Semblance of ordinary life resumes in Egypt (Feature)

By Yasmin El-Rifae and Nehal el-Sherif Feb 6, 2011, 14:24 GMT

Cairo - Daily life seemed to be resuming to its ordinary patterns in Cairo on Sunday - after nearly two weeks of unprecedented civil unrest, as the spotlight turned to behind-the-scenes political developments as much as the camp of protestors on Tahrir Square.

The city's infamous traffic returned to its normal hectic pace and congestion, even if the flow had changed direction due to military blockades.

Streets were filled with people both shopping and commuting to work, as ministries called their employees back to their offices and more shops and businesses were open - albeit often for reduced hours because of the military curfew which remains in place.

'It's nice to be going to back to work. I haven't really left my house once since the demonstrations started and I miss my life,' Dalia Fahim, a lawyer, said.

More employees flocked back to the state television and radio broadcaster building. Only essential staff had been allowed in over the past week, as the army protected the building from protesters who targeted it in the first days of the demonstrations.

In Egypt's second largest city of Alexandria, also under curfew, university staff returned to work while students remained on their mid-year winter holidays.

'Life seems very much back to normal here, there are long lines at the banks, people on the streets, and lots of public transportation is available,' a university professor who did not want to give his name said.

Beggars and hawkers selling tissues, candy, and other small items were back on the streets and on public transport.

The number of community watch groups and civilian-manned checkpoints in Cairo also lessened as police gradually returned to most neighbourhoods.

'My friends and I have been spending all night on the streets, protecting the area and our families for over a week,' Abu Bakr, a university student living in the busy neighbourhood of Nasr City, said.

'We are glad to do stand watch, it is our duty, but it is very tiring. Now that the police seem to be back, we don't need to do this anymore,' he said.

Despite the resumption of everyday activity, glaring signs that this was a country in the midst of turmoil remained. Ordinary civilians and men in army camouflage were seen directing traffic in many areas.

The Egyptian Museum, around which much of the violent clashes took place, remained closed, as are most other museums and galleries in Cairo.

Tourists have largely abandoned the country, with the five-star hotels along the Nile eerily empty, darkened and shuttered to avoid attracting the attention of looters.

As tens of thousands of people continued to peacefully gather in Cairo's Tahrir square, which has become the centre of the anti-government movement, the public and the media seemed more focused on the political negotiations.

Members of the opposition, including the Muslim Brotherhood and representatives from Mohamed ElBaradei's National Coalition for Change, met with Vice President Omar Suleiman and agreed to form a committee to oversee reforms, including constitutional amendments.

These talks and concessions made by the government over the past week and a half, such as the resignations of deeply unpopular ministers and leader of the ruling National Democratic Party, have convinced many that the protesters should go home.

'We are tired of living like this, with this curfew and not being able to work,' Amir Mahmoud, a secretary at a travel office, said. 'Tourists have been scared away and a lot of people are losing their livelihoods because of this.'

'Mubarak already said he would go in September, what more do the protesters want?' he said.

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