Cairo, Kingdom of Egypt
Thursday, February 5th, 1925

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Fredde ten Boom landed her airplane at the Heliopolis Aerodome, a journey that thanks to clement weather had taken only the better part of two days, with one leg from London to Athens, and a shorter one from Athens to Cairo, seeing their arrival in Egypt around mid day of the second day of their journey. Thanks to the Harry's engaging the outiftter in London and securing their permits, as well as their status as Europeans, their firearms and liquor both go without question. A short journey on the Express Railway saw their arrival into the bustling city of Cairo.

Signage in both English and Arabic seemed to dot the city as they saw it, but nearly all they heard spoken through the buzz of conversations that came unintentionally into their soundscape was Arabic. Natives and foreigners alike packed the streets and moved through in a manner of organized chaos. Vendors pulled carts that called out the goods they were hawking, and horse drawn carts and the occasional automobile slowly made their way through the streets, cutting a way through the thick crowd of milling pedestrians.

Near the station itself there were a series of horse drawn carriages waiting, as if for passengers departing the train and needing transport to a destination nearby. A request, recommended to Leo by his friend Lord Balfour, takes them to Shepheard's Hotel. Physically, Shepheard’s is impressive. It is four stories high, has a colonnaded foyer and portico at its entrance, and cupola towers at each corner. Very likely, a view from its upper floors would see out onto most of Cairo from this location.

As they arrived, porters rushed to assist with bringing their bags into the hotel, attending to the task with alacrity as they were escorted toward the front desk. A well dressed Egyptian clerk greeted them warmly.

"Good day, sirs and madams. What name is your reservation under?"

Although Cairo intrigued him, as most of the ancient cities of the Near East did, McNeil’s immediate concern was that he’d simply not had enough liquor to face the afternoon. Within the close quarters of the aircraft, he’d been forced to be surreptitious about his drinking, relying on short nips from his flask when the opportunity presented itself. As a result, he’d stepped into the streets of the Egyptian city with a touch of cold sweat playing at his neck and forehead, and being nowhere near the comfortable place of numbness that he craved, the alcohol soaked point of consciousness where he was able to freely apply logic to whatever puzzle presented itself, while his emotions fell, for the most part, blissfully silent. He earnestly hoped that the privacy of a hotel room would provide him the chance to catch up.

By virtue of the hustle of the porters, McNeil ended up at the clerk’s desk a few steps ahead of his employers. Summoning a polite smile, he said, ”I believe the reservation would be under the name Elias.”

"I have you down for three rooms, is that correct, sir?" he asked, addressing Dominic. The man had a light but noticeable Egyptian accent; from the surroundings of the opulent hotel and the faces of many of its patrons, he was clearly accustomed to dealing with Western clientele.

Harry Price was glad to have arrived in Egypt alive. While not afraid of flying it was not as comfortable as travel by train, and the absence of a bar made it downright uncivilized. Perhaps in the future, some bright fellow would come up with some means to deliver alcohol to passengers.

Having engaged Tiny proved genius as have the man's muscle handling Harry's quite heavy luggage. Harry could have packed lighter, but not having the proper attire was not an acceptable solution.

"Yes, we had wired ahead for three rooms with a request that they all be adjacent and at least one being a suite, and all with private bath if possible." Price said as he lit a cigarette.

Tiny enters the hotel with great enthusiasm, carrying five pieces of luggage. He is followed by several hotel porters lugging the rest of the groups luggage.  Talking slowly he explains, "BE CAREFUL WITH THE BAGS! SET THEM DOWN SLOWLY THERE. NOW GOOD LADS."

After he, and they, have set the bags down, Tiny takes out some cash and pays the porters a reasonable amount. He then joins Major Price at the clerks' desk. "Looks like everything made it major, and with no breakage."

The aviatrix bounds up the steps, carrying a worn kit sak slung from her shoulder and a cased shotgun under her arm. She stretches as she looks around the lobby for the hotel bar and the dining room.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:00, Fri 01 Feb 2019.

