# Queue jumpers



## Maireadhoey (Jul 25, 2011)

I just totally lost it in Seoudi.

Whilst placing my big shop on the conveyer belt a young boy jumped in front with chocolate bar in hand and asked mumpkin? I said ok and let him go before me. Then a suited and booted middle aged guy pushed through from the back with his assortment of wares without a word, at which point I said no way and made the till girl start to ring through my order.
He started shouting at me and the till girl at which point other staff members came over and circled around, as you can imagine heated debate ensued. Problem was I couldn't now get my empty trolley past him. So I politely asked him lau samat at which point he said no and turned to stare at me now totally blocking my path, and thinking he had me cornered now. Well the red light came on and I rammed him with my trolley knocking him over. He got up and launched himself at me, which I managed to side step and the staff restrained him and escorted me to the car. 
Think I might lie low for a bit....


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## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

Maireadhoey said:


> I just totally lost it in Seoudi.
> 
> Whilst placing my big shop on the conveyer belt a young boy jumped in front with chocolate bar in hand and asked mumpkin? I said ok and let him go before me. Then a suited and booted middle aged guy pushed through from the back with his assortment of wares without a word, at which point I said no way and made the till girl start to ring through my order.
> He started shouting at me and the till girl at which point other staff members came over and circled around, as you can imagine heated debate ensued. Problem was I couldn't now get my empty trolley past him. So I politely asked him lau samat at which point he said no and turned to stare at me now totally blocking my path, and thinking he had me cornered now. Well the red light came on and I rammed him with my trolley knocking him over. He got up and launched himself at me, which I managed to side step and the staff restrained him and escorted me to the car.
> Think I might lie low for a bit....


 glad you are OK

You know you can call them and have the groceries delivered, or even go to a different supermarket


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## canuck2010 (Jan 13, 2010)

That sounds wild! Good for you, though thankfully the staff rescued you. Is that the market in Degla that is in the basement?


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## DeadGuy (Jan 22, 2010)

Damn! Sorry you had to go through this


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## MaidenScotland (Jun 6, 2009)

I fully understand as I lost it once with a youth and kicked him hard when he was laying on the ground after circling around and around me on his bike... 
I was mortified at what I had been reduced to.. but I did feel satisfied as well.

So I give you the big thumbs up...


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## Maireadhoey (Jul 25, 2011)

canuck2010 said:


> That sounds wild! Good for you, though thankfully the staff rescued you. Is that the market in Degla that is in the basement?


It was the one of road 90 in new Cairo. Trolley rage isn't too dangerous but I don't think I'll drive for a day or two, it could get messy


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## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

Maireadhoey said:


> It was the one of road 90 in new Cairo. Trolley rage isn't too dangerous but I don't think I'll drive for a day or two, it could get messy


maybe just go to Carrefour in "downtown", also on rd 90


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## Maireadhoey (Jul 25, 2011)

aykalam said:


> maybe just go to Carrefour in "downtown", also on rd 90


I do go there too, it's very handy, but you can find rude people anywhere. I think it was the fact that I didn't let him jump in even though he looked very wealthy that really wound him up. That, and the fact a woman knocked him down didn't go down too well. When he launched himself at me the other women in the shop went really crazy.


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## hurghadapat (Mar 26, 2010)

Maireadhoey said:


> I do go there too, it's very handy, but you can find rude people anywhere. I think it was the fact that I didn't let him jump in even though he looked very wealthy that really wound him up. That, and the fact a woman knocked him down didn't go down too well. When he launched himself at me the other women in the shop went really crazy.


Good for you....but unfortunately this not forming an orderly line is not confined to egypt...seems to be a very much british thing to do as have seen the same sort of behaviour in many other countries.
I was getting on one of the micro buses and was actually pulled back from the bus by a "very nice polite Egyptian Gentleman" who grabbed a hold of my clothes and tried to get on in front of me...pleased to tell you i won that one.....but you know as a woman we have no standing in Egypt.


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## SHendra (Oct 18, 2010)

Good on you Maireadhoey! I suspect that be the one story he won't tell of today to his social circle over shay!


