Goin’ on a Bus Tour

Yup – it is true. The Faculty Services Committee has planned a bus tour of greater Cairo and the “New Campus” of AUC. It is an optional trip, and I’m not a HUGE fan of lots of people crammed on a bus, looking OUT of the fishbowl, yet I would like a better idea of the layout of Cairo, and what the new campus is all about.

It is my understanding that the new campus is “Way Out There” in the desert. It is supposed to be lovely and well appointed, but “Way Out There” in the desert. One of the current draws of AUC is that it is an urban campus, so I am interested to see what this new campus has to offer. The move is currently scheduled for the summer of 2008, so that all will be at the new campus in September 2008 (insha’allah).

After the tour: We went around a lot of the sections of Cairo, and the litany of historical “New Cairos” as the urban center has moved. Most of the moves have corresponded with vascillations in the river, and mad leaders (more later on mad leaders). That part of the tour, although intellectually fulfilling…got long. The interesting part of the tour was seeing “New Campus”

First – Yes it is “Way Out There” in the desert, however “Metropolitan Cairo” is also expanding rapidly in that direction. So the milesandmilesandmilesandmiles of unbroken desert that I expected on our journey to New Campus were not there. Going to and while at new campus, we could see housing and infrastructure being built. Now, keep in mind, it was BEING BUILT. This means that new campus may not be in the middle of NOTHING, but it is not an urban campus. One would still need transportation and time to do simple daily chores, like grocery shopping. And most of the housing is “gated luxery communities” which may (or may not) be to one’s liking.

Second – the planning for this campus is IMPRESSIVE. Lots of things have been taken into account (like being in a desert! and the maintenance of landscaping). The buildings have been designed to be low impact and to shade each other, making use of airways and courtyards to keep the campus cooler. The entire campus is a pedestrian core with large gardens surrouonding the main academic areas. The plantings are all locally grown, indigenous plants, with the landscaping used to maintain moisture and cool the air surrounding the campus. The THEORY behind the new campus seems wonderfully comprehensive – my question is, how will theory compare to practice?

The campus is still a long Way Out There. Many parts have been designed. Some parts are in the process of being built, others are mere speculation. One of the speculations is faculty housing. Another speculation is public transit linking the new campus to downtown. Theory and practice…