Leo nodded at the suggestion of what the reservation would be under, then took care of paying the porters for their work - with a little extra for having taken good care of their things. He next employed the bellhop staff to take over. He was too old to be lugging things up to his room.

He looked forward to getting a chance to sit a bit, think, and read. Though of course there would also be some planning. There was always planning these days.

"Yes, you are most correct, sir. This is exactly the reservation I have for you."

Even from within, the opulence of the hotel was notable, characterized by stained glass windows, Persian carpets, gardens, terraces, and great granite pillars resembling those of the Ancient Egyptian temples. And it was into this serene and pristine atmosphere that Tiny came tromping in, speaking slowly and loudly at the porters.

The man at the desk looked momentarily alarmed, as if the owner of a China shop in which a bull had entered, but quickly brought his face back to its previous expression.

"I'll have your bags sent up to the rooms," he said, placing two sets of keys in McNeil's hands, and handing one set to Price.

"We have plenty of porters on hand for this duty. Kindly inform your companion here that he need not trouble himself. We are quite accustomed to European and American guests. Please do let us know if there is anything else we can do for you."

---

A short walk to the elevator took them up to their rooms, which gave them a good view of the city. At their direction, the porters moved the appropriate items of luggage into the appropriate room based on who was rooming with who. After inquiring once more if there was anything additional they needed, the group was left to their own devices.

When asked if there was anything else required Harry nodded, and handed the porters a tip "Some bottled water please."


"Perhaps as far as arrangements, Tiny and I can bunk together, which leaves McNeil and Dr. Elias in another room. Might be best if the ladies were in the middle." Price suggested he looked the place over.

"I think I am in need of a hot bath. After that what is the plan?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:29, Wed 23 Jan 2019.

”I would suggest that we travel to the Old Quarter first. Locate the shop of this Faraz Najir, the merchant that had contacted Roger Carlyle,” McNeil said. ”There are several ways we could approach Najir, but it might benefit us to conceal our connection to Jackson, and to present ourselves as potential customers that are interested in the strange and unusual.”

"That sounds like a very good plan. Perhaps Mr. McNeil,as you are the one least likely to be connected to Elias and with a profession that would lead you into a shop of this nature, you would be the best one to lead such an excursion with one or two of us, while the rest could easily be standing nearby hopefully going unnoticed as nothing more than tourists shopping." Harry replied as he lit a cigarette.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:54, Fri 25 Jan 2019.

"Looks like we'll be roommates, Miss Elias," Fredde says to Rosalie with a grin, "I'm told I snore a bit. Hope there's two beds, 'cause I'm also told I kick."

Listening in on Dominic's idea, Fredde comments: "Sounds like we'll be needing some transport. I'll find out where one leases or buys automobiles in this town."

She crosses to the telephone and calls down to the concierge's desk to ask about used car (and motorcycle) dealers.

”I’ve no objections to being the one to contact Najir,” McNeil said with a nod, ”As you say, I can easily justify the visit under the auspices of professional curiosity. Though, I would be appreciative if others were nearby, in the event something unexpected unfolds.”

The concierge answers the phone call placed by Fredde, sounding surprised by the inquiry:

"You wish to buy an automobile, or a motorcycle, miss? Are you certain? It is very expensive to do so, and not the best way of getting around the city. Our recommendation here at the hotel is that guests interested in seeing the city hire a guide to help locate places of interest and navigate around the city. As far as getting around physically, there is a tram system - and we can provide you a complimentary tram guide. Better than a car, there are Victoria carriages that you can hire, and they can be found all over the city for an inexpensive rate."

Leo nodded at the plan that was being hatched. "That sounds like a good idea. We can have a pair of us in either direction should the need arise."

In reply to The Keeper (msg # 14):

"Do I understand that you cannot tell me where I might acquire a motorcar or motorcycle?" Fredde says in a frosty manner.