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## Guest (Feb 19, 2012)

Maireadhoey said:


> I just totally lost it in Seoudi.
> 
> Whilst placing my big shop on the conveyer belt a young boy jumped in front with chocolate bar in hand and asked mumpkin? I said ok and let him go before me. Then a suited and booted middle aged guy pushed through from the back with his assortment of wares without a word, at which point I said no way and made the till girl start to ring through my order.
> He started shouting at me and the till girl at which point other staff members came over and circled around, as you can imagine heated debate ensued. Problem was I couldn't now get my empty trolley past him. So I politely asked him lau samat at which point he said no and turned to stare at me now totally blocking my path, and thinking he had me cornered now. Well the red light came on and I rammed him with my trolley knocking him over. He got up and launched himself at me, which I managed to side step and the staff restrained him and escorted me to the car.
> Think I might lie low for a bit....


Do you have firey red hair?


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## Maireadhoey (Jul 25, 2011)

farrell said:


> Do you have firey red hair?


Ehmmmm..... I prefer to think of it as strawberry blonde


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## Sonrisa (Sep 2, 2010)

ah dont worry, most of us been there done that. I once had a fight with one of the fruit stores in Rd9, started to throw the rotten apples that they had sold me back at them. Was aiming for the head an everything. 

Thankfully I didn't get arrested.


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## Guest (Feb 20, 2012)

Angry hawaga


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## hhaddad (Apr 14, 2010)

What i do is frown threateningly usualy does the job they back off.


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## aykalam (Apr 12, 2010)

hhaddad said:


> What i do is frown threateningly usualy does the job they back off.


but you are not a woman...men and women are not treated same way in Egypt, so for us expat women the battle is on 2 fronts


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## CAIRODEMON (Sep 18, 2011)

I hate that market, but it is very convenient and does great croissant. Staff are OK, but make a big deal out of closing for Friday prayer, and that was even before the Islamic revolution. If I want any of that then I will go back to Jeddah.

You need to remember that EVERYONE in Egypt is a Besha, and if Besha is held up or inconvenienced in any way, for example having to wait in line either bodily or in a car, then he becomes a smaller Besha and that is almost as bad as dying, in some cases worse.


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## CAIRODEMON (Sep 18, 2011)

Maireadhoey said:


> I just totally lost it in Seoudi.
> 
> Whilst placing my big shop on the conveyer belt a young boy jumped in front with chocolate bar in hand and asked mumpkin? I said ok and let him go before me. Then a suited and booted middle aged guy pushed through from the back with his assortment of wares without a word, at which point I said no way and made the till girl start to ring through my order.
> He started shouting at me and the till girl at which point other staff members came over and circled around, as you can imagine heated debate ensued. Problem was I couldn't now get my empty trolley past him. So I politely asked him lau samat at which point he said no and turned to stare at me now totally blocking my path, and thinking he had me cornered now. Well the red light came on and I rammed him with my trolley knocking him over. He got up and launched himself at me, which I managed to side step and the staff restrained him and escorted me to the car.
> Think I might lie low for a bit....


Problem is, at the risk of sounding like a misogynist, most Egyptian women let themselves be treated like doormats, and this encourages certain people to treat most ladies in this way.

I was in that shop a couple of weeks ago with the better half. She is a Turk, who could be mistaken for an Egyptian, but takes no s**t from anyone (me especially!). She was already annoyed since they had had one of their frequent check out problems during the previous morning which had meant a twenty minute delay. Anyway we went to the meat counter at about 8am, hung around for five minutes and them asked the man behind the counter if he intended to actually serve us. He simply said( in Arabic) that they would start serving at 8.30.

I said the hell with it let's just go to Metro, but she threw a real wobbler, yelled at the man and demanded to see the manager. He turned out to be a decent bloke who apologised and served us personally. The point is that there were three well dressed Egyptian ladies who were also waiting, who all congratulated her along the lines of "that's how you need to treat these people". Why did they need a Khawager to cause a fuss, why not stand up for themselves?


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## Whitedesert (Oct 9, 2011)

One thing that I discovered when I first came to Egypt was that many locals have no idea that once the person behind the till starts ringing up the stuff you are buying, they can then only serve another person once that is done. Somehow they figure it is possible to slip inbetween and pay for the little chocolate, because after all, it is only one little chocolate. Back in the village there is no electronic till, and these things are all possible...


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## Guest (Feb 22, 2012)

Maireadhoey said:


> Ehmmmm..... I prefer to think of it as strawberry blonde


my sister and my daughter both are gingers and i fear them! gratly


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