It's not what you think!
We journeyed to Egypt for two reasons. We wanted to see all the cool Egypt stuff--the pyramids, the mummies (stay tuned next week) and to ride a camel, but we also wanted to see where Dan went to school. No, he's not Egyptian, but he spent a good part of his childhood there, living in Heliopolis, on the outskirts of Cairo and going to an American School, a boarding school called Schutz, in Alexandria.
So, one afternoon, we hire a cab and drive to the school, with Chuck, of course, to pay a nostalgic visit. Our cab driver is wonderful. He gives us a lesson in Arabic as he drives like a madman through the crowded Alexandrian streets. He drops us off in front of the school (where we hand over our passports while visiting) and waits while we're escorted around the campus for hours.
We decide not to disclose that Chuck is with us. Even though cats are well-loved in Egypt, they are not welcome in school.
"Chuck, mum is the word. No meowing. A nice lady is going to show us around. After that, we'll let you out to sniff."
Chuck is not a happy camper. But Chuck is also naturally curious and wants to sniff so he agrees to keep mum while we revisit Dan's school years. Schutz is no longer a boarding school, and it has changed and not changed.
Schutz is located smack in the middle of Alexandria.
We pass the basketball court (updated and upscaled), the swimming pool (which wasn't even there), and the tree, which Dan remembers climbing again and again. Yeah, he was a kid, after all.
We reach the building, which served as the dorms years ago, go inside and are able to walk the hallways.
Dan poses near the staircase he used to slide down as a boy! There's a photo of him sliding down in the yearbook.
We find the cafeteria, which has been revamped and the library, which looks the same as Dan remembers it.
Our tour guide takes us to her office and somehow manages to find old yearbooks.
All the while, Chuck has not made a peep. Not a meow.
"Is he okay in there?" I ask.
We're finally alone. The tour is about to end. We have one more place to visit--the auditorium. When we get there, we let Chuck out so he can sniff around and stretch his legs. Dan spots a piano and goes over and starts playing.
Suddenly the door to the auditorium opens and our nice lady tour guide appears. "Hey," she says, "I didn't know you played the piano."
My first thought is Chuck. Where is he? Can she see him? How is she going to react to a cat in school?
Before Dan can say a word about piano playing, her laser beam focus lands on Chuck, who in that exact moment pops out of the shadows.
"Wrong time to be friendly," I want to shout aloud, but in a split second I decide I'll just pretend I don't know this orange and white fur ball. This is just a strange cat showing up out of nowhere scenario. Happens all the time.
"Oh, my God," she shouts. "There's a cat."
Dan is just about to say the worst possible thing. I know he is because he's stopped playing the piano, turns around, and is staring at Chuck. He'll want to solve the problem. Explain the mystery away.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry about it," I interrupt. "It's just a cat."
She looks at me as if my head just exploded, and then immediately transforms herself into a kind of generalissimo. "Cats aren't allowed at Schutz. No pets. No animals of any kind."
Dan is looking at me, trying to figure out why I'm not telling her that we know this cat. This is our cat. Our Chucky. But I have a better idea.
I smile broadly. "We're just leaving now. We'll take the cat with us. We'll handle it."
She looks at us very suspiciously. And begins walking towards Chuck.
I realize in that moment that she's on to us.
"Run, Chucky, run."
He does. Chucky doesn't do a lot of exercise in his regular life, but he can run when he has to. He makes a bee line for the auditorium door and shoots through it, disappearing into thin air.
I run after him. Dan runs after me.
"Where do you think he went?" I ask.
We look to the right. To the left.
Dan spots his tail disappearing under the iron fence that skirts around the Schutz property. Keeping things in and out. In short order, we run down the path that leads out of the Schutz compound, retrieve our passports and scoop up Chuck, who is conveniently waiting. (Only slightly out of breath.) We find our driver, who is parked on a side street near the school.
The driver doesn't say a word about Chuck as we scramble into the back of the taxi. When we arrive back at the hotel, they do a sweep under our car for bombs. He doesn't say a word about that either.
"Did you have a good day?" I ask Dan.
"The best."
I turn to Chuck. "School isn't always this exciting, Chuck."
But Chuck is purring. There's nothing like being chased and almost getting caught within an inch of your life. In Egypt. On school grounds. Where you're not supposed to be.
That Rascal Cat!
