The service issue can be extraordinarily frustrating. I never get good service when my father is not there; he used to work for Nasser and Sadat so he is generally well-known and things flow smoothly - however, when he leaves - I am often left alone with faulty pipes or air-conditioning for days to weeks on end!
I read those who work for "foreign" companies and are paid accordingly (i.e. a dollar based salary) consider cost of living cheap, whereas the average Egyptian rated high-normal to high.

well its not the cost of living that is important rather its the place you are gonna live in or stay at...prices of apartments/house are getting really high nowadays..however..if you actually manage to find the place to live in..the rest can be considered cheap..well as long as you have enough knowledge of the prices around or someone to help you so you don't get scammed..

Remember that the Egyptian pound is "going down" against the dollar, so all prices will be higher very soon! Also Egypt is planning to increase some taxes, this will also make prices higher.

Cost of living in Egypt is not considered low if you try to maintain a standard of living similar to that of most western countries and it gets very expensive if the need for medical care arise.
Most products are imported and if you find quality ones they are likely to be more expensive. Add to that the cost of having to get things done a few times, and pay for it, if you want to get them done anywhere near right.

Cost of living can be amazingly cheap when you know your way around and know how to deal with people and situations. But by then most people would have had enough and........

Work depends on the company you work for and the people you deal with. Generally the more "professional" the less headache and in all cases bear in mind "common sense" is an oxymoron.

The best way to live in Egypt and not wanna blow your head off is to take regular breaks from Egypt. If you can afford it, every six weeks or so leave to anywhere else even if you just cross to Aqaba for a few days vacation. I used to take those in break in Sinai but then it got to be a nightmare after the big R.

I used to love sitting in a Cafe in Heliopolis enjoy the sun and watch the craziness around. It was like going to a Zoo, great to visit and you know you will soon be going home.

Best of luck


Oh and never ever think of buying/driving a car in Egypt. Your life will forever change......or you'll die :d

You have to adjust, but it is possible to drive in Egypt. I am driving around Egypt, Cairo for over ten years, the last three years over 80.000km, only with a small accident caused by a driver who stopped and I stopped behind him and then he started to drive back, I used the horn to no avail. Our car insurance paid for the damage to my car.

BTW I am a woman.

I own a car in Egypt and used to drive it to specific locations around cairo then park it their and take a taxi to my destination. I had spots selected around Cairo where I knew I could park. As with everything else I adjusted and adjusted and adjusted or so I thought. The reality is I was a ticking bomb. The sentence I am about to write was wringing in my head the last few month I was there and astonishingly I heard it from my Iraqi friend here in Canada referring to his attempt to live in Iraq after decades of living in Canada. He said "I was either going to kill someone or get killed" from all the conflicts hew had every moment of the day. I had so many close calls with the car as I used to drive long distance a lot. Sainai and back. I would be so furious at the carelessness of the drivers I knew if I put my hand on one of them one of us will end up dead.
I had an accident where I was not at fault and a bunch of Saidis (from upper Egypt) ganged up on me and mad it clear I was going to pay for the damage on the other vehicle or I was not going home. That was not in Cairo. It cost me 4000LE.

And I have to ask what does it mean to adjust?