Fully Charged

Our apartment here in Cairo has been fitted with two massive batteries, 3 feet x 2 feet x 1 foot. They are designed to keep essential services going in times of power cuts of which there are many, or the government cutting the mobile networks. One is hooked up to the TV and strategically placed lamps so we can follow the news reports and/or not bump into things in the dark, and the other is linked to the wifi router and land line telephone handset which needs electricity to function. So in an emergency we can still receive the safety alert cascade messages from the British Council. Their arrival this visit does not indicate a heightened risk but is simply a result of an ongoing program to keep in touch with staff more securely. For techies, they work by being themselves plugged into the mains and keeping themselves charged up. When there is a power cut, the battery output kicks in instantly and smoothly. It's great for me when I am in the middle of a Skype session...and when we are blipping!